We thank our very appreciative guests & our amazing group of dedicated employees for making the Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club 2025 season, one of the best in 42 years operating our lodge. Opening at the end of June, our fishing season started with a bang. As expected, the early run of BIG Chinook/King salmon & coho/silvers that make Rivers Inlet a legendary world-class sportfishing destination showed up in record numbers. Towards the end of August there continued to be a nice balance of coho/silvers in the high teens & some big Tyee (+ 30 lbs.) Chinook on the scale.

The Sportsman’s Club is minutes from some of the most consistent salmon fishing grounds anywhere in the world & produce they did in 2025. It didn’t seem to matter which spot our guests concentrated their angler effort. From Jackson’s Hole, The Wall, Dome, Dowling Point & out to Cranstown Point, the story was the same, the fish were biting everywhere. As is typical of the early season in June & July, the Chinook/Kings tend to be a bit deeper & often lines would be at 100+ feet on the downrigger. As the season progressed, we saw the Chinook bite get shallower & shallower & the best results in August were in the 40-60 ft. depth range.

And the final take away was, despite having a freezer full of plump beautiful shiny (expensive) herring, for the most part guests chose artificial lures. Guests were most successful using metal (a spoon), or plastic (a small squid called a hoochie). As for the ongoing debate between what is the most effective lure – a spoon or a hoochie? This year it seems that the spoon won out, especially for targeting the big Chinook. With catchy names like “Party Girl” & “Bob Marley” who would think otherwise! For the coho/silvers it seems that our standard issue green flasher/white hoochie set-up was the most productive overall & of course at 69 ft.

After several years in a row of record fishing at the Sportsman’s Club, our bookings for Summer 2026 are well ahead of our usual pace. If you have not already booked your 2026 fishing adventure with us, please contact us today to secure your best choice of available dates.