Columbia River Fishing Report for November 17, 2025

Good morning, folks! Artificial Lure here with your Columbia River and Portland area fishing report for Monday, November 17th, 2025. We’re waking up to classic mid-November conditions on the river—a crisp 40-degree morning and patchy clouds overhead, with rain likely settling in late and a high near 50. Winds out of the east should be mild early, picking up a bit into the afternoon. Sunrise was at 7:20 AM, with sunset coming early at 4:40 PM. So if you want that late bite, plan around that short daylight window. We’re running with a first quarter moon, with moonrise at 4:54 AM and moonset around 3:10 PM. Tide action at the Skipanon River near Astoria looks dynamic: low at 4:45 this morning (2.2 feet), a big high at 10:57 AM (8.8 feet), and then dropping down to nearly zero at 5:42 PM. These strong tide swings should get fish moving and concentrating in channels and at current breaks, especially around those incoming and outgoing turns. Portland proper is showing a low tide at 7:55 AM, high at 12:34 PM, with another low at 7:51 PM according to Fishing Reminder. With the outgoing tide syncing up with the late morning and early afternoon bite, be sure to target those hour or two windows right before and after tide change for best results. Fish activity is solid for this time of year. According to last night’s local Columbia River fishing update, “coho are still trickling in,” and even though prime silver numbers have tailed off, late-run fish remain, mainly upriver from Portland toward Multnomah Channel. Anglers have been reporting hookups on both coho and a surprising number of steelhead—those cool, overcast mornings seem to bring the best luck. Sturgeon action around Portland and Vancouver has picked up too, with several keepers (and plenty of oversize) reported between Kelly Point and the mouth of the Willamette. Keep in mind retention is tight, but the catch-and-release bite is hot. Few walleye are showing up in the sloughs below St. Johns, and the smallmouth bite is slow but not done, especially where the sun hits rocky banks midday. Recent catches: reports from Tomahawk Bay and Hayden Island last evening tallied four coho, most around 6-8 pounds, plus two decent steelhead and several legal shakers sturgeon. The fish seem to be moving deeper, so focus on 15-25 feet of water early, shifting shallower as the light grows. Best lures right now: bright spinners (size 3-5 Blue Fox in chartreuse or orange), Brad’s Super Baits stuffed with tuna, or cut-plug herring on a slow troll. For sturgeon, fresh smelt or sand shrimp on the bottom remains king. Walleye specialists have been running worm harnesses or small chartreuse crankbaits at dawn. If you’re heading out, two hot spots worth your time: - Tomahawk Bay Moorage and the nearby Columbia Way West Marina—good for both boaters and shore access, and the river current swings right by both spots. - Kelly Point Park—where Willamette meets Columbia. It’s a classic for late fall sturgeon and the odd sal This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.