Hi Folks- I'm just back from running a "for fun" trip through the Wild Stretch of the Rogue River with some friends from Gold Beach. We ran about 34 miles of river through spectacular scenery, starting at Graves Creek and taking out at Foster Bar. We took it real slow but still had very little time for fishing what with setting up and breaking down camp and so on. It had been many years since I ran this section and I was in total awe as I had forgotten the incredible beauty of the Canyon. To my delight, my driftboat performed admirably through the more technical water including Mule Creek Canyon and Blossom Bar. This truly is one of the most scenic river trips the West has to offer and there are a number of lodges along the way to accommodate folks not inclined to go the camping route. We saw quite a few Fall Chinook moving through various sections and watched a bear grab one and take it up the bank for dinner. We caught some "Half-Pounders" (immature steelhead in the 13-18" range) on small spinners and even managed to get one large chinook for the barbeque. On the way back home, I stopped by several estuaries and found that salmon are being taken on at Winchester Bay, Charelston, and on the lower Coquille. Nobody had double digit stories, but fish were being cleaned and plug-cut herring seemed to be the standard tool. It's raining today, so it's time to head up on the McKenzie and swing a Bunny Leach for a late Summer-run Steelhead!