I could think of no better way to ring in my birthday than a float down the Queets River with my buddies. October is one of my favorite months to get the old drift boat on the river. All of Olympic Peninsula’s rivers have good numbers of Coho and Chinook right now, but the Queets holds a special place in my heart. I’ve spent many days floating or banking it, and haven’t been out that way for a few years.
Sean, Jerome and I had a great evening camp out the night before. We showed up at the camp site late Friday, set up camp, cooked up some great food and rigged a few rods for the morning foray. We weren’t in a hurry the next morning, and splashed the boat at about 9am. The river was quiet, with a handful of bank fishermen around the mouth of the Salmon River, and a half dozen other boats ahead of us.
The river was dirtied by a half inch of rain that fell the day before, but the river was full of fish. We casually fished our way down and found that the salmon were spread out. Lack of crowds allowed us to fish wherever we wanted to! Great trip boys!
Razor Clam and Chanterelle Mushroom Chowder
