Tag: Chetco River fishing guides

Salmon chowder easy and delicious

By Capt. Andy Martin – The thrill of catching hard-fighting king and coho salmon is a top draw to the Oregon Coast. Salmon also are highly prized because they are so delicious to eat. Whether grilled, baked or smoked, salmon are one of the most popular fish to eat. They also make great chowder.

Salmon chowder is one of my favorite ways to enjoy salmon, and was one of my daughter’s favorite seafood dishes as she was growing up. This chowder recipe was perfected by fishing guides in remote Alaska, who would prepare the tasty dish for their clients on the banks of the river after they caught their first fish of the day. The guide would cook the chowder for lunch while clients continued to fish. This chowder is a great way to enjoy salmon year round, as it can be made from fresh or frozen salmon. Canned or smoked salmon can also be substituted.

When I made this one the banks of the river in Alaska, where some fresh ingredients were not readily available, I used cans of evaporated milk, which work fine, but half and half (or even heavy cream) is better. Ingredients listed here are a good starting point, but you may want a little more salt and pepper, and vary amounts of potatoes, celery and onion (I never carried a measuring cup or measuring spoons in my gear bag during guided fishing trips!)

Alaska Guider Chowder

5-6 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled, grease reserved

2 tablespoons butter or olive oil

1 cup diced celery

1/2 cup diced onion

2 cups cubed potatoes

1 cup water (or chicken broth)

Pinch of flour

2 tablespoons dried dill

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon lemon pepper

1 teaspoon garlic power

1-2 pounds salmon, bones and skin removed, cut into smaller chunks

2 cups half and half, or heavy cream

1 can corn, drained,   or 1 1/2 cup frozen corn

Bacon is a key ingredient in salmon chowder.

Start by cooking several pieces of bacon. Save the greese. The bacon adds flavor to the chowder.

Chopped celery and onion.

In a large pot, cook chopped onion and celery with butter or olive oil. One small onion and a few stalks of celery is all that is needed.

Add potatoes, and season with salt, pepper, garlic, lemon pepper.

Add four to six small to medium skinned, chopped up potatoes. Stir in chopped bacon, bacon grease, salt, pepper, lemon pepper and garlic. Add a pinch of flour and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.

Add just enough water to almost cover potatoes.

Add enough water to almost cover the potatoes. Be careful not to add too much, especially if you like thicker chowder. Add a generous amount of dried dill weed. Cook the potatoes until almost done.

Add raw salmon to the chowder.

Just as potatoes are almost done, add chopped up raw salmon. Remove the skin and bones before adding to the chowder. Stir and continue to cook over medium heat.

The salmon will crumble to small pieces as it cooks.

As the salmon cooks, it will break apart into small pieces. Continue cooking until salmon is done.

Add frozen or a can of corn, drained.

Once the salmon is cooked, add a can of drained corn, or a bag of frozen corn. Stir well.

Add one to two cups of half and half.

The final step is adding one to two cups of half and half. Heat, stirring frequently, until chowder is hot.

A dash of Tabasco sauce adds a little kick to the finished chowder.

Enjoy the chowder with a dash of Tabasco sauce, or a dab of butter. Serve with warm bread or crackers.

To catch a salmon on the Oregon Coast to make this delicious salmon chowder, visit http://www.brookingsfishing.com.

Steelhead arrive, lingcod bite between storms

BROOKINGS, Ore. (Dec. 14, 2023) – Fall salmon season is quickly coming to an end on the Southern Oregon coastal rivers, while the first steelhead of winter have shown up. Offshore fishing for lingcod and rockfish, meanwhile, remains good when weather conditions cooperate. Our saltwater captains have switched gears to steelhead, and will be running drift boat trips on the Chetco, Smith, Elk and Sixes rivers through March, but will also take customers on ocean bottom fishing charters during the winter as conditions allow.

The first winter steelhead of the season caught with Capt. Andy on Dec. 13 on the Chetco by Scott of Denver. We will be running drift boat trips through March.

