coho salmon

Grab your rods and coolers, it's time for Puget Sound coho! As far as saltwater salmon go, coho tend to be aggressive and eager biters. You can find them in most areas of the Sound, and the bite will only improve as the season progresses. Coho are plentiful and tasty! They taste good when caught in rivers, but you can't beat a chrome coho fresh from the salt. Having the right strategy, the proper gear and good preparation will help you get a boatload of coho this summer!

Trolling is the most popular way to catch these Puget Sound coho. It's a great way to cover water and adjust your depth based on the fish's location. Having the right gear is certainly important, but having a good strategy makes all the difference. I recommend getting an early start and fishing shallow. As the day progresses, fish deeper. Watch for marks and don't be afraid to drop your gear right down into the fish. Pay close attention to your fish finder.

Coho will school up most of the time, so don't be afraid to circle back to wherever you get bites. Coho like a shorter setback than you'd think. I usually use a 50 to 75-ft setback. Trolling speed for coho can be a controversial topic. Speeds anywhere from 2.5 mph to 3.5 mph will work. Here again, is where having a fish finder is crucial. In addition, study tide tables ahead of time. It's no secret that coho love a good tide change. Targeting tide changes early in the morning often results in a full cooler.

So, what gear do you need? There are several different ways to go. You can use trolling flies, herring, spoons, plugs, or spinners. Sometimes coho can be picky, so it's best to employ a variety of lures. You'll want to run your lures behind a flasher. Many different tackle companies make flashers that work well. Don't forget to smear your flasher and lure with a bit of scent! Coho are smart and some scent can fool them into grabbing your lure a little longer. Most days, coho just can't resist herring. They're out there feeding before going into rivers to spawn, so they're hungry! Don't be afraid to add a herring strip to any lure. You can brine up herring strips ahead of time and attach them to hooks, tie herring bellies to your plugs, or stuff your plugs with herring and tuna. Some fishermen dye their herring during the brining process, others don't. 

Knowing the right spots to fish is an important part of your prep work that you should research ahead of time as well. The fish start flooding into the Sound through the Strait, so fishing will be best up north early in the season. My experience fishing for saltwater coho is within Marine Areas 9 and 11, so we will discuss those locations here. The oil docks, shipwreck, and Picnic Point are all well-known producers.

You can launch your boat at Edmonds, Mukilteo, and Whidbey Island. Just be mindful that you don't accidentally cross into another Marine Area once you have fish on board. Sometimes you can keep wild fish in one area, but not in another. In Marine Area 11, common spots include the Yacht Club, Dash Point, and Browns Point. In both areas though, I'd caution against just following the crowd. Don't be afraid to study maps and find your own spots. Points and bays are always good places to start.

Preparation is key! Make sure to check for emergency rules before heading out. Don't forget to brine your bait ahead of time and grab ice to ensure your catch stays cool. Grab those life jackets and check the weather forecast. The Sound can turn nasty at the drop of a hat, especially for small boats. Preparation can make all the difference between a cooler full of coho and a day of disappointment. I'll leave you with a story to help drive this point home.

One day, I was out on the Sound fishing for coho on Mike Carey's boat with another friend. The day had started well- we got on the water at the crack of dawn and saw lots of fish on the meter. We started getting our 3 fishing rods set up when my friend said "Uh oh... I forgot my fishing license!" Mike and I immediately stopped setting up the 3rd rod and told my friend he was on boat-driving duty for the rest of the day. It went from a (potential) 6-fish day to a 4-fish day for us. Preparation is everything! Do your research, make a checklist, and give yourself plenty of time to get ready. Have fun and go catch a cooler of coho!

When it comes to fall salmon, anglers consider August to be part of the time of year when pumpkin spice lattes and crisp mornings are the norm. The eighth month of the year is technically still summer but anyone who has headed to the ocean this time of year can feel the chill of an early fall coming on. Fog and rainstorms are normal, along with high winds and rough seas but then there are the days of bright sunshine and hot temperatures that remind us it is still summertime, even if only for a few hours in the afternoon. Much like the weather, salmon fishing can change in an instant… Mostly in the form of regulations. 

August ocean salmon fishing is all about the rules and emergency closures and openings. The fish are regulated by quotas and estimated returns to natural rivers so be sure to check the regulations and emergency rules daily and be ready to change your location to fish as often as you switch out your cut plug herring. Knowing the rules also means knowing where you are fishing. 

Marine Area 1 is slated to be open for salmon fishing in August for both chinook and coho and this is where anglers will be targeting fish stacked up to enter the Columbia River. Known as Buoy 10, the famed August fishery at the mouth of the Columbia River continues out beyond this buoy marker but is considered Marine Area 1. Depending on sea conditions and bar crossing, fishing can be good out in the open ocean. Especially for coho as the chinook are mostly staging in the brackish water and rushing into the Columbia with each tide change. Coho will stay just offshore a bit longer as they prefer to enter the river in September and into late fall. 

Keep an eye on the Buoy 10 rules and regulations as well as any emergency closures or adjustments. If you have the right boat and navigation skills to cross the deadly Columbia River bar, then Marine Area 1 could save your trip if they close or restrict the Buoy 10 fishery. The same goes for about every ocean area you need to know before you go. 

Marine Area 2 gets a little more complex come fall. You can still hit the open ocean from the tiny town of Westport. Extremely popular in July when it first opens Westport becomes a mecca of salmon anglers come August. The complexity comes from the Marine Area itself which is broken down into three segments. Marine Area 2 is the open ocean and is slated to be open, but most likely for coho as the chinook quota gets eaten up quickly as the fish pass by heading to the Columbia or start to stage for Grays Harbor and Willapa Bay. This is where Marine Area 2 is broken down into sub-areas. 

Marine Area 2-1 is Willapa Bay which has three separate zones known as zones 4, 5, and 6. Zones 4 and 5 are closed and zone 6 is most of the bay itself. A kelp and grass shallow water bay where salmon will stage for weeks before heading up the Willapa River and to hatcheries. Wild chinook must be released, and anglers can use two rods each with the endorsement. A dropper weight system is used since this is shallow water and the amount of eelgrass makes it hard to use downriggers. Watch your gear closely and change out baits often but it is hard to beat hooking a large chinook in shallow water which is why this fishery can be immensely popular. 

Grays Harbor is Marine sub-Area 2 known as Area 2-2 with zones 1, 2, and 3. Zone 1, known as the Grays Harbor Control zone, closes in mid-August to salmon fishing, which allows fish to enter the harbor. Zone 2 is the Humptulips North Bay fishery zone and is limited to 1 fish, no wild fisher per day. The other zone known as the East Grays Harbor Zone 3 is mostly a coho fishery in front of the Johns River as all chinook must be released.

The Grays Harbor area is not exceedingly popular as you also compete with commercial and native fisheries but can be productive for those that try it. One of the most unique fisheries in the Grays Harbor area is the Westport boat basin fishery which is fishing in the marina where the fleets of charters and commercial boats are stored. Coho returns here thanks to a release effort with a recent addition of 50,000 late coho expected to return in October and November starting in 2026. For now, the fish arrive in late August and into September and can be caught right off the docks at Westport. 

