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This story is published in cooperation with Willamette Week and Oregon’s Adventure Coast: Coos Bay, North Bend, Charleston.
There’s no mistaking it: That sharp tug on the line, the bend in the rod. Immediately the pulse quickens, the reel starts spinning. The fight – and the fish – is on. And if all goes well, there’s a shimmery beauty – chinook, perch, bass or bluegill – on the end of the line when you’ve successfully reeled it in.
And, there’s no better way to tap into all that fishing glory than a road trip to Oregon’s Adventure Coast – Coos Bay, North Bend, Charleston. Located just a four-hour scenic drive from Portland, Oregon’s Adventure Coast is a fishing mecca perfect for a long weekend away. The region boasts just about every kind of fishing there is; it also teems with unique accommodations, fresh and local eats for the foodies, and just about everything else for a killer fishing escape.
Charting the course
One of the most unforgettable ways to fish on Oregon’s Adventure Coast is to hitch up with a charter outfit. The area’s rich fishing tradition has made it home to a handful of seasoned angler guides who know when, where and how to fish and what for. Among the best options: Betty Kay Charters, Pacific Pond Charters and Sharky’s Charters.
The experienced captains at Sharky’s are known for bringing home big hauls on all their trips, which in the fall include charters for lingcod and rockfish, halibut and rockfish, and bay salmon. Sharky’s also offers a winter steelhead charter that finds fishers plying the storied Umpqua River in a drift boat starting in early January.
The rockfish charters head out into the Pacific, with coastal mountain vistas creating a scenic backdrop. It’s not uncommon to spot a gray whale on the way to one of Sharky’s favorite reefs, where charter guests spend the day jigging for rockfish and lingcod. At the end of the charter, Sharky’s processes and packs the catch as part of the price of the charter.
Casting a wider net
Beyond charter fishing, Oregon’s Adventure Coast is the place to try just about any other style of fishing available. Year-round, surfperch hang out in the waves about 30 feet offshore waiting to be caught by anglers with 9- to 11-foot rods baited with mole crabs, marine worms or sand shrimp. Horsfall Beach and Bastendorff Beach are hotspots for surf fishing.
The north and south jetties that jut out into the ocean near Charleston are popular hangouts for jetty fishers, who cast their lines from the rocks for surfperch, rockfish and other species. Oregon’s Adventure Coast is also flush with more than 30 lakes and rivers, perfect for freshwater sportfishing for rainbow trout, bluegill, crappie, yellow perch, and largemouth bass.
And, of course, there’s crabbing and clamming, quite possibly among the easiest and most enjoyable ways to spend a day on the water with good friends. Crabbers can drop their rings in off the commercial docks in Charleston or Empire and hope for Dungeness, red rock, and European green crabs. Those looking for gaper clams, butter clams, cockles, and littlenecks will find them in the mud flats at Lower Coos Bay or among the beaches of Point Adams and Charleston Flat.
Just for the halibut
Finding great fishing at Oregon’s Adventure Coast is easy to do. Even so, there are some helpful resources that anyone planning a fish-focused foray should be aware of.
For starters, fishing in Oregon requires daily, multi-day, and annual licenses are available online or at local retailers.
Different fish can be caught at different times of the year. Rockfish are year-round, as are surfperch, crabs, and clams. Chinook salmon have a short window from mid-August to mid-October, steelhead start in November, halibut hit May through August, and lake fish like bluegills, yellow perch, and bass are kicking it from May through November.
And lastly, knowing the low and high tides at Oregon’s Adventure Coast is especially helpful for anyone who’s making clamming or crabbing a part of their getaway.
To plan your weekend getaway to Oregon’s Adventure Coast: Coos Bay, North Bend, Charleston, and learn more, you can visit oregonsadventurecoast.com.