* Epic Steelhead Numbers on the Salmon River
Harry Petrakis, our intrepid Fishmaster, forwarded this e-mail from a guide service on the Salmon River, dated October 4-10:
From: Exodus Wilderness Adventures, INC
Greetings and salutations from the Salmon River,
* Northern California Council Federation of Fly Fishers Conclave - October 23rd & 24th, 2009
* Greetings from Exodus Wilderness Adventures on Idaho's Salmon River
* Monterey Bay Salmon Trout Project 32nd Annual Albacore Feed - Nov. 14, 2009
Subject: October 4-10 steelhead update
To: harryandlinda@yahoo.com
Date: Monday, October 12, 2009, 5:01 AM
Here is Amy's first steelhead fishing report...if all goes well look forward to a weekly report from here out.
As of Sunday morning, water level is 4560 CFS, the river is crystal clear, and water temperature is 45 degrees and has been dropping a degree a day the last few days. Mornings have been a little brisk with temperatures in the low 40's but afternoon temperatures have been in the mid to upper 60's; however, the weekend temperatures dropped about 10 degrees with mornings in the 30's and afternoon highs in the 50's and the week ahead of us in predicting warmer temperatures with rain in the middle of the week.
As most of you are aware steelhead counts are astronomical and over 575,000 steelhead have crossed Bonneville Dam, this is a record run of steelhead and recently the Department of Fish and Game raised bag limits per fisher person to five (5) fish per day (no more than three can be over 32") or 15 in possession (no more than 9 can be over 32").
If this week is any indication of the season ahead of us, we are in for some amazing fishing! This week the Exodus fishing guides went to work and we have had fantastic fishing and catching results! Over the last few days, one of our drift boats, fishing the upriver section, hooked 25 steelhead and landed 15 of them. These fish are spicy and active and jumping out of the water multiple times; they are a hoot to hook into this time of year! Current average fish per guest per day is 3.75 as compared with out historical average of 2.2 fish per person per day.
We offer our steelhead fishing trips by drift boat or jet boat based on your fishing party size and trips include experienced guides, lunch, snacks, beverages and all fishing equipment. For more information or to book your guided steelhead fishing trip contact our office at 1-800-992-3484 or email us at riverescape@frontier.com.
We look forward to fishing with you on the Salmon River this season during the best steelhead run recorded.
Exodus Wilderness Adventures, Inc.
www.riverescape.com
800-992-3484
riverescape@frontier.com
Hutchins Street Square, Lodi, California
Keynote speaker Lani Waller, Casting Instruction by Al Kyte, Floyd Dean, Michael Maloney, Eric Sherar, Bob Mito and John C. Till
Friday evening wine tasting, hot dog and chili feed
Saturday evening dinner banquet and live auction
Youth programs including fly casting, fly tying and entomology
Premier Fly Tiers: over 40 will be on hand to show you tips and shortcuts on tying flies
Exhibitors including: Manufacturers, guides, wildlife artists, and lodges
Beginning to advanced fly tying instruction and programs
Rod building instruction
Silent auction and general raffle
Everyone is welcome. Bring family and friends to this one-of-a-kind event. The Fly Fishing Festival offers something for everyone!
For more information, call Dustin Rocksvold at (209) 295-7551, or visit our website at www.nccfff.org.
Each year we try to update our mailing list several times and let you know about seasonal specials and what is happening on the river. We just realized that not only are we overdue on updates (blame Twitter and Facebook) but we are looking at a fall steelhead run that is shattering all prior returns based on the number of fish passing through the dams on the Columbia and Snake Rivers. We start watching the steelhead returns at the 4 dams on the Columbia in August and can track the progress of the run back to Idaho based on the numbers of fish per day and the rate that large numbers of fish work their way up the Columbia and Snake Rivers.
So far this year, more than a half million steelhead have passed Bonneville Dam; that is nearly double the average for this time of the year. Not only is the run coming in large numbers but it is also coming fast. Ice Harbor Dam which is the first dam on the Snake River in Central Washington has seen more than 121,000 fish as compared to 42,000 which is the 10 year average. Lower Granite Dam which is the last dam on the Snake River before Idaho has already seen 66,000 fish compared to the 10 average of 25,000 fish. Follow the links pasted below to see daily data from the Fish Passage Center or to read what the press has been saying about the early dam counts.
Whether you are an experienced angler or have never held a fishing rod, don't miss out on the phenomenal fishing that we are going to be seeing this year. With the number of returning fish, we should see some incredible catch rates; this will be a great time to introduce novice or younger fishermen to steelhead fishing with plenty of opportunities to hook up (it won't hurt as much to lose a few). We offer fully outfitted trips by drift or jet boat. Our rates are $205/person for the drift boats (based on 2 fishermen per boat) or $1175 for the jet boat (based on a maximum of 6 fishermen). Our weekend dates are already filling up so be sure to call us and get your date reserved. Visit our website at www.riverescape.com
No host cocktails will be from 6:00 PM until 7:00 PM, dinner at 7:00 PM, Nov. 14, at the 11621 Crane St. Castroville Recreation Center Tickets will be $17 at the door. Come and support our local salmon trout group, and enjoy a great dinner!