Willamette Valley/Metro - Strong numbers of fall chinook salmon are crossing Bonneville Dam. The steelhead numbers have been generally below a thousand a day. Fishing for chinook has been on the slow side, likely due to warm water temperatures.
The Willamette River remains mostly quiet. Smallmouth bass are available in the mainstem and a few walleye are still being taken out of the Multnomah Channel. Catch and release fishing for sturgeon is always a possibility but the fishing would be on the slow side.
An increase occurred in McKenzie flows from 2,000 to 2,500 cfs at Vida over the past weekend although the river seems to have stabilized at the latter flow. Trout fishing is fair to good.
With few fresh fish entering and summer numbers fairly low this season, steelheading is slow on the Santiam system. Trout fishing is fair on the upper North and South Santiams.
The Clackamas River is relatively fishless and void of anglers. A few summer steelhead might be available in the upper reaches above Barton Park.
On the Sandy River, the story is much the same. The first arrivals of the silvers are expected in the next couple of weeks.
Northwest – Kudos to the Oregon and Washington Departments of Fish and Wildlife as interest in pursuing fin-clipped chinook in the Buoy 10 fishery remained high after the all chinook closure last Friday. Clip rates were good and managers decided yesterday to continue the mark-select fishery through September 1st. Coho have yet to make a strong showing. Meanwhile, the chinook bite at Tongue Point lit up on Tuesday with numerous anglers limiting their boats by noon. Jim Stephenson of Milwaukie had several opportunities trolling herring suspended 5 to 7 feet off of the bottom above Tongue Point, fishing in the shipping channel in 47 feet of water. The Tongue Point bite will likely peak mid-week but remain a strong option into the weekend. Sea-lion interactions have been oddly low.
Anglers participating in the wobbler fishery in the Longview area report good success on the outgoing tides. Anchoring in the deeper troughs near the shipping channel is risky with ship traffic, but productive for deep running chinook when the flows are running. This fishery will be peaking in the next two weeks. If you're not anchored in the right lane however, success is sporadic at best.
Ocean fishing out of Astoria is picking up for coho especially. This is a good sign that they are staging just outside, prepping for a run into the lower Columbia in the coming weeks. The return is expected to be large. Despite a 2 chinook limit in the ocean, success for chinook is low.
Estuary crabbing is good on the lower Columbia and will only improve into September.
Bobber fishing for tidewater summer chinook has been good on the lower Nehalem but should taper as those fish make their way to the Vernonia area where they will spawn. These fish will deteriorate rapidly, it's best to keep your eye on the fall run about to return in the lower reaches any week now.
Speaking of fall chinook, Tillamook Bay anglers took good numbers of early returning chinook in Tillamook Bay last weekend. The stronger tides produced nicely at Memaloose but the softer tide series this week should turn the lower estuary on. Trolled herring at the bay entrance or adjacent ocean waters should be productive.
The south of Falcon all-coho fishery opens on September 1 & 2. Ocean action should be good if the weather cooperates. Coho won't begin to show in the estuary in fishable numbers for a few more weeks.
Southwest- Some boats took rockfish and lingcod limits out of Newport and Depoe Bay this week while others fell short. Tuna are reportedly moving closer to shore.
Tuna are safe to eat according to Oregon State University researchers following a report that a leaking nuclear reactor in Japan has irradiated albacore caught off the Oregon coast.
Swells and breezes are forecast to be light off the central coast for the coming weekend although conditions are subject to change.
Boats fishing just outside Winchester Bay, inside from the Highway 101 Bridge to Big Bend and up to the lower Umpqua mainstem have all been scoring chinook. It has been the hottest salmon fishery on the southwest coast. Chinook are running from mid-teens to over 30 pounds.
Bottom fishing out of Gold Beach has been excellent, yielding daily limits of rockfish and lings to 25 pounds. Ocean salmon fishing has been unreliable. Trolling in Rogue bay had been slow but picked up a little into the past weekend. Fishing is slow in the lower river. The middle Rogue is productive for chinook and steelhead up to Grants Pass. Summer steelhead continue to enter the hatchery although numbers are lower than last season. They are taking a variety of baits and lures.
Chinook fishing out of Brookings picked up again over the past week. Trolled anchovies with hoochies have been most effective at 40 to 50 feet at the 150 foot depth contour.
Eastern – With more than 70,000 steelhead over The Dalles Dam, fresh summers are available in the lower Deschutes. Steelheading is good in the mornings, best in the evening for those who can find an open spot on the crowded river.
The Crooked River is steady at 220 cfs. It has been fishing well at this flow.
Although the Wallowa River is running quite low, trout fishing has been good for those able to locate fish which are holding in only a small percentage of the water. Wallowa Lake is slow for trout and kokanee.
Grande Ronde water level, at 40% below the 10-year average, is too low to fish well.
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