Kenny Priest

Winter steelhead anglers just can’t catch a break. Thursday, March 31, will mark the end of another abnormal steelhead season here on the coast. While the fishing was excellent, the real story was the lack of rain. But if you’ve been fishing the North Coast rivers the last few years, you know there’s very little normal to our steelhead seasons...
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As we move toward the last weekend of winter steelhead season on the coast, river conditions continue to be less than ideal. Not only for the anglers but for the adult steelhead and their soon-to-be offspring. As of Tuesday, only a few rivers remain open to fishing. The Smith and main stem Eel have been open all season, and will...
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Even though ocean abundance forecasts have increased over the prior year for both the Sacramento River and Klamath River Fall Chinook, the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) is taking a precautionary approach to the 2022 ocean salmon seasons. When the PFMC released its ocean sport salmon season options March 14, there was a mix of good and not so good news....
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The number of adult fall-run Chinook salmon forecast to be swimming off the coast of California seems to be trending upward from last year. That was the good news delivered at last Wednesday’s annual Ocean Salmon Information meeting hosted by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The number of Sacramento River fall-run Chinook salmon predicted in the ocean this season...
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As we wait patiently for our “Miracle March,” there is at least some rain in the immediate forecast. While it’s not much, anything at this point is beneficial. Currently we have way more rivers closed to fishing than open. As for the upcoming rain, the Humboldt area could see up to a half inch, which could open back up the...
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If you’d like a say in the upcoming Pacific halibut season, now’s the time to speak up as California anglers are invited to participate in an online survey to help inform the CDFW about angler preferences for open fishing dates during the upcoming 2022 season. Results of the survey, which is open until Feb. 18, will be used to develop recommended season...
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