Tom Burgess of Bigulp Guide Service (www.Bigulp.com) was born and raised in Oregon and has been a professional salmon, steelhead, and sturgeon fishing guide for the past four years. Northwest Lunker wanted to get a guide's perspective on the chinook runs of the Columbia and Tom -- one of the nicest and most helpful guys you'll ever meet -- agreed to take on our questions.
NWLunker: How many years have you been a fishing guide on the Columbia and
Willamette rivers? In that time, can you describe the difference between how the fishing
was when you started compared to how it is today?
Tom: I have been guiding full-time for the past four years. I was born in Astoria, Oregon, and have lived at Bonneville Dam and in Gladstone. I have fished the Columbia and Willamette Rivers for over 40 years.
When I was young, we fished out of Astoria at Buoy 10 with great success and
experienced small crowds. During the early 1960's the fishing at Bonneville Dam below
Tanner Creek and Bradford Island was very good in the spring and again in June for
"June Hawgs."
NWLunker: Do you feel the salmon runs the past few years have been atypical? If so, what are your theories and thoughts about why?
Tom: During the 1980's and 90's, fishing continued to decline, but the fishing turned around and has shown a steady increase since 2001. In fact, the spring runs have doubled in the past two years from what they were in the 90's. Ocean conditions, the trucking of
smolts around dams, favorable water flows, the Pikeminnow reward program and tribal
management have all had a major impact on the increased numbers.
NWLunker: What actions would you like to see on the part of fish and game agencies as well as those responsible for the dams and waterways themselves to improve salmon
runs? What are they doing now that you agree with?
Tom: The closures to both sport anglers and commercial gill netters by the Oregon and Washington fish and game departments have added to the frustration of everyone. Most agree that the fish are late this year but only time will tell. In my personal opinion, I
believe the biggest "X" factor for low numbers of fish to date is the sea lion population.
Not only are large numbers of fish being killed or injured by the constant harassment in
the Columbia and Willamette Rivers - especially below Bonneville Dam and Oregon
City Falls - this also causes the fish to change their behavior and patterns.
We can only hope the fish will return or the numbers will sustain our future fishery. We
need to continue to release large amounts of water over the dams to improve survivability
and protect fish on spawning beds in the upper reaches of the rivers.
If you are interested in booking a guided sturgeon, salmon, or steelhead fishing trip with one of the nicest guides on the Columbia and Willamette rivers, give Tom Burgess of Bigulp Guide Service a call at (503) 537-8900 or visit his web site at www.Bigulp.com.
