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Willamette Valley/Metro – Water levels of the Willamette River have been dropping, albeit slowly, but that’s the nature of the beast. Sturgeon fishing remains the best option for action.

While the McKenzie may not be the premium destination for trout fishing, fly anglers will find the water dropping and in good condition.

Despite the entire Santiam system coming into decent shape for fishing this weekend, winter steelhead only start entering in January so fishing is expected to be slow.

Clackamas levels topped out about a week ago and have been dropping with water conditions improving since then. Winter steelhead are being caught, but it’s still not the peak of the season.

Our man on the Sandy, pro fishing guide Jeff Stoeger (http://guideoregon.com/) reports the river will be dropping into shape over the weekend and tells us where winter steelhead are concentrated.

Northwest – Early season anglers remain a bit perplexed as intensive effort isn’t yielding incredible results. Smaller streams have exhibited good water conditions for a large part of the season, but anglers fishing the larger systems, such as the Wilson and Nestucca got back to it by mid-week. Results have been tempered.

What most expect to be peak week, anglers have been struggling for more than a chance or two at steelhead. Anglers working the North Fork Nehalem by boat and bank worked hard for little results when success rates should be great. Hatchery workers reported only 154 returning adults in their traps this week, far from what a typical year shows by the last week of December.

The Trask River produced a few fish this week, mostly in the upper reaches, where precipitation doesn’t have the same impact on flows and color that the lower reaches do. Most fish are wild, requiring release.

Steelhead are likely already spawning in smaller tributaries, but fresh fish will still be coming in for the next few weeks. Anglers will also come across spawned out one too however.

Three Rivers is following suit with most north coast systems, where anglers are having to work hard for their quarry. Action should be peaking this week, and it likely is, large numbers of fish are simply not present.

Dungeness crabbing is now wide open, in the ocean and estuaries, but weather hasn’t been all that cooperative since the fishery re-opened. Weekend tides look favorable, the weather does not.

Southwest – Despite the lack of depth restriction for anglers seeking ling cod and rockfish, most boats are fishing just outside port as catches are that good.

ODFW announced the opening of the entire coast to crabbing and further states that while bay clams and mussels may be harvested, razor clams are off limits for all Oregon beaches.

Author, publisher and prolific blogger, Pete Heley (peteheley.com) reports to us with details about bottomfishing regulations in 2017 and that the depth restriction will return in April. He also tells stories and highlights where and how with regard to south coast steelhead.

Lower Rogue steelheaders are facing water that’s still high, making the middle river a better bet. Winter steelhead are not yet into the upper Rogue.

Winter steelheading was getting underway on the Chetco just as the storm front hit about a week ago. It should fish well as it recovers.

The surface of Diamond Lake is slushy, putting the hope of ice fishing in the future.

Eastern – Expect to experience a whole new level of cold on the lower Deschutes as sub-zero temperatures are in store in the coming week. Fishing is slow.

Trout fishing has been fair to good on the Metolius which has a reputation to maintain as an off-season trout fishery although not all the stories are true.

For those looking to troll for trout at Detroit Lake, be aware that the Thistle Boat Ramp, accessible earlier this week, is now too muddy to launch. We’ll be keeping an eye on the situation.

SW Washington – District rivers remain ho-hum, with the Kalama and Washougal top prospects for area anglers. Keep in mind “top prospects” are relative this year. The district is suffering the same fate as many Oregon streams- sub-par steelheading for a fair effort.

Trout plants are still strong for winter trout anglers. If air and water temperatures warm, action should too.

No sign of smelt just yet. In recent years, fair numbers of smelt start showing in fair numbers around mid-January. A large run is not expected.

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By Bob Rees
The Guide’s Forecast

It’s a new year and that means new regulations, new fishing licenses and new challenges ahead. I can’t help but be excited however that the snow just keeps piling up in the mountains, nearly guaranteeing a strong spring run-off that should send baby salmon and steelhead downstream in quick fashion in just a few months from now. And maybe, just maybe, we won’t have to worry about such lethal summer temperatures for a change.

It’s been a welcome change; turbulent seas that may stir up the North Pacific, hopefully putting an end to the devastating warm water blob that’s certainly compromised most species of cold water fish on the west coast, not to mention the rippling effect of the loss of ecosystem function. A great start to the snowpack for 2017, and the reopening of the Dungeness crab fishery, the most economically valuable fishery in the state of Oregon. I’m not sure all the news is good news for 2017 however.

Following the extreme presence of the warm water blob, a large El Nino event and the devastating drought effects and freshwater mortality that effected several different species of salmonids, we’re already seeing the effects in this year’s predicted returns of spring and summer Chinook. The fall Chinook and coho predictions often come later in the spring, but not many are holding out hope for a banner year, such as the several we’ve been experiencing in recent years.

