259.7                           Coquille Bay

  Coquille Bayis one of Oregon’s smaller bays ranking eleventh among the fourteen major bays, but the bar is subject to breaking waves even in calm seas.  A seasonal light and fog signal are located on the south jetty.  The skipper should be experienced with the local bar conditions before attempting to cross the bar.  The boater should be prepared to deal with fog and the waves generated by the prevailing afternoon winds.  The Coast Guard maintains a seasonal lifeboat station in the boat basin from Memorial Day through Labor Day.  The following underlined areas describe some of the dangerous tidal conditions affecting safe boating in Coquille Bay as listed on the Web Page for Oregon State Marine Board at www.boatoregon.com. Click on Publications/Library and Forms. Scroll down to Boating in Oregon's Coastal Waters and click on your bay of interest to familiarize yourself with the conditions at the bar.

South jetty. It is always dangerous to get too close to the end of a jetty. An unexpected breaker could carry a small boat into the end of the jetty with great force. The inside of the south jetty is a dangerous area, and boaters should remain clear. The prevailing northwest wind could send a powerless boat into the jetty.

North jetty. Stay clear of the end of this jetty, because the sea breaks almost continuously in this area. A shallow area with partially submerged rocks extends from the abandoned lighthouse to the end of the jetty. The large swells that occur in this area could put a boat onto the rocks.

South side of Coquille River entrance. The area to the south of the entrance can be very dangerous. There are several rocks just below the surface that cannot be seen except during very heavy seas. There is a prevailing northwest wind during the summer months, and the sea currents run to the south. These two conditions could combine to send a powerless boat in this area onto the rocks.

Range Markers Front and rear range markers are identical: a rectangular red daymark with a white stripe on a skeleton tower. By steering a course that keeps the two range markers in line, you will remain within the channel. See the latest CG-162 Light List.

Rough Bar Advisory Sign is positioned on shore 300 yards west of the Port of Bandon pboat ramp on the south side of the channel.  Call the Coos Bay Coast Guard station (541) 888-3266 for the bar report for the Coquille Bar before considering crossing the bar.

  Fishing in the ocean in along Coquille Bank is excellent for rockfish and salmon on the pinnacles located approximately a mile west of the entrance to Coquille Bay and at Coquille Rock located approximately 1½ of a mile west to the entrance of Coquille Bay .  Fishing for rockfish is excellent at Five Foot Rock and Wash Rock, both of which are located south of Coquille Bay.  Fishing for

Rockfish and Chinook salmon along Whiskey Run Reef located southwest of Cape Arago is excellent.

Chinook salmon begin returning to Coquille Bay between the last week of August and the first week of September peaking as early as the last of September but usually in early October and running through October.  The catch rate for Chinook averages 1824 fish per year with a high percentage of 4 year old fish followed by 5 and 3 year old fish. 

  The best fishing for newly arriving fall Chinook salmon occurs in the lower bay during the incoming tide of the major tidal exchange of spring tides or neap tides especially when the incoming tide coincides with sunrise or sunset.  The next most productive fishing period occurs at sunrise or sunset during the incoming tide of the minor tidal exchange in the daily tidal cycle.  Daybreak is that magical time of day when Chinook salmon bite the best.  Be sure to have the bait in the water one half hour before sunrise.  Fishing is most productive from ½ hour before sunrise to midmorning and from late afternoon until ½ hour after sunset.  The most productive fishing for early returning fall Chinook salmon occurs trolling a plug cut herring with the incoming tide from the jetty jaws to the entrance to Bandon Marsh. 