We fish for steelhead from drift boats, with a guide rowing two customers downriver. Light spinning rods are used to cast small clusters of roe. Steelhead are known for their non-stop fight, and pound-for-pound are one of the most prized gamefish. They also are caught on some of the most beautiful stretches of river in the country. Capt. Andy, Mick and Travis have special use permits to take customers on the Wild and Scenic Upper Chetco, while Rye, Sam and Shane fish the lower end of the river, where hatchery fish are more abundant. All of our charter boat captains are also licensed river guides. For more information on river trips, visit www.wildriversfishing.com.

Capt. Sam runs the falls on the Elk River. The coastal rivers of Southern Oregon offer great salmon and steelhead fishing, and are among the most beautiful anywhere.
A large king salmon caught on the Chetco this fall with Capt. Rye.
Capt. Mick holds a lunker fall king salmon caught by John Curry on the Upper Chetco.

Salmon season was decent this year on the Chetco, with the best fishing in late October and early November. A few kings will continue to trickle in through the end of December, but the vast majority of the run has already spawned. We saw big numbers of hatchery kings this year, and a lot of jacks, a good indication of what’s in store next year.

Nice limits of lingcod caught on the Dash in early November. Winter fishing for lingcod and rockfish is often good, as big fish move into shallow water to spawn.

While the best weather of the year for ocean charter fishing is April through September, calm weather days in the winter months often lead to wide-open fishing. Lingcod spawn in shallow water, where they can be caught on light tackle in calm, protected coves. We will be running ocean charters as conditions allow this winter. Call (541) 813-1082 to get on our call list for winter fishing.

Gift certificates make great stocking stuffers! We offer gift certificates for ocean and river trips, and our tackle shop. They can be printed and mailed with brochures, or emailed as a PDF. Call (541) 813-1082 for information.

Here are some of the photos from this past salmon season with Capt. Mick, Rye, Sam, Andy and Shane.

A 36-pound lingcod caught with Capt. Rye at Mack Arch in early November.

Here are a few late-season lingcod and rockfish photos from November.

To book a trip, visit www.brookingsfishing.com or call (541) 813-1082.

River salmon season off to hot start!

BROOKINGS, Ore. (Oct. 10, 2023) – Big numbers of bright king salmon have arrived in the Chetco River estuary, while halibut, lingcod and rockfish continue to be caught during ocean charters out of Brookings. The transition from summer to fall often produces some of the best fishing opportunities of the year, and that continues to be the case as anglers have plenty of options on the Southern Oregon Coast.

Some of the nice salmon caught the first weekend of October with Capt. Sam.

The Brookings Fishing Charters crew has been running ocean charters daily, as the weather allows, and also guided salmon trips on the Chetco River estuary. All of our captains are also licensed river guides, and have been enjoying great catches of big king salmon at the mouth of the river. With heavy rains this week, and rough ocean conditions, ocean charters will be running less frequently, while the crew switches to drift boats to target salmon upriver. Flows are expected to increase next week, and we plan to run our first drift boat salmon trips of the season.

An ocean-fresh salmon caught in the Chetco estuary with Capt. Shane.

Offshore, halibut fishing has been fair to good. The halibut season in Oregon runs through Oct. 31. Lingcod and rockfish season is open year round, and we will continue ocean charters as weather allows. During recent trips, limits of nice rockfish have been common, with hot action in shallow water using light tackle. Lingcod fishing is fair, but soon bigger numbers of fish will move close to shore to stage before spawning. Winter lingcod fishing can be fast and furious out of Brookings, and our six-pack charter boats are well equipped for fishing the shallow reefs where lingcod spawn.

Some nice halibut caught on the Dash with Capt. Rye.

Larger halibut are showing up in the catch, with fish to 60 pounds. Our crew has been targeting halibut in 180 to 240 feet of water. On anchor, lighter weights can be used, to make halibut fishing more enjoyable.

Salmon fishing was hot over the weekend at the mouth of the Chetco. Anglers must stay withing the jetties, but big numbers of salmon, both hatchery and wild, are holding up in the estuary before heading upriver. With the rains, drift boat fishing will be productive. Our crew will be fishing the Chetco, Elk and Sixes rivers for salmon, and the Smith River for steelhead. Capt. Andy, Mick, Sam, Rye, Travis and Shane will be running our drift boat trips this fall.

Here are just a few of the salmon catches from the last two weeks at the mouth of the Chetco.

