Jetty Class Pics & Report

This past weekend offered two differing scenarios. Saturday was postponed to the alternate date of April 6th due to a super windy storm that rolled into the coast right when our class was scheduled. We went by the forecast which was a tough decision; since the coast was semi calm and nice for the morning hours. The class was scheduled to start at 2:45pm, so I went with the gut instinct, and we opted to go for the class on the alternate scheduled date. It turns out that Chris from Sunday's class came down with his wife on Saturday, and said it was one of those days where you could barely get out of the car to see the beach. Super windy and stormy; which does not agree well with casting shooting heads and larger flies. Postponing the class was a wise choice in the long run. 

A Pacific Black Rockfish taken on a large white conehead bunny leech

Sunday's class was a whole other story regarding the weather. Swells were small rollers; so the jetty fishing was nice since the water was relatively calm. Winds were light, and never went over 10 knots; so all of the students were able to cast the shooting heads very well. It was really nice to see the students bombing out big nice casts with tight loops. Everyone in the class fished very well, and looked really good casting off of the awkward jetty rocks. Fishing was relatively slow for what I am used to seeing out there, but that is why we call it fishing and not catching. Several students had some action from the Pacific Black Rockfish, and one of the students who did not land one said he was receiving bites on some of the presentations. There was just enough action to keep things interesting, and it was refreshing to let the students know it was ultra slow; even though we were still catching something. Nice to know that slow equals to several fish, and not zero fish like we can experience with something like steelheading.

Two of the students were lucky enough to tie into a lingcod each. One of the fish was what I would consider "leader landed"; while the other fish was officially landed. The first lingcod took a small chartruese and white Clouser Minnow tied with bucktail. The second fish was caught with a 2/0 white tungsten conehead bunny leech. Everyone was fishing with 28' long shooting heads ranging from type II through Type IV with intermediate running lines. We were using rods in the 8 - 10 wt range and one student was using a 8wt switch rod. It was a really fun class, and we were gifted with perfect fishing conditions. The fishing could have been much better, but it also could have been worse. It was a great primer to show 5 people the underutilized fishery that exists right here at the Oregon coast.

The Saturday class that was postponed to April 6th (7:30am-12:00pm) had one spot open up due to a student having to cancel out of there spot due to something that has come up for them. if you are interested in the Rockfishing/Lingcod class that will be on April 6th email me at fish@mckenzieangler.com or call me at (541)-232-6360. For more information on the April 6th Rockfishing/Lingcod Class Click Here.

Quick Saltwater Rockfishing Report

The other day Nikki and I went crabbing, but I also threw the rod in the car to test the waters for a little bit before the ride home. Fishing was very difficult because there was a lot of drifting sea grass, and it would prevent my type IV shooting head and intermediate running line from penetrating into the abyss where the probability for getting into a fish existed. Luckily, I was able to find a couple of clear spots every once in a while to get a nice cast in, and my line was able to sink down with about a 12 second count before I decided to retrieve back my offerings. I literally would get a one or two cast window to present my fly before the sea grass would drift by in clumps preventing my from fishing again until another opening would appear.  

A fine rockfish caught off the rocks on a conehead white bunny leech

Luckily, when I would get those few presentations in, there was an ambushing black rockfish crushing my fly. I ended up getting really nice fish also, compared to the standard sized fish I normally catch at this spot. It was the typical scenario too; where the people watching me get out of my car and wadering up with my fly rod in hand told me that there wasn't any hatch going on. I told them I knew that, and my line and fly was not relating things to a bug hatch, but more based on the food chain. I told them I was targetting rock fish, and they looked at me like I was nuts. I also told them I can do very well at times, and they passed me off like I was full of lies tall tales. I guess that is why I am the only one out there fly fishing, except one other person I know who also really enjoys it. It is nice when you have totally uncharted fisheries for your fly rod, and everyone you typically come across is only interested in trout and steelhead. Oregon is a steelhead and trout mecca for fly fishing, but we also have countless other amazing wonderful places to fish for other species.  

This rockfish fell to a 2/0 yak hair clouser minnow tied with iridescent colors 

Oregon Coast Fly Fishing 5/3/2012

 Yesterday, I headed to the coast for some different fly fishing than the norm for your typical Oregonian. Although what is "normal" fly fishing anyway? I know I love my carp fly fishing, and now that is almost considered "normal", but not quite yet.....

