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Straight from your guide's mouth. Read
about previous adventures, the conditions and the catches! Check back
often - more Ock Talk to come!
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October 20, 2009 |
 I wanted to share some of this years' hunting
adventures with you. It started out in September in Washington and I was archery
hunting with 2 of my nephews Shane and Alex. About 20 minutes into our hunt I
called in a herd bull that had 20 cows. It was a big 5X5 and he came in pissed
off. My nephew Alex was set up 30 yards in front of me and the bull came in
straight on to him. He was at full draw and it was only 5 yards away breathing
down his neck and he couldn't get a good shot. The bull eventually turned to go
and I stopped him with a call and my nephew got a shot . . .
READ THE FULL STORY! |
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August 25, 2009 |
 Fishing has been crazy on the Columbia, I've been
fishing for fun this time of year with my family and friends. We've been
averaging about 12-20 hook-ups a day mostly coho but we did get into some nice
king fishing several weeks ago. I'm gearing up for my elk hunts so I'll be going
full at in by mid-October. There are an estimated 200,000 coho returning to the
Cowlitz with a 6 fish limit. If your interested in booking a trip for the
Cowlitz or a trip on the peninsula you should book early.
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July 20, 2009 |
 We finished out the Sturgeon season with our limits this
past weekend. Saturday was rough and we only got 1 fish but I caught a 48+"
followed by 3 on Saturday which were 44", 48 3/4" and 57". My focus now shifts
back to the Cowlitz to start working summer-run steelhead. Stay tuned for new
reports.
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July 15, 2009 |
Team Ockerman hit the San Juan Islands this past weekend
to represent the family in the Bellingham Fishing Derby. Fishing was very slow
overall and we saw very few nets. On Saturday we hit a few fish and John's 24#
fish was in 8th place when we checked it in out of over 500 fisherman but out of
the money. We had a great time and many wonderful memories were made fishing out
of my brother's 26' Osprey. I look forward to next year! The fishing on the
Cowlitz has been slow to pick up but they are starting to show in better
numbers. Look for the next couple of weeks to really get going and since the
water has been dropped to summer flows the fish will be easier to target.
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June 22, 2009 |
 It's been fishing for fun lately with some sturgeon and
now summer-run steelhead. They have been a little slow to show this year but
this past weekend they have shown in better numbers, falling to bait divers and
shrimp. I'm booking now for summer-run and fall salmon and the dates are filling
fast but I do have some prime dates left especially for fall kings and silvers.
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April 19, 2009 |
 Ock Talk- Fished the Cowlitz this weekend and the
steelhead fishing is starting to slow down. We got 1 nice steelhead on Friday
and missed 3 others while Saturday we went 2 for 2. The water is continuing to
clear so by June and summer-run time it should be in good shape. We saw a boat
with 2 nice spring chinook today, but other than that you really had to work for
fish. The big news is that Dennis Tate is no longer a steelhead virgin, he
landed a nice steelhead today for his birthday. Way to go Dennis!
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April 8, 2009 |
 I've been fishing the Cowlitz with good success and we're
averaging about 5 hook-ups per day. After teaching Adam Wood how to fish, he
hooked and landed a nice 18lb hatchery spring chinook for the bonus of the year
so far. There is quite a bit of pressure and the bite is sporadic, but if you
stick with it you should be able to hook and land some nice fish. This past
weekend I had some clients from Idaho and we fished two days and were able to
boat 5 out of 10 fish hooked. Looking forward to a couple more weeks fishing for
winter run steelhead and the bonus springer or two on the Cowlitz. |
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March 18, 2009 |
 I wrapped up the winter steelhead season on the Queets. Only got to fish
Friday before being blown off the river. I had an incredible winter steelhead
season and hooked 48+ fish on the Queets the last 8 trips! Most of the fish were
big and strong but it got much tougher once the regulations changed to no bait,
no scent, and single barbless hooks. I'm booking a few springer trips but
primarily I am gearing up for summer run steelhead and have already booked a
couple of fall salmon trips too. |
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March 2, 2009 |
 Fishing continues to be very good for me on the Queets. This past weekend we
got into some nice fish. I expect this river to continue to produce some nice
fish in good numbers as well as the Satsop and Wynoochee Rivers to start filling
with wild fish. On February 20th and 21st I had the opportunity due to low water
in the rivers to go to my brother's house in Anacortes and was treated to 2 days
of fishing the San Juan Islands for blackmouth. We had my dad and nephew on the
trip so 3 generations of Ockermans fishing for salmon was a real treat. My
nephew stole the show catching more fish than any of us! I am winding down my
winter steelhead fishing and I am pretty much booked through the end of March
with just a few slots left. I'll be doing some Springer guiding on the Kalama
River when they start to show but I am already booking for summer-run steelhead
on the Cowlitz and fall salmon on the Queets and Humptulips. Take care and
best fishes. |
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February 10, 2009 |
 Fished the Queets the past several weeks and it has been absolutely on fire
for me. I'm not saying it's great fishing overall because about 50% of the boats
on it are getting blanked, but I've found a couple of slots that are holding
decent numbers of fish and it's working well as the photos will show. The Queets
is on the low side but fishermen on my boat have landed 19 fish in 4 days of
fishing! Hopefully it will keep fishing this good through March. |
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January 27, 2009 |
 Fishing was very good on the Kalama early last week but dropped off sharply
after Thursday and then on Friday slowed to a crawl and we only got 1 and missed
several others but only 3 fish were caught out of 8 or so boats. This past
weekend the river was wedged with boats too and the fishing was slow. My guess
is with the bite slowing it will not be as crowded this week/weekend and more
fish should be moving in. Same old reports on the Satsop and Wynoochee but it
does seem to be picking up a bit, depends on the day and drift. I can't remember
a year when the water on the rivers were so nice and the fishing was so tough.