  The tidal reach of the Coquille River is the longest of any coastal river in Oregon extending upriver 41.01 miles from the jetty jaws.  As the number of returning Chinook increase, fish upriver from the power lines down river from Rocky Point to the hole at Randolph Slough to the Cannery Hole above Randolph Island trolling a plug cut herring with the incoming tide through high tide.  Launch at Riverton or Coquille and fish with the tide trolling a plug cut herring followed by trolling bait wrapped Flatfish lures, spinners or spinner bait combinations from Bear Creek which is located upstream from the Cannery Hole above Randolph Island to Sturdivant Park in the City of Coquille.   The most effective Flatfish lure has a silver body and chartreuse head or Hot Tail finish.  The most effective spinner is colored with 50/50 chartreuse and brass blade or a rainbow colored blade with a green tip.  Drift with the outgoing tidal current back bouncing a walnut sized gob of salmon eggs topped with a sand shrimp or drift with the tidal current back bouncing a walnut sized gob of salmon eggs topped with a sand shrimp or drift with the tidal current using a free sliding bobber to fish a walnut sized gob of salmon eggs topped with sand shrimp suspended just off of the bottom.  Anchor above the up current side of the deeper holes during the outgoing tide and fish on the bottom with bait wrapped Flatfish lures; bait sweetened Spin–N–Glos, wobblers or a walnut sized gob of salmon eggs topped with a sand shrimp.  Accent the salmon eggs and sand shrimp with a small length of pink, red, chartreuse or orange yarn.  

Coho salmon return to the Coquille River from September through October.  The best fishing occurs early in the run trolling plug cut herring, hoochies or streamer flies behind a wire spreader or a diver in the upper half of the water column with the incoming tide from the jetty jaws to the entrance to Bandon Marsh.  Fish from the entrance of Bandon Marsh to the Highway 101 Bridge trolling plug cut herring, pink or chartreuse spinners.  Fishing is allowed in tidewater for the retention of fin clipped coho salmon upstream to Lampa Creek at river mile 11.5.       

Striped bass enter Coquille Bay from middle of March through April during the years when the striped bass population is at its highest.  Most anglers concentrate fishing in Hatchet and Iowa Sloughs in the Riverton area and Randolph Island, Myrtle Point, and next to Johnson Mill Pond.

Black rockfish and blue rockfish fishing is inconsistent at best.     

Striped seaperch, pileperch, redtail surfperch and walleye surfperch enter the bay in late spring.  Schools of perch move onto the tidal flats feeding heavily on intertidal animals upstream from the jetty channel at the entrance to the bay into Bandon Marsh.  The fishing ranges from fair to excellent through fall depending on the tides and the weather conditions. 

  Fish for perch along the jetty channel and from the public fishing pier or among the pilings associated with the Port of Bandon.  Fish in the tidal flats adjacent to the tidal flats associated with Bandon Marsh as the perch migrate into Bandon Marsh on the tide.

Kelp greenling, whitespotted greenling and rock greenling enter the bay with the tide.  The best fishing occurs during the spring and the fall along the south jetty and among the structure associated with the public docks at the Port of Bandon.  The fishing is poor the rest of the year.

Lingcod spawn along the jetty from late January throughout March but the fishing is rated as inconsistent as best.

Cabezon are present all year among the rocks along the jetty but the fishing is rated as inconsistent at best. 

White sturgeon enter Coquille Bay in small numbers from December to June.  The sturgeon fishery is a small one that is of interest to local anglers only with the catch ranking 11^th among Oregon's larger bays.  Fish for sturgeon upstream from the Highway 101 Bridge in the deeper holes of tidewater.  The best fishing is at Rocky Point.  The hole at Rocky Point is accessible to bank fishermen, but the most successful fishing is from a boat.

Bank fishing for bass, lingcod, cabezon and greenling is limited to the north jetty, the south jetty and to the pier structure associated with the Port of Bandon.  Fish for perch from the jetties and from along the west shore of Bandon Marsh.  Fish for sturgeon from Rocky Point, which is located west of Highway 101 via the north bank road.   

The Port of Bandon Public Fishing Pier is located in old town next to the boat launch.  The crabbing is good during periods of low rainfall.  The fishing for perch is good from late spring through fall.

Coquille Bay Jetties – Access to the north jetty is through Bullards State Park.  Access to the Curry County ark at the south jetty is through Old Town Bandon.  The jetty channel is deeper along the south jetty.  Fishing for bass at night for bass along the jetty channel should be productive.  Fishing for perch along the jetty channel is excellent.

Coquille Bay boat launches are located on the south shore at the Port of Bandon and on the north shore at Bullards State Park.  The Port of Bandon charges a $2.00 launch fee while launching at Bullards State Park is free.  The Rocky Point boat launch is located 2 miles upstream on North Bank Lane.  The boat launch at Riverton is located on the Coquille to Bandon Hwy.  Launch in Coquille at Sturdivant Park or just across the river off of Fishtrap RD., or upriver at Arago.