I was going for bottom fishing for species like rockfish, cabezon, and lingcod, and hopefully the conditions would produce some fish. The first spot I hit was Netarts Bay, and I was trying off of the rocks for a good while before I decided that the tidal movement felt too intense to get a decent presentation to actually catch a fish. On the walk back to my car, I decided to wade out into a sandy flat to literally just bomb out a few casts. It was not really something that I actually was thinking would produce a fish, and I wanted to more or less cast out a few huge bombs just for fun and casting practice. It turned out that on the second cast, when I was stripping my huge two tailed conehead saltwater white bunny leech (for Rockfish, Cabezon, & Lingcod), I got a crushing take. The line had a fast hard radical pull, and I wondered what I had on. It was no bottom fish, nor was it a surf perch (which I knew swam in the exact area), and it was fast and pulling hard; swimming like a salmonid. The glimpses I had of the fish seemed to be anything from a steelhead, a huge sea run cutt, or a salmon. Finally the fish tired enough to reveal that it was a salmon in its saltwater oceanic part of its life cycle. It was so chrome bright, where it was practically transparent, and had a holographic shimmer to it fins. It was humbling; since it made me realize how random things in fishing happen even when you think you have a grasp on what is going on. Surprises happen, and that is another reason why we fish!

While casting into a large sandy saltwater flat, this salmon intercepted this Rockfish fly

After that, I drove to the Tillamook Bay in hopes of better bottom fishing, and the tide was drawing to a near slack "low" time. The currents would not be as fast near the slack tide; so I figured I would be able to get a better presentation to the fish I was targeting. It turns out that I made the right decision, as the fishing was consistent and action packed for about 2 hours. I was throwing a shooting head system with an intermediate sinking running line with a type II 28 foot sinking shooting head. The leader was a short hand tied three piece configuration of 18 inches of 30# butt section to 9 inches of 25# to 2 feet of 20# tippet. The flies I used were both 2/0 in hook size, and one was a synthetic clouser with chartruese and white; while the other was a conehead two tailed white bunny leech.  

This black rockfish took this large two tailed white conehead bunny leech

All in all it was a fun day of fishing between the incidental salmon and the rockfish I got into. I also briefly hook up with a larger fish that was either a cabezon or a lingcod, but it was a short lived hookup. I did see the fish eat my fly and had it on long enough to bend the rod over hard. Just then, it was off....

Fly fishing for bottom fish off of jetties in Oregon requires a shooting head line system

  Once the tide turned around and started to slowing become "incoming", the fishing seemed to shut off like a light switch. How strange; since the reputation is better for good fishing at incoming tide. Who knows.... that is why we call it fishing and not catching I guess....

Below is a short video of some of the action from the day. I was not filming too much; so I missed the best fish, and it seemed like when I was filming it was jinxing the action. Nonetheless, you can see what some of the fishing was like out in the inshore Oregon saltwater.....

Warm Water Fishing - Now That it Actually Feels Like Summer Out!

Well the weather this week is actually feeling like it's summer in Oregon, and so I have had to get my fill of warm water fly fishing. The other day, I had a few hours; so I took a ride up the Columbia with my wonderful girlfriend, and tried wetting a line for a carp. I succeeded with a fish that was rooting around in the weeds, and it was with the replaced 6wt rod that had been blown up a couple of weeks back on a huge smallmouth bass. The fish tore me up, and it was on the smaller side for a big Columbia carp. I was just dinking around in my flip flops when I hooked it; so it qualified as my flip flop fish for 2011. I always love to land something like a steelhead in flip flops; so this is at least a flip flop fish, and we will see if I can get a more glamorous species before the summer ends.

A nice little Columbia River Carp

I am about to take off for a few days to catch some smallmouth on the Umpqua River, and then I am heading towards the coast to target rockfish, lingcod, cabezon, etc. Hopefully, we can score some heavenly saltwater fish to pull on our lines. On the way back, we are going to harvest some clams (hopefully several types) to bring back to feast upon. It is time to enjoy the summer!