On June 13, and again on June 14 I will be doing a spey workshop.

This is a full day on the water workshop designed to help folks who already have a decent grip on spey casting to develop better/more productive spey fishing skills.

We will spend the day floating a Peninsula river casting, fishing and discussing everything you could ever want to know about presentation, fly selection, picking water, seasons, access and tons more.

We will talk about learning spots on the OP to productively swing a fly.
And will cover 1 and two handed swinging for summer steelhead, winter steelhead, spring, summer and fall chinook and coho salmon.

Each 1 day class is limited to 3 anglers. When you book I will give you all the details on meeting time and place, gear to bring and all kinds of other stuff.

To book email jimkerrguides@me.com. The cost is $350.00 per day per person

June 28th
Summer run work shop

Fly fishing for summer steelhead (and trout and salmon)
With one and two handed rods.

All the dirty little tricks to make your summer run fishing interesting and productive.

I’m gonna call it the lost art of fly fishing for summer steelhead. It seems like summer run fishing today is largely watered down winter run fishing. And thats not the way it used to be.
Summer run fishing has unique approaches that allow anglers to experience fly fishing for steelhead in a completely different manner.

I will, by all means, have some two handed gear for this, but..there is so much cool stuff to do with a one hand rod that will be a big part of this day.

We will spend the day floating a Peninsula river casting, fishing and discussing everything you could ever want to know about presentation, fly selection, picking water, seasons, access and tons more.

Each 1 day class is limited to 3 anglers. When you book I will give you all the details on meeting time and place, gear to bring and all kinds of other stuff.

To book email jimkerrguides@me.com. The cost is $350.00 per day per person

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides

Forks Wa

Fall salmon season 2024 is staggering towards an end here on the Olympic Peninsula’s North coast.

Next weeks rain should wash away the bulk of the anglers, leaving this seasons last few chrome stragglers in relative peace.,

The upper reaches of all the systems now seem to have passable if not exceptional numbers of quickly ripening coho and kings.

There are still some fresh fish in the mix but most are now changing like fall leaves to various shades of pink, red, yellow and brown.

From what I saw, the over all salmon numbers here would rate a grade of a solid B. Not great, but adequate for the system, although my standards are perhaps a bit high. I do believe in these rivers, and their ability to generate and sustain a lot more fish if given the chance.

And I would say that this constitutes a straight up win.

A straight up win for sport fisherman, conservationist, tribal fishermen, salmon and steelhead.

It’s a Cinderella story really.
Snatching an unprecedented success from the maw of doom.
The river behind my house has plenty of large healthy salmon and a whole bunch of them will survive to spawn.

The Quillayute tribe, the Hoh Tribe, and WDFW region six were able to hash out a calm, sensible plan that involved some closures, some restrictions and some patience.

This plan resulted in a bunch of wild salmon, that would normally have been harvested, entering the tributaries to spawn.

This year the tribes agreed to low water restrictions, and then stuck to those restrictions. They agreed to use smaller nets, less nets, no driftnets and to fish less days for less hours a day.

Sport fishermen were temporarily closed out of the Hoh river, and restricted to a one fish limit (down from a typical 6). They were also limited to releasing wild coho in the Quillayute system.

This may not seem like a huge win, but the history here is one of miscalculations, poor monitoring and massive over harvest. And from the outside looking in there didn’t seem to be any indications that things were going to change.

This season is proof we can achieve great things with what we have, where we are, now.

It would be a shame, if the sport fishing and conservation community was unable to take a moment to tip their hat to the tribes, and managers that made this happen.
We get few chances to celebrate here, lets not miss this!

I find early salmon season super interesting, dynamic and exciting, but as we slide into November even if salmon numbers are great, the fishing seems to get a little more…predictable?
No, no, its not that its predictable, its just that the peak is clearly behind us, those days when pulses of chrome fish come unexpectedly crashing through the rapids, and each bend in the river has the possibility to be the best fishing of the season are gone.

Fishing for winter hatchery steelhead though is a different animal, and I love it.

Now its on to winter steelhead!

I have been using this photo a lot the last couple of years, cause its kind of a where’s waldo of hatchery steelhead shots, there is a heater, a coffee cup, a fly rod, hand warmers, Bruce, looking NOT freezing, and his friend, a super chonky chrome bright hatchery hen.

