Southern Oregon Coast sportfishing charter

Captains and Crew

Captain Andy

Growing up in Brookings, Andy spent hundreds of days fishing on the ocean during his youth. His father worked the graveyard shift at a local plywood mill, and when he got off work in the morning, he would wake his children up and take them out on the family boat to fish for salmon, lingcod and bottom fish for a few hours each day. Capt. Andy learned to catch lingcod and salmon at an early age, and has been honing is skills since. Many of the old timers around the Port of Brookings knew Andy would grow up to be a fishing guide and charter boat captain, and Brookings Fishing Charters is his dream fulfilled.

After graduating from Brookings-Harbor High School, Andy earned his U.S. Coast Guard captain's license, and later became a full-time sportfishing guide and charter captain. Initially working as a newspaper reporter and editor, Andy changed careers and built his charter business in his hometown of Brookings. He spent a decade running halibut and salmon charters during the summers in the Gulf of Alaska and also guiding on the world-famous Kenia River, but now operates fishing charters year round in his hometown of Brookings. In Alaska, Andy guided anglers to halibut as big as 405 pounds, and regularly brought 200- to 300-pound halibut back to the docks.

Andy is well known among the local fishermen in Brookings as one of the top salmon, halibut and lingcod fishing guides on the coast. His customers often catch some of the biggest kings of the season, both in the ocean and while fishing the rivers during the winter. One of his customers caught a 58-pound king salmon while trolling near the Brookings jetties, while another holds the Chetco River salmon record, a 65-pounder caught in 2011.

Capt. Andy normally runs the Nauti-Lady, but also spends time at the helm of the Kraken or Miss Brooke. His daughter, Alexandra, works in the Brookings Fishing Charters booking office and tackle shop.

Captain Rye

A pitcher for his college baseball team, Capt. Rye Phillips has guided and worked on charter boats full time since graduating from Western Oregon University 12 years ago. After several years of running six-pack charter boats in Southeast Alaska, Capt. Rye designed a charter boat specifically for the coastal waters out of Brookings, the 29-foot Dash. Prior to that, he ran charters out of Brookings in his guide sled, and quickly developed a reputation for finding big king salmon during the famous Chetco Bubble Season. While guiding in Alaska, one of his customers caught an unofficial world record halibut, a 482-pounder caught near Glacier Bay. The giant fish did not qualify for the IGFA record because it was harpooned and shot, and the angler needed help from others one the boat landing the fish. Capt. Rye is an albacore tuna specialist, and also runs charters for lingcod, rockfish, king salmon, Pacific and California halibut and crab out of Brookings. One of the largest halibut caught out of Brookings in recent memory, a 58-inch, 100-pound halibut, was caught with Capt. Rye in 2020.

Captain Mick

A longtime Northern California and Southern Oregon river guide, Mick Thomas joined the Brookings Fishing Charters team as the captain of The Dash. A native of Crescent City, California, Mick previously worked as a commercial fisherman during the summer months. With decades of experience fishing the Point St. George Reef between Brookings and Crescent City, Mick is known for his ability to get quick limits of rockfish and lingcod near the lighthouse. Never short of intriguing stories about local history or big fish tales from the ocean, Smith River, Klamath River and Chetco River, customers often request Mick. He ties his own bottom fishing flies, and is a light-tackle specialist. Mick is one of the most versatile captains in the fleet, often switching from lingcod and rockfish to salmon to halibut to albacore tuna. Mick's winter business, Lunker Fish Trips, is one of the most successful river guide businesses in the region.

Captain Sam

Capt. Sam Stover is a longtime Smith and Chetco river fishing guide, and lifelong angler on the Pacific Coast. He grew up in Crescent City, California, and has fished the Point St. George Reef for decades. Sam started work for Brookings Fishing Charters as a deckhand, and quickly advanced to captain. He occasionally works on the crew of the Nauti-Lady, but typically serves as captain of the Dash or Kraken. Sam has been very successful at catching salmon in the ocean off of Brookings. With extensive knowledge of Point St. George Reef, he also knows where to find trophy lingcod and rockfish.