Marine Area 3 is known as LaPush and is very remote. With limited launches and extreme weather area 3 is mostly accessed on days with optimal ocean conditions. It is slated to be open in August for both chinook and coho, but this is one fishery that is often adjusted with an emergency rule. Chinook are prime and targeted in July which often means an August closure but coho here are making their way to the many rivers that have both robust hatchery returns and wild runs as well. Wild coho are not allowed to be kept keeping those runs going so be sure to only keep clipped silvers. This is also a staging area for chums and in the salt, they can be misidentified easily as their purple bars are light and sometimes even non-existent this time of year. Chums must be released so be sure to look at the fish closely and know what you have caught. 

Marine Area 4, the last of the “ocean” areas had a rough start to the chinook fishing. As of July 11th, only 25% of the quota had been caught which normally that time of year the quota is getting close to being filled. I fished this area on July 12^th and 13^th, when the daily limit of chinook went to 2 per day and we did not hook a single adult chinook. The seas were rough and kept my little 18-foot boat limited to trolling along the kelp line and near shore but those that could make it further out did well. This indicated the chinook were here but out deeper than usual. Coho were being caught but not in respectable numbers which could indicate a later return this year which is great since area 5 to the east is slated to be open into October for coho. Come August the rules for chinook change in Marine Area 4 with it only being open west of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line. Coho is slated to remain open until mid-September in all Marine Area 4. 

Regardless of where you decide to go, be sure to head out to the open ocean for some great fall salmon fishing. Of course, before you go be sure to check the emergency regulations as these fisheries are subject to quotas and can close quickly. They can also open or be extended as well and just maybe you will find a bonus opportunity out in the ocean. Either way, be ready for some cold, wet, and rough weather as well as bring sunscreen as afternoons are known to burn off the fog and remind us it is still summertime. 

Summer is upon us and for many of us, that means that our home rivers are closed to fishing to protect ESA-listed wild Chinook. As a result, we are looking forward to fall when we begin to see runs of Coho and Chum salmon flooding into our rivers with increasing opportunities to catch them. Fingers crossed!

It is anyone’s guess what WDFW will do and many of us are eagerly awaiting news concerning our seasons, emergency closures, and changes in general. Keeping this in mind, let’s look at five coastal river systems to check out that could present great opportunities.

Let’s start on the Northern Coast and work our way South. For the sake of this article, the focus will be from Forks in the North to Grays Harbor in the South. There are other coastal river systems South of Grays Harbor, but we are going to focus on the most popular systems.

Quillayute River System

The Quillayute empties into the Pacific Ocean at La Push, Washington. The Quillayute River is formed by the confluence of the Bogachiel River, Calawah River , and the Sol Duc River near the town of Forks, WA. The Dickey River joins the Quillayute from the north, just above the river's mouth at the Pacific Ocean. Though it is world-renowned as a winter Steelhead mecca, this system also receives returns of all five species of salmon. With spring and summer Chinook salmon returning in lower numbers than expected, the Quillayute river system, including the Bogachiel, Calawah, Dickey, Sitkum, and Sol Duc rivers, as well as Thunder Creek closed to all fishing on July 15. Historically this system produced great returns of spring and summer chinook, but like so many of our rivers, the runs are now endangered. The Coho and Chum will return in September and hopefully, there will be opportunities to catch and retain hatchery fish.

Hoh River

At 56 miles long, the Hoh River originates at the snout of Hoh Glacier on Mount Olympus and flows westward through the Olympic Mountains of Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest, then through foothills in a broad valley, emptying into the Pacific Ocean at the Hoh Indian Reservation. The final portion of the Hoh River's course marks the boundary between the south coastal segment of Olympic National Park and the Hoh Indian Reservation.

Returns of Steelhead and Salmon make the Hoh River a fishing destination worth exploring. While there are fish in the Hoh River year-round, Steelhead are mostly targeted in the Winter, Chinook, and Coho are mostly targeted in August through November, and Dolly Varden and Cutthroat Trout are targeted anytime the water is in shape.

According to the 2024-2025 regulations, parts of the Hoh will open for Salmon fishing on September 16^th, presenting some great opportunities to target Coho.

Queets and Quinault Rivers

The Queets and Quinault Rivers and their tributaries flow from the Olympic National Park into tribal lands. While opportunities exist in the upper reaches of these systems and within the park, they are most noted for their tribally guided lower sections. Note that the rivers are governed by WDFW, the Federal Government, and the Tribes, depending on where you are, so pay close attention to the rules. 

The Quinault and Queets Nations have built some very robust hatchery programs, and they control the lower stretches of the rivers. Anglers can fish for all five species of Salmon as well as Steelhead and Trout. Fall Coho on the lower Quinault is a very fun fishery and can result in a freezer full of fish to last the winter. Note that you must book a trip with a tribal guide to fish the waters that lay within the reservations.

Humptulips River

The Humptulips River is located in Grays Harbor County, just North of Aberdeen and Hoquiam. Its main tributaries are the East Fork Humptulips River, about 20 miles long, and West Fork Humptulips River, about 30 miles long. After the forks join, the main river is approximately 20 miles long and provides some of the best salmon habitat in Washington. This river is not a secret and is often very congested, when open.

I will say that the “Hump” as it is called is one of my favorite rivers for fall Salmon fishing. It is renowned for its runs of Chinook, Coho, Chum, and Steelhead. As with other coastal rivers and due to low returns of wild Chinook, opportunities are limited. According to the current regulations, parts of the river should open in early September for hatchery Chinook and Coho. As this river can get very congested, it is best to know what you are doing and even better, book a trip with a guide.

Chehalis River System

The Chehalis River originates in several forks in southwestern Washington, flows east, then north, then west, in a large curve, before emptying into Grays Harbor, an estuary of the Pacific Ocean. The river is the largest solely contained drainage basin in the state. Both the Wynoochee and Satsop Rivers flow into the Chehalis between the towns of Elma and Montesano. While the Chehalis has many other tributaries, the Satsop and Wynoochee are likely the most popular and offer fantastic fall Coho fisheries. The mainstem Chehalis, near the mouth of these rivers, can be epic when conditions are favorable and some of the largest Coho in the state can be caught here. This system is also known for large limits of Coho allowed but check the most up-to-date regulations for specific details and don’t forget to look for emergency closures.

With all these rivers, please remember to check the regulations before you make plans or head out to fish. Things change often and it is very important to make sure that a river is open to avoid disappointment. Also, do yourself a favor and book a trip with a guide. I just cannot emphasize this enough. Your opportunities for success will greatly improve if you learn from a local guide and you are more likely to take fish home to eat later.
In closing, you are welcome to message me if you need to be connected to a guide. I am easy to find on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/brent.knight.148) and am happy to help. Good fishing!!!

