Tag: Oregon Coast salmon charters

Brookings producing best salmon catches on entire Oregon Coast

BROOKINGS, Ore. (May 11, 2026) – More salmon are being caught out of the Port of Brookings than any other area of the Oregon Coast so far this season, and the totals aren’t even close. Through May 3, a total of 2,137 king salmon have been landed by sport anglers in Brookings. Coastwide, the total from Astoria to Brookings is 2,460 kings salmon, meaning all but 323 have been caught out of Brookings. Newport was the second closest port with 161 kings.

The numbers released by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife don’t include last week’s totals, and fishing Monday through Thursday of last week was wide open. Private boaters and charter boats have been reporting good catches so far this season, which opened March 15 and runs through August. The best catch rates for charter boats have been aboard the Miss Brooke, Dash and Little Cleo, all running out of the Brookings Fishing Charters office. Anglers have been averaging a fish per rod, and many days full limits have been caught.

Capt. Chris holds a nice king salmon caught in 2026 aboard the Miss Brooke.

The peak salmon season out of Brookings generally takes place in June and July, meaning the best fishing is still to come. This year’s ocean abundance forecasts for the Klamath and Sacramento rivers is 750,000 adult king salmon. Those rivers contribute to the catches off of Brookings each year, along with salmon from the Rogue, Smith, Eel, Columbia, Snake and Chetco rivers. With an abundance of baitfish off of Brookings right now, a large portion of the West Coast salmon run is feeding off of Southern Oregon and Northern California.

Nice king salmon caught aboard the Miss Brooke with Capt. Chris.

The Miss Brooke with Capt. Chris and Capt. Travis has been consistently catching kings trolling anchovies behind Yakima Bait Fish Flash flashers and divers. Downriggers also are being used to fish deeper water, but most of the fish so far this season have been caught close to the surface.

Two king salmon a day may be kept out of Brookings this year, with wild or hatchery fish allowed to be harvested. Beginning June 6, hatchery coho salmon also may be kept.

ODFW catch rates show the best king salmon fishing is taking place out of the Port of Brookings.
Capt. Andy holds a pair of nice kings caught aboard the Miss Brooke.
Capt. Brent holds a king salmon caught aboard the Little Cleo.

To book an ocean salmon charter out of Brookings, call (541) 813-1082 or book online at www.brookingsfishing.com.

Here are some more catches from the 2026 season aboard the Miss Brooke, Dash and Little Cleo.

Lengthy ocean salmon season approved for Brookings, 2-fish day limits May 16-Aug. 31

BROOKINGS, Ore. (April 10, 2024) – Sport anglers fishing out of the Port of Brookings will enjoy one of the longest ocean salmon seasons in recent memory, with a 108-day fishery for kings, along with a lengthy opportunity for hatchery coho. The May 16-Aug. 31 season includes a two-fish-per day limit, with wild or hatchery king salmon allowed. Hatchery coho salmon, also known as silvers, can be included in the daily salmon limit from June 15-Aug. 4.

An angler holds a hefty king salmon caught in the ocean off of Brookings during a previous season aboard the Miss Brooke of Brookings Fishing Charters.

Federal fishery managers gave final approval to the season today during the Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Seattle. Representatives from Oregon, California, and Washington met to set West Coast ocean salmon seasons for sport and commercial fishermen. Brookings and the rest of the Oregon Coast fared well in the season-setting process, following last year’s ocean king salmon closure in Oregon and California. Ocean fishing for salmon will once again be closed in California this year. Capt. Andy of Brookings Fishing Charters was among the sport fishing representatives who attended the PFMC meetings in Seattle to advocate for the ocean seasons. Port of Brookings commissioner Richard Heap also attended, along with Capt. Mike of the charter boat Miss Raven in Newport.

Anglers fishing out of Brookings can keep hatchery coho beginning June 15. Mid June is prime time, as illustrated in this photo from a few seasons ago on the Miss Brooke.

While the ocean salmon seasons open in May, the best fishing out of Brookings is generally mid-June through July. Anglers fishing out of Brookings generally catch king salmon headed back to the Sacramento, Klamath, Rogue, Trinity, American, Feather, Chetco and Smith rivers. This year’s ocean abundance estimates include 215,000 adult salmon from the Sacramento River, 180,00 from the Klamath River and 200,000 from the Rogue River swimming off the Southern Oregon and Northern California coasts. That is in addition to 1 million coho salmon, including an estimated 400,000 hatchery coho bound for the Columbia River. That abundant mix of salmon usually leads to good fishing out of Brookings in June and July.

