Willamette Valley/Metro- Columbia River Gorge anglers lit up the summer steelhead over the weekend with some boats reporting double digit opportunities. On average, boaters working the swift water took a whopping 2.4 steelhead per boat with the bulk of those fish of wild origin. The action is good but be prepared to release fish; only steelhead and adipose fin-clipped chinook jacks may be retained through August 1st.
August 1st marks the opener of the mainstem for chinook with or without an adipose fin-clip. Although action won’t heat up for several more weeks, steelheaders that incidentally hook an adult chinook will be allowed to retain it. Steelhead action, particularly in the gorge, is likely to remain excellent as peak passage at Bonneville is still to come.
Chinook and steelhead numbers at Willamette Falls have moderated to a little over 100 per day for each species. Over 41,000 springers and about 20,000 summers have been counted this season. Fly fishers are doing well on the Middle Fork for trout and steelhead.
The entire McKenzie River is in excellent shape and fishing well. Results are best on days with cloud cover or early and late when it's sunny.
The North Santiam is expected to show a marked improvement in steelhead results in late July and early August.
Clackamas anglers are taking a few summers with first light fishing most productive.
A few steelhead and springers are being hooked at first light on the Sandy. The upper reaches between Dodge Park and Cedar Creek are producing the best for anglers using small baits or spinners.
Northwest – Boaters taking advantage of calm seas out of Garibaldi are coming up empty in pursuit of coho. Action was good several days ago but quickly dropped off when water temperatures cooled. Clear, blue water in the mid-50’s exists offshore but seems barren of life. Offshore crabbing is productive however although many of the large keepers are only half full.
Tuna action was good several days ago too but the temperature shift has them far offshore. Some anglers are reporting going as far west as 70 miles to find consistent fishing. Temperature fingers are always changing however so don’t expect that run to be a staple in the coming weeks. We’re entering the prime albacore season.
Salmon boats out of Astoria are finding the same results. Action is slow although a few fish are available to the north of the mouth of the Columbia. Reports of excellent catches Columbia River bound chinook off of Vancouver Island indicate the huge Columbia run is likely to come to fruition.
Sturgeon fishing remains open in the lower Columbia below Wauna through Sunday. After that, catch and release is still an option and action should continue to be good. Quality keepers are still falling to sand shrimp in the Taylor Sands area but softer tides may produce better results in the deeper water.
The famed Buoy 10 fishery will open on August 1st and although there likely won’t be many coho around, anglers targeting chinook near the mouth of Young’s Bay should catch a few Rogue River strain chinook destined for the terminal fishery just upstream. Trolled herring took fair numbers on the opener last year. This fishery likely won’t get more consistent for another few weeks. Crabbing remains slow in the lower river.
Southwest – Boats launching out of central Oregon ports are reporting an improvement in coho catches but wild fish predominate. Bottom fishing has produced good catches of rockfish and a few lings even with the recent 20-fathom restriction.
Ocean beaches are providing good results for surf perch, particularly near the mouths of coastal rivers.
Fishing for chinook and coho out of Winchester Bay has remained very slow but is due to improve in the next few weeks. Summer steelheading is worthwhile on the North Umpqua while smallmouth bass anglers are enjoying an increase in catches on the South Umpqua as the water drops and warms.
Ocean trips out of Gold Beach have been productive for rockfish and lingcod. The lower Rogue produced limits of chinook in the middle of last week; water temperatures were cool. As the water warmed, action shut down on the river and boats were again fishing the bay. Upper Rogue anglers are catching a mix of springers and summer steelhead.
Albacore anglers have taken fish inside 20 miles of shore out of the Port of Brookings over the past week. Some good-sized halibut have also been landed as these fish may be taken south of Humbug Mountain through October.
Chinook catches are improving offshore. Sea-run cutthroat catches have been good in Chetco River tidewater for those drifting bait.
Eastern – Few summer steelhead are being taken on the lower Deschutes but with the water temperatures high, early and late day fishing will yield the best results. Trout anglers are doing well matching the caddis hatch. Upper Deschutes fly fishers are doing well using duns, caddis patterns and terrestrials.
Good catches of chinook over the past weekend caused an abrupt July 23rd closure of the fishery on the Imnaha.