By John Kruse

SOMETHING FISHY FOR DINNER

TJ’s Bar and Grill in Kettle Falls is in hot water after serving seafood they should not have been selling to their patrons.  According to Captain Brad Rhoden with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, during the summer of 2019 the owner of the restaurant, Terry Baxter, went on a recreational fishing trip near Bamfield, British Columbia. Baxter then brought the Chinook and coho salmon, as well as the halibut he caught, back home, and proceeded to serve these fish to customers at his restaurant.  

Captain Rhoden states, “By law, a business selling fish to a consumer, such as a restaurant, is required to state the species of the salmon and whether the fish was farmed or wild caught. The Legislature created these laws so consumers can be confident the fish they are about to eat is what it says.”  

As for selling recreationally caught fish in a restaurant, Captain Rhoden explained, “Washington law does not allow the edible portions of wild animals, game birds and game fish to be sold.  Food fish such as salmon and halibut can be commercially sold in Washington as long as the fish were lawfully harvested during on open season/area by commercially licensed fishers.  So, no recreationally caught fish can be sold, bartered or traded lawfully in Washington.”

The multi-year investigation by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife was prosecuted by the Washington State Attorney General’s Public Lands and Conservation Division last summer. On January 17th, Baxter’s business plead guilty to the crime of First-Degree Unlawful Fish Catch in Stevens County Superior Court.  He received no jail time but will have to pay a $10,000 fine.  

STATE PARKS HIRING PARK AIDES

Looking for a fulfilling, seasonal job working in a great outdoors location?  If so, apply for a job as a park aide with Washington State Parks.  They are hiring 305 seasonal workers to work from April through September at their parks throughout the state.

Duties include everything from registering campers to cleaning campgrounds and maintaining facilities and trails. Aides may also be helping out with interpretive and educational programs at parks around the state.  You may be assigned to one specific park, or rotate your daily duties amongst several parks in close proximity to one another.  

My son David worked as a park aide for two years in college, and really enjoyed his time during the summer months at Lincoln Rock and Daroga State Parks in North Central Washington.  However, this isn’t just a job for college students trying to make money during the summer.  It’s also a great opportunity for retired or semi-retired individuals who enjoy meeting people and spending time outdoors in the beautiful settings our state parks are set in.  

Park aides earn anywhere from $16.61 to $19.09, depending on qualifications and experience.  Senior Park Aides (with previous experience) earn more.  You can fill out an application at www.governmentjobs.com.  Simply type in “Park Aide” in the search bar, along with “Washington” for the location, and you’ll see what’s available.

FISHING REPORTS

COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE

Autumn Lawyer at Gorge Outfitters Supply in Rufus says they are doing pretty well catching walleye below John Day Dam.  Most of the walleye have been caught using spinner worm harnesses tipped with nightcrawlers. A bright orange and black combo-colored spinner worm harness is the hot ticket.  Several large walleye (up to ten pounds) have been caught in the last week.  

Autumn says sturgeon fishing was also pretty good last week.  Catch and keep sturgeon fishing remains open (for now) in both The Dalles and John Day pools. Be sure to check the WDFW and ODFW websites before going out, to make sure harvest quotas have not been met.

RUFUS WOODS RESERVOIR

Austin Moser with Austin’s Northwest Adventures has been catching triploid rainbow trout near the net pens at Rufus Woods Reservoir over the last several weeks.  Austin says they have been catching limits of these hefty rainbow trout, averaging 4 to 8 pounds and going all the way up to 15 pounds in size.  Moser’s clients have been jigging 3/8-ounce Maxi jigs made by Yakima Bait Company.  While many anglers use bright colors, Moser has found natural colors such as black, brown and olive work best.

Bank anglers are having success as well, though it can be hit and miss.  Most anglers fishing from shore are using Powerbait to catch their trout.  It is worth noting that there is a $20 access fee to use the park near the net pens and also a $10 launch fee.  Shore anglers also need to have a Colville Tribal fishing permit.  To book a trip go to www.austinsnorthwestadventures.com.  If you want to find out more about fishing or camping at Lake Rufus Woods Park, which is operated by the Colville Tribe, go to  www.colvilletribes.com/lake-rufus-woods.

John Kruse – www.northwesternoutdoors.com and www.americaoutdoorsradio.com

BY JOHN KRUSE

CAPE DISAPPOINTMENT STATE PARK – A CROWN JEWEL

One of the best parks in Washington, a crown jewel amongst all the parks found in this state, is Cape Disappointment State Park.  Located where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean near Ilwaco, this expansive 1,882-acre park offers a healthy dose of history, a nautical setting, and abundant opportunities for outdoor recreation.

My wife, daughter, and I reserved a small cabin in the park months ago that sits right next to a small, lily pad lined body of water called O’Neill Lake.  In addition to three cabins and several yurts, even lighthouse keeper’s quarters are available for rent. There are also 220 campsites, about a third of them with full or partial hookups for RVs.      

There is a lot to see and do here. If you enjoy time at the beach, you can stroll to Waikiki Beach near the park entrance, or walk two-mile-long Benson Beach between the North Jetty and North Head, where a red and white lighthouse stands watch.

Another option is to drive on the beach from Seaview north of the park south to Beard’s Hollow, which offers the chance to explore rocky tidepools full of sea anemones at low tide.

At the beach you’ll see people flying kites, casting for surf perch, beachcombing, and just enjoying the chance to dip their toes into the surf of the Pacific Ocean. Speaking of fishing, early to mid-September offers a very good chance to chance to catch coho salmon in Baker Bay near Ilwaco, around Buoy 10 at the mouth of the Columbia, and even off the North Jetty, where surefooted anglers cast big spinners or drift plug cut herring or anchovies under a slip bobber.

Unfortunately, fisheries managers closed all salmon fishing on the Columbia River on September 2nd due to higher-than-expected catch rates for Chinook salmon in August. This leaves jetty anglers contenting themselves jigging for rockfish and lingcod as summer transitions into fall, though it is possible fishing for coho could reopen this month.

Coho salmon fishing is scheduled to remain open in the ocean through September, but check the emergency regulations before going.

Need something else to do? That would be crabbing. The best crabbing for keeper size Dungeness crab is from a boat in the Pacific near the mouth of the river. Land based crabbers or kayakers catch crab close to the North Jetty in the park. We tossed a crab ring and snares off the boat launch dock at the park, and over the course of three afternoons literally pulled up close to 500 Dungeness crab.

Unfortunately, not one of them was keeper sized. The bio mass of crab was amazing, but they were all small. Hopefully by next year, a lot of these crab in this area will be big enough to keep.

If you like to hike, you’ll be able to enjoy a trail system covering eight miles that will take you to Cape Disappointment, the North Head Lighthouse, and through forests to wetlands and to the beach. Wildlife watchers will be rewarded with the sight of black-tailed deer and raccoons in the park, along with birds like kingfishers and osprey around the freshwater lakes as well.

Meanwhile, there are bald eagles, cormorants, pelicans, and a wide variety of shore birds on the coast off the rocky points and the beach, along with the chance to see seals and the occasional whale.

