Salmon Fishing
While fishing in Alaska, your experienced guide exposes you to a variety of fishing opportunities and methods. Salmon fishing typically involves trolling using down-riggers, however, lead weights or deep divers are often employed to reach fish just below the surface. In Alaska, we troll with herring and artificial lures- we have a full arsenal of tools and tactics. Whatever it takes to make ‘em bite!

Sometimes, mooching or even jigging will be the method of the day for catching salmon. Typically, we use light trolling or level wind reels coupled with long (10’6) medium weight rods or, for even more excitement, salt water fly reels.

Nothing compares to the fight of a big king salmon on fly gear and light line! Be prepared for a 30 to 45 minute battle. When fish are actively feeding on the surface, casting with light tackle can be an exciting alternative. We use only high quality light tackle to keep the SPORT in your sport fishing!

Halibut Fishing
Jigging for Halibut has proven so successful we seldom do anything else. We don’t use 5 pounds of lead, a winch and a broom stick to fish like most places in Alaska. Whenever possible, we fish shallow water for these pacific monsters making the fight even more exhilarating!

When jigging, we use comparatively “light” halibut gear, but for the real “sport fishing enthusiast” we use “ultra light weight” 10-20 lb class bait casting and spinning gear. Our guides do their best to stay on the “cutting” edge of angling techniques. Our favorite method for bottom fishing incorporates the use of high quality metal butterfly and knife jigs, coupled with highly responsive light weight jigging rods and no stretch micro fiber lines. Using this system will give you the “fight of your life”, even with 20 to 30 lb fish. Occasionally we land fish in excess of 100 lbs on these light rigs. A – line class world record- fishing experience!

Today’s Universal Fly Fishing Tip is one that most anglers know, but few actually follow through on. After a day or a week or fishing, make sure you dry out your gear well.

Gear that gets stored wet gets nasty. Waders stink, rod socks mildew, flies rust and backing turns black. When you’re done with your fishing session, make sure you get all your gear dry.

That means…

• Hang up your waders inside out so any sweaty condensation dries out. Go to the extra effort of pulling your stocking feet inside out – they’ll get really nasty otherwise.
• Take your rod socks of of their tubes and unroll them.
• Hang up your raincoat and take everything out of its pockets.
• Set out your wading boots.
• Open up your fly boxes. If you’ve got a bunch of matted down flies all crammed in there together (say with marabou or bunny fur), spread them out.
• Take the covers off your reels.
• Unzip the pockets on boat bags, hip packs, etc.
• Open up any waterproof cases (like that Pelican case for your camera) that might have gotten a tiny bit of moisture in them – those cases keep water in as well as they keep it out.
• Do your laundry right now, you slob

by Deneki Outdoors

The nice thing about Coast Del Mar glasses is that you don’t have to sacrifice style for performance. Costa Del Mar offers many frame style and sizes to fit and look great on anyone and all glasses come with their top of the line polarized lenses. Not only can you get top quality performance with Costa Del Mar glasses, you don’t have to spend an arm and a leg to get them. The majority of Costa Del Mar’s glasses can be purchased for between $100-$200.

by Deneki Outdoors

Pretty cool, actually. Photo: Cameron Miller

True, not many anglers head to Alaska specifically to target pink salmon. That’s OK though – we still think they’re pretty awesome fish. Here’s why.

1. Every other year there are billions of them. OK, not billions, but on even-numbered years on the Kanektok, our pink numbers are very, very large.
2. They eat poppers. Find ‘em where they’re fresh, and they’re more than happy to eat surface flies, and surface flies for salmon are cool.
3. They’re a ton of fun on a 6 weight. It may not be a big-game experience, but fishing a lighter-weight rod can be a nice break when you’ve spent most of your week pulling on the big boys.
4. They make a great shore lunch. Pinks don’t keep well in your freezer over the winter, but on the bank of the river, just minutes from swimming, they’re awfully delicious.
5. They’re great for kids. We love hosting family groups, and pinks are ‘friends of the family’! Easy to hook and fun to fight, but not too heavy or powerful…perfect.
6. Their metamorphosis is pretty amazing. All salmon change physically when they enter fresh water, but a pink’s Jekyll and Hyde transition from silver and slender to pink, toothy and humpbacked is just a neat natural thing to witness.

