Portland/Metro Fishing Report – With the Columbia closed, all eyes are on the Willamette and after a good week last week, it’s since slowed except for some sporadic bites in the Oregon City and lower Multnomah Channel.
Consistent water conditions will get you consistently, often challenging, results. With temperatures hovering around 57°, springers should be willing to take bait or hardware. Under the current weather regime, the middle river from the head of the Multnomah Channel to Milwaukie will likely slow. Sturgeon fishing in the Portland Harbor to Kelly Point Park should improve weekly however. It’s a great fishery that anglers will enjoy when the late morning springer bite heads south.
Willamette Falls passage is improving too, for both spring Chinook and summer steelhead. Once the river hits 60°, they’ll really start streaming over and not bite all that well.
Adult passage at Bonneville Dam is improving, but it’ll be a few more weeks before biologists can determine how the run is shaping up. If the run comes in as predicted, the sport fleet may get some additional time on the water after mid-May. As it was, we didn’t sweep all the allowable catch for the days we were able to fish in April.
Clackamas River Fishing Report – It’s still spent steelhead city for Clackamas River anglers although there are a few summer steelhead starting to show in the catches. Wild steelhead, most starting to turn color, are still making up the bulk of the Clackamas River catches however.
In the dropping flows, there are more anglers fishing the lower reaches of the river in pursuit of a trickling of summer steelhead starting to show, with spring Chinook expected in better numbers by early May. Success is far from impressive, but a mix of mostly wild winters and a few summer steelhead are coming from mostly boats fishing downstream of Barton, while boats and bank anglers (Dog Creek) are mostly catchinng colored up winter run fish making their way to the spawning grounds.
Fish counts at the PGE facility are still going strong, with the likelihood of a 2500 adult return looking more likely by the day.
Sandy River fishing, avid angler Jeff Stoeger reports – Just a quick report from today. We floated on the Sandy, and we were only one of three boats for the whole day. We floated Oxbow to Dabney with no luck.
The river is extremely clear and is dropping quickly. The river height is 9.01, and the river temp is 47.57 degrees. The extended river forecast is for the river to stay about 9 ft for the next week or so. The winds will be blustery on and off, making it difficult to float either in a drift boat or a raft.
There are a few springers in the river, but most will show up in late May and June. So keep on trying for fresh fish are slowly moving in with summer steelhead and fresh springers.”
North & Central Coast Fishing Report – With winter steelhead over, anglers looking for silver sides will have to go to the ocean (Like finding a needle in a haystack) or in the lower reaches of the Trask, Wilson, Nestucca, or Siletz (Like finding a needle in a haystack). I think you get the idea…
Most will be focused on the ocean, where good numbers of lingcod and sea bass should be available for anglers. Ocean conditions can be a bit volatile this time of year however, especially with late morning trade winds from the NW, which will hamper the return home if you don’t strategize properly when headed to the bottomfishing grounds.
Ocean crabbing is only slightly improving, bay crabbing remains challenging.
There’s a good set of minus tides coming up this weekend. If the surf remains tame, the digging should be productive for Clatsop County clammers. Bay clamming should be good too.
Trout fishing should remain good along coastal lakes. Soon, it’ll be too warm to support productive fishing here. Rivers and streams don’t open up until late May for trout fishing.
Upper Willamette River System Report by Terry Otto (from last week)
Weather drying out, rivers coming back into shape. Hatchery summer steelhead and Detroit Lake kokanee good, local lakes trout improving.
Matt Halseth of Matt Halseth Guide Service is headed to the North Santiam after trying his hand at Columbia springers, and he is looking forward to finally seeing some decent conditions in his home rivers. “If we get a few days in the 80’s,” he said, “things will really start to pop.”
Drier and warmer weather has finally allowed river systems to drop, and many have come back into fishable shape. Best bets this weekend include the systems that get hatchery summer steelhead, these include the North and South Santiam Rivers, the McKenzie, and the Middle Fork Willamette.
Over a thousand summer steelhead have passed over the Willamette Falls as of this week. These numbers will climb during April and May, and fishing should improve on all the systems with hatchery fish. Only a few spring Chinook have moved over the falls as yet, and anglers probably will not see many of these fish until early May.
Trout lakes stocked the week of March 31- April 4:
Timber Linn Lake, Cottage Grove Res, Turner Lake, Foster Reservoir, Dexter Res, Junction City Pond, Row River Nature Park, Green Peter Res, Blue River Res,
Scheduled to be stocked April 6-11:
Row River Nature Park Pond, Dorena Reservoir, Junction City Pond, Timber Linn Lake, Foster Reservoir, Dexter Reservoir, Pine Nursery Pond, Green Peter Res, Alton Baker Canal.
Check the 2025 trout stocking schedule
North Santiam River
There are no fresh reports on fishing success. The river has been too high. However, North Santiam fishing guide Mike Ferris of Fishermen Mike’s Guide Service reports that the river has finally dropped into fishing condition, although high water methods will be the trick now. The river has dropped below the 5-foot mark that Ferris says is the trigger for good fishing.
The river is usually stocked between May and August with hatchery trout. There are several large, downed trees in the river, creating some dangerous hazards for boaters
South Santiam River
Fishing is generally best when flows are below 3,000 cfs, and the river is running at about 3,700 feet at the gage in Waterloo. Few anglers are trying their lick here yet, and there are no fresh reports on success.