There is also much to see and learn here from a historical point of view. The Lewis and Clark Expedition reached Cape Disappointment as they completed their initial mission of reaching the Pacific Ocean in November of 1805.

Today, a world-class interpretive center with over 200 exhibits and artifacts can be seen here. The Center is open seven days a week in the summer and has reduced hours the rest of the year.

The mouth of the Columbia is difficult to navigate, and the waters around it became known as the Graveyard of the Pacific. To help ships safely enter the river, Cape Disappointment Lighthouse was built and became active in 1856. Aaron Webster, the head Interpretive Ranger at the State Park, was asked why a second lighthouse was built just two miles north.

Webster explained that initially, most shipping came from the south and San Francisco, and the light at Cape Disappointment worked fine. When rail lines reached Tacoma to the north, shipping began to come to the mouth of the Columbia that way, and they could not see the light of Cape Disappointment.

That’s why the North Head Lighthouse was built, which became operational in 1898. Today, tours are available at the North Head Lighthouse during the summer months.

This was also a military installation. Aaron Webster explained that this fort, along with Fort Stevens on the south side of the Columbia River mouth, were built during the Civil War because of a Confederate shipping presence in the Pacific Ocean.

The forts received state of the art coastal artillery pieces towards the end of the 19th Century and received more troops and artillery, along with radar stations, search lights and mines, in World War II. That’s when the threat was the Imperial Japanese Navy, which did have a submarine shell nearby Fort Stevens in 1942.

After the war, the fort was deactivated and Fort Canby was turned over to the Washington State Parks Commission. Today, you can walk among some of the WWII fortifications, which are located next to the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center. You can find out more about this amazing destination and the North Head Lighthouse

At https://parks.wa.gov/486/Cape-Disappointment and http://northheadlighthouse.com.

John Kruse – www.northwesternoutdoors.com and www.americaoutdoorsradio.com

Slowly drifting along with the current until we reached the next hole, I heard a splash along the shoreline. Looking to my right I could see the rings in the water where a fish jumped near the tall grass that lined the river. Instead of continuing on, I quickly dropped the anchor and told my fishing partner to cast his float over to the shoreline and be sure to do so a bit upstream. As the float neared where the fish jumped, it disappeared underwater and he set the hook. A large coho leaped out of the water and took off to the fast water below. All the while, line began peeling off of the reel.

That is what I love about river fishing for coho: you think you know where they are, then you find one in a spot you normally would have just rowed right by. After he fought that fish to the net, we slid it into the fish box and just looked at each other for a minute. Then we saw another boat coming down the river. The quiet discussion we had was if we should pull anchor and try to stay ahead of the other boat to get to the deep hole we were heading to first, or to stay put. Electing to do the latter, we waved as the boat went by and never said a word about the fish we just caught. Once out of sight, we cast towards the shoreline again and the float went down once more. After pulling three more fish from that grassy bank, the fish had moved on and so had we. 

Normally, anglers who head to the rivers target coho with spinners or twitching jigs, and mostly concentrate in known areas for chinook with the float rods. This works well, and is what I like to do too, but I also always have the float rod ready. Last year, we were almost to the take out and I saw a fish roll under a tree. Just downstream from this overhanging branch was a fallen tree with a large root ball sticking out. I cast ahead of the branch and let it go under it, but nothing happened. Then, just before I decided I needed to get my gear out of the water, as it neared the root ball the float went under. Thinking it was part of the roots, I pulled back, hoping it would free my gear, but instead a fish jumped out of the water with my float in tow. Coho are known to be acrobatic, and I was once again pleasantly surprised to have one bite the eggs.

The reason why I threw a float with eggs to this fish wasn’t because I thought it was a chinook that was hiding under the tree branch that I first saw, but instead it was the only way I could fish this spot. Tossing a spinner was an option, except I didn’t have one tied on my rod. Twitching was out, as I knew that if I tried to lift the line from the water it would catch in the branch, so I threw out some eggs and it ended up being the right choice. The float would easily drift under the branch and continue down to the hazard below. 

I always have a float rod rigged and ready as we make our way down the river, for this very reason. But when I come to a spot that is known to hold coho, it is time to break out the twitching rods. Deep holes often strewn with logs means coho. Knowing how to twitch is important, but also knowing where to twitch will lead to more coho in the box. For deeper holes I actually use the lightest jig possible. This means 3/8 ounce or ¼ ounce jigs if the water is very still. Twitching has been given a bad name in the past because anglers tend to foul hook fish. Most of the time this happens because the heavier jigs fall fast and end up below the fish. What the angler should do is use a jig that will fall slowly and into the fish, then when twitched will jump up in their face and again fall slowly, allowing the coho to grab it. If the jig is too heavy it often falls too fast, and when you go to twitch again you end up foul hooking the fish. By using the right weight, you not only reduce the chance of foul hooking fish, but also increase your chances of them biting. 

Spinners are a top technique for good reason. When fishing spinners, they are always working. A good cast into a seam, and then the swing of the spinner and the thumping of the blade reinforces the confidence of the lure to the angler. There is nothing like a hooknose coho violently grabbing your spinner and yanking the rod nearly out of your hands. There is no guessing if it is a bite, and the fight is on right away. Spinners also work well in different water conditions. Several years ago, we were fishing during a hard rain. The water was getting murkier by the minute, and after the bite seemed to go off on twitching jigs we began throwing spinners. That thumping silver blade reflecting the sunlight was all it took to get the bite back on again. 

On sunny days, try using a dark bladed spinner, or alter the ones you have with a black permanent marker. Dark bodies like black and purple tend to do well, but on dark days or in murky water try chartreuse or fluorescent orange bodies. A Blue Fox Vibrax spinner in sizes 4, 5, and 6 are top producers for fall coho.   

Knowing when to go and which river or part of river to fish will lead to more success. A couple of years ago we were going to hit my favorite Olympic coast river for the opener on September 1^st. Normally this time of year the river is running as low as it will get all year, but that night a rainstorm approached. The river went from 400 cfs to over 3,000 cfs in twelve hours. Waking up and seeing the brown murky water flowing quickly, we should have canceled for the day. Instead, we launched the boat and had a nice ride down the river, and a fast one at that. We didn’t touch a fish or see another boat all day. Returning a few weeks later, that same run was back to normal and we caught fish.

This particular river has several access points and can be broken down to three main runs. The upper run is usually unfishable until October, when the rains fill the banks and make it floatable. That part of the river is where we should have gone to that day. The middle section is good almost all of the time, but offers very few holes which tend to get crowded early in the day. The lower part is tidal influence, so not only do you need to keep an eye on the river flows, but also the tides. 

Fishing tidal waters is often overlooked by anglers. Fish only stack up here when there is a really low tide and that can also be at different times of the day. Personally, I prefer to fish tidal areas because they are predictable. You know that with each tide a new push of fish will come in. I try to time it to fish as the high tide is over and water is pushing out. This is best when it is mid-day to late afternoon, because most anglers will want to be on the water at daylight. Instead, I like to fish “clean up” or after everyone else has gone down the river. The fish fresh from the salt haven’t been harassed all day and anglers are gone, often leaving me in holes all to myself. 

