BY KENNY PRIEST
EUREKA– The good news is we’re starting to see a weather pattern shift, bringing with it first rainstorms of the season. Unfortunately, it looks like they will fall well short of what we need to open up the rivers to fishing. The bulk of the rain spanning the last couple weeks fell south of the Mad River while storms this week will fall well to the north.
The main stem of the Eel River saw less than a quarter inch last Saturday while the South Fork Eel saw up to a quarter inch. The Smith River this week is forecast to see roughly a quarter inch this week, but it won’t be enough to get the river open to fishing above the tidewater. While these small systems will help, the parched rivers will need inches of rain along with consistent storms to open them up. Hopefully, this is just the beginning and the storm door has been pushed open. In the meantime, the Chetco continues to be the bright spot on the coast for kings. If you’re looking for big fish, you’ll want to get there before the rains come and they all make their way upriver.
