The Kilchis River

Dated 7/26/10

Good for searun cutts in the early and late parts of the day using dark flies such as beetle, caddis and BH Stones or Prince nymphs.

Fish are low in the river but will migrate high as more rain comes in
later.



Dated 3/20/10

 The majority of fish being caught here are of native origin and must be released butalso note that there are fewer anglers on this river due to the higher than normal native fish population.

Success rate has been above average using a fly rod.





Dated 12/27/09

Now is the time to fly fish the Kilchis for winter steelies.

The water levels are perfect and the fish are present .

Best fished from a drift boat. Extremely small amounts of land available for fishing due to private access problems.

Please consult game regulations for details.


Dated 10/17/09
The current rains should push good numbers of  Chinook and Chum salmon into this system and provide excellent fly rodding.

Fishing should be excellent from th e Kilchis park to the Hwy 101 take out.

Lots of public land!!!!!!! Bring a pontoon boat or drift boat depending on water level.

The best level to float this river at is when the guage on the Wilson river says 4.0 ft or better. The has currnetly fallen below this level but should be fishable for a few days with the rains we are receiving.

Now is the time to visit the Kilchis river for Chum salmon and chinook. These fish are prime and ready to bite a fly. Plan on using sinking tip fly lines and shooting heads. The chinook salmon will inhabit the deeper areas such as the pools and deep runs. Plan on using T series shooting head by Jim Teeny to get in front of these fish with  bright colored flies like Bright Roe, Big Bunny Leeches, BH Wooly Buggers, String Leeches, Lead Eyed Egg Sucking Leeches, Hoh Bo Spey Flies  a variety of  egg patterns and Chum Candy in Fl. Pink and Fl Chartruese.


Dated 8/9/09

Good for sea run Cutthroat trout. Plan on fishing the pocket water and shaded and riffled areas.


4/11/09
FREE SPEY FISHING CONCLAVE
SPONSORED BY
BLACK HERON FLY FISHING
1060 14TH AVE LONGVIEW, WASHINGTON 98632
360-575-3970 OFFICE
AUGUST 1ST , 2009
ON THE COWLITZ RIVER FROM 10:00AM TILL 5:00PM
DETAILS WILL FOLLOW ON LOCATION AS WEB SITE IS UPDATED.


Dated 4/11/09

The Kilchis can produce some very nice nativer winter run steelies in the spring during the spring waters. This is short burst of fish but worth fishing if you can hook one.

Catching has declined due to lower pressure from anglers.

River levels and color  are good.


 Dated 3/25/09

The water level should be good for the Kilchis as the Wilson has a level of 5.2 and rising. The river is expected to hold its own and be fishable.

There are a few fish in this river but spread out.

Dated 2/9/09

The Kilchis river has seen the main part of the winter steelies pass their peak but there are still lots of fish being caught in this sytem.

The water is extremmely low and fishing is more difficult than after the high water.

Remember to use light leaders and smaller flies to make the fish strike or pickup the fly.

Black Heron Fly Fishing is supplier of quality pontoon boats from Bucks Bags and Water Skeeter. Please contact us for further details at:


Black Heron Fly Fishing
1060 14th Ave
Longview, Washington 989632
260-575-3970 office



1/24/08

The river is in prime condition and has fish being caught. The river is best fished from a pontoon boat or drift boat. The heads of pools and deeper runs tend to be very productive along with areas under low hanging vegetation along the banks.

Plan on using sinking tip fly lines and shooting heads to get down in front of the fish.

Remember to use smaller flies during the cooler temps and lighter leaders.

Sinking  fly lines are also very good for winter steelhead fishing on this river.

Black Heron Fly Fishing is supplier of quality pontoon boats from Bucks Bags and Water Skeeter. Please contact us for further details at:


Black Heron Fly Fishing
1060 14th Ave
Longview, Washington 989632
260-575-3970 office


 Dated 12/13/08

The Kilchis river should be running good as the Wilson river flows are perfect at 4.5 feet currently. The currnet forecast is for snow in the coastal range and this should moderate the river levels making the fishing easier. Cooler temps will make the steelies a little lethargic but most likely drive a few anglers off the streams.

