Portland/Metro Fishing Report
With only coho available for most metro fisheries, anglers are anxiously awaiting the return of rain that’s in the forecast for the coming days.
Although the system isn’t forecasted to bring rivers up to where they “blow out,” after such a prolonged period of low water, any rain will improve an angler’s odds from the low, clear and relatively warm water scenario we’re currently experiencing.
The Willamette coho return is a fraction of what it was last year, but still sizable to justify effort in a peak season scenario, such as we’re in right now. A significant jump in passage in the last few days has boosted angler confidence, and with the ensuing precipitation, it could be a productive weekend at the mouths of upper Willamette tributaries.
The mainstem Columbia remains open for coho and anglers are catching a few hatchery fish, but Chinook still dominate the fishery with Bonneville anglers handling a lot of Chinook that are required for release.
Find all our fishing reports and forecasts for Members on this page.
Upper Willamette Valley Fishing Report by Terry Otto
Tributary coho bite tough, coming rains will help. Trout lakes and rivers still good, kokanee moving into spawn
Best bets for weekend fishing:
Willamette tributaries good for trout in upper reaches.
A few coho showing in tributary lower sections
Warm water species in lakes feeding well ahead of winter
Trout good in lakes, kokanee slowing
Trout stocking
Stocked the week of Sept. 22-26:
Foster Reservoir, Alton Baker Canal.
Scheduled to be stocked the week of Sept 29-Oct 3:
Alton Baker Canal, Hills Creek Reservoir
You can check out the trout stocking schedule here.
Cascade Mountain lakes trout
Fall is a great time to fish the high Cascade Mountain lakes, but the high-country snows may arrive as early as this weekend, so now is the time to go. Few people and fewer bugs make for great fishing solitude. The trout are feeding hard ahead of winter and are ready to bite. To see a map of high mountain lakes where fish are available, and the species stocked, click here.Zoom in on the map to see the lake name. Click on the lake to find the information. Learn more about fishing in the high lakes.
Sign up for the latest information on boater access
Marine Board’s Opportunities and Access Report incorporates information from federal and state agencies, local facility operators, and fellow boaters to provide up-to-date information
Willamette River
As of October 7, 12,138 coho had passed the falls, and forecast rains this week could get the fish moving. Mike Ferris of Fishermen Mike’s Guide Service reports that he has been fishing above the falls for coho, but that they are not biting well in the low, warm water. The fish are congregating below the mouths of the Willamette tributaries, as they await the fall rains.
You can check the Willamette River Gauge at Salem here.
You can check the Willamette Falls fish counts here.
Santiam River, North Fork below Detroit Lake
River levels are best for fishing at or below 3,000 cfs, and the river is currently running at around 1,680 cfs at the gage in Mehama. Fishing for spring chinook is now closed. The summer steelhead run is also complete for the most part, although fishing continues into October. About 5,000 summer steelhead have passed above Willamette Falls as of Sept 29.
Mike Ferris of Fishermen Mike’s Guide Service reports that there is little going on in the North Fork Santiam right now. A few resident trout are available, but only a few coho have entered the lower reaches of the Santiam. Some significant rain is needed to push the fish into the tributaries.
South Santiam River
Fishing is generally best when flows are below 3,000 cfs. Flows are currently at around 1,230 cfs at the gage in Waterloo. Anglers may see spawning or spawned-out salmon in the river. Please give these fish enough distance to complete their life cycle. Fishing for summer steelhead is open year-round and is still quite good through September and into October. Few coho have entered the river as of yet. Trout are feeding well ahead of winter and will prove the most active fishery until the coho arrive.
Detroit Reservoir
Water elevation is dropping from ever-decreasing inflows and evaporation. The only usable boat ramp is at Mongold State Park. The crowds are mostly gone this time of year, especially during the week, so anglers can find fish as well as solitude. Kokanee are beginning to color up in preparation for their spawning run, which usually takes place in October. For those anglers without a boat, there are recreation areas in both upper arms of the reservoir that allow for easy bank angling. As a reminder, anglers are allowed to keep up to five trout, with an additional five kokanee.
Hills Creek Reservoir
Was stocked the week of Sept. 29, with 3,000 rainbow trout. Don’t forget that you can keep hatchery Chinook in the reservoir. In addition to catchable-size trout, the reservoir is stocked with 60,000 adipose fin-clipped rainbow trout fingerlings annually and 100,000 adipose fin-clipped spring Chinook salmon fingerlings (when available) to provide a harvest fishery the following year. Trout and salmon must be adipose fin-clipped to be harvested. Large native trout are available for catch-and-release fishing. Packard Boat Ramp (USFS) generally remains accessible at all normal reservoir elevation. Members, read all the details and The Guide’s Forecast right here.
Clackamas and Sandy
Clackamas River Fishing Report – Despite fair numbers of coho in the Clackamas system, they aren’t biting all that well as Fisherman’s Marine’s Mike Roberson reports. Mike says, “No reports, very slow, very low and not a lot of guys upriver.”