Here is a sampling of the catches from recent ocean charters. We will continue to run our six-pack charter boats into the winter as the weather allows.

To book an ocean charter or guided river trip, call (541) 813-1082. More in river fishing can be found at www.wildriversfishing.com. For ocean trips, visit www.brookingsfishing.com.

Check out our latest recipe, Chipotle Rockfish, Shrimp and Bacon tacos.

Charter captains wrapping up steelhead season

Most of the captains for Brookings Fishing Charters run salmon and steelhead drift boat trips during the fall and winter on the Chetco and Smith rivers. Capt. Andy, Mick, Sam, Rye and Shane are finishing up their winter steelhead season, and preparing to shift gears to the spring and summer ocean seasons.

This year’s winter steelhead season has produced slower-than-average fishing, but our captains are still finding some nice steelhead. In a season where every bite counts, the difference between a couple of fish to the boat and getting skunked often depends on an experienced guide to maximize your chance at success. Our guides have often been the top-producing boats on the Chetco and Smith this season.

A customer holds a nice Chetco River steelhead caught in February with Capt. Andy

Low, clear water for much of the steelhead season has kept some of the steelhead from leaving the ocean and migrating upriver. A wet forecast to begin March could bring in fresh fish for the final part of the steelhead season, which runs through March on the Chetco River and April on the Smith River.

Capt. Sam holds a beautiful Smith River steelhead.
Capt. Rye and a customer hold a steelhead from the Smith River.
Capt. Mick with a steelhead from the Chetco River.

We catch steelhead fishing from drift boats on the wild and scenic sections of the Chetco and Smith rivers. Light spinning rods are used to cast small clusters of roe. Steelhead are known to be very hard fighters, and are prized because they are difficult to catch. Sometimes they are referred to as a fish of a thousand casts.

Capt. Andy and a customer hold a large hatchery steelhead from the Chetco River.

In March, Brookings Fishing Charters will be offering lingcod and rockfish trips daily, weather permitting. Capt. Mick, Rye and Sam also will continue to run steelhead trips on the Smith and Chetco rivers. To book a river or ocean charter, call (541) 813-1082. More information about river trips can be found at www.wildriversfishing.com. For ocean charters, visit www.brookingsfishing.com.

Capt. Mick lifts the net after his customers enjoyed a double-hookup on the Smith River.
The results of a double hookup.
Customers hold the results of a double hookup on the Chetco with Capt. Andy.

Here are some more great catches from the 2023 season with the Brookings Fishing Charters crew.

Capt. Andy with a nice steelhead caught on a plug.

Steelhead biting on coastal rivers

While rough ocean conditions are keeping our charter boats at the dock, the frequent storms also have increased flows in the Chetco and Smith rivers, creating prime conditions for winter steelhead fishing.

The Brookings Fishing Charters team of guides are all licensed river guides, and run drift boat trips for salmon and steelhead when they are not running ocean charters. Steelhead season is off to a great start on the Chetco and Smith Rivers.

Capt. Michael holds a Chetco River steelhead caught by Larry from our office crew.

During the last week of December 2021, the Smith and Chetco dropped into perfect shape for steelhead. We fish from heated drift boats, running small plugs or side-drifting roe and Corkies. Catches have been good, with two to three fish per rod.

Capt. Andy, Mick and Travis have special permits from the Forest Service to fish the Wild and Scenic upper Chetco. This is a limited-entry area for guides and only a small number of fishing guides are allowed to bring their customers to the National Forest section of the river.

A nice wild steelhead that was caught and released on the Upper Chetco with Capt. Andy.
Another steelhead is released on the Upper Chetco.
Happy customers hold some keeper steelhead from the Chetco caught with Capt. Andy and Capt. Mick.

Steelhead season runs from late November through March on the Chetco and Smith rivers. January and February is peak season. Anglers can keep some of the steelhead they catch on the Chetco, while the Smith is primarily a catch-and-release fishery.

The Brookings Fishing Charters crew fishes from heated drift boats. Many of the boats have rain tops to make fishing more comfortable in wet weather.

To book a winter steelhead trip, call (541) 813-1082. More information is available at www.wildriversfishing.com.

Capt. Mick with a nice Chetco steelhead.