If you don’t have a choice but to head to the river early, then remember that during high tide fish will be on the move. This is a good time to drop anchor and let the fish come to you. One year during a high tide time, we sat on the anchor for several hours, casting jigs to a small pocket along the shoreline. This area had a back eddy and the moving fish would stack up here to rest. When they showed up, we would catch a fish, and when they moved on we would take a break. One way to keep fishing during times when fish are moving is to throw out diving plugs or plunk. Plunking tends to be a lost art, but the idea is to cast out and let your lure or bait sit in a spot where the fish will come along at some point and bite it. Why not do it from a boat while taking a break, as this will lead to more fish and it is a great way to know when fish are arriving.

There are a lot of ways to catch coho in rivers, and learning to fish them all not only adds to the experience but also keeps you engaged in fishing. Once you learn to twitch, then learn to float eggs, and then throw spinners. Discover where the holes are and where to fish when the tide is in or out. Best of all, most of the river conditions and routes will change each year, so each time you go to the river it is like learning a new spot all over again. Just like when we were drifting along that grassy cutbank and heard that fish jump; you never know where you will find coho, and that is what makes river fishing for them so fun. 

With improving ocean conditions, the Puget Sound 2022 fall coho season could be the best in recent history. 666,648 coho are forecasted to return to the Puget Sound basin. With a few exceptions, our local coho fisheries (Marine Area 5-13) will open August 16^th. Following is a quick breakdown of our inside coho fisheries. Make sure to review the WDFW Fish Washington App, WDFW Washington Sports Fishing Rules pamphlet and the emergency (https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/emergency-rules) for current daily limits and emergency closures.

• MA 5 8/16-9/28 Hatchery Only
• MA 6 8/16-9/28 Hatchery Only
• Dungeness Bay fishery 10/1-10/31 Hatchery Only
• MA 7 8/16-8/30 Hatchery Only
• Bellingham Bay 8/16-9/30 Hatchery and Wild 
• MA 8-1 8/1-10/1 Hatchery and Wild
• MA 8-2 South and West of the Line Defined by the Mukilteo and Clinton Ferry Docks 8/13-9/19 Hatchery Only
• MA 9 8/16-9/25 Hatchery Only
• MA 10 Through 10/31 Hatchery and Wild
• The Sinclair Inlet Fishery Through 9/30 Hatchery and Wild
• MA 11 Through 10/31 Hatchery and Wild
• MA 12 North Through 10/31 Hatchery and Wild
• MA 12 South Through 11/30 Hatchery and Wild
• MA 13 Year-round Hatchery Only

What, somebody said coho? Break out the gear, check the trailer lights and move the garbage cans out of the way. It’s time to go fishing. I think that more than any other Western Washington fishery, our local coho opportunity is an eagerly anticipated family event. Where there are many commonly known “stock” coho fisheries, this article will focus on a few of our out of the way opportunities.

Although areas like Eagle Point off San Juan Island, Point No Point, Possession Bar, the Edmonds Oil Docks, Meadowdale Point, Jeff Head, Kingston, Des Moines, Three Tree Point, Point Robinson, and the Slag Pile off Point Defiance are all solid coho fisheries, they can get crowded. Are there other coho opportunities? The answer is affirmative, and even better, finding off the radar coho is pretty rewarding.

For me, pulling up on a spot and being the only boat in sight is magical. A quick look at the meter confirming there is bait and individual coho on the prowl gets my old ticker going. In general, coho are a very worthy opponent. Being on a school of them without another boat in sight could be the highlight of your summer. 

Finding off the radar coho starts at home. Sit down with a digital chart, preferably one that will give you current arrows, and develop your game plan. Your game plan should include a few layers of back up plans. If you use your phone, screenshot the areas you want to fish. In doing your research, consider the tides and how they will be flowing or interacting with adjacent structure or opposing tidal flows.

A few examples to get you started: 

Eagle Point

On the south side of San Juan Island is an option. Most people set up along the pronounced rips just off Eagle Point. The reality is that those rips will concentrate bait much further offshore than you would expect. At the surface, the current break is very subtle, but at depth the current forms a hard wall trapping bait that the coho are feeding on.

Double Bluff

Is another sleeper and rarely has more than a few boats on it. I really like Double Bluff; on the right day you can fish the general area and never have to fire up the main and go on the hunt. Depending on the tides you can drag gear, mooch cut-plug herring, and even fish jigs. On the flood tide you want to fish the rips south of the bluff, and on the ebb, fish from the buoy north. You will need to keep an eye on the fish finder, but many of the early season coho will be suspended in less than 150’ of water. If you’re not seeing anything on the meter, move around. More than any other place on the Sound, there will be coho holding somewhere at Double Bluff.

Partridge Bank

Another out of the way and often overlooked coho spot is Partridge Bank. That said, Partridge bank is one of my go-to coho spots. Depending on the given tide series, it typically fishes well on any tide. Fish along the edge of the shipping lane on the west side of the bank. A couple things to note regarding the Partridge Bank fishery: sometimes there is a big swell that fractures as it approaches the bank. The resulting chop can be unpredictable and you need to be alert to changing sea conditions. Secondly, you may stray into the shipping lane so keep your radio on and give any passing ships the right of way. Consider setting your VHF up on Tri-Watch, monitor 16, 13 (Bridge to Bridge, commercial traffic) and a floating channel. I have mine on 22 but many recreational boaters monitor channel 68.

The previous three examples are just a few of the areas to find off the radar coho. Again, sit down with some form of chart and current table and do your homework. There are many other locations in MA 5-11 where you won’t be necessarily be chasing coho with a fleet of like-minded friends. Look for points, underwater structure, and areas where opposing currents will concentrate bait and you’ll find coho. 

Now that you have identified your coho hidey-hole, what’s next? The coho drill on my boat is pretty basic. Although I have a couple jigging and/or mooching rods ready to go it’s mostly a trolling show. I pull 11” flashers and flies, hoochies or spoons. Coho Killers, Silver Horde 3.5” Kingfisher Lite spoons and Gibbs G-Force spoons are my go-to spoon offering. I run 36” of 30# fluorocarbon between the flasher and the spoon. Regarding color; you can’t go wrong with any combination of green or chartreuse but a Purple Haze flasher and a clear hoochie with a green insert can be deadly. Always head out with an assortment of flies, hoochies, or spoons and cycle through gear until you find the magic combination for the day. Also, use scent on your spoons. Try a sticky Bloody Tuna, Herring, or Anchovy goo and re-scent often. Add a salted herring strip to the leading hook on all your flies and hoochies.  

