Lingcod biting as rough weather stalls salmon opener (May 3, 2015)

Strong northwest winds kept anglers in close during the May 1 salmon opener out of the Port of Brookings, forcing many anglers to focus on rockfish and lingcod instead. The weather was even rougher out of Crescent City, Gold Beach and Eureka, were most boats were forced to remain at the docks.
We ran charters on Friday and Saturday, the first two days of the salmon season (which opened May 1), and since heavy seas prevented us from staying close to the harbor we jigged for bottom fish and were able to catch full limits of lingcod and rockfish. The biggest surprise was catching the same quality lingcod within view of the jetties that were were running clear up to Bird Island and House Rock to catch a week ago. The lingcod fishing out of Brookings continues to be great.
As soon as the winds ease off, possibly as early as Monday, we will go further out to begin trolling for kings, Typically, the salmon are further offshore early in the season, closer to the shrimp beds. They come in close to the beach in June and July as the anchovies arrive.
We have openings the next couple of weeks for salmon, as well as lingcod and rockfish. Call (541) 813-1082 or visit www.brookingsfishing.com to book a trip.
Below are some photos of the lingcod action from the past two days out of Brookings.
- Capt. Andy Martin
BrookingsFishing.com

One of the nice lingcod we've caught the past couple of days less than a mile from the Chetco River jetties.

Lingcod fishing continues to be great out of Brookings.

Lots of nice lingcod from Friday, May 1.

Two of the customers I had fish with Capt. Rye with some really nice lingcod.

Another lingcod caught just outside of the harbor at the Port of Brookings.

Nice lingcod from the Port of Brookings with BrookingsFishing.com

Nice lingcod caught on light tackle near Brookings, Oregon.

Father and daughter with a pair of nice lingcod.

Four of the lingcod we kept yesterday out of Brookings. This group from Redding, Calif., kept eight lingcod and released half a dozen while also keeping full limits of black, blue and canary rockfish.

Limits of lingcod, rockfish out of Brookings (4-28-2015)

The lingcod and rockfish action out of the Port of Brookings Harbor on the Southern Oregon Coast remains very good. We took advantage of the very calm seas on Sunday and Monday to take customers offshore, and returned to the docks with full limits of lingcod and rockfish. Along with the usual assortment of black and blue rockfish (which are also known as sea bass, black snapper, rock cod or black bass) we got into some nice canary and vermilion  rockfish (which many refer to as red snapper). The lingcod fishing has been especially good, with quick limits of quality fish. Yesterday, we kept 10 lings and released at least half a dozen after limiting out. Customers who fish with me are well aware of the technique we use to catch lings, and how effective it is.

After a couple days of especially good weather, with light winds and swells down to 3 feet, we are going to have bigger swells for a few days, combined with those strong afternoon northwest winds. It looks like the ocean may lay down again this weekend.

The ocean salmon season out of Brookings opens on Friday. We are seeing a lot of bait, and the pelicans are already here, diving on bait balls. We are expecting a good salmon season, and although the peak is always late June and all of July, we could see good numbers of nice kings early on.
We have room on our rockfish/lingcod, salmon and combo salmon/bottom fishing charters throughout the season. Call (541) 813-1082 or visit www.brookingsfishing.com or www.wildriversfishing.com to book your trips.
Below are a few photos from the last couple of days.
- Capt. Andy Martin
Brookings Fishing
www.brookingsfishing.com

A tote full of lingcod.

Sunday's group with limits of lingcod.

We are getting a good grade of black rockfish. These are the same fish that sometimes are referred to as rock cod, sea bass, black snapper or black bass. They are very good for fish and chips, or fish tacos.

Shane with a keeper lingcod.

Liz with a nice lingcod.

Glenn with a very nice vermilion rockfish caught April 27 out of Brookings.

Another limit of lingcod with www.brookingsfishing.com out of the Port of Brookings Harbor on the Southern Oregon coast.

Lots of good eating here.

Ocean salmon season approved (4-15-2015)

130-day ocean salmon season approved for Southern Oregon Coast

Ocean salmon season opens May 1 out of Brookings

BROOKINGS, Ore. - Anglers fishing for king salmon on the Southern Oregon Coast will have a lengthy 130-day ocean season this year with a two-fish daily limit, federal fishery managers decided today (Wednesday, April 15).

A May 1-Sept. 7 ocean sport salmon season was approved for the the Klamath Management Zone, a 170-mile section of coast from Humbug Mountain, Ore., to Horse Mountain, Calif. The zone includes the ports of Brookings and Gold Beach in Oregon and Crescent City, Trinidad and Eureka in Northern California.

The season was approved during the Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Rohnert Park, Calif. The council is a federal agency that regulates recreational and commercial salmon and bottom fish seasons in Oregon, California and Washington.

"This is a great season that will give anglers plenty of opportunity to catch salmon out of Brookings this summer," said Brookings fishing guide and charter boat owner Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. "This will be one of the longer seasons in recent memory and people will have plenty of chances to get in on what are expected to be big salmon runs on the Oregon Coast."

The long season also will be a boon to tourism-related businesses in Brookings and other coastal community, including motels, restaurants, tackle shops, RV parks and gift shops.

"The fact that we have this long season will be beneficiary to both people who come to fish, and the entire community," said Jim Carey, owner of the Chetco Outdoor Store in Brookings and Rogue Outdoor Store in Gold Beach. "Even though we can't get out to fish every day here on the South Coast with the winds, this summer-long season will bring additional people into the area to fish. They will be in the motels and local restaurants, allowing additional dollars to rotate through the community."

Sport fishing is one of the biggest draws to the Oregon Coast each summer.

With strong returns expected to the Sacramento and Klamath rivers this fall, the federal fishery managers approved the most generous of the three salmon sport season options they considered. According to federal biologists, nearly 650,000 king salmon from the Sacramento River, 420,000 from the Klamath River and 200,000 from the Rogue River are currently swimming off the Southern Oregon and Northern California coasts. The salmon from those rivers are the biggest contributor to ocean salmon seasons out of Brookings and other nearby harbors.

Anglers will be allowed to keep two king, or Chinook, salmon per day. Those fish can be wild or hatchery fish. From June 27 to Aug. 9, anglers can also include hatchery coho, or silver salmon, in the two-fish limit. The coho quota approved by the PFMC is 55,000 hatchery coho salmon. The king salmon season will remain open after the coho quota is reached.

Brookings is often the most productive port on the Oregon coast for king salmon, which average 12 to 20 pounds and can reach weights exceeding 50 pounds. Last year, Brookings sport anglers landed 6,817 kings, more than any other port on the Oregon Coast. Brookings sport fishermen accounted for 37 percent of the entire ocean king recreational salmon catch in Oregon. The port with the closest catch was Winchester Bay, where anglers landed 27 percent of the Chinook catch. Brookings anglers landed more kings in the ocean than the ports of Astoria, Coos Bay, Tillamook and Newport combined, according to Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife figures. Brookings also had the highest catch rates, as it only accounted for 14 percent of the total ocean salmon angling effort.

"Brookings is the best port on the Oregon Coast for king salmon fishing because it is located right in the middle of the ocean feeding area for fish from the Sacramento and Klamath rivers, which contribute a huge portion of the salmon off the Oregon and Northern California coast," Martin said. "Brookings also has higher catch rates because it generally has calmer water than the rest of the coast and more fishable days."

The fishery council also approved shorter commercial salmon fishing seasons for the Oregon and Northern California coasts.

For more information, visit www.brookingsfishing.com.