“People using social networks will grow from 14 million in 2007 to 600 million
in 2012.” 

In the field hunters and anglers do our best not to be seen. We wear camouflage to conceal ourselves. But in the real world of  fast paced business and cutting edge change, outdoorsmen and women cannot hide in the shadows…Let’s face it, we all need to rethink the importance of social media and the benefits of this powerful tool. This is particularly important for us outdoor sportsmen and women as we try to connect with others who share our similar interests. 

Whether it’s hunting, fishing, camping, bird watching or just those who enjoy the great outdoors we all need to work together to help each other in this competitive market place. Hunters are a dying breed (no pun intended) as our numbers continue to shrink. But now, there are effective ways to pass on our valued traditions through our blogs and websites.

So what is social media?

• Social media marketing is the process of promoting your site or business through social media channels like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. 
• It is a powerful strategy that will get you links, attention and massive amounts of traffic.
• The key is having a target audience and communicating with a message that connects with your audience through quality content. 

 Why should the outdoors-man or woman use social media? 

• The outdoor market is large and fragmented.
• This fragmented market offers opportunities for us niche bloggers to communicate and offer value to our readers.
• There is no other low-cost promotional method out there that will easily give you large numbers of visitors, some of whom may come back to your website again and again. 
• Twitter and Facebook seem to be the most popular sites that allow you to gain followers and influence your target audience.
• If you are selling products/services or just publishing content for ad revenue, social media marketing is a potent method that will make your site profitable over time. 
• When it comes to the outdoor sportsmen we our a large an influential group that has not tapped into the power of social media.

Interesting Outdoor Industry Statistics:

• On a national level 34 million sportsmen age 16 and older spent more than 76 billion in 2006,    supporting 1.6 million jobs.
• If a single corporation grossed as much as hunters and anglers spend. It would be among    America’s 20 largest, ahead of Target, Costco and AT&T.
• Outdoors enthusiasts contributed more than $56 Billion to the U.S. economy through hunting & fishing supplies alone.
• More than the combined revenues of Microsoft, Ebay and Yahoo.
•  If they were a nation they would rank 57 out of 181 countries.
• Spending by sportsman benefits not only manufactures of hunting and fishing related products, but everything from local mom and pop businesses to wildlife conservation.

Those who ignore the value of social media usually fall into three categories:

1. Those who don’t know much or anything about social media,
2. Those who are interested but don’t know how to use it
3. Those who don’t believe in the value that a social media strategy can bring to any site or business. 
   • This is particularly true for the outdoor sportsmen.
   • Currently on Twitter there are 429 registered users under hunting and 1,259 under fishing. 
   • On Facebook there are 7,400 registered names under hunting with Hunting having 88,000 fans and fishing having registered over 2,000 and Fishing have over 153,000 fans.
   • Although these numbers are encouraging there is still room to grow and take advantage of the social media outlets that we have available.

90% of businesses in 2009 failed to gain significant value from social media (Community Marketing Blog). Despite November’s 2009 statistics of YouTube’s 6.75 billion streams (Nielsen Wire) and Facebook’s 2.6 billion visits (Compete.com) many businesses are floundering with inexperienced practitioners and poor guidance for effective social media marketing.

Content =Connection = Commerce

I hope you enjoyed this post and please comment or share your story how social media has helped you and your brand.

Thanks and be sure to get outdoors in 2010 and pursue your passion -

Chris Burget, Bulls & Beavers

Seriously, kids are fishy. Photo: Mike Duffy

One of the best parts about being in the outdoor industry is having the opportunity to host family groups at awesome locations. We absolutely love having kids around, and watching the experiences that family groups have together couldn’t be more gratifying. Fathers, daughters, sons, mothers, uncles, grandparents and more – we’ve seen it all and we love it.

