Portland, Oregon – Metro Fishing Report – On the upper Willamette, there’s not much to write about this week. Although river conditions have improved, there remains not much to fish for.
Winter steelhead is still a Meldrum Bar option, but with the declining flows, fish are more often out of reach of beach plunkers. Mike Roberson from Fishermen’s Marine and Outdoor reported that they haven’t had a steelhead weighed in for a while at the Oregon City store. Sturgeon interest remains low, but that could change when the new year comes about.
There’s been a slight uptick in steelhead counts at Willamette Falls, but nothing to get all that excited about.
There will start to be some spring Chinook interest come February, but that seems a long ways away at this point.
Clackamas River Fishing Report – Angler effort on the Clackamas is still low, although anglers did get out with improving conditions this week. Catches were predictably light with more wild fish in the mix than hatchery ones.
Counts at the North Fork Facility reflect this as well. Passage of wild steelhead is becoming more consistent day to day, but still, less than two dozen have crossed with only 3 of them being of hatchery origin.
As we mentioned in the Willamette report, the Oregon City Fishermen’s Marine hasn’t weighed in a fish over the last several days. This shouldn’t be too surprising to many, given how early in the run it is here.
Sandy River Fishing Report – Avid angler Jeff Stoeger reports – “Good afternoon all. This week was a fair week for fishing the Sandy. The river dropped into an ideal color and height. The only downfall was lack of fish. I floated the lower river and tried every technique you could fish. The biggest problem was that the wind was constant all day long, blowing the boat all over the river. The river is currently running at 9.37 ft and with the rain forecast, it predicted to climb up 10.38 ft over the next couple of days. When you get the chance to fish, take advantage of the situation for we’re not sure what the weather is going to do.”
Check out the lake stocking schedule. Go HERE to see if your favorite is on the list this week.Find the full report and forecast for Members on this page here for the Clackamas and Sandy Rivers.
North Coast Fishing Report – Early season steelhead fishing continues to disappoint hopeful anglers, but it’s been that way for the last few years so it may come as no surprise.
The north coast systems that produce early season steelhead are now low and clear, making fish even more skittish under this weather pattern. Gnat and Big Creek, the Klaskanine, Necanicum and North Fork Rivers are all options this time of year and are producing an occasional fish, but most hopeful steelheaders are already hoping for another weather system to stimulate the bite. That may come early next week.
It’s a bit early for the larger rivers to produce broodstock returns and wild fish as well. No doubt however, the next rain system should generate a few opportunities.
Foul weather has kept many lower Columbia River crabbers off the water until recently. The strong freshwater influx degraded catches, but action has picked back up again. It was only a matter of time before crab came back into the estuary or went on the feed again after back-to-back “Atmospheric Rivers” slammed the Oregon coastline the week before.
The commercial fleet is still weeks away from hitting the river and adjacent ocean for harvest, giving sport crabbers some prolonged opportunity to sweep up quality keepers likely into the New Year.
There was some saltwater effort for bottomfish and offshore crab with this most recent weather window. That window is now closed however, and the ocean will be a bad place to visit for at least a week.
Other north coast estuaries are faring well for crabbing, Tillamook and Netarts are two of the best north coast options.
TGF wants you to STAY SAFE OUT THERE! Have you seen our FREE webinar on ocean and bar safety? Check it out HERE!
See the full North Coast Report and Forecast for Members right here. Catch the Columbia River reports from this page.
North Coast Fishing Report – Early season steelhead fishing continues to disappoint hopeful anglers, but it’s been that way for the last few years so it may come as no surprise.
The north coast systems that produce early season steelhead are now low and clear, making fish even more skittish under this weather pattern. Gnat and Big Creek, the Klaskanine, Necanicum and North Fork Rivers are all options this time of year and are producing an occasional fish, but most hopeful steelheaders are already hoping for another weather system to stimulate the bite. That may come early next week.
It’s a bit early for the larger rivers to produce broodstock returns and wild fish as well. No doubt however, the next rain system should generate a few opportunities.
Foul weather has kept many lower Columbia River crabbers off the water until recently. The strong freshwater influx degraded catches, but action has picked back up again. It was only a matter of time before crab came back into the estuary or went on the feed again after back-to-back “Atmospheric Rivers” slammed the Oregon coastline the week before.
The commercial fleet is still weeks away from hitting the river and adjacent ocean for harvest, giving sport crabbers some prolonged opportunity to sweep up quality keepers likely into the New Year.
There was some saltwater effort for bottomfish and offshore crab with this most recent weather window. That window is now closed however, and the ocean will be a bad place to visit for at least a week.
Other north coast estuaries are faring well for crabbing, Tillamook and Netarts are two of the best north coast options.
TGF wants you to STAY SAFE OUT THERE! Have you seen our FREE webinar on ocean and bar safety? Check it out HERE!
See the full North Coast Report and Forecast for Members right here. Catch the Columbia River reports from this page.
Upper Willamette River System Report – Contributor Glenn Zinkus reports
Rivers Remain High, But Dropping. Timber Linn Lake Just Stocked.
Note the general season closed to trout angling on October 31. Lakes are open all year unless noted in the regulations. Waters listed below are open – as always, check the latest regulations.
