The ocean salmon season out of Brookings will run June 18-Aug. 21, with coho-only the first week, and king salmon opening June 25. The season is similar to last year’s ocean salmon fishery out of the Port of Brookings-Harbor.
Limits of coho salmon last summer aboard the Miss Brooke of Brookings Fishing Charters.
The season opens during the period when catches historically are at their peak, as king salmon from the Sacramento, Klamath, Smith, Rogue, Chetco and other rivers all congregate near Brookings to feast on anchovies, herring and other bait fish. Anglers will be allowed to fish seven days a week out of Brookings once the season opens, and keep two salmon per day. Wild or hatchery kings can be kept, along with hatchery coho salmon.
A nice load of king salmon caught aboard the Miss Brooke last summer.
Forecasts are good for this summer’s season, and early indications show there are lots of fish off of Brookings. Charter boats already are encountering big numbers of king salmon while running bottom fish trips out of Brookings. There is an abundance of bait within close range of the harbor, with massive schools of herring, smelt, needlefish and anchovies already here.
Federal biologists estimate there are 1.3 million hatchery coho and nearly 850,000 adult king salmon from the Sacramento, Rogue and Klamath rivers off the Southern Oregon and Northern California coast this year. The coho numbers are above average, while the Sacramento forecast also is high.
Coho salmon caught out of Brookings and headed to the grill.The finished product, delicious coho salmon caught with Brookings Fishing Charters.
Last summer, the Brookings Fishing Charters fleet enjoyed impressive catch rates all salmon season, with lots of limits of coho and kings. Some days when the coho fishing was hot, boats returned early with full limits and released big numbers of wild coho. The kings fishing was good from the opening day into mid-July last summer.
Brookings Fishing Charters captains are the most experienced ocean salmon guides on the Southern Oregon Coast. Using fast, comfortable six-pack boats, they quickly get to the fishing grounds, and use downriggers or divers to get anchovies or herring in front of feeding salmon. All of the captains are year-round fishing guides on both the river and ocean and experts at catching salmon. Many of the Brookings Fishing Charters captains also have extensive Alaska salmon guiding experience.
Limits of kings and coho from the Miss Brooke last summer.More Brookings limits. Our crew enjoys the highest catch rates of any charter on the Southern Oregon Coast. Capt. Michael, left, and Capt. Travis, right, are two of the very best!
Ocean salmon trips are $200 a person and include all bait and tackle. Trips are 6-8 hours. Catch rates are generally highest in June and July. To book a trip, click here.
A hefty king salmon caught aboard the Miss Brooke last summer.
There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the ocean salmon season approved today (April 10, 2020) for the Ports of Brookings and Gold Beach. Although the June 20-Aug. 7 season is shorter than most years, running only 48 days, it takes place during the peak time of the year for salmon fishing out of Brookings. Late June and early July often produce substantially better fishing than the rest of the year.
This summer’s ocean salmon seasons runs June 20-Aug. 7 out of Brookings. These kings were caught in July 2018 aboard the Miss Brooke of Brookings Fishing Charters.
Anyone who spent time trolling for salmon off of Brookings in June and July last year, and later in August on the Rogue Bay, likely noticed the very large number of jacks, or 2-year-old salmon. You often couldn’t get through them to catch a larger adult salmon. Those jacks are a key indicator of the following year’s run. Lots of jacks and shakers last year should equate to plenty of keeper-size adults this summer.
A nice king caught offshore of Brookings last summer aboard The Dash of Brookings Fishing Charters.
The majority of the salmon caught out of Brookings are from the Sacramento, Feather, American and Mokelumne rivers in Northern California. Those rivers have a 2020 ocean abundance of 473,200 adult kings, up from last year’s pre-season forecast of 379,000. Those shakers caught and released last summer off of Brookings are likely part of that large population of Sacramento Valley salmon, which feed off of Southern Oregon and Northern California during the summer months before moving toward the San Francisco area later in the year, and then into the bay and delta.
These jack salmon caught on the Rogue Bay last August with Capt. Andy Martin of Brookings Fishing Charters are an indication of a bigger run of adults this year.
Adding to the big numbers of salmon from the Sacramento River and its tributaries are salmon from the Klamath, Trinity and Rogue rivers. There are an estimated 186,000 adult kings from the Klamath and Trinity rivers in the ocean this year. That number is down from the 2019 forecast of 274,000, which led to the shorter ocean seasons this year to ensure enough fish make it back to the Klamath to spawn. The highest impacts on Klamath River salmon by anglers fishing out of Brookings and Crescent City are in August, resulting in the limiting fishing in August this year. The Rogue River has an ocean abundance of 256,900 this year. There were incredible numbers of jacks in the Rogue Bay last August, a sign there will be lots of larger 3- and 4-year-old king salmon this season.
Angler Bruce Beck holds a nice king caught in the ocean out of Brookings last June with Capt. Andy Martin of Brookings Fishing Charters.
The overall ocean abundance for the Sacramento Valley, Klamath-Trinity and Rogue River totals 916,100 adult king salmon. The number is more than 1 million once salmon from the Chetco, Smith, Eel and other coastal rivers are added in.
A nice king salmon caught last July aboard the Miss Brooke with Capt. Travis Sallander.
When developing this year’s ocean salmon seasons, biologists warned the smaller forecast for the Klamath River would result in a shorter season than last year. Anglers and local residents testified at PFMC meetings that the preferred dates are late June and July, when salmon are most abundant off of Brookings. Anglers also pointed out May and early June can be windy, creating rough conditions on the salmon grounds 5 to 10 miles out from the Port of Brookings.
Smaller kings like this 25-incher caught last summer off of Brookings are an indicator of more adult kings the following year. A big forecast of salmon headed to the Sacramento River could result in good fishing this summer out of Brookings.
Brookings Fishing Charters targets salmon during the summer months by trolling herring, anchovies or sardines with downriggers or divers. Each of the captains have considerable ocean salmon experience off of Oregon. The Miss Brooke, Papa B, The Dash and ‘Bout Time are also among the fastest boats in the fleet, to quickly get anglers offshore to the salmon grounds.
This year’s limit is two king salmon per day at least 24 inches long. The ocean season is open seven days a week. Barbless hooks must be used.
When the salmon bite turns on, double hookups are common. These two kings were caught last June aboard the Miss Brooke of Brookings Fishing Charters.
After the ocean salmon seasons closes, Brookings Fishing Charters continues to run lingcod and rockfish charters out of Brookigs, along with California halibut, and fall salmon on the Rogue Bay in Gold Beach. Capt. Andy docks his guide sled at Jot’s Resort in Gold Beach to run bay salmon trips, and ocean lingcod and rockfish, and bay salmon combos.
Anglers Vince McKinley and Dan Westeren hold king salmon caught in August 2019 with Capt. Andy of Brookings Fishing Charters.
The Rogue Bay fishes best from early July through mid-September. During the Rogue season, anglers can keep two adult kings and five jack salmon per day.
To book an ocean charter with Brookings Fishing Charters, call (541) 813-1082 or visit www.brookingsfishing.com.