If you want to fish with us for hatchery steelhead this season, we have Novemeber 25 through 30, December 2 through 6, December 12, 13, 21,27,28 and 31. Email jimkerrguides @me.com

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides

Forks wa

What I wonder is why, if they are way the hell out in the ocean, do so many come back with healed over seal and sea lion wounds? If they are way off shore, where are the sea lions getting at them? I wonder that. Do you ever wonder that?

Why do you think that is?

And another thing I wonder, why does it seem like so many more North coast winter steelhead have seal and sea lion wounds compared Skagit fish?

Those Skagit fish would appear to be swimming the gauntlet compared to the fish here. Why do ours seem to have worse luck with sea lions?

Before you get the wrong idea, I DO NOT THINK that seals or sea lions are a significant problem for north coast fish. I think they have plenty of bigger worries. I just wonder where they are going to get all these scars.

And to be clear, most of these wounds seem to be mostly healed over, like they are many weeks, or months old when the fish enter the river.

It could indicate that they are traveling inshore somewhere during there migration. Maybe some years more than others?

Who knows? If you want to guess leave it in the comments.

AND! While you are commenting, maybe you could list your top three reasons for wanting to come catch winter hatchery fish this season.

Like, cause they fight great? Cause I like to eat them? Cause its just fun to be outside in the winter on the river? Cause it just feels like part of an old school North West tradition to go out and catch a winter steelhead and take it home to smoke for Christmas?

Pick one of these reason, or any one of your own, and email me at jimkerrguides@me.com if you want to book a late November or December date.

Thanks,

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides

Forks Wa

If you are willing to look at things in a slightly different way for a while you will see that many of the inefficiencies, and much of the ineffectiveness, of fishing a fly under tension can be removed. I am a devout believer that the spey rod is an effective tool for hooking and landing plenty of fish here on the OP. I also believe that many of the things that make our rivers and fish so special and unique require anglers to take a different approach.

The default method of cast, mend, swing, step, repeat is a waste of time here. Maybe an enjoyable waste of time, I will grant you that, but I believe in a far more focused and intentional approach.

The way you fish should be a response to the all the things going on around you, and more importantly all the things going on in the fishes universe. Our thinking should start with what the fish wants, then move from the fly, up the leader, to how to accomplish that.Where should my fly be? How should I arrange my, leader sink tip, line, rod tip? Exactly where and when should I be making these changes? Do you really understand what the fish wants your fly to do? Do you understand where exactly that fish is? Do you know exactly where your fly is right now?

My goal is to build a simple model for you to answer these questions for yourself, so that you can fish with the confidence that you are hooking every fish that is there to be hooked. There are some challenging skill sets to be mastered, but none of them are insurmountable with patients and a bit of practice.

These one day workshops will focus on helping you understand how to pick productive swing water, and how to fish it effectively. The days are limited to 3 anglers per day so we can all fit in a boat and get a float in (conditions permitting.) If you enjoy spey or one handed swing fishing for salmon, steelhead or trout, but would like to catch more, I am very confident that I can help you. We will meet early and get on the river on a nice piece of spey water. We will discuss and demonstrate gear and tactics, flies, tips, presentation, casting, hooking and fighting fish.

I will bring selection of rods and lines to try.I will also have a list of cool spots for you to spend your winter days fishing on your own.  And advice on how to locate productive water on your own.New spey anglers are welcome, but the focus will be on fishing a swung fly, not casting, or spey casting. There will be plenty of casting tips and trouble shooting advice, but if you are a brand new caster we should get you started with a separate casting lesson

Yep, I’ll bring lunch and snacks.This is not a guided fishing trip. My goal is to help you become a more productive angler through a better understanding of casting, line control, presentation and picking where and when to fish. But we will be going regardless of current fish numbers or water conditions.

November 8th, 3 spots available. $350.00 per guest.November 9th, 3 spots available, $350.00 per guest.

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides

Forks Wa

WDFW has assembled a new, and very cool team to work in region 6.

They are just hitting the ground with some big challenges to face.

Right now we are setting up for yet another fall salmon catastrophe on the Quillayute system, and it is totally preventable.

But only if fisheries managers get focused on it, and stay focused on it .

