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Oregon Fishing Report &
Winter Steelhead Preview
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| Winter flows! Would you believe it? Time
to get on the water. There's a month left of prime winter
steelheading and every NW angler owes themselves a little mental
health break and some time on the river. Opportunities abound,
and actually…not just for steelheaders. Stay tuned, things
are changing. |
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| OREGON |
The Clackamas
has been fishing very well of late. The Clackamas fared well
through the recent rise in levels and has leveled off albeit
at a higher flow than we've see thus far this winter.
Even while the river was going to clear, we had some solid days
out here and the same sentiment has been echoed by others. Quite
a few wild fish seem to be on the move in addition to the expected
hatchery activity. It's a good time to get out on this
river. Once April hits, Springer fever will kick in out here
and we'll see a marked increase in the angler activity
here. Get here while you can.
Water temperatures here (and most everywhere) continue to hover
below the mean for this time of year, making for colder wading
as well as colder fish…and cold fish don't move
like warm(er) fish. The point I'm trying to make in a
terribly roundabout way is…you need to make your fly move
very, very slllooowww. This goes for both swing and drift style
anglers. It's really important to give fish in sub 40
degree water as much time as possible to make a move on your
fly. Any improvements in temperature we see going forward should
help the bite. For those feeling adventurous, go deep and heavy
into some of the big pools on the Clack…chances aren't
good, but you never know if you'll pull up a Springer.
The first Clack Springer was hooked last week.
A lot of folks have been asking about fly selection here lately.
The Clack fishes well with lead-eyed leeches like MOAL's,
Hickman's Party Boy, Loop Leeches, and Sig Intruders.
On the drift side…some kind of glo-bug or bead should
do the trick. An egg-sucking leech can pull double duty as well,
but you'll want them large. The river is finally looking
to break through the 40 degree barrier. |
| The show is usually
always over here by this time each winter, but I keep hearing
tell of fish hooked on Eagle Creek. It's worth a shot
if you enjoy small water, otherwise I think there are more promising
places to hook a finer specimen at this time. |
The Sandy is settling
back in after its abrupt rise over the weekend. Higher flows
in the Sandy are typically more favorable to fly anglers as
they allow fish to spread out. Often low flows, as we've
had most of the winter, favor "long bombers" over
others. We're seriously in some of the best weeks of the
year for this river. I can't imagine it will be long before
I hear tell of a chrome bright summer included in the catch…I'm
thinking 3 weeks. Get out and in the immortal words of Dan Herrig,
"swing a ding ding!"
Fly selection here is wide-reaching. Always have some black
and variant patterns, but the Sandy can come up big with bright
colored patterns as well. Spread out as well. There are lots
of good places to fish on this river, even if you're not
in a boat. Keep hunting and don't get discouraged if someone
is in the run you were hoping to fish. The Sandy has surpassed
the elusive 40 degree barrier. |
Folks seem to
be looking for a bit of a trout fix these days and the Deschutes
is ready to oblige you. There's quite a bit going on over
this way and the river has been fishing consistently well. Anglers
heading here should be optimistic. Carry small BWO patterns,
Skwalla stones, and yes….March Browns with you. In addition
to the top-water action, nymph anglers will have a field day
with staple flies, such as small black stone's, pheasant
tails, hare's ears, and prince nymphs. A San Juan worm
is also a productive fly, though some cringe to hear me say
it. Look for areas of the river where trout do not have to strain
too hard to keep in line for food. Slow undercurrents, breaks
in riffles, close-in to banks and structure and back eddies
will all be productive.
Keep an eye out for spawning fish, both trout and steelhead.
We're getting into that time. If you see spawning fish,
please leave them alone. It's a good rule of thumb to
stay away from any small gravelly areas of the river from now
til June. Increased pressure on this river has certainly diminished
average fish size as well as fish per mile as more feet access
the river from the banks and hence natural holding areas for
trout. As anglers, we need to do everything we can to encourage
ethical river practices on this special body of water. |
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It's the
best fishing of the season on the coast now. If you're
looking for the opportunity to chase after a native winter steelhead,
this is where you need to be. A reminder for you…all tributary
waters on the coast will close on the 31st of March to protect
spawning native steelhead. This includes the North Fork Nehalem,
both North and South Forks of the Trask, South and North Fork
Wilson, the Nestucca above Blaine, etc.
Kilchis & Miami Rivers
The Kilchis is fishing. Your options are either to drift from
the park down or fish from the park up on the road. There is
some spectacular water here, but the fishing can also be very
difficult. This is a small river so be sure to give others room
or wait your turn.
Wilson River
The Wilson is fishing well. There are fish throughout the river
and both drift and swing anglers should have good days here.
