Portland, Oregon Metro Fishing Report
It was a mediocre week of spring Chinook fishing, with more springers falling in the Portland Harbor, the Multnomah Channel and even the mainstem Columbia around Ridgefield. It’s just that time of year, when it’s time to put in some effort for the region’s finest eating fish!
The Willamette is up, up and away right now however, and will remain too big to fish well into next week. When the levels fall however, there should be some fair opportunity for anglers throughout the lower Willamette River.
Plunkers have been doing OK at Meldrum Bar, where wild winter steelhead are making up most of the catch. There’s been some hatchery summer steelhead crossing Willamette Falls already, and a good number of wild winter steelhead too. It’s a wonder what removing steelhead-chomping sea lions will do for steelhead recovery!
Catch and release sturgeon fishing has been improving as well on the lower Willamette, with the best catches coming from the Portland Harbor.
Upper Willamette Valley Fishing Report by Terry Otto
Wild winter steelhead active in the upper Willamette systems. Trout stockings picking up. Summer steelhead, spring Chinook still weeks away.
Best bets this weekend
Trout stocking picking up
Wild winter steelhead are biting in upper Willamette systems.
Detroit Lake kokanee rated good
Willamette Falls fish counts climbing.
Upper Willamette Valley Weather
After rains on Thursday, dryer, warm weather will dominate the coming week, with the upper Willamette Valley expected to miss the heavy rains headed for the lower valley. Highs will hit the 70’s a few days mid-week.
Willamette Falls Fish Counts
Over 4,500 steelhead have crossed the falls as of this week. About 100 of them were clipped, and that could mean a few summer steelhead coming in early. Most of these fish are wild winter steelhead. Only 4 spring Chinook have crossed over so far. Summer steelhead numbers may soon improve, but spring Chinook will not arrive in good numbers until late April at least.
You can check the Willamette Falls fish counts here. You can check the Willamette River Gauge at Salem here.
Trout stocking
Stocked the week of Mar. 2-6:
Waverly Lake, Alton Baker Canal, Row R Nature Park, St Louis Pond, Dorena Res, Timber Linn Lake, Roaring River Park Pond, EE Wilson Pond, Walter Wirth Lake, Freeway Lake East, Junction City Pond
Scheduled to be stocked the week of Mar. 9-13:
Row R Nature Park, Huddleston Pond, Blue River Res, , Sheridan Pond, Cottage Grove Res, Canby Pond, Bethany Pond, EE Wilson Pond, Dexter Res, Hills Creek Res
You can check the ODFW trout stocking schedule here.
Dexter Pond road closure
No public access into the Dexter Ponds Hatchery at least through Summer 2026 due to construction. Please call the USACE Park Ranger Office at (541) 942-5631 with questions.
North Fork Santiam River
Correction: The North Fork Santiam River Report for February 26 erroneously reported that bank anglers were fishing bait below a bobber. Bait is not allowed in the Santiam River until April 22.
According to Mike Ferris of Fishermen Mike’s Guide Service, fishing this week in the upper North Fork Santiam was slow for winter steelhead. All wild fish must be released. Right now, the river is running at 2080 CFS, but is expected to rise to over 13,000 CFS this weekend. The river fishes best under 3,000 CFS. There have been few reports of steelhead in the upper river recently. There are a few around in the lower river. Most bank anglers fish with bobber methods, but the fish will also take spinners. Boat anglers are mostly fishing beads or jigs below a bobber.
You can check the gauge at Mahama here
Detroit Lake
Refilling the reservoir for the summer began on Feb. 1. Water levels are currently about 50 feet above the low water ramp at Mongold State Park. Matt Halseth of Matt Halseth Guide Service has heard good reports from anglers fishing Detroit Lake recently. The kokanee are growing and biting well. The schools are still holding in the upper 20 feet of the water column, especially when it is cloudy. Most anglers are trolling dodgers and kokanee spinners tipped with kokanee corn. Some trout are also being caught, mostly by bank anglers fishing Powerbait on the bottom. As a reminder, anglers are allowed to keep up to five trout, with an additional five kokanee.
South Fork Santiam River
Matt Helseth reports that anglers are finding some wild steelhead in the South Fork Santiam River, including some fish with real shoulders. They do appear to be well spread through the entire system. All wild steelhead must be released. The river is currently running at just below 2,000 CFS, but, like the North Fork it will probably rise quite a bit by this weekend.
You can check the river gage at Waterloo here.
Cottage Grove Reservoir
The reservoir was stocked the week of February 23 with 3,750 catchable rainbows, and again the week of March 9 with 5,000 hatchery rainbow trout. Spotted Bass and Largemouth bass will soon begin to get active. Cottage Grove Reservoir is south of Cottage Grove and is open to fishing all year.
Dexter Reservoir
Dexter Reservoir was stocked the week of February 23 with 3,750, and again the week of March 9 with 3,000 hatchery rainbow trout. Parking and bank access are available from the causeway near Lowell.
Sandy and Clackamas River reports by Jeff Stoeger and Bob Rees
Clackamas River Fishing Report – Clackamas River anglers had a nice period of good water conditions before all heck broke loose on this current rain event. Overall, it’s been a good season for anglers on the Clackamas, with the bulk of the hatchery return in the river right now.
