Wynoochee River trips are run from our 18′ drift boat. We are primarily targeting hatchery Steelhead.
Wynoochie River Specifics
Drift Boat: 2-3 people
Steelhead: December – March
Rate: $275 per person
Meet up location: Monty-Square, 100 Brumfield Ave. Montesano, WA 98563
Needed items for a Wynoochee River trip
- Full body rain gear with rubber boots or waders with a rain jacket
- Warm layered clothing
- Please bring plenty of water to stay hydrated.
For a complete list of recommended items to bring on fishing trips please see our “What to Bring” page.
We begin fishing the Wynoochee River in December for winter steelhead. The Steelhead in this river are larger on average than other streams in this particular basin.
There is an A and B run on the Wynoochee River that takes this fishery into March.
The “A” run is mostly made up of hatchery fish that enter the river in December and the run hits its peak in late January.
The “B” run, which are mostly wild steelhead which enter the river in January and peak in late February.
It is common for us to catch hatchery and wild fish the entire season on the Wynoochee River, but we see more hatchery fish at the beginning and more wild fish at the end. While the fight of a wild steelhead is amazing, we safely release all wild steelhead.
These are very scenic trips in which we cover 8-10 miles of water. As we float downstream, we target steelhead by free drifting and bobber-dogging bait.
For a complete list of recommended items to bring on fishing trips please see our “What to Bring” page.
River Facts
The Wynoochee River is a 60-mile long river located in the Olympic Peninsula of the State of Washington. As a tributary of the Chehalis River, the Wynoochee River rises in the Olympic Mountains within the Olympic National Park and flows generally south. Its drainage basin is 218 square miles.
In 1994, Tacoma Power added a hydroelectric power facility to the existing Wynoochee Dam. To protect the fishery, Tacoma Power shuts down the power plant for 77 days each spring to allow salmon and steelhead smolts to pass safely downstream through outlets in the dam.
Tacoma Power also operates a fish collection facility two miles downstream from Wynoochee Dam. A low barrier dam and a series of pools divert returning adult fish to a large holding pool.
Anadromous fish such as salmon and steelhead are separated from other species. Most of the anadromous fish are loaded into a tank truck and hauled 5 miles upstream, past Wynoochee Lake, where they are released into the river to spawn.
Some adult steelhead are transported to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Lake Aberdeen hatchery for brood stock. The juvenile steelhead are returned to the Wynoochee River to enhance recreational fishing opportunities when those fish return as adults.
The entire process of collecting and transporting fish is accomplished using flowing water and mechanical devices, with almost no handling by people. Limiting the amount of handling reduces stress and adverse effects on the fish.
Need a fishing license? Visit WDFW and purchase your license online.