Keep an eye on the temperature gauges here. The warmer this
river gets the better it will fish. Fishing should remain steady
here for several days before there is another slight rise in
levels…after which we'll see a nice dropping and
clearing effort. There's much discussion of late concerning
sales of lumber tracts in the Tillamook State Forest. Concerned
anglers should know, the Wilson will suffer greatly if this
happens. Email me if you'd like more information on the
developing situation in Tillamook.
Trask River
Angling in the Trask has been steady. Small water steelheaders
will want to make an effort to get out to the Forks before the
end of the month. Keep moving when you're fishing the
Forks, as fish tend to be in one spot but not in another, moving
downriver you're apt to hit a payload if you're
diligent. Angling on the mainstem can be good for both dead
drifters as well as swingers. Keep your eyes peeled for a rise
in temperatures here as well.
Nestucca River
With the current overlap in broodstock and wild fish returns,
the Nestucca has been a bit of a zoo lately. Angling has been
solid here however and fish are being caught all over the system.
There are many places to drift here and with the rise in flows,
things are a little less "bony".
Siletz River
As usual, the Siletz is producing. I've mentioned the
"town" drift in the report before, but boat anglers
should have good fishing from Moonshine all the way downriver.
The river continues to receive new fish.
Alsea River
Hatchery fish arrive much later here now and best fishing for
them will be in the upper stretches of the river at this point.
Angling for all steelhead will be productive throughout however. |
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Kalama
and East Fork Lewis Rivers
The East Fork has been fishing well but is now closed until
June. The Kalama is rocking however and fishing has been good
in all parts of the river. You're best off floating
this river to find yourself some space, but it's coming
time for good fishing above the falls in the "holy water"
section.
Cowlitz River
The Cowlitz is on. The last week has been extremely productive
and many winters are being caught. In addition, there are
Spring Chinook in the water as well. This is a great time
of year for this mega-anadramous river. Summer steelhead are
not far from entering this system.
Hood River
Same advice as last time on the Hood. There are plentiful
fish in the river and anglers have been having very good days
here. Best luck will be for "drift" anglers below
the dam, but swingers will have success as well, lower in
the river. The lines get blurred out here…try swinging
an egg. Our friend Scott swears by it.
Assorted Gorge Drainages
Most places out here get a winter run. Some investigation
along the lower stretches of these creeks will result in potential
encounters with fish. They also clear quickly.
Other March 15 closures on the WA side of the Columbia of
note: Elochoman River & Washougal River |
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Upwards of 1600
winter fish have gone over the Willamette Fish Passage.
McKenzie River – Good (Forecast: Good)
The McKenzie has turned on. March Brown's are out and
in abundance and if you're thinking about making a drift
down here, your window of opportunity is open. Don't forget
brown soft-hackles! There will be some additional dun and BWO
activity as well. *The Willamette is under-fished and also a
great place to experience this hatch.
The North and South Santiam are showing catches of winter steelhead
although not in prolific numbers. |
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WASHINGTON
After a long winter of limited
angling opportunities, March and April are a welcome sight –
the days are getting longer, more comfortable, and the fishing
– well, the fishing just suddenly begins to pick up, and
the options begin to expand. While Puget Sound winter-run streams
become confined to limited stretches being open (upper Skagit,
lower Sauk) as of March 15 (the Snoqualmie, Sky and Green are
already closed Feb. 28), most of the Peninsula rivers will be
open until April 15 or even 30th, with the last half of March
and early April representing Prime Time for native winter steelhead.
As if that's not enough, the Yakima will only improve
significantly, short of any early run-off episodes; and, our
world-class Stillwater fisheries begin to pick up in earnest.
Of course, too, there's sea-run cutthroat to be chased,
with plenty of growing (15"-18") resident silvers
to also release along the way, right here off the beaches of
Puget Sound. Options abound, indeed, and it only gets better
from this point. Here's the lowdown:
Native Winter Run Steelhead
If ever there is a time to go, the next three weeks are it,
big time. The question is not whether it'll be good (it
has been already), but rather are the rivers fishable at this
time when the heart of the run is materializing (and they are
– we'll post a report on our regular reports page
if we so much as see the threat of any blow-outs taking shape).
Just remember, every bump in flows will welcome more fresh fish
into the rivers, and every rise has a fall. Grab some medium
to large sized patterns (moal leech to Skagit minnow size) in
black, purple, orange and pink schemes (even olive!) and go
while it's going. Glo Bugs also serve those who seek the
pockety, seamy water. Somewhere along the line those flies get
grabbed and a chrome-bright torpedo goes berserk – land
it or lose it, enjoy the trembling and shortness of breath.
Then go for a repeat.
Skagit River: Open upstream to the Cascade River mouth until
March 15; Rockport to Cascade only March 16 to April 30 (check
wdfw.wa.gov for emergency closure updates if applicable).
