Long Range Fish Report
From Sportfishing

Fish Report for 12-21-2023

The river is dropping quickly and will be clear by the weekend

12-21-2023
Kenny Priest

The quick-clearing Smith was fishable Wednesday, but still a little on the high side at just under 11 feet at the Jed Smith gauge. A few boats made the drift from the forks down, but the scores weren’t great. But there are reportedly some steelhead in the river. The river is dropping quickly and will be clear by the weekend, but will remain plenty fishable. The next rise is predicted to start early Tuesday morning. For current river conditions, visit https://cdec.water.ca.gov/river/smithStages.html



Find "Fishing the North Coast" on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com.


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More Reports

Nor Cal Fish Reports Reports
for Thursday, December 21st, 2023

Mad River: High and muddy after peaking at 10.8 feet Wednesday but it’s dropping quickly
Eel River: Predicted to dip below 5,000 cfs by Monday
Eel River - South Fork: If it keeps dropping as predicted, it should be in good shape by Saturday
Van Duzen River: Could be a short window where it’s fishable
Chetco River: Chetco/Elk/Sixes Report

Nor Cal Fish Reports Reports
for Thursday, December 14th, 2023

Mad River: The Mad is just under 7 feet in Arcata and in good shape
Eel River: Flows are down to 1,200 cfs as of Thursday and the river is clearing
Eel River - South Fork: The South Fork closed to fishing as of Thursday, but this should only last a few days
Van Duzen River: Flows were down to 185 cfs Thursday morning, but it’s open to fishing
Smith River: The river is low and clearing, and will remain that way through the weekend
Chetco River: Perfect for late-season salmon and early steelhead
Elk River: Both rivers are in good shape for what could be the last productive week of salmon fishing this year