SPRINGER BLOG: Checking out a few dam trends for spring Chinook ...
POSTED May 6, 2009 / 9:30 a.m.

Back when I was covering the NBA and professional boxing, I was a fiend for trends and statistics. I've apparently carried that same mentality into the fishwriter field.

This morning I found myself mining nuggets from the Fish Passage Center databases, trying to make some sort of connection between Trend A and Statistic B. I don't know if I've done that, but, at the very least, I've dug up a few interesting spring Chinook factoids.

8 CLICK HERE for some interesting 2009 springer factoids

SPRINGER FEVER: 6,000- and 7,000-fish days boost lagging springer run
NEW May 4, 2009 / 4:00 p.m

N. BONNEVILLE, Wash. - As of this writing, the adult spring Chinook count at Bonneville Dam stands at 32,060. The 10-year average for this date is 103,007.

We're 69 percent behind.

But, just like Mine That Bird - the 51-1 longshot who won this weekend's Kentucky Derby - the 2009 springer run appears to be gaining serious momentum down the back stretch: the last two countable days at the Fish Passage Center have rung up 7,036 and 6,317 fish (42 percent of the run so far!).

That noise you hear is the sound of the Drano Lake and Wind River armadas licking their chops.

-JS

SPRINGER FEVER FEATURE: The Drano Drill begins; pack your spinners!
NEW April 26, 2009 / 6:30 p.m

Even in years like 2009 - when fish counts have dramatically under-performed on a run forecasted at 300,000 - one area stands out as a must-fish, red-hot place to catch springers.

Now, with spring Chinook season on the mainstem Columbia River below Bonneville Dam closed down and fish starting to pour over the dam, one place will become Grand Central Station for anglers looking for an upriver bite. Time to gear up for Drano Lake.

8 CLICK HERE to read the rest of the story

SF '09 GUEST BLOG: Time to spread out over Columbia tribs for springers
NEW April 24, 2009 / 10:30 a.m.

Finally, Late April and May are when spring Chinook will flood lower Columbia tributaries like the Sandy, Clackamas, upper Willamette (including the Santiams), Hood, Cowlitz, Lewis, Wind, Drano (Little White Salmon), and Klickitat.

And while the number of Chinook expected back to the Lewis and Kalama is predicted low (where a one adult limit is now in affect), most other salmon producing tributaries will likely offer excellent opportunity for 2 per day limits on hatchery salmon.

8 CLICK HERE to read Buzz Ramsey's latest guest WildBlog

SHOW RE-WILD: Perry, Glass check in for April 11 Springer Fever
NEW April 13, 2009 / 6:30 p.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - With the tail end of the 2009 Columbia River spring Chinook season in sight, it's clear that the fishery demands some perserverance. While no one location is DefCon 4-hot like the I-5/205 troll last year, fish can be had in all open parts of the river ... if you're willing to ride it out.

Northwest Wild Country checked on lower Columbia conditions with Val Perry and got an I-5 update from Jack Glass in the April 18 version of Springer Fever.

XPODCAST April 18 with Jack Glass

XPODCAST April 18 with Val Perry

WILD BLOG: Cold water might mean cold feet for Columbia River managers
NEW April 12, 2009 / 1:30 p.m

PORTLAND, Ore. - Will ODFW and WDFW get cold feet this year?

So far this spring, the Columbia River springer bite has been off to a slow start.  Not terrible, but slower than it was at this time last year. Dam passage is way down too. 

Are there less fish this year? Are they late? Did the biologists over-estimate the run?

8CLICK HERE for David Johnson's blog observations about the Columbia's cold waters.

X CLICK HERE for the WildCast as DJ joins us live from Bonneville for the April 11 show!

SF REPORT, April 2: On-again off-again bite going on on Columbia today
NEW April 2 / 2:15 p.m.

PORTLAND, Ore. - Just like the old saying about the weather goes, if you don't like conditions now, just wait a few minutes. It'll change.