At the butt-crack of dawn, fast trolling cut plug herring in the top 30’ of water is a solid option, but after first light it will be a downrigger show. Use 12 pound or heavier downrigger weights and troll 3.5 to 4 mph. At the speed you’ll be trolling for coho it is likely that you will not see your downrigger balls on the meter and remember that with the blowback you will need additional cable out for a given depth. Especially for coho, I chase meter marks, so keep an eye on the meter. Be ready for action, we have had every rod on the boat go off at once when trolling for early AM coho. Have a game plan, net ready, and a bleed bucket to assure that your silvery opponent makes its way into the fish box in the best possible condition.

Good luck and remember that our fall coho fishery is an ideal family fishery. They are relatively easy to find, usually hungry, and have some serious shoulders. As a last thought, I want to address the weather. I work 5 to 6 days a week on the water. While in the San Juans today I encountered a significant squall line of thunderstorms. Basically, the weather went from summer boating weather to “what the heck” in minutes. It was windy, pouring and very dark. Then the thunder was relentless and deafening. Since I had not hit send for the article yet, I figured that a quick note about coho weather was in order.

Coho season falls while our summer boating weather is transitioning to an unsettled weather pattern. Most of the time the pond will be very pleasant. Be aware of and prepared for changing conditions. If the forecast is questionable, don’t go, or at least proceed with caution. A 15-mph wind against a running tide can be uncomfortable or even dangerous. Know the limits of both your boat and crew, then always error on the cautious side. 

September is a special time for me. Like the change in the weather, I can feel a change in myself, a pent up anticipation that has slowly been building over the summer and like clockwork bursts forth in full bloom. It’s coho time in Puget Sound!

Yes, this is a great time of the year to be a salmon angler in Puget Sound, if the runs are strong and the fishing is open. Last year was unique in that we had closures in the ocean and straits. The coho arrived to Puget Sound in good numbers and virtually unmolested. This year was questionable what kind of a season we would be given. As of this date, coho is open in areas 8.2, 9, and 10. Check the regs and emergency closures for updates of course. As it stands the daily limit is two coho.

Looking at my fishing reports data from trips going back twenty years, it becomes pretty obvious that September is the time to put away freshwater gear and focus on salmon. August can be productive, but September can be (and often is) lights out. My reports show multiple trips with limits by 9am, red hot fishing, and lots of pictures of shiny chrome coho. As the season progresses into later September, the fish show a steady increase in size. By late September to early October, the 6-8 pound coho are replaced by beautiful 10-14 pound hooknose monsters. It’s the time of year to stock up the freezer on tasty coho!

For those new to the fishery, you’ll find a wealth of information on techniques and locations scattered on the web. I've broken down some of my thoughts on coho trolling into Ten Rules of Coho Trolling.

Coho tend to be a pretty cooperative salmon when it comes to catching them. As these fish stream in from the ocean, heading through the Strait of Juan De Fuca and into Puget Sound, they are putting on the feed in preparation for their runs up to the spawning grounds. It’s not unusual to find coho stuffed with herring. Don’t get me wrong, there are days they, like other salmon, will have lock-jaw. But that truly is the exception, not the rule. Speaking of rules, I offer a list of rules I’ve developed over the years to catch more coho. You’ll likely have your rules to add to this list. Or you may disagree with some of them. But hopefully it will give you some additional ideas when targeting coho in the Sound.

Rule #1

As Russell Wilson would say, “Separation is in the preparation”.

- When you put your boat in the water, you should have everything ready to go. No fiddling around with gear or bait the morning of a trip. My fishing ritual is to have everything ready to go the night before. It’s like a general planning for battle. My rods are ready and geared up. My bait has been cut and cured. My boat is prepped and clean, batteries are charged, gas tank is full, snacks are bought, there’s ice in the coolers for the fish. This evening before prep time is actually a ritual I cherish because like Russ, I’m visualizing success and making a plan in my head. I try to never go fishing without a plan.

Rule #2

Start early, go shallow.

I try to be on the water as early as possible. Ideally, that means running lights on and gear going in the water while it’s still dark or just turning light. I will run my gear in the top 10-30 feet of water to start. This is the time of day when a salmon fly in the prop wash can be deadly. I like Artic Fox Trolling Flies. Denis Peirce ties a nice fly in a variety of effective salmon colors. Try running the fly back 40-50 feet and troll fast (more on that later) with the fly practically skipping on the surface. Just be sure to have the clicker on the reel because these strikes can be vicious. I love the sound of a clicker going off in the morning!

Rule #3

Watch your fish finder, drop your depth

As the morning progresses, drop your downriggers down. I’ve read the “rule of thumb” is ten feet every hour until you’re trolling your gear around 40-60 feet. That’s fine, I guess, but I also use my fish finder. If I see bait and fish marks down 50-70 feet, I’ll drop down to those fish even if it’s early in the morning. As the day goes on I may even drop my downrigger ball down to 110-120 feet deep. Depth can be a tricky thing because when coho fishing I troll fast, which leads us to the next rule.

Rule #4

Troll fast!

In my experience, coho love a fast troll. I have an itroll throttle control and will set it on “hunt” mode to keep my boat going fast, around 3.3 to 3.9 mph. A few years back I did a lot of underwater filming and noticed a distinct increase in salmon aggression when the flasher was whipping around in a complete rotation. If it was only doing a lazy rotation, or not doing a full rotation, coho would tend to swim behind the gear, just watching. But speeding up and getting that flasher fully spinning would elicit vicious strikes. I will troll both with and against the tide and catch fish going both ways. Just be sure to increase your throttle going into the tide to maintain that 3.5 mph speed. I’ll also program my itroll to give a periodic 3-5 second slow down and then speed back up to “wake up” coho that may be lazily following but not biting. It can often trigger a bite. Oh, another thing that will often trigger a bite – if you’re checking gear, pop your line off the release and set the rod in the rod holder. Let the gear come up on its own. I have caught a lot of coho that will chase the gear as it ascends to the surface. Don’t reel your gear in until it hits the surface.

Rule #5

Coho are hungry, feed them!

Coho love a strip of herring on just about any lure. I will add strips to hoochies, flies, and even a small strip on the hook of a spoon (but not too much, you don’t want to kill the spoon’s action). Be sure to brine the herring strips a day ahead of time in rock salt and/or commercial herring brine. Add scents and bite enhancers as well. Check your gear every 20-30 minutes and freshen up with a new herring strip. If you get a bite but no release, bring it in and check it! The one exception to this rule I have is if the dogfish are in thick, I will go without bait.

Rule #6

Experiment

My “go to” set up is a magnum green splatter glow hoochie, herring strips, 26-30” leader, and an 11” dodger (pick your color…). I always start with this set up. On a second rod I may run a different color and smaller hoochie. If there is no action and I am seeing fish on the fish finder I will start trying spoons and plastic lures like the old Big Al’s Cripple Herring. Sometimes the coho just want something with more action. This year I’m going to be trying the new Old Goat OG2 5” salmon lure. The Old Goats have been awesome on kokanee and I think they will be deadly on coho. They have an amazing action that I think coho will love.