The Wallowa River will remain open for chinook until further notice. Fishing for rainbows and bull trout has been quite good here.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Oregon fishing update
The Guide's Forecast - volume 13 issue number 29
Northwest Oregon and Washington’s most complete and accurate fishing forecast
Forecasting for the fishing week of July 22st – July 28th, 2011
Willamette Valley/Metro- With the summer chinook closure earlier this week, anglers will again focus on summer steelhead which should be abundant in the mainstem Columbia. Boaters usually do very well this time of year in the gorge but continued high water may delay the action up there. Metro area beaches, such as those on Sauvie’s Island, should provide a fair opportunity for bank anglers using spin-n-glos that are heavily scented. Chinook season will re-open on August 1st but won’t get good again in the metro area until late August.
Daily fish passage at Willamette Falls dropped off a little at mid-month. The shad run, disappointing for many, seems to be over. Trout fishing has been good on the Middle Fork Willamette.
McKenzie anglers are catching rainbows and native cutthroat. A few bright summer steelhead were taken over the past weekend. Flow increased with precipitation on Tuesday of this week.
Fish are being seen on the North Santiam below Fishermen's Bend but few are biting. A few summers have been landed upstream to Packsaddle.
A few steelhead have been caught at McIver, but overall it's been very slow on the Clackamas.
The Cedar Creek area on the Sandy is producing a few summer runs but it has been crowded.
Northwest – With momentum gaining for albacore tuna fishing, focus has quickly shifted from salmon to “long-fins” out of most northern ports. Action for coho is reported as fair NW of the Tillamook Bay entrance but calm seas have had anglers more motivated to travel further west in pursuit of bigger quarry. Garibaldi, Pacific City and Depoe Bay remain the 3 most productive ports on the Oregon Coast for coho salmon although wild fish dominate the catches.
Tuna anglers were having success just outside of 20 miles to the west. However, warm water pockets change almost daily so anglers interested in learning how to successfully target this species should get to know how to read sea surface temperatures at www.terrafin.com. Trollers are doing best using bright colored clones but jigging should pick up later in the season.
Sturgeon fishing remains good on the lower Columbia with numerous oversize fish in the catch. Keepers remain focused on sand shrimp for bait with Taylor Sands and the water above Tongue Point producing good catches. The better bite has been on the incoming tide.
Tides become less favorable for beach plunkers looking for summer steelhead. Fortunately, with the high summer flow, action should stay fair for those working hot colored spin-n-glos in the outgoing tide. Jones Beach near Westport to Rainier should produce well.
River fishers on the north coast should be focusing on sea-run cutthroat trout in the lower reaches of most watersheds. Action should peak in the next several weeks with small spoons or lake trolls tipped with worms. Regulations vary by watershed so check them carefully before venturing out.
Chinook are rumored in the Nestucca tidewater. Chinook fishing in Nehalem Bay has been predictably poor. Other district streams are very low and clear, creating challenging conditions for those targeting coastal summer steelhead.
Southwest – Ocean-bound boaters out of Winchester Bay found albacore over the past weekend at just over 25 miles to catch all they could carry back to port. Very few coho have been taken outside of Winchester and crabbing is slow. Steelheading is worthwhile in the North Umpqua while smallmouth bass fishing has turned on in the South Umpqua.
Tuna fishers out of Charleston enjoyed good fishing last weekend with most boats landing good numbers.
Offshore bottom fishing has been hot or cold one day to the next out of Gold beach with easy limits one day and only a few opportunities the next. Ocean crabbing has been fair but steady. Salmon fishing in Rogue Bay fell off over the past week as chinook catches picked up in the lower river due to good flows of cool water, a non-typical event in July. Fishing is poor in the middle river but the upper Rogue has continued to put out springers and summer steelhead.
While central and northern Oregon ports have been bagging albacore for weeks, boats launching from the south have had to cover a lot of water to find tuna. Over the past week, however, warm, blue water moved nearer to shore, enabling recreational craft to make good catches out of Brookings fewer than 20 miles out. Mild offshore conditions contributed to boater success although didn't help chinook and coho fishing which has been poor.
Eastern – Steelheading remains slow on the lower Deschutes with numbers of summers in the river still low. Trout fishing is good as water levels drop.
Fishing is fair on the Wallowa River with the water level starting to drop. Wallowa Lake has been fishing well.
Water remains high on the Grande Ronde hampering results which would otherwise be decent at this time of year.
Surf perch fishing has been excellent at river mouths, particularly the Winchuck and Elk.