Quillayute river summer and fall Silver and king salmon will soon be getting stuck in the lower river due to changing river conditions and weather patterns.

The fish get stuck by the thousands in long shallow pools. And, last year WDFW and Co-managers allowed massive over fishing to occur while these fish were most vulnerable.
So few fish survived to spawn that that many residents reported the worst salmon return in living memory.

Without a clear plan in place well in advance we are likely to repeat this scenario yet again. Both on the Quillayute, and to a degree, the Hoh.

You can email here, TeamMontesano@dfw.wa.gov and say something like “Please look out for region 6 salmon this fall!”

You could also send an email to the director. director@dfw.wa.gov

There are tons of tools managers can use to prevent over harvest before the rain. Some of these include the following.

Full closure of the Quillayute until the fish have free access to the main tributaries.
This has been done a few times in years past, it is a blunt tool, and disenfranchises many fishermen, but it works.

Creating sanctuary zones where no fishing is allowed until sufficient rains.
In 2015 State Federal and Tribal managers agreed to set a no fishing Zone in the Quillayute from the Sol Duc Bridge to just below the Quillayute river resort.

Thousands of fish were able to safely await fall rains here while tribal, subsistence and sport anglers fished elsewhere.

This solution was awesome, however the fish no longer seem to concentrate here like they used to, preferring lower river holding water most seasons. So it would probably require two closed areas, plus a prohibition on motor use in those areas.

Reducing sport limits makes a bigger difference than you might think. A one fish limit gets boats off the river more quickly, reducing encounters on non target fish.

Preventing guides from keeping limits when guiding could save hundreds of wild kings a year.

Actually counting fish heading up the Sol Duc and Bogacheil rivers and not opening fisheries until escapement is reached.
This may not prove particularly difficult. The fish are clearly visible when they head up the Quillayute. A camera on the bridge and maybe a white patch on the bottom would give a pretty solid idea of when the fish start to move. Or you could just look over the side.

This is what it looks like when they start moving, so, you can kinda tell

Any of these tools , or others, could work
They will however require a timely start, and patience in getting all the managers comfortable with the situation.
I actually don’t believe you can understand this situation without looking at the river and its obstacles in person, hopefully our new managers will try that.
Last year WDFW ignored this disaster despite public outcry. My hope is that the new personal at region 6 will come look, see the problem, and take real steps to get ahead of it.

The fish will likely be stuck the Quillayute for months, starting in September, until we get a sustained rain storm that drops at least three inches in two days, or several weeks of steady rain

This rain often does not arrive until November.
Even a week of poorly regulated fishing during the period between September 15 and the first solid rain could have dire results.

It should be noted in the last 8 years or so the Quillayute river has undergone dramatic changes.

One needs to look no farther than the beautiful new boat ramp to see evidence of this.

The new boat ramp was needed because of the enormous gravel and silt loads that came down from the Bogacheil. It obscured the old ramp with a river bar of over an acre.

It also deposited this gravel and silt down river. Building up fish blocking gravel bars in several other spots down river.

It is also clear that the entrance to the Sol Duc river is becoming increasingly restricted as the water undercuts the Mora Rd. bridge piling.

The Quillayute tribe is engaged in an historic river estuary restoration project. This project could offer a great opportunity for study and re-evaluation of Quillayute river seasonal fish passage.

There are lots of steps that could help, but we need to start now,

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides

Forks Wa

If you can make it email jimkerrguides@me.com

We could go spey fishing, or bobber fishing, or spoon fishing or noodleing for pike minnow.

I’m in, its too good to miss.

Jim Kerr

Raincoast Guides

Forks Wa

They are on the water workshops typically limited to three guests so that we can float and fish a variety of water.

This workshop will focus on helping you understand how to pick productive spey water, and how to fish it effectivly.

If you enjoy spey fishing for salmon, steelhead or trout, but would like to catch more, I am very confident that I can help you.

We will meet early and get on the river on a nice piece of spey water. We will discuss and demonstrate gear and tactics, flies, tips, presentation, casting, hooking and fighting fish.

I will bring selection of rods and lines to try.

I will also have a list of cool spots for you to spend your winter spey days fishing on your own.  And advice on how to locate productive water on your own.

