Fall kings are pushing hard out of the estuary and upriver right now, driven by cool water releases from Lewiston Dam that started Aug. 28 (450 cfs stepping up to as much as 1,200 cfs through Sept. 21) plus cooler air and recent rain. The spit fishery at the mouth closed to angling Sept. 3 after harvest hit the adult fall Chinook quota, so the estuary hot bite of the last few weeks is off the table. The rest of the lower river... Weitchpec bridge to the mouth is still open on a 1,624-adult quota of which 1,192 remained as of Aug. 28 (will likely be well down after Labor Day traffic). Expect fresh fish staging in holes throughout the lower river... work them at first light, and figure on higher, colder, and pushier water than the flows you saw last week.

Lake Tahoe is in its late summer pattern, with Mackinaw pushed deep and holding around 100–120 feet while kokanee school between 60–80 feet. Best action is first light through about 10 AM before boat traffic and sun push fish down. Troll flashers with a wedding ring or hoochie tipped with white corn for kokanee, and expect bonus macks holding underneath the salmon schools. Anglers targeting lake trout specifically are doing better bouncing live bait on the bottom, with most fish 3–6 pounds and a decent number in the 9–15 pound range. Kokanee will color up and stage toward Taylor Creek over the next few weeks, so fish them now... everything within 300 feet of Tahoe's tributaries closes October 1.