Captain Shane

A river guide in Oregon and Alaska, Capt. Shane Brooks also works on the Brookings Fishing Charters boats, deckhanding on the Miss Brooke and guide sled. Never short of stories, Shane is a customer favorite. He also operates Chetco Estuary and Rogue Bay salmon charters. He grew up fishing in Oregon, Northern California and Alaska with his grandfather, and now works full time in the Sportfishing industry.

Captain Mike

Capt. Mike Brouillette owns and operates the Papa B. A former commercial albacore tuna fisherman, Capt. Mike also owned a catering business, is an accomplished barbecue chef, and worked in the grocery and meat business before focusing his full-time efforts on his Brookings-based charter boat. Capt. Mike is a customer favorite, not only because of his ability to get limits of lingcod, rockfish, salmon and crab, but also for his funny stories and jokes. Ensuring customers have a good time on the water is always a priority for Capt. Mike, aka "Old Dog." When not running fishing charters, Capt. Mike enjoys playing poker.

Capt. Chris

Capt. Chris Cooke worked as a deckhand for three years for Brookings Fishing Charters soon after graduating from Brookings-Harbor High School. While deckhanding, Chris earned his Coast Guard captain's license and now operates our six-pack charter boats, and occasionally deckhands on the Nauti-Lady. Chris is also a full-time river guide on the Chetco River during the fall and winter, and was essentially the "rookie of the year" in 2024, his first season, catching salmon on every trip he guided for, and also doing well his first season professionally guiding for winter steelhead. Chris spends his days off hunting and fishing, and is well liked by customers for his positive attitude and hard work. He also can out-fillet most of our crew!

Deckhand Eric

Deckhand Eric Howard has worked for Brookings Fishing Charters since he weas 15 years old, still in high school. As soon as he graduated from Brookings-Harbor High School in 2024, he became a full-time deckhand and river fishing guide as he works toward his Coast Guard captain's license to begin captaining our charter boats. Eric also works on a commercial crab boat in Brookings during part of the winter season. Eric's enthusiasm for fishing is contagious, and he is a favorite among our customers. Often working on the Nauti-Lady, Eric also deckhands on salmon and halibut trips aboard the Miss Brooke and Kraken. Eric is an avid hunter and outdoorsman, and spends much of his time off on the backroads and remote deer trails of Southwestern Oregon.

Captain Travis

Like Capt. Andy, Capt. Travis Sallander is a native of Brookings who has spent his entire life fishing on the Southern Oregon Coast. Travis is a full-time fishing guide and saltwater charter boat captain, with extensive experience in Oregon and Alaska. Andy and Travis grew up together in Brookings and have known each other, and fished together, since grade school. Travis captains the Miss Brooke and at times the Kraken. Travis earned his stripes guiding on the Kenai and Kasilof rivers in Alaska, as well as the Chetco River in Oregon. He spent several years deckhanding on the Brookings Fishing Charters boats before earning his U.S. Coast Guard near-coastal captain's license. Travis' favorite fisheries include the Point St. George Reef lighthouse, and trolling for salmon off the Oregon coast.

Captain Michael

Starting as a deckhand on the Miss Brooke, Michael McGahan worked for Brookings Fishing Charters for three years before earning his US Coast Guard captain's license. He now serves as captain of the Miss Brooke, Dash and Kraken. A customer favorite, Michael's enthusiasm for fishing is contagious. During the fall and winter, Michael is a river guide on the Chetco River. His father was a commercial fisherman in Fort Bragg, and Michael has been around the water and commercial and sport fishing boats his entire life. Michael has quickly become known for his ability to catch salmon in the ocean off of Brookings. He also is one of the top albacore tuna guides on the Oregon Coast.