New spey anglers are welcome, but the focus will be on spey fishing, not spey casting. There will be plenty of casting tips and trouble shooting advice, but if you are a brand new spey caster we should get you started with a separate spey casting lesson

Yep, Ill bring lunch and snacks

I will have some days off in January, and I thought it is time to schedule the first spey fishing workshops in a long time.

We will meet early and get on the river on a nice piece of spey water. We will discuss and demonstrate gear and tactics, flies, tips, presentation, casting, hooking and fighting fish.

I will bring a pile of rods and lines to try.

I will also have a list of cool spots for you to spend your winter spey days fishing on your own.

There are three spots available for this workshop Saturday January 6

cost is $200.00 per guest.

Yep, Ill bring lunch and snacks

quick, email jimkerrguides@me.com subject line “workshop”

May? May!

Yep, May, currently I am holding the first 4 days of May open for Spey fishing/ swinging for Spring chinook/ spring steelhead.

May is a great time to get out, enjoy the spring and get some cool grabs. Spring offers a completely different feel to the river, different flies and spots, a mix of trout, late steel head, spring Chinook and often jacks.

Its also a great way to get yourself started in the right direction to keep on your summer fishing.

If you want to spend some time chatting about getting your summer fishing plans together we could work that in also.

June? June!

Its not so far away, long days, maybe even sunshine and the rain coat coming off. Some cool rivers opening up, giving us a look at all the stuff we forgot about at the end of March.

A great time to swing up a steelhead or spring or summer chinook.

Check out these dates. June 1,4,6, 7, 11, 12,13.

Emial jimkerrguides@me.com for booking or details

So, this is a December hatchery steel head, if you think you are the type of person who would enjoy catching these, email jimkerrguides@me.com

Jim Kerr

Rain coast Guides

Forks Wa

ALRIGHT!

February 8th,17th,25th March 13,17,18.

These are the days we have left open for the 2023 Native winter Steelhead season.

If you want to get out with us this winter email jimkerrguides@me.com.

Some of the very best fishing I have ever had here has been on days that according to everybody were not going to be any good at all. There are certain kinds of “bad” weather, that can lead to really excellent days. Just this fall I launched my boat onto a river that was raging high and brown, floated a mile or so, pulled over and anchored so my guest for the day could catch a jillion or so coho, and then rowed home.

A few days before Christmas we had some weather cancellations. I grabbed some family, we took some firewood down to the river and hung out until we caught a beautiful bright hatchery steelhead.

The fire was warm, the winter scenery was epic, and of course the bad weather had kept almost everyone else home. It was a great day we will always remember, not just because the fishing was good, but because the weather was bad, and we made it fun, and enjoyable. No doubt there are days I don’t go, and days no one should. But I have had days, when the weather was just the right kind of bad, that turned into some of the most spectacular fishing I have ever had.

So, my goal is to GO on days we can go. And although sometimes it is obvious days in advance that the water will not be good, often you have to just go on out there and check it out.

The new cancellation guide lines I have written up are an attempt to get people prepared for that. But I would like all seven of you who read this blog to check them out and offer any insights and comments or suggestions you have.

Cancellation FAQs

Hey, what happens if??

What happens if the rivers blow out?

If the guide determines that the rivers have become too high to fish safely we will be happy to transfer your deposit to another day. That determination will be made the morning of your trip, not several days prior.

So if you book a trip, plan on driving to Forks the day before no matter what. If the rivers are too high, you can enjoy some time in the National Park, visit the beaches, or watch TV and eat fried chicken in your motel room.

What happens if its snowy? This happens from time to time. Snowy conditions can lead to awesome steelhead fishing, so we really want to go. We understand you will have a long drive the day before your trip, so if snow is in the forecast plan on leaving early and drive carefully. In general we do not cancel trips on account of snow.

What happens if it’s really cold? If the temps are predicted to get up to 30 at any part of the day, we are going. We will bring heaters, and often light a fire at lunch. These can be awesome fun days, dress warm.

To catch these amazing fish we often have to endure some tough weather. Dress well and we will do everything we can to keep you safe and comfortable and to help you have an awesome and memorable trip.

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides

“If you want to catch beasts you don’t see every day, you have to go place quite out-of-the-way. You have to go places no others can get to. You have to get cold and you have to get wet, too.” Dr. Suess“

The price of awesome adventures is suck” Clay Hayes

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides

Forks wa