July 31, 2024
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Announcements
E-tagging tips for anglers
It's important for anglers to tag their salmon, halibut and steelhead immediately, which means you'll need to know how to navigate the MyODFW app outside of cell phone range. Here are some tips for e-tagging in the field.
For the latest regulations, including in-season changes
See the Regulation updates section above.
Saltwater News Bulletins
Be among the first to know about in-season changes! You can subscribe to receive emails and text message alerts for marine topics that interest you. It's easy to unsubscribe at any time. Your contact information will remain confidential. Three different lists of interest to ocean enthusiasts are available: bottomfish, halibut and ocean salmon.
Ocean salmon
See the season details here (dates, places and other regulations).
To check the quota status, visit the Ocean Salmon Management Program catch index page.
The selective coho (fin-clipped) season from Leadbetter Point, Washington to Cape Falcon, Oregon has a daily bag limit of 2 salmon but no more than 1 Chinook, and all coho must have a healed adipose fin-clip. Total landings for the season (Oregon and Washington combined) through July 28 are 20,346 coho and 3,805 Chinook out of the quotas of 39,900 coho and 12,510 Chinook.
Preliminary estimated Oregon angler trips, catches, and released salmon for the week of July 22-28 include:
- Astoria: A total of 2,223 coho and 145 Chinook salmon landed in Oregon with 1.77 salmon per angler. Anglers also released 1,340 coho and 145 Chinook.
The selective coho (fin-clipped) season open from Cape Falcon to the Oregon/California border has a daily bag limit of 2 salmon but all coho must have a healed adipose fin-clip.
Reminder: Humbug Mountain to Oregon/California border selective coho season will be closing August 4.
For the week of July 22-28, total area catch rates increased slightly to 0.79 salmon per angler compared to 0.61 salmon per angler the previous week. In this week, catch rates were highest in Pacific City and Winchester Bay, with 1.03 and 0.90 salmon per angler, respectively. Total angler trips were lower than the previous week, partially due to effort switching to tuna fishing with improved ocean conditions.
Preliminary estimated ocean salmon angler trips, catches and released salmon for the week included:
- Garibaldi: 672 salmon angler trips with 434 coho and 14 Chinook for an average catch rate of 0.67 salmon/angler. Anglers also released 555 coho.
- Pacific City: 388 salmon angler trips with 390 coho and 9 Chinook for an average catch rate of 1.03 salmon/angler. Anglers also released 491 coho.
- Depoe Bay: 543 salmon angler trips with 437 coho and 8 Chinook for an average catch rate of 0.82 salmon/angler. Anglers also released 556 coho and 3 Chinook.
- Newport: 1,265 salmon angler trips with 1,051 coho and 51 Chinook for an average catch rate of 0.87 salmon/angler. Anglers also released 1,279 coho and 11 Chinook.
- Winchester Bay: 412 salmon angler trips with 365 coho and 4 Chinook for an average catch rate of 0.90 salmon/angler. Anglers also released 946 coho.
- Charleston: 88 salmon angler trips with 36 coho for an average catch rate of 0.41 salmon/angler. Anglers also released 34 coho.
- Brookings: 297 salmon anger trips with 69 coho and 27 Chinook for an average catch rate of 0.32 salmon/angler. Anglers also released 64 coho and 8 Chinook.
All other ports not listed were not sampled.
A guide to ocean salmon identification is available here.
Pacific halibut
Pacific halibut seasons continue along the Oregon coast. See the season details here (dates, places and other regulations). To view quota status, visit the Pacific halibut estimates page. Additional information on Pacific halibut fishing can be found on the sport halibut page.
The Columbia River subarea all-depth halibut fishery will reopen Aug. 22 through Sept. 3 and Sept. 5, 8, 10, 12, 15, 17, 19, 22, 24, 26 and 29. Nearshore halibut fishing remains open Mondays through Wednesdays. This subarea will close on Sept. 30 or when quota is attained. The daily bag limit is one Pacific halibut.
The Central Oregon Coast subarea summer all-depth halibut fishery will open Aug. 1, seven days per week, with a two-fish bag limit per angler. This fishery will remain open at all-depths until Oct. 31 or when quota is attained.