But that’s what makes these fisheries so productive, the volatility and resilience of our ecosystems. From feast to famine, they too serve a purpose. We, as humans, have always tried to control our ecosystem services so that they offer us, humans, the greatest returns on our investment. We may still be generations away from learning this, but one day, we will learn to work in concert with what mother nature deals us, instead of the best way to manipulate it for our own benefit. In the meantime, we haven’t recovered the 13 stocks of Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead, the Oregon Coastal coho and the plethora of other species that remain threatened under our “rule.” Learning is a slow process however, especially when we are asked to change the way we’ve historically utilized our natural resources.

I just had a good conversation with a friend that recently came back from Cuba. Although I’ve never been there, with the lack of an “industrial revolution,” a modernized form of commerce and no easy path for big industry to mine their natural resources, my friend noted that one outstanding and somewhat puzzling feature of the island is the lack of biodiversity that exists in the country. One would think, with this type of culture, that fish and wildlife would thrive here. I asked about the fishing opportunities (of course) and he replied that he observed only one outfitter that offered catch and release fishing at 1st World prices. It appeared as if the outfitter was some sort of government concessionaire. I wonder how that will change with United States relations in the future. I don’t know what the lessons to be learned here are, but I hope someone gets a chance to do it.

By the time we get to the end of 2016, most seem pretty anxious to close it out. For whatever reason, the New Year offers us a chance to shed our skin and start over again, in hopes of a better outcome in the next year. We won’t get that outcome if we don’t change our strategy however, no matter how dedicated we feel in the last week of December. How many times have you heard that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results?

We’ll deal with the cards that were handed to us, we’ve even seen worse, but you’ve often heard me say that we have to manage our resources more conservatively than before since it seems we have a poor track record of keeping our fish and wildlife in healthy abundance. I’m not sure that will change in the near future, but the first step in conservation is actually recognizing that there is a problem.

It’s highly likely that we’ll continue to operate the Columbia River hydropower system like we have for the last 5 decades, continue to harvest timber off of private and public forests at a rate that will continue to harm water quality, and spray compromising chemicals on our landscape that change animal behavior and contribute to the bioaccumulation of pesticides in our ecosystems. Substantial changes in the way we do business rarely happen when destruction is slow. All I ask of our collective, consuming community is that we start to look at other ways of doing business in the New Year. Maybe you attend in informative meeting that you’d like more information on, or come together with other like-minded folks and ask harder questions to your state or federal legislators. There are better ways for us to get engaged and make change, but mostly, we hope your 2017 is filled with change and a happy, healthy and sustainable harvest of all gifts given to us by Mother Nature.

Paul Curran with a Trask River steelhead December 2016

from Oregon Fishing http://ift.tt/2iwinLp

NOTE: This content is automatically by NewsBot1600. If there are any inaccuracies or issues, please let us no through the contact link.

By Bob Rees
The Guide’s Forecast

It’s a new year and that means new regulations, new fishing licenses and new challenges ahead. I can’t help but be excited however that the snow just keeps piling up in the mountains, nearly guaranteeing a strong spring run-off that should send baby salmon and steelhead downstream in quick fashion in just a few months from now. And maybe, just maybe, we won’t have to worry about such lethal summer temperatures for a change.

It’s been a welcome change; turbulent seas that may stir up the North Pacific, hopefully putting an end to the devastating warm water blob that’s certainly compromised most species of cold water fish on the west coast, not to mention the rippling effect of the loss of ecosystem function. A great start to the snowpack for 2017, and the reopening of the Dungeness crab fishery, the most economically valuable fishery in the state of Oregon. I’m not sure all the news is good news for 2017 however.

Following the extreme presence of the warm water blob, a large El Nino event and the devastating drought effects and freshwater mortality that effected several different species of salmonids, we’re already seeing the effects in this year’s predicted returns of spring and summer Chinook. The fall Chinook and coho predictions often come later in the spring, but not many are holding out hope for a banner year, such as the several we’ve been experiencing in recent years.

But that’s what makes these fisheries so productive, the volatility and resilience of our ecosystems. From feast to famine, they too serve a purpose. We, as humans, have always tried to control our ecosystem services so that they offer us, humans, the greatest returns on our investment. We may still be generations away from learning this, but one day, we will learn to work in concert with what mother nature deals us, instead of the best way to manipulate it for our own benefit. In the meantime, we haven’t recovered the 13 stocks of Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead, the Oregon Coastal coho and the plethora of other species that remain threatened under our “rule.” Learning is a slow process however, especially when we are asked to change the way we’ve historically utilized our natural resources.