Detroit Reservoir: Detroit is currently at 147 – Detroit has been dropping over the past week. Mongold is accessible. Check the water levels here: https://waterdata.usgs.gov/or/nwis/uv?site_no=14180500No new fishing reports this past week. Of course, the recent cold front is affecting conditions on Detroit.
Green Peter Reservoir: Low water but continuing to rise. Muddy.
There are reports in the news of large fish kills in and around Green Peter, with large numbers of floating fish. More on this later as the investigation continues, with some reports of kokes down deep being affected by the rapid emptying of the reservoir.
South Santiam Trout: Closed season for trout.
Willamette River – Middle Fork: The Middle Fork flow is currently 6,040 CFS – too high. Dropping through this past week. Flows higher up at Oakridge are still too high currently- although the gauge reading is offline. Watch for a level around 2,500 CFS and below at Oakridge.
Willamette River – From Harrisburg, to Corvallis, to Albany: The Willamette River is at 12,400 CFS at Harrisburg at the time of this writing. Too high but dropping.
Anglers have been catching a few steelhead here and there, as some incidental catches. Anglers in the Eugene area continue to catch some walleye below the dams in the Willamette system, and reports are that the walleye fishing is picking up.
Dexter Reservoir: Was stocked in October with 2,530 trophy trout.Dexter received 3,000 trophy trout during May. Stocking is complete for the spring. Bass fishing is still good.
McKenzie River: The McKenzie at Vida is 4,100 CFS – just starting to get into a fishable level, although still a little high.
Members – find the latest complete report and forecast as well as past reports for Members on the Willamette Valley/Metro start on this page here.
Central Oregon Fishing Report – Contributor Glenn Zinkus reports
Last Hurrahs On The Lower Deschutes Around Trout Creek. Metolius And Fall River Hatches.
Weather Outlook Across Central and Eastern Oregon: Widespread temperatures in the mid 40s on Friday with some chances of rain and snow in the higher elevations. Sunny weather and clear, with temperatures in the 30s on Saturday. We will see cloudy conditions with temperatures in the 40s on Sunday and Christmas Day, and into next week.
Lower Deschutes River: The flows of the lower Deschutes are at nice fishing flows/levels. The flow at Madras is 4200 CFS. The flow at Moody is 4860 CFS.
Water temperatures have been in the high 40s – around 48 degrees F at Madras and 47 degrees at Moody.
Steelhead are scattered throughout the river – I found it slow in November, and Jeff Perin reports a few of his guides have managed some steelhead earlier this month.
The last day to fish the Warm Springs to Trout Creek stretch and area is December 31st. The river remains open around Maupin. Consult the regs for full report.
Middle Deschutes River: Flows are up. Fishing is quite good – with some anglers catching good numbers of fish. Fishing and access into the water is best around steelhead falls.
Upper Deschutes River: Closed as of now.
Haystack Reservoir: ODFW started stocking fish, including some rainbow broodstock to begin rebuilding after the drawdown last year. Leeches – balanced leeches are taking fish.
Lake Billy Chinook: Metolius Arm is closed.
Fish are getting more active and fly anglers are getting in on the action.
Crooked River: Crooked River flows are at 138 CFS at Smith Rock, and 106 CFS out of Prineville Reservoir.
Because Prineville Reservoir is at 59 % and higher than normal for this time of year, and much of the precipitation has been falling in the form of rain, there may be increased Crooked River flows starting as early as this month to maintain Prineville Reservoir and Bowman dam capacity to effectively function for flood control.
Fall River: Fall River was stocked with 500 trophy trout last month.
Metolius River: The Met did rise earlier in the week and is on the drop right now. It has remained fishable although lower river locations below Bridge 99 will be slightly high but also dropping.
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:
Not much angler pressure this week to make for much of this “pre-Christmas” report. Some winter steelhead have been caught on the Chetco and mid Rogue which are the best bets for those caught up on shopping and wrapping😉 The ocean and/ or bays could also provide a nice bounty of big and full crabbages. Other rivers like the Coos, Umpqua, Millicoma and Coquille will also fish well this weekend and be worth a try as winter fish should be starting to show.
The mid to upper Rogue river has slowed for both summer steelhead although a few winter fish have been caught below Grants Pass. All sections will be fishing well for the weekend, so take a shopping break and get out to see if more winter steelhead are coming up.
Weekend outlook for the Chetco, Elk and Sixes looks good as the systems have dropped into good fishing conditions. The Chetco is done for Chinook and winter steelhead are starting to show in all, so take advantage of the good opportunity of low angler pressure.
The ocean is also looking good for the weekend depending where and when you go out for bottom fish and lings. Crabbing could also be excellent now.
Reports of some steelhead caught on the Millicoma this week are encouraging. The Coos and Coquille systems will also be good choices for early steelhead.
The main Umpqua finally has produced a few winter steelhead up from tide water, but is still slow. The weekend could be a good opportunity before the next storm. The North and South Ump’s have yet to report any catches yet, but also worth a try this weekend.
Be safe, be nice and enjoy! Merry Christmas 🎄
Tight Lines 🎣 – Romer
Be sure to read our SW Washington fishing report.