Beginner shad fishing questions

[bass]

Hey all,

I have never tried to fish for shad and I wanted to give it a whirl from my kayak this year. I hear the shad are coming in right now so I was hoping to solicit some advice. Here are a bunch of specific questions:

I hear that folks catch a lot of shad up near the garbage hole, the falls and around the meldrum area. I think the shad swim up the Clack to spawn. Is it possible to find them downstream in less crowded waters? If it is possible to catch them at spots other than at bottlenecks what do you look for? Do they swim in huge schools high above the bottom and you just hunt around with your depthfinder? Do they bunch up below islands and big rocks? Do they hug the shore? Do they like steep banks or more gradual banks? Do they like to swim over hard or soft bottoms or do they have no preference?

Also, timing. I can't fish this weekend and I may not be able to get out next weekend either. How long does the run usually last? Are the Columbia falls counts indicative of what is happening in the Willie or does one lead the other?

Thanks for any input/advice.

 

[Toyracer38]

Got my first taste of Shad fishing last year, plunking in the CR. Setup was, weight attached to mainline with a slider, no dropper. 4'-5' leader with a small cork float attached in the middle of it. I used small Dick Nite spoons, not sure of size but small, maybe 1 inch to 1 1/4. Hunters Orange with white back or red and brass worked good. May be able to catch them higher in the water column, but we were killing them fishing close to the bottom. We were tossing out into 25'ish feet of water, but while steelhead fishing close to the back, we would get hit by them. Best tip I can give is Shad have really soft mouths so when you get hit don't set the hook, just start reeling in. Not sure if you have to go barbless when Shad fishing now, but I know I lost a lot with barbs last year.

 

[OnTheFly]

A great place to start is in the Willamette just up stream from the mouth of the Clackamas nearer to the east side. Don't let crowded conditions scare you off. Just pick a spot that has enough current to be able to walk your line down stream. Watch for debris floating down especially in your kayak. The fish will come up in schools and sometimes there will be a biting frenzy. I've caught many-a-shad with the rig I've shown in the link. Good luck out there!

 

[bass]

Thanks guys. That is helpful information. I hope to get out at some point on Memorial day weekend - you know to avoid the crowds. I will definitely be ready with that rig OnTheFly. What size hook do you use?

Toyracer38 you brought up the point of the soft mouths. I have read that before. Is there a preferred hook style? I was trying to decide if something tied on a Circle hook would be a good idea or a bad idea. I am guessing that light wire is better than heavy wire.

 

[Toyracer38]

I was just using the hooks that came with the Dick Nite lures. I would imagine a circle hook would help, but you will see once you land a few, that the hole the hook made, you could now stick a pencil through. Just soft mouths combined with the fact these little fish put up a heck of a fight. These would be a blast to catch on a light trout rod.

 

[OnTheFly]

Bass, Fred Meyer probably still sell these things but all they are, are small green rubber jigs that cover a small weighted hook. My guess would be a #16. Anyhoot, they come in a package of about five. And don't forget about the herring or sardine oil.

 

[eugene1]

Can't help you much up there, but we've caught them on tiny rubber grubs with weighted jig hooks on the Umpqua at Yellow Creek. The bite would kind of materialize suddenly and then go away. I think schools of them are moving around the river and anyplace can be productive? Fish the bottom of the river and jig a foot or so above the bottom. Down here in California they also get them on fly rods but I don't know what they're rigging up with.

Best luck,

 

[Big3d]

Any suggestions for bank fishing? I assume a lot of this applies