Port by port reports:
- Garibaldi: Effort was moderate and catch was very low.
- Depoe Bay: Effort was very low; however, some anglers landed the bag limit of two fish.
- Newport: Effort was high, and an average of one fish was landed for every two anglers.
- Charleston: No halibut trips were observed last week.
- Brookings: Effort was low but catch improved to one fish for every three anglers.
Thinking about combining your halibut trip with other species? Check out what you can combine with halibut, for a useful guide.
Bottomfish
A few reminders:
- Cabezon opened on July 1, 2024 with a daily sub-bag limit of one fish and a minimum length of 16 inches.
- Retention of quillback rockfish and yelloweye rockfish remains prohibited.
- Click ‘Regulation Updates' above to see what's new for 2024 or visit the sport bottomfish seasons page.
Port by port reports:
- Garibaldi: Catches improved last week with most anglers landing four fish, mostly consisting of black, canary, and yellowtail rockfishes. Lingcod landings were about one fish for every two anglers.
- Depoe Bay: Catches stayed consistent with an average of three fish per angler, with a mix of black, deacon, yellowtail, and canary rockfishes, with quite a few cabezon! Lingcod landings were slower last week.
- Newport: Anglers brought in an average of about three fish, with a mix of black, deacon, yellowtail, and canary rockfishes. Lingcod remained slow.
- Charleston: Catches were consistent with near bag limits, containing a notable mix of black, canary, deacon, widow, and yellowtail rockfishes. Lingcod improved to about one fish for every two anglers.
- Brookings: Anglers landed about three fish per angler, with a mix of black, blue, deacon, and canary rockfishes coming aboard, with a few cabezon. Lingcod remained slow.
The offshore longleader fishery gives anglers an opportunity to catch more fish and to distribute effort away from nearshore species.
NEW for 2024: The daily bag limit for the longleader fishery is 12-fish per angler. Learn more about the gear and the fishery.
Bottomfish fishing resources:
What can I keep and how many? Keep up with in-season regulation changes.
Know what you've caught with some helpful rockfish identification tips (including online quizzes and video).
Waypoints for fathom lines and other restricted areas.
Albacoretuna
Fishing effort for albacore tuna picked up across several Oregon ports for the week of July 22-28 due to favorable ocean conditions, particularly last Sunday. Most albacore were reported from 30-50 miles offshore.
Anglers generally want to focus their effort in areas where the chlorophyll level is approximately 0.25 mg and sea surface temperatures are 58oF or higher. Chlorophyll and sea surface temperature data are available from the Oregon Coastal Ocean Observing System (OrCOOS).
By port, ODFW samplers observed the following from recreational boats:
- Garibaldi: 6.10 albacore per angler
- Pacific City: 8.87 albacore per angler
- Depoe Bay: 4.5 albacore per angler
- Newport: 3.52 albacore per angler
- Winchester Bay: 7.52 albacore per angler
- Charleston: 7.74 albacore per angler
Learn more about Tuna Fishing in Oregon.
Shore and estuary fishing
Daily bag limits, seasons and licensing requirements for shore-based anglers are the same as for boat-based anglers.
There are plenty of rocky or sandy fishing sites up and down the coast where shore anglers can drop a line for saltwater fish. Read about how and where
Lingcod and many other bottomfish species are available year-round to shore anglers fishing in rocky areas. A common setup for lingcod is a jig head with a rubber swim bait – it's simple but effective. Also pack a measuring device for lingcod: the minimum legal size is 22 inches.
Surfperch are available in the surf year-round along sandy beaches and rocky shores, with the best fishing (and safest fishing) occurring when swells are small. Learn about ocean surfperch fishing.
Want more opportunities that don't include a boat? Check out the crabbing and clamming recreation report for updates on crabs, clams, mussels and more!
When fishing from shore or inside estuaries and bays, it is important to check the tide. Many fish that swim into estuaries and bays, including salmon, surfperch, and Pacific herring, tend to come in with the tide. Catch of these species is more likely to occur closer to slack tide. Additionally, the accessibility of some areas can be completely dependent on the tide. Do not allow the incoming tide to become a safety issue.
