McKinleyville resident Scott McBain holds a nice wild steelhead landed on Monday while fishing the Eel River.
Just as the steelhead season began to show signs of life, another round of wet storms is set to wreak havoc. All the coastal rivers are bracing for increased river flows certain to curtail any hopes of green water for some time. But these storms bring a little good news with them. For the first time this year, we should see a good amount of snow in the hills. That s money in the bank for winter steelhead fishermen. As the storms move through and the rivers begin to recede, the runoff from the snow will help keep the water at fishable heights and color. Looking ahead, the Smith could be the river least impacted by the storms. It s predicted for a big rise overnight Wednesday, but a lot of that precipitation could fall as snow. If that plays out, the Smith could remain fishable. All the other coastal rivers will likely be high and off color well into next week.