June and July are the best times to catch king salmon out of Brookings. These salmon were caught during a previous June aboard the Miss Brooke.

The Brookings Fishing Charters captains have a well-earned reputation for producing the best ocean salmon catch rates out of Brookings. Each captain is a year-round fishing guide, running ocean charters in the spring and summer, and drift boat salmon and steelhead trips during the fall and winter on the Chetco, Rogue and Smith rivers. Anglers catch kings trolling herring or anchovies with the use of downriggers or divers on our fast, comfortable six-pack charter boats, which were designed with ocean salmon fishing in mind. Salmon charters are offered aboard the Miss Brooke, Kraken, Papa B and Dash.

To book an ocean salmon charter, visit www.brookingsfishing.com or call (541) 813-1082.

Salmon season heats up off of Brookings

BROOKINGS, Ore. (June 30, 2022) – After a fairly slow start to the ocean salmon season offshore from Brookings, the action heated up the second week of the season, with good catches of coho and kings. The Brookings Fishing Charters boats have been the top-producers among the sport fleet, bringing in limits or near-limits of salmon, while also releasing big numbers of shaker kings and wild coho.

Salmon season began June 18, but only hatchery coho could be kept. Starting June 25, wild or hatchery kings, along with hatchery coho, can be harvested. Fishing started out slow, in part because of windy weather, dirty water conditions, and the bulk of the fish holding well offshore. But early this week, the salmon moved a little closer to shore, and massive schools of bait arrived. The salmon fishing has been wide open at times.

A nice king salmon caught aboard the Dash in June 2022.
Salmon caught in late June aboard the Miss Brooke.
Limits of hatchery coho and king salmon caught in late June aboard the Kraken.
Salmon from the Dash.
Capt. Michael with a nice limit.
Fish on aboard the Kraken.
Capt. Rich with a limit.
Capt. Sam with a nice king.
Another nice salmon for the Kraken.
More salmon caught aboard the Kraken in June 2022.

Fishing also has been very good at the Point St. George Reef Lighthouse, where the Brookings Fishing Charters fleet heads during its long-range trips. The lighthouse area has been producing an excellent grade of big black, canary, vermilion, copper and other rockfish, and lingcod close to 30 pounds. A few large lingcod also have been caught recently at Mack Arch north of Brookings.

A nice limit of lingcod from the Nauti-Lady in June 2022.

For the salmon, Capt. Travis, Sam, Michael, Mick, and Rich also have reported their best fishing trolling anchovies close to the surface, but in deep water, sometimes 4 or 5 miles offshore. Some trips are yielding more than three dozen hookups, with lots of fish lost because of barbless hooks. The hatchery-to-wild ratio for coho salmon is nearly 50-50, meaning half the silvers landed can be kept. There are big numbers of shaker kings less than 24 inches, and then keepers from 5 to 15 pounds. Each day, fish in the upper teens also are being caught.

Salmon season runs through mid-August out of Brookings. The best fishing is generally the last week of June and first few weeks of July, meaning peak season is right now!

Big ling on the Dash.
Whopper lighthouse ling for the Kraken.
Nice lingcod limin on the Kraken.
Nauti-Lady lingcod.
More Nauti-Lady lings.
Capt. Andy with a lingcod aboard the Nauti-Lady.
Another Nauti-Lady ling.
Nice limit aboard the Nauti-Lady.
Miss Brooke lingcod.
Kirby holds a nice ling from the Nauti-Lady.
Nice lingcod!
Canary from Mack Arch.
Kirby holds a nice canary caught aboard the Miss Brooke.

Lingcod and rockfish can be kept year round out of Brookings, but the summer months often lead to high catch rates, as the calmer weather this time of year results in better fishing. The Brookings Fishing Charters boats, including the Miss Brooke, Kraken, Nauti-Lady, Dash, Papa B and Bout Time, use light spinning tackle to target rockfish and lingcod. The light tackle adds to the thrill of catching these tasty fish.

Albacore tuna season begins in the summer, with late July or early August generally the most productive time to target tuna, as they move closer to shore.

To learn more about fishing charters out of Brookings, visit www.brookingsfishing.com or call (541) 813-1082.