We get a lot of questions from people looking to take their kids fishing, so here’s a little primer.

Where Should We Go?

As far as our lodges are concerned, unless your child is a passionate steelheader or bonefish angler, you should probably go to Alaska. Here’s why:

• The fishery on the Kanektok is extremely productive. Catch rates are high. For the majority of the season, less-experienced anglers can certainly catch fish every day, and usually lots of ‘em. When you’re fishing with kids, catching is pretty important.
• The Kanektok also has lots of variety. If Mom likes hunting giant rainbows around snags (a fairly challenging fishery), but Son wants to hammer bright silvers (which takes less skill), both can easily happen in the same day. There really is something for everyone.
• The crew in Alaska loves fishing with kids. They love their energy, their curiosity, and the speed with which they learn. They’ve hosted lots of kids, and know what works with them and what doesn’t. Besides, kids tend to be really ‘fishy’!
• Logistics are easy. Travel is simple. Boat rides are short. Wading is a piece of cake.

How Old is Old Enough?

It really depends on the kid, but we find that for destination lodge trips, somewhere between 10 and 12 is probably the age at which most kids are ready for a trip. It’s mainly a function of attention span – our fishing programs are built around long days (10 hours of fishing at Alaska West), and if your daughter decides at 10am on day two that she’d rather be someplace else, you’re the one who’s going to have a tough trip. Strength, skill and ability to stay safe tend to be a lot less important than attention span, and you know your kid’s attention span better than anyone.

Tips for Fishing with Kids

• You’re doing a wonderful thing for your family when you takes your kid(s) to a fishing lodge. Keep that in mind when you plan your day – it’s about them, not about you! There’s plenty of incredible fishing to be had, so resist the temptation to fish where and how you want to. Build most of your days around what the kids want to do, and everyone will be a lot happier. Don’t worry – you’re going to catch a bunch of great fish regardless.
• Be safe! We very strongly recommend lifejackets for kids. Wading belts are a must, as are lectures about safe wading practices. We pride ourselves on providing a very safe enviroment for kids, but even so, don’t forget that you’re way out in the middle of nowhere…and be safe.
• At the same time, give the kids some latitude! Resist the temptation to hover. Our guides are great with kids – wander off on your own while your grandson has a fun hour with your guide. Let them experiment – kids can be incredibly intuitive anglers, and you might be surprised how successful they can be on their own.
• Put some time into your travel logistics, keeping the kids in mind. Consider breaking long travel days into a couple of days with some stops along the way. Ask in advance for hotel and restaurant recommendations along the way that work well for kids.

The most important thing isn’t where you go, it’s that you go. Take your kids fishing!

This post by Deneki

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At 5:30 a.m. Monday, with Sunday’s numbers still being tabulated, the news was more than disappointing.

Salmon not only had a bad day Saturday at barely 2,000 adults, but the number was just half of the day before.

Even if Sunday’s count jumps significantly, there seems little hope of reaching the prediction of nearly 300,000.

Meanwhile, John North, a biologist on the Columbia River management team for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, said he checked further on what many suspect are a large number of uncounted salmon passing the windows after the counters go home at 9 p.m.

North said studies of pit tags show the uncounted fish might be just 2 percent of the run, hardly significant in the face of the disappointing show of springers.

Metal pit tags are injected into baby salmon at hatcheries and are automatically detected as the fish cross the dam, both on their outmigration and their return as adults.

North said scientists looked at pit tag numbers between counting hours, 5 a.m.to 9 p.m., and then after hours and came up with the percentage of un-counted fish.

“It’s not the smoking gun,” he said.

Still, anglers who’ve spent the past few weeks watching the windows on home computer screens (click here), remain skeptical.

Bill Monroe, special to The Oregonian

As of Tuesday morning, 386 sockeye salmon had arrived at one of two fish traps near the Sawtooth Fish Hatchery along the upper Salmon River northwest of Ketchum, fisheries officials reported yesterday afternoon. In all, a total of 42 sockeye arrived in the Sawtooth Valley on Tuesday.