Keep your fingers crossed that the big push comes soon. |
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January 22, 2009 |
 We fished the Wynoochee and Satsop on Friday from my sled spending about a half
day on each river and had only 1 missed hit to show for it, however those that
were on the Satsop early got into some fish. On Saturday we went north and
fished the Humptulips. We landed 1 nice hatchery hen and lost 1 and talked to 3
other boats with a total of 2 other fish landed. We then went further north to
the Clearwater and we were the only two boats on the river Sunday. We floated
from the bridge to the DNR takeout and we landed two fish, both bright natives
and released both unharmed. On Monday we went back to the Wynoochee and drifted
the upper stretch. Two boats in my group hooked 4 fish but most everyone we
talked to didn't have any fish or maybe one.
I talked to my source at a local tribe and they caught approximately 250 fish
last week so depending on the day, you could get lucky and get into some decent
numbers. |
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January 05, 2009 |
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have been fishing both the Wynoochee and Satsop Rivers this past week. The
Wynoochee's flow and clarity was perfect and the river is absolutely loaded with
fish-ermen. The fishing has been tougher than you would expect for this time of
year especially given the flows but the fish that are being caught are very
nice! The Satsop doesn't have the crowds but also doesn't have the numbers of
fish. Yesterday I drifted the Satsop from Schafer Creek down to the bridges ramp
and there are some tricky turns with obstructions right above Decker Creek but
it is definitely passable with flows as they were. We had several missed
opportunities including losing a big bright fish but we were still able to boat
a couple of very nice fish. There are more wild fish than hatchery fish in this
system so please handle with care. |
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December 29, 2008 |
 It's been tough getting out lately due to the snow but I managed to get my boats
out of my rural road this past Friday and Sunday (barely).
We fished the Wynoochee Friday which was running just over 700 cfps and it was
clear and cold but refreshing to make it out into the outdoors. We landed some
nice fish and had a few take-downs and missed hits. The fish seemed lethargic
and not real aggressive on the bite until they were hooked of course, which is
to be expected on those cold days. We drifted from White Bridge to Black Creek
and had to keep moving given the short days so we were never able to pound any
holes. Fish were caught using hot shots and eggs using light line. Not loaded
with fish but some really nice, bright fish were there. After this week's rain
this river should be on!
On Sunday we fished the Cowlitz. The fish are starting to show in better numbers
but they raised the river almost 2,000 cfps while we were on it which put the
bite almost completely off. Don't be discouraged because this river is starting
to put out the chrome steel unless it is on the rise. We got into fish but by no
means was it wide-open given the conditions. |
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October 27, 2008 |
 I'm back from a successful elk hunt of 27 days total in two states. I was
fortunate enough to harvest a 6X7 bull with my bow in Idaho as well as being in
on 4 other bulls taken by family. I am now re-focused and ready to fish! The
water is low and clear in most rivers with the exception of the Cowlitz where we
got into fish that past weekend. The Cowlitz is loaded with silvers but you have
to work for them to get the bite going. It looks like rain in the forecast and
with rising waters the fishing is going to pick up fast. I anticipate many great
trips ahead in the next several weeks. I have a few dates still available for
salmon and then I will turn my attention to winter steelhead. |
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August 4, 2008 |
 I wrapped up my summer-run steelhead trips this past weekend and I would
rate the overall season as a B+. There were great days and tough days but
overall I had good success fishing the Cowlitz for those cookie-cutter 9-13
pound fish with many happy clients. I appreciate all of you who booked a trip
with me and look forward to fishing with you again in the future. I am now
booking for fall salmon and dates are going to fill up fast given the fact I am
an obsessed elk hunter and will be hunting with 3 tags this year. I will focus
my efforts on the Humptulips and Queets Rivers in October and early November and
then shift my focus to the Satsop in November/December, then on to winter
steelhead. Thanks again for making this a very successful summer of fishing! |
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June 20-21, 2008 |
 I've been targeting the Cowlitz recently and water is still running high but
there are abundant fish for the taking. The water level makes it more difficult
but we are averaging about a 1/2 dozen solid hook-ups per day. On Saturday the
bite was on solid until the water level was raised around noon and it just
killed the bite. I have had my best results side drifting eggs and prawns, with
hook-ups on bait divers as well. |
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June 13, 2008 |
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Fished the Cowlitz this past weekend and the water was running high for
mid-June, about 10,400 cfps. There are fish there to be caught but we had to
work for them. I'm hoping the water level drops to normal flows to increase
catch rates. We fished from Blue Creek to the Toledo bridge with most fish being
caught between Blue Creek and Mission. Both bait divers and side drifting are
producing fish and be sure to concentrate in the shallow choppy water opposed to
the deep fast running slots for the best action when side drifting. |
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April 4, 2008 |
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Fished the Columbia on Friday and had good success. We hooked 3 Spring
Chinook near Cathlamet trolling herring with an 18" dropper. We lost a 20+ at
the boat and landed two nice springers 15 and 13 pounds. Fishing pressure was
heavy and we saw other fish caught. This fishery was just getting going and
unfortunately it will all move upriver from here on out, but there will be
plenty of fish for everyone who is willing to brave the crowds. |
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