Salmon action heats up in Brookings

The best ocean salmon fishing in more than seven years is happing in Brookings this summer, as big schools of anchovies are attracting impressive numbers of kings and coho just outside of the harbor.

The charter boats working out of the Brookings Fishing Charters office have regularly been catching limits or near limits of salmon. While some days have been slow, the overall king salmon fishing this season has been well above average. Salmon to 25 pounds are being caught.

The salmon being caught out of Brookings this summer are nice-size kings.

Salmon season opened June 12 out of Brookings. Only hatchery coho salmon could be kept the first week. King season opened June 19. Both wild and hatchery kings and hatchery coho may be kept through mid August. The coho season will run through late August.

The first week of the season, fishing was wide open for silver salmon, which are also known as coho salmon. The Miss Brooke, Bout Time and Dash were getting limits nearly every day, while also releasing lots of kings. As soon as the king season opened, limits of near limits were being caught, with the salmon in close, feeding on thick schools of bait.

Limits of coho salmon caught aboard the Miss Brooke the first week of the season out of Brookings.

Windy weather has kept sport boats away from an area commonly known as “Salmon Ally.” Instead, anglers have been forced to fish closer to the buoys. Despite the wind, overall fishing has been good. Even better action is expected the second half of July as boaters can get offshore again during periods of nicer weather.

A nice catch of kings from the Miss Brooke in late June 2021.

Salmon have been biting anchovies or herring trolled close to the surface behind divers and Fish Flash flashers. Since the Brookings Fishing Charters captains are year-round fishing guides, working on the ocean charters during the spring and summer and local rivers during the fall and winter, they are all accomplished salmon anglers. Capts. Travis Sallander, Michael McGahan, Rich Singnorello, Andy Martin, Sam Stover, Mick Thomas, Rye Phillips and Mike Brouillette are among the best salmon captains on the Oregon Coast, with extensive experience fishing out of Brookings, in Alaska and off of Northern California. The six-pack boats are equipped with trolling motors to get the precise speed salmon like. They also can fish in tight quarters, as the hot bite often draws a crowd of boats (which usually follow the charters as they steadily pick away at the salmon).

Capt. Michael shows a chrome-bright king salmon caught off of Brookings in June.

The limit is two salmon per day. Kings must be at least 24 inches. Wild coho must be released, but wild or hatchery kings, and hatchery coho, may be kept. Most of the coho are bound for the Columbia River, where a near-record return is expected this fall. The king salmon, meanwhile, are primarily Sacramento River, Feather River, American River, Klamath River, Trinity River and Rogue River fall Chinook salmon.

A beautiful king salmon caught out of Brookings aboard the Miss Brooke.
Nice king salmon caught in July aboard the Miss Brooke.
A hefty king salmon caught on the guide sled with Capt. Sam.
Anglers of all ages are enjoying the great salmon fishing off of Brookings this summer.
Limits of kings and coho caught aboard the guide sled with Capt. Sam.
A bunch of nice kings caught on the guide sled
A perfect king salmon caught aboard The Dash with Capt. Mick.
A great catch of kings and coho from the Miss Brooke.
A very nice king caught aboard The Dash with Capt. Mick.
Salmon from the Miss Brooke in late June.
The guide sled has been a hot boat this season out of Brookings.
Limits of coho salmon from mid-June aboard the Miss Brooke.
These are big kings for early July.

Brookings Fishing Charters offers salmon trips daily aboard its six-pack charter boats. Bottom fishing trips also are offered on the Nauti-Lady and the six-packs not booked for salmon.

To book a trip, visit www.brookingsfishing.com or call (541) 813-1082.

Big lings, tuna, halibut biting

September is off to a great start for the Brookings Fishing Charters crew, with a nice variety of fish being caught aboard our six-pack boats. Big lingcod have moved in, giving anglers a chance at a trophy ling, while the Pacific halibut bite remains good, and there have been some opportunities to chase albacore tuna. Salmon also have arrived in the Chetco River estuary, while our half-day bottom fishing trips are producing limits of nice rockfish.

Limits of Pacific halibut caught aboard the Miss Brooke in September 2020 off the coast of Brookings.