This summer’s run is the now the highest run of sockeye since biologists started tracking those arriving in the Sawtooth Valley in 1985. The previous record holder in recent decades was in 2000 when 257 of the famous red fish made their way back.

According to fisheries biologists with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, the 2008 run is an indication that the agency’s captive broodstock program for Snake River sockeye salmon is beginning to reap benefits.

“The sockeye program is definitely going in the right direction,” said Travis Brown, assistant manager of the Eagle Fish Hatchery. Brown was at the Sawtooth hatchery to help out with the processing of captured sockeye, which are being sent to the Eagle hatchery, site of the state’s captive-breeding program.

In recent years, returns of sockeye have varied wildly in the upper Salmon River. Anadromous fish must cross eight major dams on the Columbia and lower Snake rivers before they reach Idaho.

Hundreds of miles downriver from the Sawtooth Valley on Tuesday, 881 adult sockeye salmon had passed by the Lower Granite Dam, the last barrier on the lower Snake River in southeast Washington that anadromous fish must pass before entering Idaho.

Though this summer’s run is indeed a remarkable improvement above mostly dismal single-digit or nonexistent sockeye returns to Redfish Lake during the past several decades, the Sawtooth Valley sockeye population is far from recovered, fisheries officials have said. In the mid-1950s, thousands of the fish returned to spawn in Redfish, Petit, Alturas and other lakes in the shadow of the Sawtooth Mountains.

From eggs produced by the state’s captive broodstock program, 355 hatchery-produced sockeye returned to the Sawtooth Valley during an eight-year period between 1999 and 2007. By comparison, just 77 natural-origin sockeye salmon returned to Idaho in the 14-year period between 1985 and 1998.

This year’s positive sockeye returns have been attributed to good smolt production four years ago, good out-migration conditions in the rivers and excellent ocean conditions.

Redfish Lake sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) were listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act in November 1991. They were the first Idaho salmon to be listed. Redfish Lake sockeye are unique in that they travel to the highest elevation, over 6,500 feet, run the longest distance, about 900 miles, and travel the farthest south of any North American sockeye population.

This year’s returns are the result of 180,000 smolts that were released and migrated to the ocean in 2006, Eagle hatchery Conservation Hatcheries Supervisor Jeff Heindel said last month.

by JASON KAUFFMAN

Photo courtesy of Idaho Department of Fish and Game Jerry Chapman shows off his catch—a large white sturgeon—hooked on the Snake River near Hagerman. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game is seeking public comment on a new draft management plan that seeks to increase the range and numbers of the game fish in the Snake River.

Officials with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game are seeking public comment on a draft management plan for the conservation of Snake River white sturgeon in Idaho.

White sturgeon are the largest freshwater game fish in North America, historically reaching lengths of more than 15 feet and weights of more than 1,000 pounds. They can live to be 100 years old.

The species’ scientific name is Acipenser transmontanus. Acipenser is an old-world name meaning sturgeon and transmontanus meaning beyond the mountains, a Fish and Game news release states.

White sturgeon are highly sought after by anglers across their range in Idaho. The historical range of Snake River white sturgeon extended from Shoshone Falls, located in south-central Idaho, downstream into the Columbia River.

The draft Fish and Game management plan only considers white sturgeon found in the Snake River in Idaho, not the population in the Kootenai River, in northern Idaho.

Snake River white sturgeon have declined in abundance due to a variety of factors, including over-harvesting, dam construction, water management and water pollution, the Fish and Game news release states. The agency’s draft management plan describes actions that could increase the range and population abundance of white sturgeon in the Snake River.

Fish and Game will work with other agencies and stakeholders to accomplish actions identified in the plan. To view and comment on the Snake River white sturgeon management plan go to http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/apps/surveys/sturgeon/.

The white sturgeon is a primitive bottom-dwelling fish that has shown little change in thousands of years. Some of the oldest fossil records of sturgeon date back 70 million years, according to Fish and Game.

