The Salmon are coming!

Right here in Pacific City, the Spring Salmon are running. Last fall, I wrote about the Fall Run. The ocean Coho season will open Saturday for ports south of Cape Falcon (Manzanita). Signs point to a productive season with a rare opportunity for anglers to harvest three Coho per day.

Coho Salmon

Fair catches of spring Chinook in Tillamook Bay are coming from the jetty on the soft tide series this week. Stronger tides should make the upper bay a better option by the weekend. Some sturgeon have been caught in the bay recently too.

Chinook Salmon

A good shot of Chinook salmon came through Pacific City on the Nestucca River this week. Tidewater anglers caught fair numbers. Three Rivers is also producing Chinook and should be fair through the month.

You can walk from The Craftsman B&B to the river to fish or watch the fisherman. Several popular spots where you can fish from the bank. Antoher great site is to hike Winema Beach, I wrote about it here. Here, you can watch the salmon swim from the ocean into the Nestucca Bay. Low tide is best, because they are taller than the water. You will see the seals and sea lions feasting. Just stay out of the water here, this is a very dangerous bar.

Winema Beach

Shh, it's a secret beach.  Located south of Pacific City and north of Neskowin is another place I'd like to tell you about.  I'll keep the exact location and how to access a secret, you'll have to visit me at The Craftsman B&B to get directions.  This is a great out of the way spot Mike and I visited the other day.  Mike has seen it on Google Maps but didn't know how to get there, so after the guests check out, we went exploring.

About 1/4 of a mile north of the access there is a rock stack, just like Haystack Rock in Pacific City and Proposal Rock in Neskowin.  It's tiny and easily accessible.  We stopped for a rest in the shade.  The beach didn't have much hard sand and I don't like to walk near the water so we were in the soft sand most of the way.

We kept walking North as it was such a great day.  Up on the cliff we saw our friend John's house.  He has a dog named Oscar, a St. Bernard.  I haven't met him yet, maybe some day I'll go over and play.  That's the house on the hill in this photo.  Look at all the drift wood that has collected.  A beach combers paradise.

Just a little farther up the beach we found this totem.  Say hello to my little friend.  When I say my friend, I made it mine, if you know what I mean, I am a male dog BTW.

We walked up the the bar of the Nestucca River. This is a dangerous spot. It looks like it's no big deal but boats and lives are lost here every year. Hanging out at the end of the sand spit dividing the ocean and bay are seals, on the left of the picture, they're taking a rest from munching on the fall Chinook salmon coming into the bay. Looks nice and calm right?

Well Mike turned 90º to the North and this is what it looked like. Remember, this was a very calm day.

You can see Haystack Rock, Cape Kiawanda and in the distance Cape Lookout.