Back To Salmon - Buoy 10

Buoy 10 is a shipping channel marker that sits on the Columbia River bar which is also known as The Graveyard of The Pacific after the more than 2,000 boats and 700 lives that have been lost in the area.  Buoy 10 is also the sport fishing region for the Columbia River estuary which is the granddaddy of salmon fishing in the Northwest.

For fall 2011, nearly 800,000 Chinook (King) and over 200,000 Coho (Silver) salmon are predicted to enter the Columbia River and each one of them will have to pass through the estuary on their way "home".

Papa D and Uncle R

2011 is season 3 as captain of my own boat at Buoy 10, and to kick things off I was fortunate enough to do an early trip with two of the greats; Papa D and his younger brother.  It was a great time hearing the stories from "the good old days' when they'd fish the ocean and estuary out of Illwaco, WA as kids.

We had to work for it, but on the flood tide we put a nice Chinook (King) salmon in the box.  With the ocean just a stone throw away, these fish are a beautiful candy red and are the best tasting, highest quality salmon on the planet.  Back to Buoy 10 in a few days and I won't sleep a wink in anticipation.

Two perfect candy red fillets