That's the report this morning on the Columbia River above I-5, where we caught up with a handful of guides making their late-mornings trolls. Here's what they had to say:

n10:30 a.m. / Jim Stahl, J & J Guide Service
"We hit 2 fish in 3 passes right when we started, and now it’s slowed down. There hasn’t really been any consistancy to it."

n11:06 a.m. / Bill Swann, Swanny's Fishing
"We had one on that we lost, and one drive-by that stripped the herring. After yesterday, I figured it'd be lights-out today. We do have one steelhead though, Shangle - the second steelhead caught in my life on a cutplug herring! I guess you just have to be in the right place at the right time"

n11:17 a.m. / Terry Mulkey, Terry Mulkey's Guide Service
"We haven't touched anything yet. It slowed up big time from yesterday. There have been little flurries here and there, but nothing sustained."

n11:36 a.m. / Eric Linde, Linde's Sportfishing,
"We got three right off the bat, so we need one more and we'll be done. It's definitely slowed down, but there are fish being caught. There sure aren't many boats out here today."

n1:03 p.m. / Jim Stahl, J & J Guide Service (called in after first report)
"Dude, it turned on big-time for about a half-hour. There were a couple of spots where we saw 10 to 15 fish on at once."

n2:29 p.m. / Mark Coleman, All Rivers Guide Service
"We had the little flurry early. It was slower but steady for the rest of the day. We took most of the day to get our five fish - it was maybe a fish every two or three passes throughout the day."

-JS

SPRINGER FEVER: Water temps - and action - rising for springer anglers
NEW March 25, 2009 / 11:40 a.m.

Patience, Grasshopper. Water temperatures on the Columbia River are slowly, slowly, sloooowly creeping out of the sub-40 springer deep freeze and into the "Magic Time" zone. As Bill "Swanny" Swann shows (above), the sun is about to shine on the 2009 season.

TUNE IN Saturday from 7:00 to 7:30 a.m. for Springer Fever, Northwest Wild Country's EXCLUSIVE coverage of the Columbia River and its tribs.

SHOW RE-WILD: Glass, Perry, Swann check in for SF '09 mini blast-off
NEW March 25, 2009 / 6:30 p.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - We're getting there. It may not be peak spring Chinook fishing just yet, but two Columbia/Willamette River superstars told us that heart of the 2009 run is "right around the corner". Northwest Wild Country blew out a "Springer Blast-Off Round" with Jack Glass of Hook Up Guide Service, Val Perry of Perry's Fishing Adventures and Bill Swann of Swanny's Guided Fishing on the March 21 Springer Fever.

Miss the show? Check out the podcast: XPODCAST Mini Blast-Off March 21 with Val Perry, Jack Glass & Bill Swann

SPRINGER TECH: Some home-schooling on Kwikfish 101

NEW March 23, 2009 / 9:00 a.m.

PORTLAND, Ore. - As Luhr-Jensen's clever new Kwikfish ad states "Salmon and steelhead have incredible instincts ... yet a total lack of anger management."

The I-5/205 herring troll has become the popular gathering point for many Columbia River spring Chinook anglers, but don't let that Kwikfish box get too far away from you. Sometimes you're just better off appealing to a springer's lack of anger management.

8 CHECK OUT Luhr-Jensen's Tech Sheet #561 for a great Kwikfish refresher course, and be prepared to apply some serious pressure to a few ticked off springers.

-JS

SPRINGER 201: Schneider digs into details of early/cold-water springers
NEW March 16, 2009 / 4:15 p.m.

PORTLAND, Ore. - It's the middle of March, and some of our most dependable Wild Country sources are starting to get serious about springers. Here’s what they’re finding: onesy-twosy action, and coooold water.

Andy Schneider and David Johnson tackled the basics of early-season spring Chinook in last week’s early-season springer tech feature, but this week, Schneider is at it again, with some deeper details on how (and where) to defeat frigid March waters.

Here’s his advice:

Plug proven: Plugs are the most popular lure used to catch spring Chinook throughout the season, so it makes sense to use them early in the season, in cold water. Since the Columbia and Willamette rivers typically hover around 36 to 40 degrees in late winter, using a smaller plug will be more effective.  The most common sizes of Kwikfish in April and May are K14 and K15, but downsize that to a K12 or K13 until waters warm up a little more.

Scent/baits: Though you’re downsizing your plugs, don’t skip a bait wrap on the plug. While sardine is the traditional wrap for plugs, herring and anchovy may work more effectively on these smaller plugs because they can be filleted thinner without falling apart like a small sardine fillet will. 

8CLICK HERE to read the rest of Andy Schneider's advice on early-season/cold-water techniques.

SHOW RE-WILD: Mulkey, Swanny check in for March 14 Springer Fever
NEW March 15, 2009 / 6:30 p.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - If there was ever any doubt who the hot springer stick was last year on the Columbia River, all you have to do is check out the March issue of Northwest Sportsman: that's the smiling face of Bill "Swanny" Swann, next to the number 2-0-9 ... which is the number of spring Chinook he brought to the boat last year.

Northwest Wild Country chatted about the 2009 season with Swanny and with longtime Columbia River veteran Terry Mulkey on March 14.

