The Spring Chinook Salmon run is just getting way. These are wonderful fish to catch and eat. Your heart will pound with excitement as you hook a 20-40 pound fish with the energy and anger of a two-year-old child in full tantrum mode!

Once salmon transition from the ocean to fresh water, they stop eating. The males start to develop curved jawbones, which prevent them from closing their mouths completely. So why do they bite? It’s much like a fly buzzing around your head. At first, you just ignore it. But after awhile, you start to become irritated. At first you may swipe at it to shoo it off. Later you are on a mission to rid yourself from this damn fly!

That is why you allow your rod to go down three or four times before you set the hook. The salmon needs to chew it up a few times to make sure it is deep enough in it’s mouth that you will not pull it out by setting the hook.

Now the fun begins! Just like a defiant two-year-old, Salmon do not like to be controlled. They have been running free all of their lives. The ability to swim hard and fast has prevented them from becoming lunch for one of the thousands of predators they have encounter during their four to five year lifetime. They are not willing to give up now. They too are on a mission to return to the location of their conception. This is a one-way trip for these magnificent creatures, so they are willing to devote all of their energy to being free again.

So enjoy the screaming of your reel as you battle one these Pacific Northwest wonders. And just because you hook it does not mean you will win the battle. So keep your line tight. And maybe you will be the victor of this battle.

P. S. They really taste good smothered in garlic.

Ken Bear Cole

Fishing with Bear LLC

The salmon runs have been diminishing over the past 20 years on the West Coast. Southern California runs are mostly gone. Northern California runs were so bad in 08, that many of the areas were shutdown to both commercial and sport fishermen.

Here in Oregon, the Department of Fish & Wildlife (ODFW), are planning to shut down Salmon fishing on the Willamette River for 09. The runs were low last year and are expected to be even lower this year.

I recommend that you contact your State politicians and bend their ears. Sport fishing pumps millions of dollars into local economies. Many people fish on their vacations. They stay in hotels and lodges, eat at local restaurants, buy gas, purchase fishing gear and local licenses. Some even hire a guide. Even though I do not guide for Salmon, I am concerned about the lack of action the regulating bodies are making.

It does not take a rocket scientist to determine that a net will capture many more fish then any sport fishermen. Nets also capture and kill many other fish which are not permitted. The commercial fishermen throw these fish back, but they often die because of damage caused by the net. Other Commercial fisheries have been forced to modify their fishing techniques. Swordfish are caught on individual hooks which are attached to a long line, which can reach over a mile.

I am a member of Coastal Conservation Association (CCA). This is an organization which, has the ability to flex some political muscle. I encourage all of you to join. An annual membership is only $25. They plan to become the NRA of fishing. They have already been successful in restoring the Redfish population in the Gulf of Mexico.

Every member counts chen you are talking to politicians.

Thanks for enduring my soapbox.

And remember, fishing helps keep you stress free!

Ken Bear Cole

Fishing with Bear LLC