The biggest surprise of the season has been the great fishing for Pacific halibut off of Brookings. We have been getting limits on most charters of these prized fish. There are still plenty of fish remaining on the quota for the area south of Humbug Mountain, meaning the season could last through Oct. 31. Anglers may keep one Pacific halibut a day. They run 10 to 30 pounds, on average, with fish to 100 pounds caught. We have seen two fish in the upper 90-pound range caught by our friends in private boats this month.

Average-size Pacific halibut caught on our charters. These were caught on the Miss Brooke in September 2020.

Our charters are equipped with anchored and our captains are accustomed to fishing on anchor, having run charters in Alaska for several years. This gives us a big advantage when targeting halibut in 200-300 feet of water.

Nice albacore tuna caught with Capt. Rye on The Dash.

The tuna fishing has been fair this season, with albacore 20 to 50 miles off the coast of Brookings. Capt. Rye ran several trips for tuna aboard The Dash earlier this month, slamming the fish some days and scratching out just a few fish on others. We may have another window to target albacore in late September or early October before the weather turns and they head offshore and south.

Capt, Rye with some hefty albacore.

The grade of the tuna has been excellent, with albacore to 30 pounds. We are seeing a bigger overall size this season compared to the “peanuts” last year.

Capt. Michael holds a trophy 30-plus-pound lingcod caught aboard the Miss Brooke in mid-September 2020.

September and October are prime time for finding trophy lingcod off of Brookings. We’ve gotten customers into several fish over 20 pounds this month, and a few in the 30-pound range. We target these bigger lings with large jigs or bait. They also will hit the light tackle we use for rockfish. The big lings move into shallow water this time of year ahead of spawning. The lingcod population is healthy, and ODFW has assured us targeting some of these bigger fish won’t hurt the fishery.

Nice lingcod caught aboard the Miss Brooke with Capt. Travis in mid-September 2020.

We are running trips to Mack Arch and the Point St. George Reef Lighthouse, and both are producing big numbers of lingcod and limits of rockfish. Lots of quality lingcod are being caught during these long-range trips.

Limits of rockfish caught aboard The Dash.

Our popular 4-5 hour bottom fishing trip is yielding limits of rockfish, with an assortment of blacks, blues and canaries. Some lingcod also are being caught during the short trip. We also are getting into Dungeness crab, a nice end-of-the-day bonus.

Capt. Michael shows a pot full of crab.

The fall salmon season is underway. We have been fishing the Coos River, with fair results. The kings are nice, but the catch rates are lower than normal. The bright spot is the early action on the Chetco River estuary. We are already seeing a lot of jacks and some nice adults. A 35-pounder was caught over the weekend. Fishing in the Chetco estuary will improve in the next few weeks, with the bigger Chetco hawgs. Capt. Andy got a customer into a 58-pounder in 2008 in the Chetco estuary and has guided anglers to several fish over 50 pounds there.

A nice Coos River king from earlier in the week.

To learn more about our ocean charters, visit www.brookingsfishing.com. Information about river trips can be found at www.wildriversfishing.com.

Salmon season begins on Chetco, Smith rivers

Jackie of Bend hold a nice Chetco River king salmon caught Oct. 23 with Capt. Andy Martin of Brookings Fishing Charters.

The fall rains have increased flows on the Chetco and Smith rivers, kicking off the fall salmon season on both rivers. During the fall and winter months, Brookings Fishing Charters captains Andy Martin and Travis Sallander switch over to the drift boats to guide on both rivers. Andy and Travis are both licensed to guide in Oregon and California, and have special-use permits from the Forest Service to guide on the upper section of the Chetco. Only a very limited number of guides have these permits.
The Chetco rose to levels where drift boats could get down on Oct. 20. The first day of drift boat fishing produced limits for the handful of guides on the river.

Customers of Capt. Andy Martin holds limits of king salmon from the Chetco River.

The Smith River was fishable the following day, and Andy and Travis both caught limits there. By Oct. 23, both guides were back on the Chetco, which was in prime shape and fishing well.

Capt. Travis Sallander floats the Smith River just south of Brookings with customers fishing for salmon.

Salmon season will continue through mid-December on the Chetco and Smith rivers. Steelhead season follows, with fish in the river from December through March.
To book a trip, cal Brookings Fishing Charters at (541) 813-1082 or visit our river guide service page at www.wildriversfishing.com.