The fish is characterized by its large body, head and mouth and long cylindrical body. It has four “barbels” located in front of its large, wide and toothless mouth. Sturgeon have no scales, but instead have “scutes” along their body for protection. Scutes are actually large modified scales, which serve as a type of armor.

The white sturgeon is a slow-growing anadromous fish, meaning they migrate between fresh water and the ocean during their lifetime. Although today’s sturgeon living in the Snake River in the Magic Valley region are unable to migrate to the ocean anymore due to downstream dams, resident populations do exist in the stretches of river between dams.

People interested in fishing for sturgeon need to be prepared for a battle. Fish in the Magic Valley region can grow as large as nine feet long. Fish and Game recommends using heavy line, a good reel and a strong pole.

Fish and Game officials expect to conduct public open house meetings on the plan at the agency’s regional offices in Jerome, Nampa and Lewiston. Comments will be accepted until Sept. 5. For more information, contact Scott Grunder, native species coordinator, at (208) 287-2774.

By JASON KAUFFMAN
Express Staff Writer

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today opened a 30-day public comment period on a proposal to add one national wildlife refuge to the list of areas open for hunting during the 2008-09 season and increase hunting opportunities at six other refuges.

The Service today also published a final rule that opens Cape May National Wildlife Refuge (New Jersey) to fishing, makes minor administrative changes, and modifies existing regulations.

Initially proposed in July 2006, the hunt program changes were withdrawn because of a lawsuit and subsequent court decision requiring some refuges to revise Environmental Assessments to incorporate cumulative impact analyses. Refuges named in the lawsuit have completed the revised assessments, as have the seven refuges included in today’s proposed rule.

The proposed rule, published in the June 11, 2008 Federal Register, would open Hamden Slough National Wildlife Refuge in Minnesota to migratory bird and big-game hunting. In addition, the rule increases hunting opportunities to include migratory birds and upland game at Agassiz and Blackwater national wildlife refuges, in Minnesota and Maryland, respectively. At the Whittlesey Creek (Wisconsin) National Wildlife Refuge, big-game hunting would be permitted.

Hunting opportunities at three refuges in Louisiana (Bayou Cocodrie, Tensas River and Upper Ouachita) would be increased because land has been added to the refuges. No regulatory changes, however, are proposed for Bayou Cocodrie. The rule also adds a turkey hunt at Upper Ouachita.

The Service also proposes removing Stillwater Wildlife Management Area (Nevada) from the list of areas open for hunting. The land has reverted to U.S. Bureau of Reclamation management after expiration of a 50-year agreement under which the Service managed the land in partnership with two state agencies.

Some of the nation?s finest hunting can be found on national wildlife refuges, as well as excellent opportunities for fishing, wildlife photography, wildlife observation, environmental education and interpretive programs. More than 300 national wildlife refuges currently have hunting programs and more than 270 refuges have fishing programs.

To view the final rule, visit: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-12188.pdf

To view the proposed rule, visit: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-12193.pdf

The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. We are both a leader and trusted partner in fish and wildlife conservation, known for our scientific excellence, stewardship of lands and natural resources, dedicated professionals and commitment to public service. For more information on our work and the people who make it happen, visit www.fws.gov.

WASHINGTON — West Coast lawmakers are protesting a plan by the Bush administration to take $70 million from the $170 million approved in the farm bill as disaster relief for the Pacific Coast salmon-fishing industry.

Bush’s budget office says the money is needed to pay for higher-than-expected costs of the 2010 census.

After the reduction, which needs the approval of Congress, “$100 million would still be available for payments (to salmon fishermen), which is sufficient given the estimated economic impact of recent fisheries-disaster declarations for the area,” the budget office said in a memo.

West Coast lawmakers from both parties called the request a slap in the face of fishermen hurting from the collapse of the salmon-fishing industry in California, Oregon and Washington.

The collapse led to the largest salmon closure in West Coast history and caused losses the states estimate will total about $290 million. California is seeking $208 million in federal disaster aid, Oregon, $45 million, and Washington, $36 million.

