TRIP REPORT: Nehalem River, NW Oregon Coast

I just returned from an amazing two-day kayak fishing trip on the NW Oregon Coast. We left Portland early Sunday morning with the old 4runner, (or as I like to call it, the man-wagon), fully loaded with camping, fishing, and paddling gear. The weather report called for temps in the upper 50's to the low 40's, winds to 25 knots, and 30% chance of showers. Originally we were planning on surfing long boats at the beach, but the high wind, short period of 7 seconds between waves, and swell height of 8ft made fishing the tidal section of the Nehalem appear a better choice.

Usually I like to fish out of a sit-on-top in the river, but with a strong tide series and strong winds predicted, a more efficient craft, like my green NDK (SKUK) explorer, allows me to cover river miles with less effort. There is an important sacrifice when fishing from the explorer: no rod holders, which means allot of one-handed paddling.



Sculling draws can be utilized effectively with one hand by grabbing the paddle shaft closer to the blade, and resting the remainder of the shaft in the nook where your neck and shoulder meet. From this position you can move the boat laterally. If I want to reposition myself further to the left, I draw on my left. If I want to move to the right, I can utilize a pry on my left side. When trying to hold my angle in an opposing wind, I can use the same strokes and apply them at the bow or the stern, depending on if I'm facing up wind or down wind. Linking strokes from this position is absolutely necessary to hold or adjust your position while your other hand is busy with the rod.


Extending the paddle out, and holding the shaft closer to the high blade works well to control a boat turning in the wind or current. I can effectively plant bow rudders, sweeps, and pries from the extended position. Again this is allot to think about all at once, and can be frustrating until you master these strokes. Rod holders definitely make life easier, but sometimes you have to make due.


The first day on the river was mostly a paddling/scouting day. As it was so early in the fall salmon season, I was not completely sure where the salmon would be in the system. My last report for the Nehalem said salmon were cycling in and out of the bay and ocean. I decided to put in at the uppermost reach of tidewater, and float down to the bay. At some point I would run into the fish. The scenery was beautiful, but the salmon were no where to be found. I started to think about getting my trout gear together as a backup, or possibly forgoing fishing all together in favor of a much longer paddle.

I returned to camp that evening after a great day on the water, built a nice fire, and cooked dinner on the camp stove. After the meal, I decided to walk down to the river to watch the sun set. As I was walking down the trail, I glanced at the shallow run in front of me and saw a wake in the water. My heart started pounding, was it just a branch or rock sticking out of the water making a v-wake in the current? No! it's moving up stream! It was a big chinook moving up river. I sat there on the river bank for 15 minutes and watched 20 or so come through, each one making a large wake in the shallow water. The salmon had arrived, just in time for the river season opener, and not a minute to soon.

I set the alarm for 4:30 AM, and settled into the back of the man wagon all nice and cozy. "Morning will come soon", I thought, and I closed my eyes and dreamt of the next day.

OK so 4:30 came a little to quickly, so I hit the snooze button and enjoyed another 30 minutes of sleep. I awoke to find my friend Eric climbing out of his tent. "What are you doing up at this hour?", I asked him. "Do you want some coffee?", was his reply. I told him he was very thoughtful, but crazy to get out of bed this early when not fishing, just to make me coffee. He then let me know his true intention was not coffee, but bladder relief.

I launched from Roy Creek Park at 5:15 AM to a pre-dawn river. Immediately after paddling away from the launch, I began to hear, and faintly see gigantic chinook salmon flopping all around. I started the day with a nice salmon fly, and fished that to no avail for an hour or so. I quickly realized this was going to be a terminal tackle kind of day, and I switched to a blue and silver spoon.

That next hour, I hooked two salmon, and lost them both after a brief battle of about 5 seconds. I evaluated the problem as dull hook points, switched lures to a fresh out-of-the-box, all silver spoon and got another strike. I realized at that point that the hooks weren't rusty, I was.

I tried not to get to bent out of shape about blowing 3 hook-ups with the wily chinook, and concentrated just enjoying the fact that I was out at the coast, surrounded by beautiful scenery and friends, and that catching a salmon would just be an added bonus to a great trip....but I was still, just a little bit frustrated with my performance.


As the tide changed, the salmon quit flopping, and there is a pause before more fish enter the river at the next tide series. I continued to fish for sea-run cutthroat trout for another hour or so, and managed to catch this decent 15 incher on a silver spoon. It was about 9 AM at that point, and I suspected that my friends at camp would be getting up soon and hopefully have some breakfast ready by the time I got back.

We enjoyed fresh percolator coffee and blueberry muffins before all heading out for a great day of paddling, sunbathing, and general relaxation. Later that day I realized there had been a minor tragedy. At some point, someone, (probably me), did not properly close the pelican case my archaic digital camera was kept in. It got soaked, and died. All in all, it had a good run of about 5 years, and really needed to be upgraded anyway.

I have to say, once again, it can be a serious challenge to catch salmon in the river. Thankfully Mr. Cutthroat came along and kept me from completely getting skunked!

I leave for a four day kayaking trip in the San Juan Islands in Washington this Thursday. The San Juans are another of my favorite kayak/fishing destinations, so check back next week for more pictures, stories, tips and techniques from one of the most beautiful spots in the contiguous United States.

-Jason