I just had a good conversation with a friend that recently came back from Cuba. Although I’ve never been there, with the lack of an “industrial revolution,” a modernized form of commerce and no easy path for big industry to mine their natural resources, my friend noted that one outstanding and somewhat puzzling feature of the island is the lack of biodiversity that exists in the country. One would think, with this type of culture, that fish and wildlife would thrive here. I asked about the fishing opportunities (of course) and he replied that he observed only one outfitter that offered catch and release fishing at 1st World prices. It appeared as if the outfitter was some sort of government concessionaire. I wonder how that will change with United States relations in the future. I don’t know what the lessons to be learned here are, but I hope someone gets a chance to do it.

By the time we get to the end of 2016, most seem pretty anxious to close it out. For whatever reason, the New Year offers us a chance to shed our skin and start over again, in hopes of a better outcome in the next year. We won’t get that outcome if we don’t change our strategy however, no matter how dedicated we feel in the last week of December. How many times have you heard that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results?

We’ll deal with the cards that were handed to us, we’ve even seen worse, but you’ve often heard me say that we have to manage our resources more conservatively than before since it seems we have a poor track record of keeping our fish and wildlife in healthy abundance. I’m not sure that will change in the near future, but the first step in conservation is actually recognizing that there is a problem.

It’s highly likely that we’ll continue to operate the Columbia River hydropower system like we have for the last 5 decades, continue to harvest timber off of private and public forests at a rate that will continue to harm water quality, and spray compromising chemicals on our landscape that change animal behavior and contribute to the bioaccumulation of pesticides in our ecosystems. Substantial changes in the way we do business rarely happen when destruction is slow. All I ask of our collective, consuming community is that we start to look at other ways of doing business in the New Year. Maybe you attend in informative meeting that you’d like more information on, or come together with other like-minded folks and ask harder questions to your state or federal legislators. There are better ways for us to get engaged and make change, but mostly, we hope your 2017 is filled with change and a happy, healthy and sustainable harvest of all gifts given to us by Mother Nature.

Paul Curran with a Trask River steelhead December 2016

from Oregon Fishing http://ift.tt/2iwinLp

NOTE: This content is automatically by NewsBot1600. If there are any inaccuracies or issues, please let us no through the contact link.

Willamette Valley/Metro – Willamette flows increased dramatically this week – from about 48,000 cfs to over 68,000 cfs from December 20 to December 21st which is the latest data available. Sturgeon fishing has been good on the lower Willamette and they like this kind of water. Be extremely cautious in any watercraft for the next several days.

McKenzie River water flow and conditions are conducive to winter fly fishing although results are reported as slow.

The Santiam system is high but dropping and should be fishable in the coming week. Winter steelhead are available here.

While the Clackamas got walloped in the ice/snow/rain recently, it is recovering quite nicely and should be in good shape for the holiday weekend.

Our Man on the Sandy, Pro fishing guide Jeff Stoeger of O2BFISHN Guide Service (503-704-7920) informs us that Oxbow Park is closed due to downed trees but should be open by the January 1, 2017. Water levels have been up and down but there are winters in the river.

Northwest – Another storm battered NW district streams, putting steelheading out of reach at mid-week. By Thursday however, smaller streams were still high, but fishable. Updated reports were hard to come by but anglers versed in high-water tactics likely scored fair-at-best results. The North Fork Nehalem, Three Rivers and the Highway 30 streams will likely fish good by Friday and through the weekend.

Larger streams will remain out until Saturday at the earliest, the Wilson had been putting out a few hatchery, and some wild steelhead prior to the high water.

The Trask also booted out a few hatchery strays and a rare wild fish, Chinook have been rare on most Tillamook area streams but there are a few still around, most are ready to spawn.

The Nestucca might be a fair at best option by the weekend, but target your effort downstream of Three Rivers.

This will be the last full week to retain Chinook on the north coast. The season closes on January 1st.

Ocean and bay crabbing is wide open along the Oregon Coast now. Tides are right for good crabbing this weekend but weather, both offshore and in, doesn’t look to be all that friendly until Saturday, when winds calm down. The ocean swell may remain too high to safely crab the ocean however. It’s rumored that the commercial season may open by January 1st.

Southwest – Saturday and Sunday, December 31st and January 1, 2017 is a Free Fishing Weekend. No licenses or tags are required.

Oregon Beaches are still producing pinkfin surf perch on rare winter days when both the wind and wave action calm down.

Reports from the Siuslaw are of winter steelhead being hooked occasionally but that the peak of the run is yet to come.

Author, publisher and prolific blogger, Pete Heley (peteheley.com) updates us this week on the bottomfishing regulations, stressing that every boat angling for rockfish or ling cod must have a descending device.

Following heavy rainfall that pushed the lower Rogue to flows of 100,000 cfs, the river has been falling. It’s still quite high but should produce steelhead in the next few days.

Winter steelhead had been productive prior to the latest freshet and the river is expected to fish well again when it’s in shape.

