The winter steelhead fishing on the Oregon coast has been a premier go-to spot for targeting one of the most popular species the Pacific Northwest has to offer. The season generally starts in the late fall when then the mighty Chinook salmon hit the Tillamook bay as they stack up before starting to run the rivers. The Wilson and the Trask are two of the most popular fisheries in the region and are renowned for providing excellent salmon and steelhead fishing for those interested in catching these beautiful and flavorful fish.
Also, many Tillamook Bay Fishing Guides that service the area and they tend to first focus on the excellent saltwater fishing the region has to offer. Many guides will offer combo Tillamook Bay fishing trips where they target bottom fish such as rockfish and lingcod as well as ocean salmon, some will even throw some crabbing in as well.
There is plenty of great fishing in the Tillamook area and Oregon coast but after the salmon fishing action starts to slow and the bottom fish season closes it’s time to work your way inland.
Once the salmon start to enter the rivers on the Oregon Coast the steelhead are not far behind. Steelhead love to greedily feeding on the salmon eggs during the spawn. later in December through March, the steelhead fishing is generally pretty good on both the Trask and the Wilson depending n the water levels and in season regulations. On occasion, if numbers are lower than normal and the hatcheries haven’t been able to reach their quota for salmon or steelhead eggs they tend to close down the rivers for a while until the hatchery gets their egg take. As soon as the egg take is achieved the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will generally re-open the rivers right away.
If you’d like more info about fishing on the Oregon Coast, Contact our friend Daniel St. Laurent of St. Laurents Guide Service at (503) 440-5188. He’ is very knowledgable about fishing the Pacific Northwest and will be happy to help you.
