I hit the Columbia for the first time in 7 weeks on Sunday (August 10th). The recorded high in Stevenson was 102.8F but at least there was a nice brisk east wind to make it not horrible. The wind was of course a blessing and a curse. It made it more comfortable to be out and make it much harder to fish out of the kayak. Well, enough whining. The good news is that I was able to scratch out a decent day!

 

I ended up with 22 smallmouth with the biggest being a 3lb 5oz, 18.5" chunky girl. My best 5 only went 12lb 9oz but I was happy to get 5 bass over 2lbs in the conditions and the fact that I was starting from scratch since it had been 7 weeks since getting out on the big C.

 

The day started out nice and dead calm and the topwater bite was good for the first 45 minutes or so that I was on the water. As soon as the sun hit the water though the topwater bite shut off.  I only caught 3 bass on topwater while they were biting but I missed a handful of others including one pig that came clear out of the water as it tried to annihilate my Choppo. That was a really fun start to the day!

 

After that my day turned into a one of trying to carefully probe 15-25' of water in the current, wind and waves. The wind and waves were not too bad for the first hour or so of my deep water fishing but they both built up as the day wore on and by the end of the day I was bouncing up and down pretty good. The bass were on rocky humps and points. I never found a boatload anywhere but I was able to scratch out a few fish from each good looking spot. I did have two or three occasions of back-to-back bass (when I start to think it is going to be on) but then it would be crickets. I definitely worked hard for all the fish I caught on Sunday.

 

On deep presentations I caught fish on a Ned rig, drop shot and wobblehead. In the wind and waves the wobblehead was the star. That heavy 1/2oz jighead made it possible to keep contact with the bottom while I was being churned around. The drop shot was second best and accounted for my biggest fish. The Ned was briefly useful but once I was bobbing up and down and being spun around by the wind it was pretty useless.

 

The funny thing is that 2 or 3 of the bass that I caught on the wobblehead came while I was picking out backlashes from my reel. Casting into the wind while being tossed around is a bit challenging, at least for me. On those lucky casts though when I tightened the line back up there was a bass on! I think they just felt sorry for me but I will take it!!

 

The other cool thing is that at the end of the day I was getting ready to head back to the ramp and was just sitting there when a small sturgeon (probably a 3 footer or so) came up and most of the way out the water a short distance downstream from me! Really topped off a pretty good day for me.

 

Of course, just to taunt me a bit the wind did start to lay down as I pedaled back to the ramp but by that time I was too worn out to even think of fishing anymore. That's OK though, because of the wind (and maybe the heat) I had the river mostly to myself all day. I never had to skip a spot because someone else was on it. That's a good day in my book!

 

Here are some pics and video from the day:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the sturgeon:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Excellent report fellow pacific northwester! Glad you had a productive day. 😎

5 hours ago, pdxfisher said:

My best 5 only went 12lb 9oz

I can’t find anything wrong with any fish pictured, I’d take’em all. River smallies are just different and man do they pull! 

8 hours ago, pdxfisher said:

After that my day turned into a one of trying to carefully probe 15-25' of water in the current, wind and waves. The wind and waves were not too bad for the first hour or so of my deep water fishing but they both built up as the day wore on and by the end of the day I was bouncing up and down pretty good.

 

You're a tough hombre.

 

8 hours ago, pdxfisher said:

the big C

 

"The big C," for sure. I have kayaked thousands of miles on big rivers, like the Mississippi and Ohio, but the big C would have me on my toes.

 

8 hours ago, pdxfisher said:

I did have two or three occasions of back-to-back bass (when I start to think it is going to be on) but then it would be crickets.

 

Ha! It's the same on the East Coast, where I think I have the pattern and then it fizzles.

 

8 hours ago, pdxfisher said:

by that time I was too worn out to even think of fishing anymore.

 

The kid and I launched two straight mornings at four a.m. and both mornings were hot. The second morning, reaching the dock, I just sagged and dangled my legs off the dock, feeling and looking thoroughly beaten, but the kid's dad saw something else, saying, "You're a warrior, Katie."

 

Well, you're a warrior too, PDX.

 

You remind me of this quote:

 

Quote

A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.

John A. Shedd

 

One final thing: I loved how that train was wailing as you caught your first bass. That was evocative for me, reminding me of the countless smallmouth I've caught on the Mississippi and in northwestern Ontario as trains passed. Oftentimes the engineer would be hanging out the window, waving at me while my smallmouth leapt. I'm too old to reach those lakes anymore, so I'm sure grateful to hear your train and see your bass and remember.

 

 

 

Beautiful smallmouth, love the coloration and amazing scenery! Awesome sauce, PDX!

FM

5 hours ago, Swamp Girl said:

he kid and I launched two straight mornings at four a.m.

Katie,,,,,,when I read this, the first thought that crossed my mind is that it would make a great entry line to a series of stories kind of like Stephen Kings' "The man in black fled across the desert and the Gunslinger followed" in the Dark Tower books. I can envision an ongoing series with you writing a new one every few weeks.  Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack the thread.

19 minutes ago, Kirtley Howe said:

Katie,,,,,,when I read this, the first thought that crossed my mind is that it would make a great entry line to a series of stories kind of like Stephen Kings' "The man in black fled across the desert and the Gunslinger followed" in the Dark Tower books. I can envision an ongoing series with you writing a new one every few weeks.  Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack the thread.

 

The kid leaves Maine this Saturday and I won't see him again until next year, when he's 15 and looks like a different person. They change so much in their teens.