The effort at the 24-Hour Fitness Hole has slowed, which is a strong indication of the number of coho available, let alone hatchery coho available. Due to the shut-down, numbers of fish back to Eagle Creek hasn’t been updated, but last year by November, over 9,000 had entered the facility. I’d be surprised if the hatchery gets half of that this year, based on returns we’re seeing in the region so far this season.
With lower Eagle Creek closed, there remains less productive water to fish.
Sandy River Fishing Report – Sandy River fishers are casting over schools of coho, mostly non-responsive to the offerings of many. This isn’t an uncommon occurrance during low-water periods this time of year, fishers and fish are awaiting more significant rain to get them going.
Cedar Creek hatchery manager Ryan Queen had this to report, “We’ve only collected 70 adults so far. The river and creek are still super low. A few fish have been caught throughout the last month but we need rain to bring more in.”
There’s certainly been some effort along the Sandy, but like the fish, anglers need something more to motivate them to bite/catch.
Find the full report and forecast for Members on this page here for the Clackamas and Sandy Rivers.
North & Central Coast Fishing Report
Mid-October means fall Chinook for coastal anglers and although Chinook numbers continue to be depressed, persistent anglers are doing their best to catch the big ones of fall.
Reports are coming in from various watersheds and with little surprise, the Siletz and Alsea again top the list of watersheds that continue to produce the best results.
Siletz River trollers had another good week with a mix of Chinook and coho coming in from the fleet. It’s peak Chinook season now however, and the Siletz is not disappointing. Trollers working spinners behind their 360’s continue to take the lion’s share of the biters in the extensive tidewater reach of the Siletz.
The Alsea has also had a good run of action this week as well. With trolling flashers and spinners stealing the show from the traditional old ways of just spinners or herring, or bobber fishing with bait have gone by the way side.
The other targeted fall Chinook fishery is of course Tillamook Bay, where anglers fishing the lower reaches of the bay continue to fight eelgrass and seaweed most of the time, more so on the strong tide exchanges.
Pro guide Chris Vertopoulos (503-349-1377) had a good day today (10/9) landing 3 Chinook in a hard-fought battle with seaweed. His people remained diligent, landing 3 nice Chinook and a few wild coho that went back in the water. Chris continues to have good success trolling Yakima Bait’s but plug plastics, most often filled with his tuna mix. Chris worked the Ghost Hole for much of the day, but also ventured into the upper bay where he had another opportunity that didn’t end up materializing.
Nehalem Bay anglers are usually scoring good catches of coho this time of year, but a recent report from Nehalem on the last opener (10/9) yielded disappointing catches. My contact reported, “Doug and I fished the full incoming tide in the Nehalem jaws today and not only did we not catch anything no one else did including guides. No coho jumping either.”
That’s a bit odd for this time of year.
The Nestucca system should be in full swing and there are Chinook being caught from the Boat Ramp Hole to upper tidewater, with the freshest fish being caught mostly from the Woods Bridge to Riverside Lodge.
The Salmon River has slowed for fresh Chinook as this is an early season fishery. There are certainly fair numbers of fish staging near the hatchery but they are not in the biting mood with only a few exceptions in the early morning hours. Fresh fish for this system is definitely on the wane.Ocean anglers were a bit stifled by weather last week, but when the window opened, rockfish catches were fair to good.
Razor clam diggers did good on the first minus tide series since the re-opener, those that got to dig close to the surf got the biggest clams.
Find the complete report and forecast for Members in the Northwest Oregon section.
Much more on the site for Chinook Members:
- This week, Buzz Ramsey wrote – Twitching for Coho Salmon. Want to hook more coho salmon this season? Discover the expert-approved twitching techniques, gear tips, and jig colors that make all the difference. Chinook Members can see his post HERE.
- Last week, Bill Monroe wrote The annual coho rodeo is on! Coho chaos erupts on the Columbia as anglers reel in limits, doubles—even quads—during this year’s epic “rodeo” from Buoy 10 to Hungry Harbor and beyond HERE.
You can find all the articles from these two professionals on this page.
- The Salmon Trout Steelheader article of the week: “Guide Spotlight, Chris Turvey.” This timely article details Chris’s success in the upper Columbia in pursuit of Klickitat coho. See it HERE.
All the STS articles are located here.
Not a Chinook Member? Become a Member or Upgrade here.
Members head to the Member’s Landing Page to find everything you have access to.
Central-Eastern Oregon Fishing Report by Terry Otto
Klickitat mouth coho still improving, Deschutes steelhead and salmon good. October is last month for many trout lakes.
Best bets for weekend fishing
Good reports from the lower Deschutes from anglers targeting salmon and steelhead
Following recent stockings anglers report good fishing on the Fall River.
October is the final month for anglers to enjoy Crane Prairie, the Metolius Arm of Lake Billy Chinook, the Metolius River above Allingham Bridge, Odell, and Wickiup before seasonal closures go into effect.
Anglers report excellent crappie fishing at Ochoco and Prineville reservoirs.
Anglers report good fall trout fishing in Lava and Little Lava lakes.
Devils Lake was recently stocked with rainbow trout providing a great opportunity for paddleboard, kayak, or float tube fishing.
