Portland, Oregon Metro Fishing Report – Columbia River anglers have been hard at it for the additional mainstem opportunity that was granted for us on Friday of last week. Although catches haven’t been great, it has been consistent for anglers throughout the lower river.
For bank anglers, the Bonneville reach has been the best, particularly at Hamilton Island on the Washington side. Boat anglers are doing fair around the Troutdale area and out of Westport, Oregon with a little less consistency. River conditions are more conducive to anchor fishing with plugs versus trolling with herring or spinners.
Willamette anglers are doing fair, particularly in the lower Multnomah Channel. The water temperatures have exceeded 60 degrees, which triggers faster migration for springers over Willamette Falls, and a downturn in anglers success.
The Oregon City reach has tapered for spring Chinook but shad are now in full bloom, best pursued when the sun is shining bright for those using small spoons and grubs.
Clackamas River Fishing Report – With still so few spring Chinook being seen on the Clackamas, anglers fishing this watershed are more likely to come across a summer steelhead over a spring Chinook at this time. Given that summer steelhead numbers are down in the Willamette Basin, that fishery isn’t all that inspiring either.
ODF&W creel data is starting to come in, and the results are underwhelming.
ODF&W’s Eric Ollerenshaw returned my email inquiring about the Clackamas River creel sample. He reported that they did sample last week, with ZERO fish tallied. Eric says, “Yes, we started the Clackamas last week. We did not check any fish. I won’t do an estimate until we start to see more anglers. We sampled four days last week. 11 bank anglers with no fish, most effort at the Dog Creek area. We checked 4 boats at Carver ramp with no fish.”Sandy River fishing, avid angler Jeff Stoeger reports – Avid angler Jeff Stoeger reports, “Good afternoon all. Now is the time to fish your favorite spots, for springers and summer steelhead are showing up in fair numbers. I have a couple of buddies who have had success in landing both summer steelhead and spring Chinook recently.
Most of the fish have been caught on eggs, tipped sand shrimp and sand shrimp alone. The lower river is kicking out springers in the deeper holes with eggs and the upper river is kicking out good numbers of summers. I know one guy who hooked 10 steelhead before he landed his first.”
North & Central Coast Fishing Report – Spring Chinook catches are improving on Tillamook Bay, where lower bay trollers have been seeing a few fish along the jaws and in the west channel. Herring is the key to success in this reach of the estuary, but the timing of the tides directly influences the size of your success.
The rivers (Trask and Nestucca for spring Chinook, the Wilson, Nestucca and Siletz for summer steelhead) have remained low and clear, keeping fresh fish in the salt vs. in the river systems, compromising angler’s opportunity for these spring running species. There is no change in sight for north and central coast river systems.
It’s still mostly a saltwater show for coastal anglers. Besides fair halibut fishing, bottomfish are all the rage for most saltwater cowboys. Sea bass catches slowed and lingcod fishing slowed even more.
A few halibut came out of Garibaldi but the best port most recently has been Depoe Bay, with Newport a close 2nd in performance.
There’s been a few saltwater Chinook caught out of Newport and Depoe Bay, but catches averaged just .27 fish/angler, counting released fish. You can view all catches by port HERE, but it won’t excite you.
Crabbing is challenging in the ocean and the estuaries.
Razor clam tides are starting to wane and won’t improve much until the 23rd of May.
Central Oregon Fishing Report by Terry Otto
Spring systems continue to be good for trout, lower and middle Deschutes River is also good. Some high elevation lakes are clearing of ice and opening.
Best bets this weekend:
Paulina Lake will be open by this weekend. The action should be good close to shore.
Anglers report excellent spring kokanee fishing at Lake Billy Chinook, Odell Lake, and Wickiup Reservoir.
The Crooked River is finally fishable, and initial reports are good.
The big bugs, golden stoneflies and salmonflies, are hatching on the lower Deschutes River. The middle Deschutes should see these hatches starting this week.
To be stocked the week of May 5-May 9:
Century and Sprague Gravel Pits, Walton Lake, Clear Lake, Lost Lake, and Laurence Lake,
You can check the trout stocking schedule here: 2025 stocking schedule.
Hosmer Lake and Three Creek Lake are still iced over. Lava Lake should open for access this week. Little Lava Lake is probably still two weeks away from opening.