There has been ice forming on the surface of Diamond Lake but rain has also fallen here. No ice fishing for a while.

Eastern – Reports from central and Eastern Oregon seem to dry up at this time of year. Please Email TGF if you have any information on any of these fisheries. We thank you and wish you the happiest of holidays!

SW Washington – District streams remain largely void of early run steelhead. The Kalama may be the best early season bet with just a few fish showing.

The Lewis may still be producing a few winter Chinook, but it’s clear the run is depressed this year.

The Washougal is another early season option and has been producing fairly.

There are fair trout opportunities in the district this time of year.

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Willamette Valley/Metro – While there’s nothing too remarkable going on with Willamette flows, the water is muddy from recent rain. There has been no movement of fish to speak of through the first couple of weeks of December.

Fly fishers may want to try the McKenzie River which appeals by proximity if not productiveness, Target trout here as the Mack pretty much a steelhead-free zone.

According the National Weather Service forecast, the entire Santiam system should be at fishable levels this coming weekend.

The Clackamas River rose into December 12th but has been dropping since that date. There are reports of some steelhead taken here. Dave Neels of Oregon City Fishermans Marine (503-557-3313) told TGF by phone on Thursday morning that he’s heard of a few steelhead taken earlier this week.

Our man on the Sandy, Pro fishing guide Jeff Stoeger of O2BFISHN Guide Service (503-704-7920) reports there are steelhead available here. Stoeger also warns drift-boaters that Oxbow park is closed until further notice due to trees and other hazards that have the main road closed. The only boat ramp open for hard boats is Dabney Park.

Northwest – Catches of winter steelhead on the north coast has improved. Reports from the North Fork Nehalem indicate an up-tick in success rates, but that is to be expected no matter how many fish are coming back to the system. It’s peak season time for north coast, early run steelhead.

The Necanicum, Big Creek, Gnat Creek and Three Rivers should all be harboring catchable numbers of fish for bank anglers. The North Fork Nehalem will likely remain the best option however, given the amount of public land there is to fish. The Necanicum and Three Rivers, a close second. Don’t overlook the Klaskanine out of Astoria either.

Tillamook area streams remain open for another two weeks for Chinook. Catches have not been good during the late season however. Steelhead fishing is improving however with the Wilson and Nestucca good options this weekend. Dropping flows should make these bigger river systems the better option. The Wilson and Kilchis will offer up the best opportunity for a bright Chinook.

Crabbing has opened up in the northern estuaries, but success has been difficult with the more extreme tide series. Razor clam digging remains closed on Oregon beaches.

Flat seas opened up some bottomfishing opportunities for north coast saltwater anglers. It was likely good, but we have no confirmed reports.

Crabbing in the Columbia is slowing.

Southwest – There are a few charter boats which have been able to get out this week and, as expected, bottom fishing was excellent.

There have been a few hearty anglers who have recently chosen of their own volition to stand on a frozen winter beach to cast for surf perch. Some of those caught fish.

Bottom fishing regulations for offshore anglers were finalized this week. Among other things, while the rockfish limit remains seven, only six of those can be Black Rockfish. While there was an abundance when the bag limit rule was written, Blacks have been fished hard and with success.

Author, publisher and prolific blogger, Pete Heley (peteheley.com) writes from Reedsport remarking about those rare opportunities in wintertime when it’s possible to launch a boat out to the ocean. He also reminds us hoe great bottom fishing and crabbing can be at this time of year. He’s not wrong!

The Rogue River has been at the influence of the weather – and plenty of it – for several weeks. Most recently, the lower Rogue got smacked with a rise of nearly 20 feet with water continuing to come up as this report is being written. Once the Rogue recovers, there will be winter steelhead to catch.

Reports from over the past week indicate that the Chetco River was producing winter steelhead and we expect it to do the same once it drops back into shape.

Good News – We got word that Diamond Lake is icing up. Bad News – It’ll be weeks before there’s enough for ice fishing – if then.

Eastern – Reports from the east side of Oregon slow in wintertime. We welcome fishing reports from readers now and at any time of year. We don’t hotspot or name names.

The lower Deschutes has been producing trout for fly anglers but this week we suggest you forget there may be one or two steelhead here.

Winter trout fishers often head for the Metolius as it is spring fed and maintains fairly moderate water temperatures. Trout fishing will be better in the spring but is fair now. This river is catch-and-release only.

SW Washington – The district remains fairly quiet for winter steelhead although the Kalama is putting out a few fish. The Cowlitz is slow for steelhead, but there are still some coho around, but they are severely degraded.

The Lewis is now an option for winter Chinook. Although some years can be good, this won’t likely be one of them.

WDF&W planted some fair numbers of rainbow trout in Klineline and Battle Ground Lakes. The bite should pick up when the weather warms.

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