Okay, what am I doing wrong?

[JHawk]

Okay, so we waited for the river (Nesstucca) to rise. Last weekend it was a 4.25. It got as high as 6. Today it was about 5.5. So, I thought that should be enough to get the fish moving up river.

I checked the tide tables and low tide was at 11:10A. High tide was at 4:30P. I checked with the bait shops in Otis and Hebo (Cloverdale is closed), neither of which was particularly helpful. Otis did say the water had been clearing up the last day or so. I was throwing a shrimp & egg cocktail most of the time, and worked a silver/silver spinner for a bit. Another guy in our party was worked a jig for a while and a pink worm for a while. We fished at Three Rivers working the seams and eddies as well as what we could hit of the edges, and upstream about half a mile also working the midstream and eddies. We fished the two hours before high tide and one hour afterward, before it got dark.

And, for all our planning, research, and effort we ended up with, nothing.

So, what are we doing wrong?

 

[halibuthitman]

the tucca died down a week ago, you went to the wrong river, but it is fishing.. and sometimes you get nothing, I would say at least you spent a nice day on the water but without a boat and the subtle but sweet smell of cow ****.. and car prowlers.. well anyway next time try farther north-

 

[JHawk]

the tucca died down a week ago, you went to the wrong river, but it is fishing.. and sometimes you get nothing, I would say at least you spent a nice day on the water but without a boat and the subtle but sweet smell of cow ****.. and car prowlers.. well anyway next time try farther north-

So how do I know which river to choose. We've tried the Salmon, Nestucca, and mid-to-upper Wilson at various times. I heard the North Fork of the Nehalem died down a week or so ago. When you say north, do you mean Kilchis, Miami, Nekanicum, or some please else? We're trying to learn where to source information so we're not spending our time (like today) on rivers with no fish.

 

[OnTheDrop]

You know what river to choose by trial and error and research... Back in the day I made countless trips to the coast with nothing to show for it. What I did on those trips was take mental notes. It was frustrating. Then one day things begin to click. Explore and have a good time out there. If you're fishing properly it'll happen...

Trask, Kilches & Wilson do get a later run of chinook so you could try there.

What is your method of fishing? Store bought eggs, blue foxes?

Good luck,

 

[troutmasta]

And, for all our planning, research, and effort we ended up with, nothing.

So, what are we doing wrong?

Expecting to bring home a salmon- I have friends that have fished w me 10 times and never hooked up-

So how do I know which river to choose.

Days like yesterday-

 

[halibuthitman]

its important to accept that your not going to get a fish every trip, its also VERY important to ditch unproductive waters as soon as you start feeling it might be dead, you cannot force a trip with an migrating creature, wether its an elk or a coho,,, you cannot be "behind" your quarry and you will never do well praying for a straggler... you must get at or in front of the bulk... which means moving a lot.

 

[JHawk]

Don't get me wrong, we do enjoy our time on the water, whether it's productive or not. And I do respect the learning curve and 'paying our dues'. We started out trout fishing with Power Bait a few years ago and learned what rivers, when and where to the point that we're reasonably proficient and successful. We quickly graduated to the point to where now we're strictly single hook fly guys doing C&R 100% of the time. We're learning salmon fishing now and we don't expect success every trip, but we do want to learn where & when, and we can experiment with the how (eggs, shrimp, eggs & shrimp, spinners, corkies, jigs, etc.).

So the Nestucca gets an earlier run and the Tillamook Bay rivers tend to get later runs? It sounds like the Nehalem Bay rivers get earlier runs like the Nestucca?

 

[fishinshawn]

Don't get me wrong, we do enjoy our time on the water, whether it's productive or not. And I do respect the learning curve and 'paying our dues'. We started out trout fishing with Power Bait a few years ago and learned what rivers, when and where to the point that we're reasonably proficient and successful. We quickly graduated to the point to where now we're strictly single hook fly guys doing C&R 100% of the time. We're learning salmon fishing now and we don't expect success every trip, but we do want to learn where & when, and we can experiment with the how (eggs, shrimp, eggs & shrimp, spinners, corkies, jigs, etc.).

So the Nestucca gets an earlier run and the Tillamook Bay rivers tend to get later runs? It sounds like the Nehalem Bay rivers get earlier runs like the Nestucca?

You should try reading the odfw online fishing report. It will at least give someone new to the sport some idea of how each river is fishing and how high the fish have gotten. I am on the south coast or I'd give you some tips on where to go. It is the transition time I think for most rivers, I'd say coho are going to be in thick for the next couple of weeks and then by thanksgiving most of us will be looking for steelhead....

 

[DrTheopolis]

Sounds like you're doing things right -- paying your dues, and learning the game. Gotta walk before you can run.

This has been a weird year for chinook. And this can be a very hit-and-miss part of the season.

Just keep at it.

 

[bigboy70]

i feel ya bud i have been out the last month atleast a day or two a week and i hooked into a coho on the sandy and thats what got the misses really game to go out and salmon fish i am the blacksheep of family only outdoorsmen so everything i either read or just went for it and started crossing stuff off the list like you i am confident in my trout and bass capabilities and was doing well salmon fishing with a few friends and older man he was like a 2nd dad to me was an outdoorsmen and taught me how he drift fished and if was all corkies and yarn thats what we all use and they were caughting more then me but i was hooking into my own and finally landed one but now that im solo im the one picking the places what to use and alll that its a lot harder and i am so greaterful for this forum its help me understand and learn a lot in the short time ive been a member but now im back to paying my own dues with my girlfriend so outta the 4 or 5 weekends we gone hooked one coho and then nothing went to the trask and she caught two cutthoart sea run trout and today she hooked into i think a sumer steelie never saw fish but from where we were and what i was told but anyways keep filling that timecard and hopefully payday will be soon for both of us fish on

from one newbie to another best of luck
-The Master Baiter

 

[SmallStreams]

My advice is to learn the patterns of only one or two rivers until you get it down.

It's taken me 3 or 4 years of chasing to get to the point where I'm confident that I have a 90% chance of predicting when/where the steelhead & salmon will be on the Necanicum. And this is the first year that I'm consistently catching them (4 for 4 steelhead, 8 for 9 salmon... just don't ask me how many had to be released, LOL). Still haven't hooked a chinook though...

 

[hvacr1]

its important to accept that your not going to get a fish every trip, its also VERY important to ditch unproductive waters as soon as you start feeling it might be dead, you cannot force a trip with an migrating creature, wether its an elk or a coho,,, you cannot be "behind" your quarry and you will never do well praying for a straggler... you must get at or in front of the bulk... which means moving a lot.

this is my biggest problem for sure. I just hate driving a ton just to find out the next river or next spot is same result when there is fish right where i am fishing. I can usually find the fish its finding the biters is the problem.

 

[troutmasta]

this is my biggest problem for sure. I just hate driving a ton just to find out the next river or next spot is same result when there is fish right where i am fishing. I can usually find the fish its finding the biters is the problem.

I would say if I land fish 70% of the time I fish- I see fish jump, roll, flop, fight, flash, etc.. 95% of the time-
It keeps me coming-

 

[halibuthitman]

this is my biggest problem for sure. I just hate driving a ton just to find out the next river or next spot is same result when there is fish right where i am fishing. I can usually find the fish its finding the biters is the problem.

once I had a guy tell me to never leave fish to find fish...and that's fine if casting practice is all a guys out for, but I believe you must risk everything to gain everything.. which means believing in yourself and the trip... and drive away from fish that won't bite.... and find a place to hammer some fish-