Sauk River: Open from mouth to Darrington bridge until April
30
Sol Duc: Open from mouth upstream to Hwy 101 bridge just downstream
of Snider Creek until April 30
Bogachiel: From mouth to Park Boundary open until April 30
Quinault: Open mouth to Park Boundary until April 15
Hoh: Open up to Park Boundary until April 15
Yakima River
It's looking like this Spring will provide more days of
fishable conditions than the ordinary year – there's
just not that much snowpack. A significant increase in temperatures
and/or high-elevation rain will certainly put the river up,
and even out – it just won't take a whole lot of
these episodes to mark the end of the bulk of it. For now, though,
the river and the weather patterns are awfully stable, and the
Spring hatches have begun, starting with.
Skwala's are actually going on right now. After a 'return
to frigid' that stalled the event about a week ago, the
nymphs have predictably resumed out-migrations and the adults
are becoming recognized by the fish. The nymphs will continue
to crawl out over the next couple weeks, during which time the
adults will increase in importance, terminating about the 10th
(ish) of April. Nymphs are lighter olive, adults light-to-medium
olive on their bellies (what the trout sees), and they run a
consistent #10 2xl.
Blue-Winged Olives are due to begin offering daily emergences
of varying duration and intensity starting very soon. As the
water temps approach the mid-40's, look for cloudy, cooler
days (especially) to provide the more meaningful emergences.
These guys run #16-#18 in the Spring and are grayish-to-medium
olive as an adult, and light-to-medium olive as a nymph.
Look for Western March Browns to enter the fray just as soon
as the early BWO's begin to show. These'll run #12-#14,
with a tan-to-light brown belly. Nymphs are robust clingers
(think well picked-out hare's ears in the appropriate
size, or Lambroughton's bead-head caddis nymph, hare's
ear, size 12). Because March Browns emerge as they ascend to
the surface, March Brown spiders (hare's hear soft hackles)
also come into play here.
Next stop (mid-April): discussions on caddis. Until then, enjoy
some olive stones and spring mayflies, starting now.
Westside Lakes
Bugger and leech (and streamers @ Pass) action has slowed a
bit through the middle of the day, because.. early chironomid
emergences have begun! Fish are still patrolling closer to 15'
(thermocline) and deeper, where the leeches and bloodworms are
found, yet with every passing couple of days, more and more
smaller (#16-#22) chironomids are 'getting to pupa'
and wiggling on up through the column. Still a little cold 'up
top' for fish to follow 'em up to the film, but
that won't last too much longer. Soon, noses will materialize
during calmer periods when any 'wave' of chironomids
are escaping the film, particularly during low-light (cloudy
days, latter hours of the day). Look for emergences to increase
as more species join the fray, and the specimens become larger
(in addition to all the tiny ones), over the coming weeks. Until
then, find 12' – 15' of gradually sloping-to-even
bottom water and fish those pupa within a foot or two of said
bottom. Close to a transition into deeper water? Better yet
until the fish make the shoals their homes until Summer beats
'em back down. Retrieves, if any, need be hardly retrieves
at all – aka, 'Slow Like a Snail'. And, of
course, anywhere you note numerous chironomids coming off, park
there and find what depth the fish would prefer you to show
your closely-matching pattern to them. They'll reward
you with some runs and jumps if you make it exactly that easy
for them.
Pass Lake and Lone Lake have been fishing decent already, and
now is the time they'll start really getting going, interrupted
only by a couple days of turnover somewhere up ahead. For some
'off the beaten path' options, consider looking
up ol' Cady Lake out by Tahuya (open year-round). Also
worth 'discovering' are Gibbs (out yonder past the
Canal, year-round) and 'some other quality lake, used
to have a resort on it, open year-round now'. Then there's
Squalicum... and some lake called Teal (managed 1-trout limit,
open year-round). So there's more than a few!
Basin Lakes
As of this very moment, we are already sittin on some glorious
reports from on-out desert way. The chironomid savvy have already
had some 20-fish sessions (not even all-day... it's still
chilly after all), notably on Beda and Lenice. And that's
just what we've heard about.
Look for chironomid emergences to expand and intensify moving
forward, with leeches, scuds, immature dragons & damsels
filling in the quieter spells. All it's going to do is
improve in the coming weeks. Offerings to the wind gods can
only help! Nunnally/Merry/Lenice, Beda, Lenore and the other
early openers (like good ol' year-round Quail) are ready
and waiting, and the fish sound healthy, and big.
Sounds like heaven – better investigate further and with
impunity. Spring is fixin' on springin'!
Puget Sound Beaches
Catch and release for sea-run cuts often means releasing just
as many or more pesky 15"-18" resident silvers,
with the occasional, rare 'party crashing' blackmouth
showing up. Clousers, Flashy Ladies and other candlefish imposters
will still do justice, as will spiders; however March/April
ordinarily also means the peak of euphasid availability, which
is not lost on beach cruising fish. Still well ahead of the
summer mob-scenes, for some quiet and elbow room, this is the
place to be. And the catching's been good! |
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