Willamette Valley/Metro- Free Fishing Weekend is June 12th and 13th, during which time licenses and tags are not required for fishing, crabbing or clamming. Anglers may use a second rod where it's normally allowed in lakes and ponds. Take a non-fishing friend or better, a kid, fishing. Special events abound; for a list, visit http://tinyurl.com/26z9y9n.
Action for keeper sturgeon has slowed in the Columbia River Gorge but oversize seekers are still taking fair numbers of fish using fresh shad for bait. The shad run is beginning to peak with tens of thousands passing by Bonneville Dam daily.
Good steelhead action was witnessed at Jones Beach downstream of Longview on Monday. Migrating fish should reach Portland by the weekend or sooner. Heavy flows should concentrate fish near the shoreline where beach plunkers can harvest them using hot colored spin-n-glos for lures. Pink is a proven producer and use scent for the necessary edge.
Rain combined with snowmelt caused the Willamette to swell to winter levels, over the banks in some areas. It likely won't fish for several more days. There have been some decent chinook catches near the head of Multnomah Channel however as is often the case this time of year. Anglers typically switch to spinners to entice strikes in the warming water although temperatures remain lower than normal for this time of year.
The McKenzie will be fishable this week with the upper stretches producing early. Trout, steelhead and chinook are in the system but many of the salmon being hooked are native which require release.
North Santiam waters are stabilizing but high. With 15,000 summers over the Falls, there are hatchery steelhead in the river. The South was high and muddy at mid-week.
The Clackamas had good color mid week but was still high. There's supposed to be a good return this year and fishers should be able to tell if they are in by the weekend.
Try the Sandy for the weekend as it's a good prospect once it's back into shape. Steelhead may be the main focus but a few chinook should also be present.
Free Fishing Weekend means extensive trout planting state-wide. In the Willamette Valley, that includes Benson Lake, Estacada Lake, Faraday Lake, Hartman Pond, Harriet Lake, Henry Hagg Lake, Huddleston Pond, North Fork Reservoir, Sheridan Pond, Silver Creek Reservoir, Small Fry Lake, Timothy Meadows, West Salish Pond, South Fork Yamhill River, Alton Baker Canal, Big Cliff Reservoir, Blue River above the Reservoir, Blue River Reservoir, Breitenbush River, Carmen Reservoir, Detroit Reservoir, E. E. Wilson Pond, Fall Creek, Junction City Pond, Leaburg Lake, McKenzie River above Leaburg Lake, Roaring River Park Pond, Salmon Creek, North Fork Santiam River above Detroit Lake, Sunnyside Park Pond, and Walter Wirth Lake.
Northwest - Spring chinook fishing was nothing short of fantastic on lower Tillamook Bay early in the week. Limits or near limits of quality fish were taken by many anglers trolling herring along the jetty or in front of the Coast Guard Station in Garibaldi. The action isn't likely to persist as continued high water from local rivers will keep fish moving into the tributaries of upper Tillamook Bay.
Driftboaters working the Trask, Wilson and Nestucca are finding fair to good success and bank anglers working the Hatchery Hole on the Trask are catching fish daily. Quality drifting conditions should exist through the weekend with the lower stretches of these rivers producing the best results. The Trask receives the greatest hatchery plants and therefore the highest effort. Three Rivers is also an option for bank anglers. The Hatchery Hole on the Trask is slated to close on June 15th but further opportunities may exist if snagging and littering is not a problem.
Sturgeon anglers on the lower Columbia are struggling to find consistent success. Limits are rare but the fishing is showing signs of improvement as temperatures increase and tidal fluctuations grow. Don't expect great fishing this weekend but anglers fishing upstream of Tongue Point or in front of Astoria are faring the best.
Starting Saturday, the ocean opens up for fin-clipped chinook north of Cape Falcon to Leadbetter Point. Reports of commercially caught chinook were good on Monday, about 25 miles north of the mouth of the Columbia. Many of these fish are Columbia River bound summer chinook and they are averaging larger than 15 pounds.
Another minus tide series that started yesterday will improve into the weekend, making razor clam digging on the north coast productive. Diggers may want to call the shellfish hotline at 1-800-448-2474 to verify north coast beaches are still open to digging. Biotoxins have been detected along south coast beaches.
On the schedule to be planted with hatchery trout are Big Creek Reservoirs 1 and 2, Cape Mears Lake, Cleawox Lake, Coffenbury Lake, Hebo Lake, Olalla Creek Reservoir, Thissel Pond, and Town Lake
Southwest - Morning minus tides will make for good bay clamming this weekend, but beaches will be closed from Coos Bay south due to a naturally-occurring biotoxin.
Catch counts from the all-depth halibut opportunity June 3rd through 5th were not available but it's unlikely catches continued similar to those during the opening weekend as seas were rough. If quota remains, fishing will resume June 15 through 17th. Otherwise, the summer season starts August 6th.
Rock fishing has been good out of Charleston although lingcod catches have slowed. Surf perch fishing has been excellent when the ocean has laid down and these fish are running large. Joseph Yable took fist place in the derby at Bandon, winning a $120 prize with a three-pound pinkfin.
While the high, muddy waters of the lower Rogue were unfishable over the past weekend, upper river angling improved as chinook sought better water conditions. Clearing mid-week, it remains to be seen how the lower river will fish over Free Fishing Weekend but it should hold up well for another couple of weeks.
Boats launching out of Brookings are returning with fine catches of rockfish in addition to large lingcod to over 20 and occasionally over 30 pounds.
Howard Prairie Reservoir, Lost Creek Reservoir, Medco Pond, Lake Selmac, Expo Pond, Rogue above Lost Creek, Middle and Lower Empire Lake, Libby Pond, Millicoma Pond, Morth and South Tenmile Lake, Clearwater Forebay #2, Cooper Cr. Reservoir, Galesville Reservoir Hemlock Lake, Herbert's Pond, Lake in the Woods, Lemolo Reservoir Loon Lake, Marie Lake and Plat I Reservoir are scheduled to be planted with trout.
Eastern - White River spiked late last week and has continued to spew. Fishing is good on the upper Deschutes, the middle river fair with the lower river fishing by the weekend.
John Day boat launch at Wheeler opened this week. Following was a river crest at 19,000 cfs at McDonald Crossing on Sunday, it's gradually dropping.
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