There are only about 20 "Caney Creek, AR" places, lol. It has been years since I lived in AR, and I fished mainly in the South. Lake Columbia (by Magnolia) and Lake Erling (closer to Springhill, LA) were always great. We also fished backwaters off the Arkansas River by the Pendleton bridge and would limit on 1 to 1.5 pound slabs.

Salmon size is not dependent on fishing pressure, but availability of fish to be caught back in the river is. Salmon spawn in the river, make their way to the ocean, then return to the river 2 to 6 years later depending on species. They are caught (mainly commercially) in the ocean when they are returning to the river and in river by tribes and sportsmen. They are not like a black bass, a crappie a catfish - the longer they go without being caught in a lake/river/pond the bigger they will get. The biggest thing that affects their size is the availability of food in the ocean and this is dependent on water temperature in historic zones for the salmon. There is much more information out there, google it. For fresh water fish, I would assume warmer water (within reason) would give them a longer growing season and thusly be larger in general. Then again, this also gives a longer fishing season so................

The 11th and 12th on Columbia, fish present in most areas, best on incoming tide - that shouldn't be a secret.

As far as Whidbey Island, I always fished Bush Point to Lagoon Point and did well for silvers. For King I would go across towards Port Townsend and fish the rip North from Marrowstone Island.

Actually it wasn't bad, they only made natives legal our first day. I have been there in my boat when it was boat to boat, which I obviously hate. The fishing was pretty spread out, there were fish to be had in most of the areas that were 20' or deeper. One of the "calmest" Buoy 10 fishing experiences I have had. Of course we normally fish around the Astoria bridge and don't go all the way to the mouth - that is where most of the combat fishing is.

Okay, this isn't in CA, but I live in CA (Fresno) and got to make a trip back up to the PNW to enjoy some buoy 10 action. Thought I would share a couple of pictures because that is what us fishermen do. ;) The pictures look the same, but if you notice they are 2 sets of fish from 2 consecutive days. Tight lines all.

I use a double gun case when I travel with mine, of course they are all 2 piece rods. Remove the reels and you can get several in 1 gun case, pack the reels in your suitcase.

Read up on the regulations, the Satsop is one of the most regulated rivers in WA. It is closed for fishing much of the year, don't get a ticket trying to have an enjoyable day.

When I was in WA State I used a MasterCraft digital smoker for my salmon and it did very well. I left that smoker with the new residents who purchased the house and now I have a "Smokin' Tex" smoker. It is much bigger, I purchased it as I do a lot of sausage, tri-tip, etc. The MasterCraft was fairly inexpensive and the digital controls made it very easy to not screw up.

Hello all, new to the site and fairly new to CA (moved to Fresno last July). Just got my boats moved down, registered and on the water the last couple of weekends. Took the bigger boat to San Luis, hoping for stripers (using umbrella rigs) but no joy. Took the smaller boat to Fresno Slough Sunday, a couple of large mouth and one small striper, the area was weeded in and left limited fishing. Having withdrawls from my WA salmon fishing days, posting a couple of pics for your enjoyment. I grew up in the midwest, so bass/striper/crappie fishing are good for me, just need to learn how/where/when here. I would also like to get out for some rock fish/lingcod, the bigger boat is ocean capable - it has spent many days on the Puget Sound. Looking forward to posting some CA pics, once I am successful. Any hints on stripers in the valley?