Limited Wild Coho Season Starts Soon in Four Oregon Coast River Basins

Published 09/07/21 at 5:26 PM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Oregon Coast) – Wild coho season along the four major Oregon coast river basins is about to begin, with the Tillamook, Nestucca Siletz and Coos rivers opening up September 15 through mid-October. (Above: Siletz River)

ODFW made the announcement Tuesday, saying this is the first opportunity in five years for the retention of wild coho along Oregon coast rivers. Retaining the coveted fish has been closed since 2016 because of poor ocean conditions that caused coastal coho populations to drop.

While wild coho abundance is projected to be higher than the last few years, it is still less than the high returns seen from 2008-2014. So managers are proceeding cautiously with re-initiating these fisheries.

“When we announced wild coho fisheries in 2015, we asked anglers to be prepared for smaller returns and reduced opportunity in upcoming years, based on observations of poor ocean conditions at that time”, said Chris Kern, ODFW fish division deputy administrator. “Unfortunately, that is exactly what we observed.”

Ocean conditions affecting these populations have since improved. Anglers also encountered substantial numbers of wild coho in the summer recreational fishery off the Oregon coast.

Conservative harvest opportunities will be allowed within the Tillamook, Nestucca, Siletz, and Coos river basins. Basin-specific seasons, quotas, bag limits and other regulations can be found on the MyODFW website at https://myodfw.com/recreation-report/fishing- report/northwest-zone and https://myodfw.com/recreation-report/fishing- report/southwest-zone .

Wild coho seasons in Siltcoos, Tahkenitch, and Tenmile lakes open Oct. 1 under permanent regulations.

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Nestucca River

Siletz Bay

Coos River (courtesy Oregon's Adventure Coast)

Coos Bay estuary, courtesy Brent Lerwill

Tillamook Bay

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