Rule #7

Fish Where They Ain’t (anglers that is)

Coho in Puget Sound can be found pretty much anywhere. We all have favorite starting locations and it’s human nature to follow the crowds of boats because “hey, they must know something I don’t”. Maybe…and maybe not. I try to start my troll away from clusters of boats. Why be surrounded by additional lures in the water? You want to troll over fish that aren’t seeing offerings non-stop. So, move away from everyone else – and if you take my advice and troll fast you will, very quickly. You’ll still find the fish if they are there, and cover more water to find the biters. When you do, don’t be afraid to mark the fish on your fish finder and troll around and right back over the same spot. Again, in viewing underwater footage, I invariably see groups of 4-6 coho following my gear. A solo fish is very rare. So, work over those spots when you pick up a fish.

Rule #8

Mid day and tide changes are good

I know I said earlier I like to hit the water at daybreak, but there are days when that just doesn’t happen. The good news with coho is that it doesn’t matter. You can (and will) catch coho all morning and into midday. Tide bites are the period before and after a low or high tide, and these times can be very productive. My favorite tide sequence is a high tide at around 9-10am. The flood tide pushes fish and as the tide slows down it triggers a feeding opportunity below for the coho salmon. Bait becomes easier to pick off without a steady flow of water and the coho bite often turns on. If you miss that crack of dawn bite, fear not, the coho will cooperate. I’ve caught my biggest hooknose fish from 11am to 1pm.

Rule #9

Playing and netting your fish

OK, you have a big fish on and are trolling at 3.5 mph. What do anglers often do? Why, slow down the of course. Bad move. In today’s age of barbless hooks, slowing down is an invitation to let the fish go. The second there is slack in that line the hook can slip out. Trolling for coho is not a fishery that is about the fight, it’s about catching fish. If you want an epic battle against coho (and they are a hoot), catch them in rivers, or mooch for them. Trolling with an 11” flasher gives these fish a focal point with which they can get slack line. We don’t want to do anything to help them out, like slowing down. Once they are on the surface, do your best to keep the flasher out of the water. This will help prevent the fish getting slack line between the hook and the flasher. Make sure you have a net with a long handle and big opening. This will help as the netter reaches out. Remember, the netter scoops as the angler guides the fish into the net. Don’t make the mistake of the netter reaching to net the fish! Once the fish is close to the boat slowing down a bit is OK, by the way- just keep that flasher out of the water.

Rule #10

Take good care of your fish

Non-anglers have no idea what a freshly caught salmon tastes like. As anglers we are blessed to be able to have the freshest salmon on the planet. So, take good care of your caught fish. Bonk the fish enough to stun it, then cut a gill and bleed the fish out for a few minutes. After that, into the ice cooler it goes. Don’t hang it off the side of the boat to bake in the sun. At the end of the day, gut and cut into steaks, or filet the fish out. If possible, vacuum-seal whatever fillets you don’t eat for dinner. Properly cared for, you’ll have tasty fish until the next season, when you get to do it all over again!

There you have it. Ten “Rules” that will help increase your odds of success this coho season. Have fun out there and remember to be safe, have life jackets and all the safety equipment required and needed in case something goes sideways.

Good luck fishing and I’ll see you on the water.

Even though the end of the year is approaching, don’t put away your salmon fishing gear just yet. There are still plenty of rivers teeming with coho salmon right now! These days, there are many different techniques you can use to catch fish on any river. Versatility is important, and river conditions change day by day. I recently went on a guided trip with Brianna Bruce of Livin’ Life Adventures. When we got to our spot, she told us that we would each be fishing a different method. The fish had been hitting different things every day. One day, they only wanted spinners. Another day, they wanted spoons. She began distributing rods- one of us fishing plugs, the other spinners, and so on until we were all casting and hoping to get lucky.

After about 20 minutes of this, another guide motored by on the way back to the launch with their limits. He told Bree that he had gotten all of his fish on eggs! She quickly began switching all of our rods to egg setups. Another hour later, we were back at the boat ramp with huge smiles and limits of dime-bright coho. If she hadn’t brought eggs along, we may have all ended up skunked! Versatility is crucial! Most days when I go river fishing, I carry 3 rods: a twitching rod, a float rod, and a spinner rod. I spent a lot of time getting familiar with each technique and when and how to deploy them. Let’s dive into how and why I use these techniques.

Technique 1: Twitching Jigs

If I had to pick one way to fish for coho, I would have to go with twitching jigs. They are extremely adaptable- I can fish any type of water with a twitching jig. There’s something so satisfying about seeing a big fish dart out of cover to grab your jig. Make sure to vary your jigging speed and length depending on the structure, depth, and speed of the water. Some days, you can let the jig sink to the bottom of a deep hole before you start jigging. Other times, you’ll want to do short jigs as soon as your lure hits the water. There’s no one way to twitch a jig. Color matters! I’ve had days where I fished one color for 30 minutes with no luck, and then hooked a fish on the first cast after switching colors. Most of the time, I use a 3/8 or 1/2 oz jig. My favorite colors are blue/black and pink/green. My twitching rod is a stout 7’6 rod with fast action. It has an extremely sensitive tip so I can feel those subtle bites, and the backbone to back up my hook sets. I pair it up with a size 3000 spinning reel. I use light reels to help avoid wrist fatigue. You can twitch jigs with longer, heavier rods, but I like my 7’6 rod because it translates even the smallest flicks of my wrist to the jig. I never hit the river without my twitching rod! There is a bit of a learning curve, as most fish will pick up your jig on the drop. You might feel the line tighten, or you may feel nothing at all. Most fish won’t simply grab the jig and take off. The majority of bites are subtle. Watch your line and pay attention to how it moves. It pays to fish high visibility braid so you can see exactly where your line is and what it’s doing in the water. Give twitching jigs a try, you’ll be hooked!

Technique 2: Spinner Rods

If I can’t get a fish to bite on twitching jigs, I’ll switch to my spinner rod. This is my 9ft, fast-action, moderate power rod, rated to throw up to an ounce of lead. It has the springiness to be able to launch spinners across long rivers, but the backbone to bring a monster coho to the shore. I often start off beginner river fishermen with spinners because bites are hard to miss. There are two types of spinners, and they both fish differently. Heavy-bodied spinners sink right away and can be cast perpendicular to the opposite shore. Light-bodied or unweighted spinners don’t sink as quickly and are better for shallow rivers. You can cast them out and swing them into the current like a spoon. Keep your rod tip low and reel slowly. Make sure to do 1 or 2 solid hook sets to really drive that barbless hook into the fish’s mouth. In murky water like the Carbon or Puyallup River, I’ll go with a bright-colored spinner, like chartreuse or pink. On clear, coastal rivers, I’ll fish a silver or copper-colored spinner. It never hurts to try something different, though! Don’t forget to pinch your barbs and switch out the treble hook to a single hook if required. 

