Columbia River Spring Bite: Chinook, Steelhead, and Bass in the Portland Reach

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Columbia River fishing report around Portland. We’re sitting in a classic late‑spring pattern. A cool marine push overnight has temps starting in the low 50s, climbing into the upper 60s to low 70s this afternoon with a light west breeze. Skies are mostly cloudy early, breaking to sun by midday, with only a slight chance of a light shower sliding through. Barometer is steady to slowly falling, just enough change to keep fish moving rather than sulking. Sunrise is right around 5:20 a.m., with sunset about 9:00 p.m., so you’ve got a long fishable window. That early low‑light period and the last hour before dark are absolutely prime; mid‑day bite will taper unless you work deeper current seams and structure. Down at the I‑5 stretch and into the Multnomah Channel, folks have been picking up a modest mix of late spring Chinook and some summer steelhead, with a few keeper sturgeon coming from deeper slots. Recent dock talk has most boats scratching out 0–2 salmon, with the better rods getting into fish by staying mobile and working multiple travel lanes. Steelhead counts are still building, but a handful of bright fish are showing close to the Oregon shore. Smallmouth bass action has been very solid in the sloughs and along riprap from the Portland Harbor down toward St. Helens. Anglers working 5–15 feet are reporting double‑digit days when they hit the timing right, mostly 10–14 inch fish with the occasional chunky 18‑incher. Panfish are thick in the back bays, great if you’ve got kids aboard. Tidewise, that Portland reach gets a muted but important push. Expect a morning flood backing the current off and an afternoon ebb giving you that nice traveling‑lane speed. Plan salmon trolling to intersect the start and end of those swings: when the river just begins to slow or just starts to pick up, fish tend to slide into predictable lanes. As for what’s working: - For Chinook: run herring or anchovies behind 11‑inch flashers on 16–24 ounces of lead in 18–35 feet of water. Green‑and‑chrome and chartreuse patterns are still the staples. If you prefer hardware, spinners with chartreuse or copper blades and a bit of UV tape are getting bit. - For summer steelhead: 3.5 spinners in pink, copper, or chartreuse, trolled a bit faster along the Oregon side. Plugs like Mag Lips in metallic greens and pinks do well on the anchor in softer edges. - For sturgeon: sand shrimp, smelt, and squid strips on stout gear. Focus on 40–70 foot depressions at the edge of the main channel when the tide is not ripping. - For bass: this is a perfect morning for topwater and moving baits. Small walking baits, poppers, and buzzbaits along rocky banks at first light, then 3–4 inch soft‑plastic tubes, Ned rigs, and small swimbaits once the sun is up. Green pumpkin, brown, and baitfish colors are your go‑tos. A couple of hot spots to consider: - The stretch from Goble down to Kalama: strong chance at a mixed bag of late springers and early summer steelhead on the troll, plus good smallmouth along the shoreline rock. - The Government Island area and nearby sloughs: great for bass and panfish with the possibility of a steelhead sliding through the nearby main channel. Water clarity is decent with a typical spring stain; enough color that fish aren’t too line‑shy, but you still want some flash and vibration in your offering. With the long day length, staying patient and keying in on those tidal turns will make the difference between a slow day and a fish box that looks respectable at the ramp. That’s it from Artificial Lure. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next report. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn