Willamette Valley – Anticipation is running high for the Friday the 13th opener of nearly the entire Columbia River. Anglers need to realize however that the bulk of the returning adults is upriver of Bonneville Dam and the 2nd half of the run is focused on upstream migration, not biting. None-the-less. there are some quality fish to be had and a May opener is a welcome chance at them. All reaches of the river will likely offer up equal opportunity but Friday is likely to be the best day.

Spring Chinook are in the lower Willamette and with double digit daily counts since the 1st of the month, there seems to be quite a few. Finding biters has been a challenge, though, but persistent anglers are getting a few.

McKenzie level and flow are excellent for fly fishers. While rain is in the forecast for the first of the coming week, it should have little effect on water conditions here.

Summer steelhead are available in the Santiam system and with good numbers of springers crossing at the Falls, catches will be reflected here soon.

Clackamas River level and flow are low and the water is quite clear. Fishing has been slow but it is hoped the freshet due in a few days will improve prospects here.

Springer fishing has been slow on the Sandy but there are many weeks ahead, during which these fish will continue to enter.

Northwest Oregon – Spring Chinook fishing is about to enter peak season on the north coast with Tillamook Bay offering up the best opportunity. Catches to date however have been slow. It’s due to break open however and with a calm ocean, lower bay options are the best.

Rivers remain low and unproductive for spring Chinook but there remains a few fish to be had nearly every morning up at the hatchery hole on the Trask River. The Wilson and Nestucca have isolated pockets of springers as well but the low water will keep them spooked.

The halibut opener out of Garibaldi wasn’t all that impressive. It likely won’t get much better either but there are some quality fish coming to the dock. Calm seas will make for a great experience, whether or not you catch your single keeper.

Razor clam digging was excellent last week but softer tides this weekend will be more conducive to crabbing; too bad that’s not all that productive.

Central & South Coast Reports – The first all-depth, three day fishery opens May 12th through 14th off the central Oregon coast with more openings scheduled as the quota allows.

Blogger, author and self-publisher of numerous Oregon fishing books, Pete Heley (peteheley.com) reports that spring Chinook catches slowed a bit this week but will bounce back.

Clamming was great in bays along the coast during the last minus tide. The next chance for extra-low tides will come in the third week of May.

Central & Eastern – Trout fishing has been good on the Deschutes this week as large Salmon Flies and Stoneflies are hatching now. This is a once-a-year event.

O’Dell has remained good for kokanee fishers. Jigging is a favorite technique here but if it’s too windy to jig, try trolling for them.

Smallmouth bass fishing remains good on the John Day both for number of fish and extra-large smallies.

A Free Family Fishing Event at Howard Prairie Reservoir will take place on Saturday, May 14, 9 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Two 30-minute talks are also offered in a covered area at the marina.

McNary Channel Ponds near Hermiston will also have a free fishing event on Saturday, May 14 from 10 a.m. to noon. The event is co-sponsored by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.

Surf perch fishing gas been ongoing off beaches u and down the coast. Many beach casters are taking limits of these tasty fish.

Bottom fishing has been yielding good catches of rockfish and ling cod for most ocean-worthy vessels launching out of central Oregon ports.

Rogue River has been slow for spring Chinook fishing ut best for those who know what stretch to fish. Summer steelhead are also available here.

SW Washington – The Cowlitz remains the best prospect in the district but catches are not living up to the 25,000 returning adults predicted. None-the-less, we’re in peak season here and some summer steelhead are starting to show. The winter run is fading.

The Kalama remains slow but some summer steelhead are showing here as well.

The Drano Lake and Wind River fisheries are still producing fair to good catches. Bank angling at time is as good, if not better than boat angling.

The Klickitat and Yakima Rivers are coming on line too.

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Willamette Valley – Spring Chinook passage at Bonneville is dismal. Peak passage is supposed to happen during the first week of May and if that’s when the peak happens this year, it’s likely to be a bust of a run. Keep your fingers crossed, a lot is at stake.

Spring Chinook fishing is slow on the lower Willamette although catch-and-release sturgeon fishing remains good. There has been reports of better action at Oregon City but with the sea lions awaiting you to hook up, anglers are becoming quickly discouraged. A really good day is 2 or 3 fish, and we’re in peak season. Can you say mis-prediction?

McKenzie fly fishers may expect good and improving water conditions over the coming weekend with fair to good results for trout. Although the Santiam system will be gradually dropping over the coming week, there are too few fish in the system to expect great results here.

Fishing on the Clackamas has been slow not that winter steelheading is all but over and summer steelhead and spring season has barely started.

Pro guide Jeff Stoeger of O2Bfishin Guide Service (503-704-7920), reporting on the Sandy River, tells us that fishing is slow but more summer steelhead will be coming into the river in coming weeks.

Northwest Oregon – It’s early for good numbers of spring Chinook in Tillamook Bay but given the poor results in the Willamette and tributary fisheries, you still may want to consider it. It’s late for steelhead as most of the winter run is spawning although there are some summer runs available in the Wilson and Nestucca systems.

Bottom fishing is excellent however, especially for sea bass. Garibaldi Charters writes, “Garibaldi Charters 1-800-900-HOOK . The weather pattern has prevented us from doing much ocean fishing this last week, but when it was nice enough to get out we were able to get easy limits of rockfish on the nearshore reefs around Three Arch Rocks.”

Razor clam digging has been good on the minus tides. Unfortunately, we don’t have those this weekend. Crabbing has been fair at best.

There are some spring Chinook available in Clatsop County, on Big Creek and the Klaskanine Rivers.

Central & South Coast Reports – Surf perch fishing has been producing many limits for anglers fishing off most of the south coast beaches.

The Department of Fish and Wildlife announced regulations for offshore salmon and halibut for 2016. It looks a little bleak for coho fishing this season.

In his regular weekly report, author of several books on fishing, Pete Heley (PeteHeley.com) reports that pinkfin perch have yet to make their annual appearance in Winchester Bay although spring Chinook catches have been decent on the Umpqua. Warmwater fishing is really picking up and trout are available in most area lakes and ponds

Bottomfishing has been outstanding out of most south coast ports. With lingcod spawning now, they are aggressive and anxious to cooperate with anglers.

The spring Chinook season on the lower Rogue is just getting underway, although there are a few springers clear up to the hatchery. Fishing on the middle river has been spotty with upper Rogue results being fair to good.

Now clear of ice, Diamond Lake trout fishing is slow to fair but is expected to improve.

Central & Eastern – Deschutes conditions are decent with some fly anglers catching redsides, although they aren’t in good shape now. They are just coming off of the spawn.

Owyhee River is receiving a great deal of pressure now on the stretch below the dam.

With Timothy Lake open and accessible now, this is another opportunity for eastside stillwater fly fishers.

Fishing has been fair to good and very good at times at Wickiup Reservoir. The opener over the past weekend was a hottie.

Odell Lake has been very productive, producing fairly consistent limits of kokanee.

SW Washington – The Cowlitz is still clicking along but spring Chinook are now starting to make up a more significant amount of the catch. The run is tracking well with about double the number returning to date to the hatchery as they had last year at this time. The overall forecast is for 25,000 returning adults, which may be a bit of a stretch but it seems the fishery is performing well and may be the best bet in town. Don’t forget to bring your own rock however, it’s crowded!

The Lewis and Kalama remain petty and not likely to change.

The Wind River and Drano Lake fisheries are nothing to write home about either. You can’t expect much however, when Bonneville Dam is only passing about 1,000 adults per day. This fishery should really be turning on now but anglers won’t get too excited until about 3,000 adults or better per day are passing the facility.

The Guide’s Forecast

 

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