Technique 3: Floating Eggs

My third go-to technique for fall coho fishing is floating eggs. This technique isn’t very well suited for combat fishing, but if you can find a patch of slow-moving water all to yourself, this is a great way to get finicky coho to bite. Floating eggs is a relaxing way to spend the day. You tend to lose a lot less gear, and watching your bobber is therapeutic. You’ll want a 10ft to 11ft rod and 3000/4000 size spinning reel. Don’t use gear you don’t mind getting egg dye on! You can either use store-bought eggs or experiment with curing your own. I usually bring along 2 or 3 different recipes when I fish eggs. Sometimes the fish want pink eggs, other days they like red. You can experiment with adding different scents to your eggs, like tuna or herring. No matter how good your eggs are, you want to make sure you’re fishing them correctly, however. Experiment with your leader length by moving your bobber stopper until you’re hitting the bottom. Then, move it up 6 to 12 inches. That’s where the fish will see it, and, hopefully, bite it. Don’t forget to mend your line by lifting it up off the water and behind your float. This is where a long rod can come in handy, but it can make it difficult to fish in water with lots of overhanging trees and bushes. Float fishing is a highly situational technique, but it can be very deadly. 

There you have my top three favorite fall coho techniques. When getting to my spot, I like to sit and watch the water for a few minutes to determine which technique to use. Floating eggs isn’t always possible if the river is flowing quickly. Similarly, when I’m fishing frog water, using a spinner can be difficult. The deep and slow water makes it difficult to reach the fish hugging the bottom. I find that it’s extremely important to be able to adapt to any condition. However, there are days when I want to challenge myself or get better at a technique and I’ll only bring out one pole. This is how I taught myself to be able to use twitching jigs in any situation. If you haven’t tried any of these techniques, hit the water and give it a shot. Make sure to read your rules and regulations, especially emergency ones. Hope to see you all out there!

Fishing season is officially in full swing! With so many lakes, rivers, and marine areas to choose from, it can be hard to pick your next adventure. If you’re never fished Riffe Lake before, or if it’s been a while, you should put it at the top of your list. It’s one of my favorite fishing destinations, and I make it a point to fish it as much as I can every year. Not only is the fishing top notch, but the scenery is beautiful and the surrounding towns are well worth visiting. I can’t think of many other lakes that offer such a wide variety of fish, let alone with such a good opportunity.

You can catch brown trout, cutthroat trout, smallmouth bass, chinook salmon, coho salmon, crappie, and brown bullhead. The lake is simply packed with fish, and they’re willing biters. You can take the boat out or shore fish, and finish out the day with a Dam Burger from Pioneer Bar & Grill in Mossyrock before heading home to grill your catch. It’s a bit of a drive, but it’s a great way to spend a day!

Located in Lewis County, Tacoma Power created RIffe Lake by constructing Mossyrock Dam on the Cowlitz River in 1968, flooding the communities of Riffe, Nesika, and Kosmos. It has a maximum depth of 360 feet and is about 23.5 miles long. Not only does the lake boast good populations of land-locked coho salmon, but you can also catch triploid trout! Back in 2020, Tacoma Power bought about 400,000 Rufus Woods strain triploid trout and released them into the lake for anglers to catch. The fish have had plenty of time to grow and they are a ton of fun to catch. If you’re lucky, you may even hook into a steelhead or a chinook salmon on the same day! Tacoma Power releases these fish into the lake as well, once they’ve met their stocking quotas. With such a plethora of fish to catch, you can see why Riffe Lake is a favorite of many northwesterners.

Trolling Techniques

Riffe Lake has plenty of room for boats of all shapes and sizes. It is almost 24 miles long and up to 360 feet deep, which can sound intimidating. Not to worry, there are thousands of fish in the lake, and most days they are willing biters. There have been many days when we can’t even put the planer boards out because the two downrigger poles or lead lines are constantly going off! Early in the season, lead lines, divers, and dropper weights work just fine. The fish are still feeding on the surface and haven’t been driven down to the depths by the hot sun. As the season progresses, however, a good fish finder is a must, particularly for the land-locked coho. Troll until you find a school, mark where you get bites, and don’t be afraid to put a little scent on your lure.

I find that the land-locked coho are particularly attracted to pink lures and dodgers. You can use corn or maggots to bait your hooks. Spinners, plugs, spoons- they all catch fish at this lake. I tend to use whatever I already have rigged up for kokanee fishing at other lakes. As for locations, you really can’t go wrong on Riffe Lake- you can start trolling almost as soon as you launch at Mossyrock Park and will usually start catching fish right away. If the fish are being stubborn, try targeting points and coves. Keep an eye on your fish finder if you’re using downriggers, the lake can shallow up surprisingly quickly.

In recent years, it’s been difficult to keep the triploid trout off your hooks if you want to target the land-locked coho salmon in the reservoir. The salmon and trout tend to bite on the same lures and hang out at the same depths in the early season, so you can expect to catch a mixed bag. In general, the coho hang out deeper than the trout in the later season, making downriggers and a good fish finder almost a necessity for targeting them. The salmon tend to like a faster troll, so don’t be afraid to bump it up to 1.9 or 2.2 MPH. However, the trout taste great on the grill and put up a great fight, so most anglers don’t mind catching them.

As a word of caution to boaters, check the water levels at Tacoma Power’s website or give them a call before heading out. The lake’s level fluctuates throughout the year and launching can be difficult when water levels are low. The launch at Mossyrock Park is usually your best bet year-round. It has a large dock with 2 lanes to launch at, which is nice when the ramp is busy. Don’t sweat the crowds too much though, the lake is massive and there is plenty of room for everyone. The other boat launches, Taidnapam and Kosmos, are unsuitable for low water conditions. Check the wind forecast before hitching up the boat- the afternoon winds at Riffe Lake can kick up and create nasty white caps, catching unprepared boaters off guard.

Still Fishing Techniques

Don’t have a boat? No worries, Riffe Lake has plenty of shore access! You can fish at the dam in Mossyrock or at the fishing bridge at Taidnapam Park. These spots can get crowded on nice weekends though. Most shore anglers cast out shrimp or worms under a bobber with a sliding weight. Experiment with setting your bobber stopper anywhere from 3ft to 15 ft until you figure out where the fish are at. 

If you can’t get a spot at the dam or fishing bridge, fishing at nearby Lake Mayfield or Swofford Pond is a good alternative. Lake Mayfield is stocked with tiger muskies, which are difficult but extremely rewarding to catch. WDFW also stocks decent numbers of rainbow trout there every year. Swofford Pond has good populations of panfish, stocked rainbow trout, and brown bullhead. There is a boat launch at both lakes, and good shore access. Many folks fish Swofford Pond with inflatables and kayaks, as there is an internal combustion motor ban. 

Before you grab those poles and hook up the boat, keep in mind that Riffe Lake has a 5 fish limit. They can be any combination of landlocked salmon and trout, so you cannot legally keep 5 coho and 5 trout. The land locked coho don’t tend to survive catch and release very well, particularly in the summer heat. The lake is large and deep, and those afternoon winds can kick up unexpectedly, so make sure that everyone on your boat has a life jacket. Keep these rules in mind, hook up the boat, and have fun!