T_boy
02-18-2010, 01:45 PM
Local lakes: According to Josh from the Bites On Tackle Shop in Empire, rainbow trout fishing really turned on over the weekend at Empire Lakes in Coos Bay. Local anglers and visitors did really well fishing powerbait or nightcrawlers off the bottom. The holiday weekend and nice weather turned up the effort at Empire Lakes, and some nice holdover trout were taken. The first of many bass tournaments on Tenmile Lakes in Lakeside kicks off this coming Saturday with the Frostbite Tournament, sponsored by the Emerald Bass Club of Eugene. To find more information or to fill out an application to enter, go online to http://www.emeraldbassclub.com. Harry Bingum from the Tenmile Bass Club told me that a few largemouth bass have been taken on the lake recently. Anglers have done best fishing the flats with crankbaits, applying a slow presentation.
Local rivers: Fishing for winter steelhead on the Chetco and lower Rogue rivers slowed down last week. Jim Carey, owner of the Rogue Outdoor Store, told me there are still plenty of steelhead in both rivers, but, traditionally, they peak in December and January each year. Anglers are still reporting good winter steelhead fishing on both the Elk and Sixes rivers. Last week’s big rains hampered the effort, but by the weekend, the Elk River was in good shape and producing some nice fish. The South Fork of the Coquille River rose dramatically after last week’s rains. Anglers fishing high upriver near Powers caught a few fish over the weekend. By Monday, the river was still a bit high, but driftboaters reported catching a few fish from Hayes Ranch to the Myrtle Grove takeout. The hot spot in the Coos River system was the Five Mile Hole above Dellwood on the South Coos River. This is an acclimation site and a very popular spot for steelhead anglers. Remember, you need a permit to fish there because it’s Weyerhaeuser property. You can contact Weyerhaeuser for info at (888) 741-5403 or stop by the T-N-T Market to purchase a permit. Fishing for steelhead in Tenmile and Eel creeks has been good. Anglers reported quite a few fish moving through the creeks this past week. Fishing near the acclimation sites (mouths of Saunders Creek and Eel Creek) has produced the most action.
Area shellfish: There were plenty of crabbers on Weber’s Pier in Bandon over the three-day holiday weekend. To our surprise, we saw an average of two to three legal-size crab per crabber. One local boat was out Monday for just an hour or so, and brought us seven crab to cook. Boaters crabbing in Coos Bay reported very good numbers of crab taken over the weekend. One crabber told us the quality of crab is really holding up.
Kids Fish Free update: We would like to thank Vernon Fellows of North Bend for his generous donation of rods, reels and accessories last week. We gave away a stack of rod-and-reel combinations to children over the busy weekend. Earl Rankin told me he is starting to run out of equipment to repair. If anyone has any older rods or reels they would like to donate to the program, please give us a call at 541-347-2875 or stop by Port O’ Call in Old Town, Bandon.
Local rivers: Fishing for winter steelhead on the Chetco and lower Rogue rivers slowed down last week. Jim Carey, owner of the Rogue Outdoor Store, told me there are still plenty of steelhead in both rivers, but, traditionally, they peak in December and January each year. Anglers are still reporting good winter steelhead fishing on both the Elk and Sixes rivers. Last week’s big rains hampered the effort, but by the weekend, the Elk River was in good shape and producing some nice fish. The South Fork of the Coquille River rose dramatically after last week’s rains. Anglers fishing high upriver near Powers caught a few fish over the weekend. By Monday, the river was still a bit high, but driftboaters reported catching a few fish from Hayes Ranch to the Myrtle Grove takeout. The hot spot in the Coos River system was the Five Mile Hole above Dellwood on the South Coos River. This is an acclimation site and a very popular spot for steelhead anglers. Remember, you need a permit to fish there because it’s Weyerhaeuser property. You can contact Weyerhaeuser for info at (888) 741-5403 or stop by the T-N-T Market to purchase a permit. Fishing for steelhead in Tenmile and Eel creeks has been good. Anglers reported quite a few fish moving through the creeks this past week. Fishing near the acclimation sites (mouths of Saunders Creek and Eel Creek) has produced the most action.
Area shellfish: There were plenty of crabbers on Weber’s Pier in Bandon over the three-day holiday weekend. To our surprise, we saw an average of two to three legal-size crab per crabber. One local boat was out Monday for just an hour or so, and brought us seven crab to cook. Boaters crabbing in Coos Bay reported very good numbers of crab taken over the weekend. One crabber told us the quality of crab is really holding up.
Kids Fish Free update: We would like to thank Vernon Fellows of North Bend for his generous donation of rods, reels and accessories last week. We gave away a stack of rod-and-reel combinations to children over the busy weekend. Earl Rankin told me he is starting to run out of equipment to repair. If anyone has any older rods or reels they would like to donate to the program, please give us a call at 541-347-2875 or stop by Port O’ Call in Old Town, Bandon.