XPODCAST March 14 with Terry Mulkey

XPODCAST March 14 with Bill Swann

SPRINGER FEVER: Columbia sea-lion issue garners national attention
NEW March 9, 2009 / 5:30 p.m.

NORTH BONNEVILLE, Ore. - The recent approval of lethal removal of California sea lions from Bonneville Dam - as you would expect - attracted a flurry of national media attention.

Our friends at ESPN Outdoors ran the above "Fraternity Hazing" graphic as part of a feature package on their front page last week, and as the April/May peak of spring Chinook through Bonneville Dam approaches, anglers and pinnapeds will again be in competition for the Columbia's most precious salmon resource.

Charles Hudson of the Columbia Inter-Tribal Fish Commission joined us for the March 7 edition of Springer Fever on Northwest Wild Country. Over the course of a 20-minute conversation, Hudson eloquently defined both the challenges and rewards of properly managing the Columbia's burgeoning population of California sea lions.

X CLICK HERE to listen to the podcast of our Q&A with Hudson.

SPRINGER 101: Schneider, DJ on early-season springer techniques
NEW March 6, 2009 / 12:30 p.m.

CATHLAMET, Wash. - Like many Columbia River rats looking for early-season springers on the Columbia, guide David Johnson will start pulling plugs in the lower river in March, but he’ll mix in herring and spinners, too. As the run progresses and fish move from Tongue Point to Bonneville Dam, there are countless areas to fish for springers.

Regardless of where you fish, though, a lot of the same techniques prove effective all the way from the lower-river deadline to Bonneville Dam.

8CLICK HERE to read Andy Schneider's "Springer 101" piece on early-season techniques.

SPRINGER FEVER: New regulations, same target: S-P-R-I-N-G-E-R-S
NEW March 2, 2009 / 11:00 a.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - If the Columbia and Willamette rivers were sports bars, the first two weeks of March would be the 3-4 hours before happy hour: a patron here, a patron there, but nothing to write home about.

That'll all change in about three weeks, when the salmon-fishing equivalent of March Madness sets in and the two rivers are flooded with both fish and anglers looking for 2-for-1 happy-hour specials.

Check this page frequently for Springer Fever '09 EXCLUSIVE stories on techniques and factors that will help tide you over until springer happy hour arrives.

-JS

WILDCAST EXCLUSIVE: Clancy's kwik tips for Kwikfish success
NEW March 1, 2009 / 10:30 a.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - Clancy Holt forgets more about plug fishing in 24 hours than I'll ever know. He's the man who brought the technique of fishing bait-wrapped plugs to the salmon rivers of the Pacific Northwest, and an honest-to-God institution among southwest Washington guides.

Clancy served up some excellent advice on early-season spring Chinook seasons on the Feb. 28 version of Springer Fever '09 on Northwest Wild Country, but he also took a little time after the show to pass along a handful of simple, basic truths about how to be a better Kwikfish angler.

X CLICK HERE to listen to Clancy's advice on plug fishing in an EXCLUSIVE addition to our series of special Springer Fever '09 WildCasts.

-JS

SHOW RE-WILD: Holt, Cambell check in for Feb. 28 Springer Fever
NEW Feb. 21, 2009 / 4:30 p.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - As I write this, the Columbia and Willamette rivers are operating under a fresh new series of regulations. And while it's still extremely early in the 2009 run, there are those among us who just can't let early March pass by without spending some time in pursuit of springers.

Northwest Wild Country visited with regional icon Clancy Holt on Feb. 28, tapping into 30 years of Columbia River experience for advice on where, when and how to find early-season fish. We also chatted with Robert Campbell of Fisherman's Marine in Oregon City, who gave us an update on Willamette conditions.

XPODCAST Feb. 28 with Clancy Holt

XPODCAST Feb. 28 with Robert Campbell

NWWC EXCLUSIVE: Best spots for a lower Columbia March springer
NEW Feb. 23, 2009 / 7:30 p.m.

CATHLAMET, Wash. - It’s been a tough couple of years for Cathlamet-area spring Chinook hunters.

As recently as four years ago, this lower-Columbia gathering point was one of the hottest Chinook spots on the West Coast. The last couple of years?

Not so much.

It was slow in 2007, and the bite just flat didn’t materialize at all during last year’s brief 12-day lower-river season.

So what does 2009 hold? Hard to say, but with a handful of early fish already being caught in the Willamette River, the lower-river troll might be worth a look before things start cranking around Longview and Portland.

8CLICK HERE to read about some key spots to hit between Tongue Point and Puget Island.