Black Heron Fly Fishing is supplier of quality pontoon boats from Bucks Bags and Water Skeeter. Please contact us for further details at:

Black Heron Fly Fishing
1060 14th Ave
Longview, Washington 989632
260-575-3970 office


Dated 12/4/08

The winter steelies are present in The Kilchis river and available for catching. The best flies are the Glo Bugs, Polar Shrimp, Popsicles, Comets, BH Buggers, Green Lanterns, Pink Panthers, Green Butt Skunks, Freight Trains and BH Lifters to mention just a few. Plan on fishing sinking tip fly lines and  Jim Teeny T series fly lines.

This river is best fished from a boat due to access problems. Pontoon boats work very well. also.

There have been trees reported down inn this river recently according to the odfw. Plan on being cautious while floating this river. MoOst obstructions were reported cleared though.

The Wilson river is currently at 4.6 feet and thus the Kilchis should be flowing at a near perfect level also for fly fishing. The recent rains have pushed quite a few fish into system.

Water temps are perfect for winter steelies.

Black Heron Fly Fishing is supplier of quality pontoon boats from Bucks Bags and Water Skeeter. Please contact us for further details at:

Black Heron Fly Fishing
1060 14th Ave
Longview, Washington 989632
260-575-3970 office


11/20/08
The Chum have arrived on the last high water but they are closed to fishing now.

The chinook are present and are avaiable to being caught by willing fly anglers. Look for these fish in the deeper sections of the river such as heads of pools and deep runs.

The winter steelies are also present and have been caught in this smal stream.

Egg patterns and Egg sucking leeches are excellent choices.

Water levels are excellent at just over 5 feet on the Wilson river and falling.
11/06/08
Now is the time to visit the Kilchis river for Chum salmon and chinook. These fish are prime and ready to bite a fly. Plan on using sinking tip fly lines and shooting heads. The chinook salmon will inhabit the deeper areas such as the pools and deep runs. Plan on using T series shooting head by Jim Teeny to get in front of these fish with  bright colored flies like Bright Roe, Big Bunny Leeches, BH Wooly Buggers, String Leeches, Lead Eyed Egg Sucking Leeches, Hoh Bo Spey Flies  a variety of  egg patterns and Chum Candy in Fl. Pink and Fl Chartruese.

The Chum salmon will quite often be located in the quicker water and under over hangs along the bank of river. These fish can quite often be sight fished in the right conditions. Just about any bright colored fly in Fl Orange, Fl Pink or Fl Chartruese will do an excellent job. Plan on using sinking tip fly lines on these fish when sight fishing inn the shallows. If they move into the deeper areas such as pools use the Teeny T series fly lines in  sizes T200, 300 and 400.

This is probably one of Oregons top Fly Fishing experiences due to the number of  chum salmon that can be caught in one day of fly fishing. An Average day is 8-10 chum caught by an angler and a great day may be as many as 25 -30.

Plan on using a drift boat for this adventure as most of the land is private access and difficult to get on to.
10/12/08

The next rains should push fish into the lower reaches of the river. Watch the Wilson river levels to reach 5.0 feet and then make a trip to this river. It should be loaded with chinook and chum salmon after this occurs.

The Kilchis River should be getting ready to kick of its fall migration of fall chinook and  chum salmon. Once the Trask and Wilson rivers begins to produce and the water level raises this stream will fill with fish in good numbers. Probably one of the best Chum Salmon fly rivers on the west coast due to its inaccessablility from farm lands which surround it.

You will find a large number of the chinook in the deeper holes along rip rap and rock walls. The chum can easily be sight fished in many cases as they will be found in the tail outs and shallow areas behind obstructions. This is not always true but very common. Plan on using sinking tip fly lines and shooting heads for all these fish as it is very important to get down in their face to make them strike.

This stream is best accessed using a drift boat. The best flies for the chum are ones which have a large amount of Chartruese and Fl Red and Pink. Classic patterns such as Chum Candy, Fl Red or Chartruese Comets, Pink Panthers and Green Lanterns all work well.

 Consult synopsis for all regulations and closures.


Please checkout our web page to see the new river level and weather channel links which give you immediate access to real time data along with forcasts. This river fishes best when the Wilson River guage is reading below 6.0 feet and falling.

Keep checking the web page www.blackheronflyfishing.com for current weather and river level reports using their links found on their home page. If the links are not present please press your refresh button to bring up the new links.

Thanks for visiting

Black Heron Fly Fishing
1060 14th Ave
Longview, Washington 98632
360-575-3970 phone
www.blackheronflyfishing.com