[juro]

For me it was usually around Father's Day, but some years it would be around Memorial Day down on the Cowlitz, lower Kalama, East Fork of the Lewis. One year it was the June opener on the Green in Auburn, a 7 pound K-romer. The stilly always produced early returns, as did the Skykomish, but I would almost always head to Columbia tribs to break the ice. The stretch along the I-5 bridge over the Cowlitz gets a good shot of summer fish in June. Sol Duc has plenty of fish moving through it by June as does the Bogey / Calawah. Elwha is seeing it's ghosts in the first rock hole by June. The mouth of the Hoh is seeing it's share of ocean warriors entering the tidewater too...

What's your early summer run strategy?

 

[NrthFrk16]

My strategy is to fish the Stilly in May for summer-runs. Always a sure bet!!!

BTW-Guide Bob Ball hit a summer-run hatchery fish on the Hoh on Sunday...a stray from somewhere.

 

[andre]

Juro,

The early summers have been coming in and are being taken on a daily basis on the local rivers. I haven't been out other than a long lunch with a solid grab.

 

[skyrise]

My thoughts drift (no pun) back to the days when we would hit the Washougal for some early brutes, 18.5, 18, 17.5lbs all in a two week period by three seperate anglers all at the same drift. Alas those were hatchery fish genetically selected for size by the game guys.

 

[juro]

WOW those are some real slabs.

I like to reminisce about a few summer fish in that class (although never three in the same day never mind run!), especially one that opened up an Alec Jackson spey hook after what was most likely the best fight of my angling career. That was a banner day - I even hooked a nice hen on a caddis pattern that I over-mended on a floating line. The fish torpedoed the fly before it even stopped skipping over the water from the over-zealous mend with the Spey rod. My friend Mike Wallach was standing next to me and could not believe his eyes, I think he was about to comment on my crazed mend when >BLAM!<