Elk hunting Eastern Oregon

Some have to wait a life time to get there 6 x 6 bull others manage to bag theirs right out of the gate. We have a good number of hunters in our family and this was a great year for most everyone. 
 Every year brings new lessons and the opportunity to learn a little more about the animals you are hunting. I really enjoy hunting elk in the Eastern parts of Oregon. Although most of the time the weather is cold and the terrain is steep, its still worth everything to come across one of these magnificent animals in the wild. I also find it truly amazing how an animal that big can be so elusive and hard to find. One would say that is part of the draw to finally bag yourself a 6 x 6 bull elk.

This year my brother-in-law Brian got his second six by six bull in the past four years, he also managed to tag a five by five in the same four year period. But this is what I have learned out of watching him come back successful year after year. The 18 years prior to his unbelievable success in the last four he obtained nothing! He hunted the same area for all those years and got nothing. Some people in the hunting party did but he was never able to connect. What happened? Well I believe something finally clicked and after all those years he finally started to get some basic patterns and habits these elk were doing. Knowledge is king!
 This year everything changed for our hunting party as well. My nephew Cody bagged his first elk ever and it happened to be a huge 6 x 6 bull. What changed for us this year? Well for many years we had bounced around from one unit to the next starting the learning curve back a square one every couple of years. My brother-in-law Brian finally talked us into going over and trying the area he had hunted for many years. Truth be told after three massive bulls in under four years it wasn't hard to convenience us it was the right thing to do.
 I still believe there is a small thing called right place, right time, some call it luck! With that being said there's much more than just luck involved. Hunting a productive area with plenty of game is important, learning the feeding and drinking patterns, is there both fresh, middle and old sign? These are just a couple of thing that will improve your success, but the most important of all is knowing the right person that has put all the hard work in and is willing to share that knowledge. Special thanks go's out to my brother-in-law Brian for this years successful hunt. Thanks Brian! (Ernie, Cody, Levi and Dean)

Halibut Fishing Valdez Alaska


What a year for fishing Valdez Alaska! My daughter, Nephew and I went out on the Otter Dodger in June of this year and had a blast. We managed to limit out on Halibut, Salmon and bottom fish. The Whale watching was great as well. We had whales around the boat most of the day, tail slapping, breaching and spotting.
The best part of our trip was not only great fishing but the weather was perfect. I was told most days in Valdez are cloudy with a chance of rain but not for us! We all purchased our derby tickets for the $15,000 dollar first prize for the largest halibut of the year. That of coarse was not one of our Halibut but we had to try. The next time your in Alaska make sure to plan a day fishing out of Valdez, the scenery is amazing! 



This years winner was Brad Burch he reeled in a 296.2 pound halibut August 26th aboard the magic dragon. Congratulations to Brad Burch of Clackamas Oregon! 
  

Buoy 10 fishing tips and reports

 Record breaking season predicted this year for Chinook and Silvers on the Columbia river (Buoy 10)!

First Salmon!!!!
Well its August again and anyone that targets Salmon for there dinner table knows the best place for that is at the mouth of the Columbia river also known as Buoy 10. They are predicting 1.6 million Chinook salmon and 1 million silvers. That's a lot of fishing in one place and that place is at the mouth of the Columbia river right now!!
 The weather and currents are not for the unseasoned boater. The wind generally picks up in the afternoon, possible fog in the morning and tide changes that are very dramatic. If you plan on making it out to the number 10 buoy or into the ocean your boat must be in good working condition and 19 ft or bigger. This is were most of the fish will be caught. Most boats are going out and returning by 10 A.M with there limits.
 If you have a smaller boat and would like to get in on the action make sure to stay close to an exit door. If you leave out of Hammond on the Oregon side try trolling the green marker cans from East to West on a out going tide and from West to East on the incoming tide. If your going out of Chinook on the Washington side try just above the Megler bridge or just below the Desdemona sands VHF radio or cell phone is a must even though there will be a lot of other boats out there.
 Last Friday I was able to take my 13 year old daughter out and she hooked and landed her first salmon a very nice 18-20 pound Chinook. This is a great place to take someone for there first fish. Most days multiple strikes and hookups are the norm.
 Good luck and hope to see you there!!!