And I ain't talkin' no Orygun 50.... nor the mythical W'port 50 either.... I'm talkin' an honest to God scale-confirmed 50 pound or better chinook taken from PNW waters.

I know FishNg1 is definitely in the club. Anyone else?

I've had nine 40+ come to the boat over the past decade, but that elusive 50 pounder is an awfully tough barrier. Probably had a hold of one at B10 in 2008, but it came unbuttoned after about 15 minutes.... mind you, that's a REAL 15 minutes with a meat-stick doubled over and chasing hard with the kicker thru nearly the entire battle. Man I would have LOVED to touch that fish. Not sure if I would've been able to convince the angler to let that one go if it had been legal to keep.

For now mid-40's is the best I can lay claim to.

Weighed a fish at Fred's in Chilliwack back in college...51 pounds on the scale there. Granted, that's a white king from the Vedder, and they aren't particularly rare.

Fish on...

Todd

38 from Ucluelet for me. River fish? Uh... some big darkies prolly bigger. Don't think I've landed any bonified 50's though.

Hey Snake. You still got the picture of that dark chinook I took in the Harrison. It never hit a scale, but every estimate anyone made on it was 60 plus.

In salt my biggest killed was 42lbs. I have released bigger. Sebastes witnessed a 50 plus released in the Charlottes.


Would you believe this was me with a fish from Tokul Creek?





I didn't think so.

42 on platform scale at monte square

My best PNW fish was a low 40's fall chinook from the Klickitat in the late 80's. Have it on tape and pics, but nobody's gonna ever see it cause I'm only wearing a Speedo and the fish makes my ass look scrawny. Trust me.

Sub 20... not worthy of the title king.
20+.... average kings
30+.... NICE kings
40+.... Hawgs.... equivalent of 20+ steel
50+.... MEGA hawgs... equivalent of 25+ steel
60+.... Holy Grail.... equivalent of 30+ steel

In case anyone needs a reminder of what the Holy Grail of PNW chinook looks like.....



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3 50 + pounders all the same year ('87) all from the columbia. 54, 62, 69. Biggest past that was a 42 clackamas river springer (best salmon fight ever!!) and several mid-40's from the trask and wilson rivers in tillamook.

AK count?

fp

Sure wish I would have had my camera with me during my 15 minutes of fame. Still got some fair pictures later.

Thank Francis, hope we can get after some big ones this summer.

Steve

That is one of the prettiest fish I've ever seen. Not a scale missing, either.
Steve, you're 6 foot 4, right? J/K

...not me.... 36 lbs out of La Push in the early 1980s is the best I can do

50+ with Bob on the Sol Duc many moons ago in October...was lucky enough to witness my dad land a 70+ pound hen with Robbo out of Craig, AK few years back.

46 and 42 lbs from the Hump in the late 70's. Small fish was a beautiful buck in perfect shape right out of the salt.

No-

30#'s even out of PS a few years back.

A few bigger river fish but I don't count them

42 lbs on the Columbia in the mid 80's for me. So many in the 30's I can't remember them all.

Caught a few in the low 40's in the Tillamook system over the years..

another dead nat that wasn't able to pass on it's genes.....

Not me 36 out of Pointe Nooke..and here goes this thread...

Not myself either... Always figured the first 55+ WA freshwater king I landed that was clean was going on my wall!

We've had the opportunity to land many in the 40's from the Lewis, Cow and CR.......

I know one day it will happen for me. I fish the rivers that can produce the opportunity at 50+ and perhaps 60+, it's just a matter of landing one...

I've hooked a few in the past that I've played for 20-30 minutes on 15lb leader in the Lewis that just flat beat me... Were they 50's? Hard to tell, but I know they were some big head shakes and big fish!

Keith