Rivers & Fish

We on California's north coast are fortunate to have so many fishing opportunities available to us.  Here, we have a wide variety of rivers, each with its own unique character and personality ... all boasting some opportunities for world-class fishing for salmon, steelhead, and striped bass.

Steelhead

Options - Particularly during the winter steelhead season, it is imperative that you are not locked into a single river.  I want to fish where the fishing is best, and it makes no sense to me to fish a particular river as a matter of convenience.

In the winter, I have two bases from which to operate: the town of Smith River and Fortuna.  The Smith River base gives me the ability to fish not only the Smith, but in some cases, to run the lower Klamath.  Living in Fortuna affords me the opportunity to fish the Trinity river, Mad river, main stem and south fork of the Ee riverl, Van Duzen river, and Mattole River.  These hard fighting Steelhead average 8 - 12 pounds and can reach weights in excess of 20 pounds.

Striped Bass

April and May are prime time for striped bass on the Sacramento and Feather Rivers.  Stripers are prolific in these two systems.

King Salmon

The Klamath, Trinity, and Smith are the focal points of salmon fishing in the fall.  In the spring, I return to the Klamath for what is perhaps the finest table fare ~ spring-run king salmon.  The Smith is known for its exceptionally large salmon ~ averaging 20 - 35 pounds.  Fish over 50 pounds are caught every year.  In the fall of 2010, a client of mine landed a 61 pounder.