DISCOVER FISHING IN PORTLAND
On the Columbia River or the Willamette, this is great fishing
The Columbia and Willamette rivers offer some of the best fishing the Pacific Northwest has to offer. These rivers offer fishing year round for Salmon, Steelhead, Sturgeon and Walleye. The Columbia River offers some of the best Salmon and Sturgeon Fishing in the world, all of this fishing within a short drive from Portland, Oregon. The Willamette is the smaller of the two but the fishing is every bit as good. The Willamette has very good spring Chinook Salmon fishing and also has some of the best catch and release Sturgeon Fishing year round!
Fishing In Oregon
WE KNOW THE COLUMBIA RIVER
Fishing Zones on the Columbia River
There are 3 main areas we fish on the Columbia river. The first area is an area Fishermen call Buoy 10. This fishery is the super bowl of all of our Salmon fisheries. It’s the opener for our fall Chinook Salmon season. The Buoy 10 fishery is on the lower Columbia River and we are targeting fish that are very fresh, right out of the Pacific Ocean. We also Sturgeon fish in this area, and it can be epic Sturgeon fishing in shallow water on many occasions. The next zone is from Bonneville Dam down river to Warrior Rock. This is my personal favorite zone to fish. Salmon and Sturgeon fishing takes place here. We typically are trolling spinners for Salmon in this zone. Most of our oversize Sturgeon fishing also happens in this zone. This fishery is closer to Portland and the numbers of fish are high in a smaller part of the river! The last zone is above Bonneville Dam. This fishery is a little bit further from Portland but is the best option later in the season for Salmon. Our keeper Sturgeon fishery also happens in this portion of the river. One of the only areas we are allowed to keep Sturgeon in the Pacific Northwest.
WE KNOW THE WILLAMETTE RIVER
The Willamette River Fishery
Fishing the Willamette River is special because it holds large amounts of fish right in the middle of the city. There is nothing like catching a trophy Salmon or Sturgeon 5 minutes from your hotel! The Willamette River gets a big run of Spring Chinook that shows up in early March. Willamette River Spring Chinook are the best tasting salmon that show up in Oregon all year long. They are not the largest of Salmon that return to Oregon but they are aggressive and fight hard on light tackle! The other main attraction the Willamette River brings to the table is the epic year round catch and release Sturgeon Fishing. 20 to 40 fish days are common while fishing the Willamette River as Sturgeon like to congregate in the deep holes by the thousands! November through May is the peak time to be Sturgeon fishing on the Willamette River.