Willamette Valley/Metro – With Portland area rivers on the high side all week, spring Chinook fishing as well as steelheading has come to a screeching halt. Anglers have been side-lined with the exception of the mainstem Columbia, where fishers had a weekend opportunity to once again try for the region’s most prized fish. Success rates…
Willamette Valley/Metro – Fish and wildlife managers met on Wednesday, extending the Columbia River spring Chinook season two extra days, beginning on Saturday and Sunday, April 13th and 14th. On the last day of the closure, catch rates were poor as the river was on a sharp rise. The river is forecast to start dropping,…
Willamette Valley/Metro –Unprecedented opportunity for spring Chinook has yielded high effort and fair results in the recent week. Catches are tracking ahead of the 5-year average and in the lower (Multnomah Channel) and middle (Portland Harbor) reaches of the Willamette, catches almost tripled from the previous week. Realistically however, catches are still only averaging a…
Willamette Valley/Metro – With consistent flows on the Willamette River, spring Chinook anglers have been enjoying good water conditions as we approach peak season for the fishery. Traditionally, the spring Chinook fishery peaked in the third week of April, but most recently, catches have been sporadic throughout the months of April, May and even June as…
Willamette Valley/Metro – Although two spring Chinook have now crossed Bonneville Dam, the bulk of the run is still months away. Peak passage at Bonneville used to happen around the 3rd week of April, but in recent years, has pushed back to mid-May or later, giving biologists an added challenge in managing the fishery. The Columbia…
Willamette Valley/Metro – Continued cold, dry weather is still hampering steelhead success on the Clackamas and Sandy Rivers. It’s a bit past peak on the Sandy, but hatchery fish should still be available, and Clackamas River anglers are still struggling for consistent success, but we’re just now entering peak season. Sandy River anglers are catching…
Willamette Valley/Metro – Following the long dry spell, Portland area rivers, even the mighty Willamette, are putting out salmon and steelhead to savvy anglers. The Willamette started fishing again early this week, with the “Sultan of Sellwood” taking a 2-fish limit at Sellwood Bridge on Monday. John Shmilenko (“The Sultan”) is the temperature gauge for…
Willamette Valley/Metro – Metro rivers from the Sandy and Clackamas to the Willamette have been dropping and clearing all week. That puts smaller systems into low and clear water conditions, and the larger Willamette prime for spring Chinook action once again. The Sandy has been producing fair to good catches this week, although anglers are…
Willamette Valley/Metro – With metro rivers just coming off of their high from last week’s precipitation, activity is coming about for steelhead and spring Chinook may be on the table this weekend as well. Steelheaders working the Clackamas finally tallied some respectable numbers on Saturday, with one guide boat reporting six fish to the boat for…
Free Fishing Weekend is happening over the President’s Day holiday. There will be numerous trout stockings this week so check the ODF&W web site for your best chances. It’ll take some kind of angler to get inspired if the weather forecast holds true. Willamette Valley/Metro – After a prolonged period of dry, cold weather, rain…
Willamette Valley/Metro – The big news for the region is the official first spring Chinook of the season, it was taken by Dave Frey of Lake Oswego, a nice 16-pound hatchery fish in the Milwaukie area on February 4th. The fish took a prawn for bait. February springers are common on the Willamette, but not as…
From ODFW CLACKAMAS, Ore. – Fishermen can keep all the hatchery trout they can catch at Faraday Lake under a new temporary fishing rule that takes effect beginning Feb. 1 and continues through March 31 but don’t delay because this opportunity won’t be around for long. Faraday Lake is a 25-acre reservoir created by an…
Willamette Valley/Metro – Although steelhead season is rapidly headed toward peak season, catches have remained fair-at-best in the Sandy and Clackamas Rivers. Fluctuating flows due to the freezing level haven’t helped much either, but anglers have been waiting for February to come, and with it, more consistent catches of winter steelhead. Both the Sandy and Clackamas…
Willamette Valley/Metro – Following the last significant rain freshet, the Sandy and Clackamas Rivers came into fishable shape earlier this week. Anglers still struggled in the higher flows, but better numbers of fish were starting to show on each of these river systems. Broodstock collection is still lagging behind last year’s sweep, but there is still…
Willamette Valley/Metro – It’s been a chilly several days for metro steelheaders. The Sandy River in particular falls prey to bitter east winds from the Gorge, shutting down what bite was there, and making for uncomfortable conditions for those still in pursuit. There’s been a bit of a lull for action here, but a weather…