A letter signed by 14 Democratic House members from the three states called the request unconscionable and a sign that the Bush administration is not committed to helping Pacific Coast fishing communities.

“This funding is desperately needed by the communities and families who rely on salmon fishing, many of whom face losing their businesses and homes due to two years of no fishing,” said Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., who drafted the letter, which is signed by six House members from California and four each from Oregon and Washington. All are Democrats.

The proposed funding cut is especially egregious, the letter said, because Bush administration policies on major salmon rivers on the West Coast may have contributed to the current disaster, which stems from the sudden collapse of the chinook salmon run in California’s Sacramento River, where the salmon return to spawn. Scientists are studying the causes of the collapse, with possible factors ranging from ocean conditions and habitat destruction to dam operations and agricultural pollution.

Salmon runs have also failed in recent years on the Klamath River in Oregon and California, and the Columbia-Snake River system in the Pacific Northwest — failures that Thompson and other Democrats blame in part on administration policies that they say did not ensure enough water reached the fish.

Scientists expect low returns on the Sacramento River again next year and another closed season for most of the West Coast, the letter said.

Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., said Wednesday that he will join with Democrats to prevent the cuts.

“Rest assured there will be a strong bipartisan effort to ensure that these cuts don’t go through,” Smith said in a statement.

By MATTHEW DALY

The Associated Press

Seventy-one salmon had returned to the hatchery on Thursday. The run is later than last year because of this year’s high, cold, murky water, caused by a big snowmelt.

“Last year we had more fish at this time, but it was a low water year,” said Ralph Steiner, Rapid River Hatchery manager. “Typically, the first fish to arrive at the hatchery is the third of May.”

Idaho Department of Fish and Game is predicting about 4,000 salmon that return to Rapid River hatchery will be available for sport anglers. That’s downgraded from earlier predictions for the run size, but if realized, it would be four times more fish than last year’s take. Anglers caught and kept 964 salmon from the Little Salmon and Main Salmon rivers.

Both rivers are currently open, but high water has prevented most people from fishing. Anglers had caught only 29 fish by June 1.

Salmon fishing season is scheduled to remain open on the Main Salmon until June 22, and the Little Salmon until Aug. 3, unless F&G closes them sooner to protect wild salmon.

Anglers heading for the Little Salmon this month will see less bank access in the popular stretch between Rapid River and Riggins. A private landowner has closed public access to much of his property downstream from Rapid River.

The landowner is not allowing access across the river on a new bridge, and has limited access on the highway side of the Little Salmon.

He built a fence between the river and U.S. 95 to mark the private land and posted areas, which means river access and camping will be reduced.

According to F&G, anglers can get to the river on a strip of private property about 100 yards downriver of the new steel bridge.

“Much of the fishing access along the Little Salmon’s west side is available this year, thanks to landowner generosity,” said Evin Oneale of F&G’s Nampa office. “That means anglers need to be respectful of private ground, by picking up their trash and otherwise treating the area as if they owned it.”

F&G reported anglers may fish the river from the Rapid River confluence downstream to the Key Milling Co. site – which sits roughly 250 yards upstream of the steel bridge.

Anglers can legally access either bank of the river by wading and staying below the high water line, which is typically the shoreline below any permanent vegetation. But anglers should use extreme caution while wading Little Salmon because it is swift, rocky and dangerous.

For a diagram and descriptions of the public access laws, check F&G’s fishing rules booklet on page 15, or log on to fishandgame.idaho.gov/fish/rules/access.pdf

Parking congestion on the Little Salmon is likely to get worse this year, depending on how many anglers travel to the river.

Parking and fishing access will remain available on the Pasture Hole Flat and the Lower Bluff Hole Flat, also known as the Cliff Hole (See map). There will be limited camping at the Bluff Hole Flat, Oneale said, but the department is encouraging people to camp off-site at nearby public and private campgrounds.