Columbia River
Walleye fishing has been very good in the Columbia River, according to Wendy Boyer of the Gorge Outfitters Supply in Rufus. She reported that the bite never slowed as the walleye entered the spawn. “They are already in the spawn, but the bite never stopped this year,” she said. “Sometimes it shuts off completely and sometimes it doesn’t slow at all. I have seen that happen in the past.” She said that the catching has been the best she has seen in 5 years. Bottom walkers are now the best bet, now that the water has warmed up. Boyer said the plugs work better when the water is colder.
The ODFW reported that in the John Day Pool, weekly checking had 267 walleye kept, and 141 released for 53 anglers. That works out to almost 8 walleye per rod. In The Dalles Pool 23, anglers kept 69 walleye and released 47.
Lower Deschutes River
The lower Deschutes has been fishing well, and some of the best hatches of the year are coming off right now. Amy Hazel of the Deschutes Angler Fly Shop in Maupin said the bugs are busy. “We have Golden Stone flies and salmonflies everywhere,” she said. She continued that the weather has cooled off some, and although that could interrupt the hatches, that’s not always a bad thing. “It will push the big bugs into the bushes a little bit,” she said. “But if you want to look at the bright side of it, it is going to extend the life of the hatches. The longer they stay in the bushes, that the folks who have a trip booked for 2 weeks from now will still be in the game.”
Middle Deschutes
Reports say fishing is good, depending on which section you visit. Salmonflies are out and migrating up the river. Caddis, Pale Evening Duns, PMD’s, and Blue Wing Olives are all important.
There is some great fishing on the dries, especially yellow-bodied mayflies.
Metolius River
The Metolius River continues to be excellent for mountain whitefish, redband trout, and bull trout. Good hatches continue, including PMD’s, Green Drakes, BWO’s, and a few mayflies are now starting to show. PMD’s too. For the PMD’s you really want to fish the cycle, so a nymph, an emerger, a cripple, a dun and a rusty spinner will cover all of that. Same goes for the BWO’s, just downsize and change the colors.
Eastern Oregon
Best bets for this weekend:
Angling for Brown Trout is best in the Wood River. Flows in the Owyhee River have dropped, and the river is back to ideal fishing conditions. Warmwater fishing starts to pick up in May. Watch for good bass fishing in Bully Creek Reservoir, Warm Springs Reservoir, Antelope Reservoir, and the Snake River.
Crappie fishing will be best in Bully Creek Reservoir this spring. There are crappie in Warm Springs Reservoir, Pole Creek Reservoir, and Owyhee Reservoir but most of the crappie in those will be smaller this year.
Owyhee River
Flows from the dam have dropped and are about 260 cfs below the dam, but that could change as the reservoir is very near full capacity. Anglers can check the current here. No recent reports on fishing, but angling pressure has been low since last fall, and fish will likely be easier to catch than usual. The water is slightly off color, but should be ideal for fishing. Casting spinners and crankbaits can be effective
SW Oregon Fishing Report – Contributor Jeff Rome reports:
The halibut are biting out of Winchester Bay along with good catches of ling cod and bottom fish…. even a shark! Ocean goers should have another weekend to get out for some spectacular “bounty of the Sea”. As for Springers, well, it’s starting to wrap up the season with the upper Rogue River seeing the best catches while the lower Rogue is slowing down. Winter steelhead in the Rogue and Umpqua systems are pretty much over with a few still being caught on the upper Rogue, mostly by fly fishers at the Holy Water. Shad and stripers on the lower Ump and Coquille are getting more attention now. More and more lakes are getting stocked and restocked with trout, making for some great Springtime fishing.
Opportunity for ocean fishing looks decent. There might be some wind chop depending on where you go out of, but if you can get the halibut holes, they’ve been biting and have been a perfect size 20-40 lbs. Close in Ling cod and rock fish limits can be had as well. Crabbing is on the tail end of the season, but one can still find a few hard shells.
Spring Chinook catches on the Lower Rogue River have been slow, with the upper Rogue the best lately. Winter steelhead fly anglers are catching some at the Holy Water. The mid-section is in great condition, but any kind of action has been slow.
The lakes have been stocked with trout at least once already and is my best bet for some nice, easy fishing. The warmer weather has gotten the bass and panfish to bite on a regular basis now. Best bets are Lost Creek, Applegate, Fish, Agate, Selmac, and Galesville lakes. There should be plenty of fish and bank access if you don’t have a boat.
Striper anglers down at the lower main Ump are catching some nice ones, and reports of shad throughout the river are coming in as well. The South Fork is closed now.
Be safe, be nice, and enjoy!
Read this week’s SW Washington fishing report.