WILDCAST EXCLUSIVE: Buzz Ramsey discusses SAFE for Salmon
NEW Feb. 22, 2009 / 6:30 p.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - Sportfishers vs. commercials. Commercials vs. sport anglers. The battle continues, year after year. One step forward, three steps back.

One thing is certain: as long as there's a single gillnet in the mainstem Columbia River, management and conservation advancement will be compromised.

SAFE for Salmon is a proposal that's gradually picked up momentum in recent months, with support from a wide variety of conservation and fishing-industry ogranizations.

X CLICK HERE to hear Buzz Ramsey discuss the potential benefits of SAFE for Salmon in an EXCLUSIVE web interview, the first in our series of special Springer Fever '09 WildCasts.

-JS

SHOW RE-WILD: Springer Fever Feb. 21 starts with Ramsey, McDonald
NEW Feb. 21, 2009 / 4:30 p.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - We've had two months of heartburn over spring Chinook allocation on the Columbia, but today, finally, it was just time to talk about spring Chinook fishing.

Northwest Wild Country kicked off Springer Fever, 2009 with a couple of heavy hitters: Northwest legend Buzz Ramsey and Portland-based hotshot Carmen McDonald. Ramsey - who is commonly regarded as one of the pioneers of the Columbia River Chinook fishery - put his microscope on the March/April season structure, while McDonald gave us a live fish-eye view from the Willamette River.

XPODCAST Feb. 21 with Buzz Ramsey

XPODCAST Feb. 21 with Carmen McDonald

SPRINGER FEVER CRASH TEST: PAUTZKE Nectar
UPDATED Feb. 22, 2009 / 10:30 a.m

To be perfectly honest, there's absolutely nothing new about Pautzke's Nectar ... and that's the beauty of it.

A growing corps of Columbia River springer anglers have been using one of the Pacific Northwest's oldest products in a cool new way. We all know how scent-sensitive spring Chinook are, and guides like Bill Swann and Val Perry have tapped into a scent (and color) booster that's resulted in increased springer numbers.

8Pautzke's Nectar is the hot "new" herring booster for 2009.

EXCLUSIVE: NWWC's "Springer Fever '09" coverage kicks off on Feb. 21
POSTED Feb. 17, 2009 / 2:30 p.m.

SEATTLE, Wash. - With the third-largest run of spring Chinook in decades bearing down on the Columbia River, you can't deny the little beads of sweat starting to roll down your brow.

You're starting to catch The Fever.

Not to worry: you won't suffer alone. Starting this Saturday, Feb. 21, Northwest Wild Country will surrender to Springer Fever '09, the most comprehensive, up-to-date coverage of the Columbia River spring Chinook season you'll find anywhere.

Springer Fever '09: This marks our fifth consecutive year of Springer Fever coverage, and it's by far our most ambitious project to date. The basics:

nLive on-air: You'll hear exclusive Springer Fever content every Saturday from 7:00 to 7:30 a.m. on Northwest Wild Country, with live, on-the-water reports, in-depth Q&A with Columbia biologists and managers, thorough analysis of new springer gear, and breaking news from the fishing grounds.

nExclusive website content: Feature stories, technique tips, Q&As with the Columbia River's best guides and exclusive blogs from our stable of writers.

nSpecial WildCasts!: Every week, I'll host special web-only Springer Fever WildCast interviews that'll be available ONLY here on NWWildCountry.com's WildCast Center and on Sportsradio 950 KJR On Demand.

nSpecial Giveaways!: I'll open up the Prize Cave every week for special springer-specific giveaways, courtesy of our Springer Fever sponsors.

nLIVE EVERY SATURDAY, 7 to 7:30 a.m. on SPORTSRADIO 950 KJR!

nCATCH IT LIVE STREAMING ONLINE at www.950kjr.com!

nDOWNLOAD THE PODCAST at KJR's ON DEMAND CENTER!

nHEAR THE EXCLUSIVE WILDCASTS in our WILDCAST CENTER!

GUEST BLOG: Columbia allocation too slow, most restrictive since 2000
POSTED Feb. 17, 2009 / 2:00 p.m.

KLICKITAT, Wash. - Finally, on February 11 fishery managers from Oregon and Washington set the spring Chinook season for the Columbia and Willamette Rivers. 

The process between the two states took too long due to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission being far more concerned about the needs of a few part-time gill-netters than that of thousands of recreational anglers, full-time fishing guides and retail businesses that depend on this fishery for their livelihoods.

READ Buzz Ramsey's Outdoor News column on the spring Chinook allocation debacle.