Anglers have been spending more time in the upper reaches of the river, with the usual suspects working Dog Creek for holding steelhead before they head into the facility for spawning.
Barton to Carver remains the most popular drift but anglers working from Feldhiemers downstream are also finding fairly consistent success, but more wild fish are starting to show porportionally in the catch.
Plugs continue to be a viable method, especially as we enter March, when fish become more territorial, especially in dropping flows.
Sandy River Fishing Report – Avid angler Jeff Stoeger shares: Today’s headline: another atmospheric river is headed this way. NOAA is predicting the river will climb to around 14 feet over the next three days, with what’s being described as a month of rain in three days.
Also worth noting, smelt have entered the Sandy. The state opened it for one day of combat dipping, and it sounds like it will be elbow to elbow.
Fishing this week has been fair to good, depending on who you talk to. The most productive water has been Dodge Park down to Oxbow, and it seems to be holding good numbers of fish. Reports included a few double-digit days in that stretch.
Oxbow to Dabney has also been holding good numbers of fish. The river has been on the drop and running gin clear, with about five to six feet of visibility, so most anglers have downsized their presentation.
Pressure has been high. Over the weekend, the lower river saw lots of sleds and drift boats. The float from Oxbow down has had good numbers of drift boats and rafts. Many anglers have been running plugs in the mid-river section, while flies have been working in the upper river.
There was also a report of one Chinook caught and released in the lower river on a spinner.
North & Central Coast Fishing Report by Bob Rees
The winter steelhead return continues to produce results for those willing to work hard at it. Low flows had folks seeking bigger rivers, and places like the Nehalem and Nestucca produced fair catches early in the week.
The Wilson and Trask also produced fair action in the steady flows, but north coast steelheaders were struggling for consistent fishing for much of the week in what most would consider lower flows on these favorites.
Smaller systems such as the Necanicum and North Fork Nehalem are producing some wild fish and a few broodstock opportunities (NF Nehalem) but again, most anglers really had to work for consistent results.
The Siletz is largely over for hatchery fish, but wild fish are still being caught here in fairly good numbers. The Alsea remains challenging, but wild fish are also dominating the mediocre catch rate.
Bottomfishing has been great when anglers are able to get out. Lingcod fishing in particular has been good with some of the best catches in recent years being realized on the central coast (Depoe Bay and Newport). Central coast ocean trollers (both sport and commercial) will see some improvements in opportunity for saltwater Chinook starting mid-month. California stocks that fuel this fishery are on the rebound.
Saltwater crabbing is getting more challenging. The crab are going into the clutch (spawn), drawing attention away from the need to feed (remember when it was like that?) ; )
Much more on the site for Chinook Members:
- Buzz Ramsey’s latest post – Chasing Olympic Peninsula Steelhead. Chasing winter steelhead on the Olympic Peninsula means stepping into wild rivers, big fish, and the kind of stories anglers dream about. Chinook Members can see his post HERE.
- Bill Monroe’s latest post – Gotta love a fish that sings the blues! A sudden burst of neon‑blue water and fast limits out of Yaquina Bay has anglers racing to the coast to catch the short‑lived herring spawn spectacle. ALL readers have access to this post this week HERE.
You can find all the articles from these two professionals on this page.
- The article of the week: How to Tie Yarnies by Dave Kilhefner. Unlock the secrets to consistently hooking steelhead with the proven jig tactics veteran anglers swear by. You can find the article 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.
SW Oregon Fishing Report – Contributor Jeff Rome
As the weather continues to feel more like spring, many anglers are already day‑dreaming about spring Chinook—especially since the first one of the season was just caught on the lower Rogue. But don’t get too carried away yet. We’re still in the heart of winter steelhead season, and there’s plenty of opportunity left before shifting gears.
After last week’s big rain pushed many rivers into blown‑out shape, most systems have dropped back into good—if not getting a bit too low—condition for the weekend. The Chetco, Elk, and Sixes fall into that “decent but low” category. Steelhead catches there have ranged from slow to fair, so expect to put in some work for each fish.
My top pick for the weekend is the Rogue River in all its sections. The lower Rogue offers a fun “double” opportunity right now: depending on your bait choice, you could hook either a winter steelhead or an early spring Chinook. Upstream, the mid and upper Rogue are in excellent shape, and with the hatchery finally counting winter steelhead, anglers have been reporting solid catches this week.
The Umpqua system—mainstem, North, and South Forks—also looks very good. All three should be in prime condition, and recent reports have been encouraging for winter steelhead.
Ocean access will depend on where you launch, but southern ports appear to have the better window this weekend. Nearshore lingcod have been bending rods out of Brookings, and perch fishing around Winchester Bay is picking up. Crabbing remains good as well. Ocean salmon out of Brookings opens on the 15th (Sunday), though it’s unlikely to be productive this early.
I’m also starting to include lakes and ponds again as more of them receive fresh trout plants and the warming weather nudges the bass bite into gear. For anglers looking to mix things up—or bring the family—these still‑water options are becoming increasingly worthwhile.