Officers from the Idaho County Sheriff’s Department and F&G will be enforcing parking and camping rules, and F&G is exploring ways alleviate crowding and provide a better fishing experience.

One option involves “recycling” fish by taking them out of the trap at Rapid River, loading them on a truck and putting them back in the main Salmon River near the Riggins boat ramp.

Some fish may also be released into the Little Salmon above Rapid River to give anglers a chance to escape crowds.

Anglers also have an additional 1.5 miles of river available on the Main Salmon.

In the spring, F&G commissioners extended the boundary from the mouth of the Little Salmon to Shorts Creek.

Roger Phillips: 373-6615

Yes, the season, which opens on May 1, and runs through May 31, will be for hatchery chinook only, meaning that only fish with a clipped and healed adipose fin may be kept (two per day). But the places that are open for fishing have changed.

More correctly, one section of the river that has been open in the past for fishing for Yakima River springers is the same, but one other area open is different.

As in years past, the portion of the Yakima River between Union Gap (the mouth of Ahtanum Creek) up to 3500 feet below Rosa Dam will again be open for fishing.

But this year the stretch of the river between Union Gap down to the Granger Bridge will be closed.

The new area for fishing for spring chinook on the Yakima will be in the very lowest part of the river, between the I-182 Bridge at river mile 4.6 near Richland to the State Route 224 Bridge in Benton City.

This opens up some 25 miles of river to fishing. The challenge comes in the fact that many anglers have never fished this part of the river before and no one has fished for spring salmon in this stretch of the river in decades.

The lower Yakima River is a great smallmouth bass fishing area and some anglers will fish for catfish there, too, but spring salmon fishing will be a new challenge.

It shouldn’t take anglers long, however, to figure out where the best spots to fish will be and what techniques will work.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has maps of the few rough boat launches and public access points on this part of the river. According to the maps, there are five boat launches in the lower 25-mile stretch of the Yakima that will open for salmon on May 1. Most are labeled as primitive, meaning they are gravel and unfinished.

Over the years I have used several of these launches with my drift boat when fishing for bass, and they are quite adequate for the purpose of the putting in and taking out of drift boats or rubber rafts. But the ramps, and frankly, this part of the river are definitely not for other boats, except possibly some river jet sleds.

The WDFW access maps also show several bank fishing locations in this lower portion of the river. Because bank fishing was effective in the middle river section the last few years that it was open, it should be good in the lower river as well.

Fishing with a boat will allow anglers access to certain portions of the river that can’t be reached by bank fishing, but it looks like there should be plenty of areas to fish from one side of the river or the other.

And many of the same techniques that have worked upriver should work in this part of the Yakima, too.

Anglers working from a boat have had good luck in the past back-trolling diving plugs like a Magnum Wiggle Wart or a Magnum FatFish. Another good technique is to cast and retrieve one of these lures.

Fishing bait below a bobber has maybe been the most effective technique on the Yakima in the past couple of years it was open. Find a deep slot where the fish may be holding and drop some cured salmon eggs below a bobber into the hole.

Other Yakima springer anglers over the years have had good luck drift-fishing with bait and a small Corky or Spin-N-Glo, while others have hooked fish on spinners and spoons. Just remember, this year’s Yakima salmon fishing regulations call for only one single, barbless hook on whatever you are fishing with, and the gap between the shaft and hook point has to be 3/4-inch or less. The regulations are to help with the release of any wild fish that might be hooked.

The final couple of challenges for anglers will be water levels and fish arrival times.

Right now, with the cooler than normal temperatures we have been experiencing, the Yakima would be perfect for fishing. But if we get some warm temperatures, with the huge snow pack in the mountains, the river can get high and muddy very quickly.

And when the Yakima fish arrive in any fishable numbers is another question. But the biologists must think they’ll start arriving soon, because the first spring salmon season on the Yakima in four years is about to get under way.

* Rob Phillips is a freelance outdoor writer and partner in the advertising firm of Smith, Phillips & DiPietro. He can be reached at rwphillips@spdadvertising.com.