The Metolius and Shevlin youth and disabled angling ponds were recently stocked with rainbow trout, this will be the final stocking of the year.
Trout stocking – Stocked the week of Sept. 22-26:
Prineville Fishing Pond.
Scheduled to be stocked the week of Sept. 29-Oct. 2:
Pine Hollows Reservoir, Taylor Lake, Metolius Pond, Fall River, Bikini Pond.
You can check the ODFW trout stocking schedule here.
Cooler weather and rain are on tap for this weekend and upcoming week. That should get the salmon moving, and improve the bite. It can’t happen soon enough for many anglers, since this has been a very dry fall overall. Cooler temps will push trout and warm water fish to put on the feedbag ahead of winter. It’s a great time to be on the water.
Columbia River
The good folks at the Gorge Outfitters Supply in Rufus, report that most anglers are still targeting the late coho run at the mouth of the Klickitat River, and a few are anglers are targeting the mainstem Columbia. The lower Deschutes River is still seeing some action for steelhead and Chinook. The steelheading has been improving, but some days more productive than others. Spinners and spoons are working for gear anglers, while fly guys are swinging flies with spey rods.
Lower Deschutes River
The good people at of the Deschutes Angler Fly Shop in Maupin report that steelhead angling near Maupin has been improving, and spey anglers swinging hare-wing patterns in size 5 or 7 fished with a floating line are doing well. Trout fishing has been good, with caddis still being the main go-to. There is good surface action on these patterns in the evenings, and nymphing is also a good option mid-day.
Chinook are showing up to Sherar’s Falls, but they tend to be dark up there. There are still a few bright nooks coming to hand in the reach above the river mouth for anglers throwing spoons and spinners.
Middle Deschutes River
Flows on the middle Deschutes will begin to increase as irrigation season winds down in October and angling will become more challenging. Anglers report fair fishing for brown trout upstream of the Old Mill area in Bend, around Tumalo State Park, and around Steelhead Falls. Nymphing continues to be the most effective
The upper Deschutes River has closed for the year
Metolius River
Green Drakes are still hatching on the Metolius River, as are the “lesser green drakes” aka Flav’s. Also, keep some PMD’s #16, BWO’s in #18 mostly but tuck a #20 and #22 in the boxes for the times another species of Baetis may be hatching or overlapping the larger 18’s.
Little Lava Lake
Keep this one on your radar this week and might be the last place to find and fish a callibaetis dry fly in Central Oregon until 2026. Beetles and Ants are a good choice in the afternoon. Blobs, Balanced Leeches and a variety of nymphs like a Red PT Jig, CB Cate, and mostly fish them under an indicator, although a stripped leech, blob or mayfly nymph is a good choice too.
Eastern Oregon
Best bets for weekend fishing
Trout and whitefish fishing should be good throughout the fall on the Wallowa River.
Kokanee are spawning at Wallowa Lake state park and make for some great wildlife viewing this time of year.
Before snow flies, lots of brook trout are available in the high lakes.
Fishing for chinook, coho, and steelhead is picking up on the lower Umatilla River
Nice sized bass and perch can be found on Willow Creek Reservoir.
Fishing for bass and catfish may be good along the Hells Canyon Reservoirs and downstream of Hells Canyon Dam until water temperatures cool.
Steelhead are starting to trickle in downstream of Hells Canyon Dam
Members can always see so much more in the complete report, as well as the forecast for central Oregon, by starting right here.
SW Oregon Fishing Report – Contributor Jeff Rome reports
As the Rogue Bay Chinook season starts to wind down, but certainly not over, the Chetco estuary has seen some nice catches this week. Lots of boaters trolling from the 101 bridge to the mouth have been delighted with Chinook catches up to 30 pounds recently. While not hot, it’s a good indication of things to come when upcoming rain will have the river in shape to hopefully cancel the bobber rule upstream by November 4th.
Rogue Bay Chinook catches remain slow, but coho catches have increased. Some guides are targeting them specifically, further upriver. A few big Chinook into the 30+ pound range were caught this week, so don’t count it done just yet! Some rain during the weekend will surely help bring in some late Chinook and more silvers.
The mid-section of the Rogue is closed for Fall Chinook above Hog Creek. Some anglers are still fishing for them, but they’re getting a bit “long in the tooth” now. A few coho have been caught, and summer steelhead on the mid and upper sections of the Rogue River has improved, but still not great. A few half-pounders are being taken and will hopefully improve with upcoming rain. There are fish all throughout the river. Plugs are the best choice and doubles your chance for either.
The Coos and Coquille systems have improved for both Chinook and coho. Though not hot, the pressure is on and fair catches have been the result lately.
The main Umpqua is now closed for Chinook. However, there are lots of bass to catch on the main and both forks of the Ump.
Lost Creek, Diamond, Howard Prairie, and Selmac lakes are good bets for good Fall Lake fishing while they still have good water levels. Bass fishing at Selmac has been good with some nice ones caught lately.
Jeff’s expanded reports, multiple lake updates, and forecasts, including his past reports, can be found here for Members! There is SO much more.