Inland salmon are back; let's 'Brock' and roll

For the first time in four years, there's an inland Chinook salmon fishing season, and longtime area guide Kevin Brock is "super excited … it's going to be good. Real good." Diminished ocean numbers of the prized native game fish, caused by a combination of factors – including some very lean water years – prompted the full closure of Chinook salmon off the coast and in California's inland rivers from 2023 to 2025 to all anglers, sport and commercial alike. But strong water years in 2024 and 2025 and stepped-up enhancement efforts by state fisheries have helped the resilient species mount a comeback: Some estimates for returning fish to the watershed (which includes not only the Sacramento but the lower American, Feather, Yuba, Mokelumne and more) are as high as 392,000. And while those numbers may not match the glory days of Chinook salmon returns in the Sacramento Valley, Brock, who's been a guide for 33 years, says they're close. "We haven't seen something like this since probably … '02, '03," Brock said. "… 300,000-plus fish in the river? I'm very excited. As you can tell. I can talk for an hour about it!" And so we did. Here are some of the highlights, edited for length and clarity: Tom Mailey: Address the average angler who, say, has a boat, some basic salmon fishing knowledge and maybe five or six chances to get out this fall. Kevin Brock: "I would just tell you, go as many times as you can. Just get out there. There's more information online than ever before (Brock's page, FishKevinBrock.com, has video tutorials on everything from lures and how to use them to recipes). Fish are always moving upstream, they're always moving, so if there weren't any fish in that spot you fished yesterday, today there might be 50. There's always hope." Tom: Some spots on the river can get crowded, for both shore and boat anglers. Any advice for someone who might be intimidated by that or doesn't want to deal with that? Kevin: "If you want to get away from crowds, no problem. Guides fish in the morning until about 2 or 3 in the afternoon. Go in the afternoons and evenings. I used to love evening time: Go out for a couple hours, everyone else was off the river. When there's lots of fish in the river, you can catch them all day long." Tom: Some folks don't have boats and maybe they can't afford a guide. What are some good places to fish from shore? Kevin: "Oh man, there are some great spots. On the American River: Watt Avenue, Gristmill, below Nimbus Dam, Sunrise bridge on down … there are lots of places you can throw a spinner, drift a bead or some salmon roe. On the Feather: the Oroville Recreation Area … every hole I can fish out of a boat there can be fished from the bank. The Sacramento? There are some places you can fish up higher on the river, the Los Molinas/Red Bluff area. But a lot of that is boating water." Tom: Talk about tides. We're pretty far inland, but can ocean tides still factor in? Kevin: "What plays a factor is when we get a big tide. When we get a full moon and a big tide, the fish travel; it's like driving up in the hills on a one-lane road and then it opens up into two lanes and then all of a sudden you're in Sacramento and now you've got six lanes, eight lanes, and you're putting the hammer down. It's the same thing with big tides – more water, more 'lanes' to come upriver. New fish always come in on high tides." Tom: Do you have a "color cut-off" for your salmon? Are you only looking for chrome-bright fish or are you OK with them being darker? Kevin: "The main thing is how you handle it. Right after you catch a fish, you want to bleed it right away and once you've done that, get them on ice as soon as possible. If you just leave them on a stringer in the water, or in a live well on the boat, that water is too warm. They'll taste mossy, the meat will be mushy. If you prep them right away, the meat can be fantastic. Now, if it's a little later in the season and you get some fish that are close to spawn, they're meat's a little whiter, you might want to smoke that fish. But (if you prep it right) it can still taste fantastic." Tom: What is your "Goldilocks" time of year on the watershed? Kevin: "I would say the beginning, middle of August we're going to see brand new fish come racing into the system because the water's high this year; the Sac's high, the Feather … they're letting out plenty of water and so that first push of fish in August can be absolutely some of my favorite time to fish – they're aggressive, they're moving. And September! No matter what happens early, no matter what happens late, September is always prime time. It's peak." Tom: What techniques do you anticipate working best? Kevin: "It's going to start off early and be a 'plug show' – Flatfish, spinners, Kwik-Fish style lures will be your top producers. Then it'll go to roe and drifting and bobbers and I mean, every technique that you like to catch salmon on is going to be possible this year. Even though the numbers, sometimes we don't trust the numbers, but all the data, all the facts based off of water conditions, ocean conditions, food, all of that … say we're going to have a good run. So yeah, I'm excited." And to that I would add, we all should be! Given our state's never-ending water challenges, a healthy salmon run indicates a healthy watershed – even if just temporarily. The season opened July 16 and goes through the end of the year. As always, check the regs and be sure you're legally up to date. And then? Prep your boat, prep your gear and, as Brock already said multiple times, "Go. Just go!" FISHING REPORT Stampede Reservoir FishSniffer.com reports a good kokanee bite for trollers. They're not big, but they're fun (and delicious). Spinners in green, pink, purple and orange shades are producing. Lake Berryessa Also according to FishSniffer.com, Kokanee, trout and all three bass species are biting. Trolling is working best for trout and kokanee. Soft plastics are getting the bass. The lake is holding above 90 percent of capacity. Sacramento River Depending on the place, the fish and the anglers, the first week of an inland Chinook salmon season since 2022 was either great, good or not so good. The bottom line is, fish are in the system and moving through all the time so you have to be out there and ready. Perennial favorites Kwik Fish and big spinners were effective for those who caught fish trolling and drifting roe worked for waders and those fishing from shore. Be sure you're up to date on regulations before you go (i.e., did you know if you're anchored up and jigging you can only have a single hook?) and try to get out early – several reports said the fishing slowed as the day and the water warmed up. Ocean salmon From outside the Golden Gate to Fort Bragg, coastal salmon fishing has been good with some fish closing in on 30 pounds. Monterey Bay seems to have slowed, but anglers are still picking up fish along the canyon edges down as deep as 180 feet. Half Moon Bay anglers aren't going as deep, finding fish up to 80 feet with trolled anchovies or spoons. Keep in mind the Pigeon Point to Point Arena and Fort Bragg to Pigeon Point zones will temporarily close (or are already closed), reopening again Aug. 1. Folsom Lake The trout and landlocked king bite has been a little more inconsistent, perhaps because the lake level has begun its annual drop as BLM releases water for agriculture. The bigger native rainbows that were abundant in spring seem to have largely gone quiet, but hatchery rainbow to 16 inches have been active. King salmon are mostly in the 18- to 22-inch range, but one angler hit a 27-incher recently. Green Pro Troll and Wonderbread Top Coat flashers with anchovy-tipped pearl UV hoochies trolled from 45 to 70 feet have been most consistent for me, but several anglers are having success on spoons, especially in the first few hours of daylight. And bass fishing continues to be good – I spoke to a high school bass team angler last week who reported catching and releasing more than 70 (!) fish recently fishing a variety of lures on structure up to 40 feet. – Tom Mailey