Northwest Oregon and Washington’s most complete and accurate fishing forecast
Forecasting for the fishing week of July 22st – July 28th, 2011
Willamette Valley/Metro- With the summer chinook closure earlier this week, anglers will again focus on summer steelhead which should be abundant in the mainstem Columbia. Boaters usually do very well this time of year in the gorge but continued high water may delay the action up there. Metro area beaches, such as those on Sauvie’s Island, should provide a fair opportunity for bank anglers using spin-n-glos that are heavily scented. Chinook season will re-open on August 1st but won’t get good again in the metro area until late August.
Daily fish passage at Willamette Falls dropped off a little at mid-month. The shad run, disappointing for many, seems to be over. Trout fishing has been good on the Middle Fork Willamette.
McKenzie anglers are catching rainbows and native cutthroat. A few bright summer steelhead were taken over the past weekend. Flow increased with precipitation on Tuesday of this week.
Fish are being seen on the North Santiam below Fishermen's Bend but few are biting. A few summers have been landed upstream to Packsaddle.
A few steelhead have been caught at McIver, but overall it's been very slow on the Clackamas.
The Cedar Creek area on the Sandy is producing a few summer runs but it has been crowded.
Northwest – With momentum gaining for albacore tuna fishing, focus has quickly shifted from salmon to “long-fins” out of most northern ports. Action for coho is reported as fair NW of the Tillamook Bay entrance but calm seas have had anglers more motivated to travel further west in pursuit of bigger quarry. Garibaldi, Pacific City and Depoe Bay remain the 3 most productive ports on the Oregon Coast for coho salmon although wild fish dominate the catches.
Tuna anglers were having success just outside of 20 miles to the west. However, warm water pockets change almost daily so anglers interested in learning how to successfully target this species should get to know how to read sea surface temperatures at www.terrafin.com. Trollers are doing best using bright colored clones but jigging should pick up later in the season.
Sturgeon fishing remains good on the lower Columbia with numerous oversize fish in the catch. Keepers remain focused on sand shrimp for bait with Taylor Sands and the water above Tongue Point producing good catches. The better bite has been on the incoming tide.
Tides become less favorable for beach plunkers looking for summer steelhead. Fortunately, with the high summer flow, action should stay fair for those working hot colored spin-n-glos in the outgoing tide. Jones Beach near Westport to Rainier should produce well.
River fishers on the north coast should be focusing on sea-run cutthroat trout in the lower reaches of most watersheds. Action should peak in the next several weeks with small spoons or lake trolls tipped with worms. Regulations vary by watershed so check them carefully before venturing out.
Chinook are rumored in the Nestucca tidewater. Chinook fishing in Nehalem Bay has been predictably poor. Other district streams are very low and clear, creating challenging conditions for those targeting coastal summer steelhead.
Southwest – Ocean-bound boaters out of Winchester Bay found albacore over the past weekend at just over 25 miles to catch all they could carry back to port. Very few coho have been taken outside of Winchester and crabbing is slow. Steelheading is worthwhile in the North Umpqua while smallmouth bass fishing has turned on in the South Umpqua.
Tuna fishers out of Charleston enjoyed good fishing last weekend with most boats landing good numbers.
Offshore bottom fishing has been hot or cold one day to the next out of Gold beach with easy limits one day and only a few opportunities the next. Ocean crabbing has been fair but steady. Salmon fishing in Rogue Bay fell off over the past week as chinook catches picked up in the lower river due to good flows of cool water, a non-typical event in July. Fishing is poor in the middle river but the upper Rogue has continued to put out springers and summer steelhead.
While central and northern Oregon ports have been bagging albacore for weeks, boats launching from the south have had to cover a lot of water to find tuna. Over the past week, however, warm, blue water moved nearer to shore, enabling recreational craft to make good catches out of Brookings fewer than 20 miles out. Mild offshore conditions contributed to boater success although didn't help chinook and coho fishing which has been poor.
Eastern – Steelheading remains slow on the lower Deschutes with numbers of summers in the river still low. Trout fishing is good as water levels drop.
Fishing is fair on the Wallowa River with the water level starting to drop. Wallowa Lake has been fishing well.
Water remains high on the Grande Ronde hampering results which would otherwise be decent at this time of year.
Surf perch fishing has been excellent at river mouths, particularly the Winchuck and Elk.
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