You can check the gauge at Waterloo here
Detroit Lake
Ferris fished the reservoir earlier this week with a friend, and reports that the kokanee fishing was good. They got a two-man limit of kokes, plus an bonus trout,. The kokanee are growing well. “The schools are scattered, but they can be found,” he said. “Most of them were from 10 to 12 inches.”
He was trollingfishing in the upper 25 feet of water, pulling a six-inch chrome dodger about 8 inches above a two-hook small hoochie, in pink or pink and purple, using a piece of shrimp on the front hook, and kokanee corn on the back hook. Hoochie
Foster Reservoir
The reservoir near Sweet Home will be stocked with 2,000 trout this week. Besides trout, look for smallmouth bass and yellow perch near underwater structure and drop-offs. Please remember that only kokanee and adipose fin-clipped trout may be kept as part of the 5-trout bag limit, but there are no limits on size or number of bass or other warm water species. Anglers report good success in the two arms of the reservoir, as well as the shoreline in between.
The boat ramp at Sunnyside County Park is available to launch boats
Freeway Lake, East
The lake was stocked in March with 500 hatchery trout. Fishing for warmwater gamefish such as bass, bluegill, crappie, and catfish can be very good, especially early and late in the day in spring and summer. This is one of the best places in the Valley to fish for large crappie.
Green Peter Reservoir
The water level in the reservoir is slowly increasing. The boat ramp at Thistle Creek is available to launch boats. Whitcomb boat ramp and campground will open on April 18. It is scheduled to be stocked for the first time this week with 2,800 hatchery trout. Any Chinook caught in Green Peter reservoir must be released unharmed.
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 by Terry Otto
Metolius, Fall and Deschutes Rivers in good shape, Crooked River still a mess. Many central and east side lakes opened on the 22nd. Lake Billy Chinook kokes continue to do well.
Dry weather at last! Not only does this mean the rivers are finally dropping into shape (other than the Crooked River), it also means anglers can fish while comfortable. The best bets this week will be the spring rivers, but the Deschutes is also fishing well.
Even more exciting, several trout lakes and reservoirs opened on the 22nd. These include Crane Prairie and Wickiup Reservoir.
Columbia River walleye
The good folks over at the Gorge Outfitters Supply in Rufus report that the walleye fishing continues to be hot, and it is improving. As the fish prepare to spawn, they are getting more and more active. Anglers are trolling with plugs, trolling bottom walkers with worms, and jigging blade baits. All of these methods are taking fish.
There have been no really big ones taken into the shop recently, but this is the right time of year to hang a big female.
Lower Deschutes River
Flows are starting to level out and will hopefully start to drop soon. The Maupin stretch of the river is definitely still running high, but is fishable. These higher flows often push fish close to the banks where they don’t need to work as hard to stay in the same spot; as such, make sure you cast close to the banks before getting in the water and wading out further.
With the exception of the occasional BWO hatch on the most overcast of days, there isn’t a ton of surface action. March Brown dries (#12-16) are worth having, and you may find a fish or two keying in on caddis in the afternoon/evening, but nymphing is still the name of the game.
Spinners should be effective for gear anglers, but stick near the bank and target eddies. Rooster Tails are a good bet, but if you are not getting bit, switch up the colors.
Metolius river
The Metolius River continues to be excellent for mountain whitefish, redband trout, and bull trout. Nymphing with stonefly, mayfly, or caddisfly nymphs has been effective for trout, and streamers are a good bet for bull trout.
Jeff at The Fly Fishers Place reports that he is hearing good reports from the Metolius River and that PMD’s are mixing in the hatch cycle a little bit.
It’s still a bit early for Green Drakes on the Metolius, but a few early bugs have already been spotted. While it’s not yet hatch time, a Green Drake dry might coax a curious fish late in the day — but you’ll likely have more consistent success with a Drake nymph.
Fall River
Fly-anglers continue to report good and consistent fishing in the Fall River. Nymphing and stripping small streamers with light fluorocarbon tippet have been the most effective methods. With cool winter water temperatures, look for fish congregating in the deeper runs.
A reminder to anglers that new regulations are in effect for Fall River and the river is now closed to fishing below Fall River Falls Oct. 1 through May 21. Fall River above Fall River Falls remains open year-round. Restricted to fly-fishing with barbless hooks only.
Lake Billy Chinook
Anglers report excellent spring kokanee fishing; however, with spring run-off occurring, water clarity is reduced in the Crooked and Deschutes River Arms, making for challenging conditions. Anglers report larger kokanee than in the past few seasons, with fish averaging 13 inches. The Metolius Arm opened to fishing on March 1.
Wallowa River
Snow melt has the Wallowa River off color in the canyon and may also be in upstream sections. Steelhead are still moving upstream to the hatcheries and are available to anglers. In addition to steelhead, anglers can also catch rainbow trout and whitefish. Jigs fished under bobbers can be a great way to catch steelhead, while trout and whitefish will readily take flies or spinners.
Wallowa Lake
The ice on Wallowa Lake has melted, and anglers can now launch boats. Now through June is the best time of year for kokanee fishing. Rainbow trout can be caught near the river mouth, and lake trout are dispersed throughout the lake.
Read this week’s SW Washington fishing report.