ASTORIA, Ore. — Under clear skies and fine weather, the 19th annual Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association (NSIA) Buoy 10 Salmon Challenge was held on Aug. 17 on the Columbia River near Astoria. The tides were good for the event, and while runs are not great this year, fishing for Chinook and coho salmon during the derby was good, albeit a bit spotty.
Reflecting what was possibly the best day of fishing during the Buoy 10 fishery so far this year, anglers competing in the event caught more and bigger fish than in last year’s tournament. However, while some teams caught their boat-wide limit, other teams struggled.
There were a number of good bites during the day, including one right above the Astoria/Megler Bridge at daybreak, and a mid afternoon bite out at Buoy 11, upriver from Buoy 10.
I was participating as part of the team captained by Buzz Ramsey and Big Rods Guide Service owner Bryan Bell. The team was rounded out by outdoor writer Jason Brooks, and Ed Wilder.
Although we reach our boat’s limit on Chinook, the fish were not large enough to crack the top tournament spots.
And, unlike last year, no fish on our team was stolen by pesky pinnipeds.
The five largest fish caught this year all topped the heaviest fish caught last year. The 25 boat teams weighed in more than 100 salmon, although a few teams that knew they would not place well did not bother bringing their fish to the weigh-in.
The biggest fish, and the $1,000 check that went with it, was taken by Dave Anderson of Team Raymarine for his Chinook that weighed 26.45 pounds. Listed here are the other big fish winners and their winning weights.
• Second Place Big Fish (25.10 pounds) David Hobby
• Third Place Big Fish (22.9) Mike Perusse
• Fourth Place Big Fish (22.45) Logan Ledbetter
• Fifth Place Big Fish (22.25) Brian May
The $1,100 Mystery Fish prize was available to any angler who weighed in a fish. Dave Jidas was the lucky winner.
The winning teams were judged by the average weight per fish. The first-place award went to Team Raymarine, and was captained by Mike Surdyk. Their fish weighed an average of 15.18 pounds. Second place went to Team North America Hunting Competition, captained by Jason Berg (average weight: 14.98). Third place was awarded to the team of Captain Dan Green (average weight: 14.79).
Many of the winners donated their cash prizes back to the NSIA.
“The Buoy 10 Salmon Challenge has not only been the most exciting salmon fishing tournament on the lower Columbia for almost 20 years, but it is also our most important fundraiser,” said Liz Hamilton, the Executive Director of the NSIA.
“All funds will go toward protecting and restoring healthy river systems, defending hatcheries and the millions of smolts they release each year as well as working to increase angler access to fisheries across the Northwest.”
The stated mission of the NSIA is preserving, restoring, and enhancing Northwest sport fisheries, and the businesses that depend on them.
Fishing overall at Buoy 10 has picked up as the season has progressed, although the retention of Chinook will end after Friday. Anglers will still be able to fish for coho salmon after that, and the bag limit will increase to two coho, or one coho and one steelhead per day.
