Fishing for spring Chinook is now closed
by OR Department of Fish & Wildlife Staff
9-27-2023
Website
No recent fishing reports. River levels best for fishing are at or below 3,000 cfs, and the river is currently running at around 1,600 cfs at the gauge in Mehama. These flows should be consistent until the fall rains.
Fishing for spring Chinook is now closed. Anglers may see spawning or spawned out salmon in the river. Please give these fish enough distance to complete their life cycle. Don't let dogs to eat or chew on salmon carcasses as these contain a toxin that can be lethal to dogs.
The only legal harvest right now is summer steelhead, but this run is very poor this year. Only about 1,000 fish have migrated above Willamette Falls this year up to now, with very few additional fish expected.
Next up will be the short but intense coho salmon run. Counts at Willamette Falls show the beginnings of a very good run year with over 14,000 fish having already crossed into the upper Willamette basin. A good proportion of these fish are destined for the North Santiam. Peak time to target these fish are in early October.
Fishing for hatchery steelhead is open year-round. Any unclipped (wild) steelhead or trout that are caught must be released unharmed.
More Reports
OR Department of Fish & Wildlife Reports
for Wednesday, September 27th, 2023Wallowa River: With recent rains, the flow of the Wallowa River has increased
Crane Prairie Reservoir: Trout fishing at Crane Prairie has improved in recent weeks
Hood River: The Hood River is muddy due to rain
Metolius River: The Metolius River continues to fish well
Paulina Lake: Anglers continue to report good trout fishing
Pine Hollow Reservoir: Pine Hollow was stocked the week
Prinevile Reservoir: Prineville Reservoir at 62 percent full
Breitenbush River: The Forest Service Road (FR 46) up the Breitenbush River has re-opened
Santiam River ( North Fork) Above Detroit Lake: Flows are currently around 430 cfs
Santiam River (South Fork): Currently flows are around 1,600 cfs
Alsea River: Fall Chinook is open on the Alsea, and so far the season has been running slow
Kilchis River: Cutthroat are available throughout the river
Necanicum River: The Necanicum could have a few Fall Chinook moving into the lower river
Nehalem River: Chinook fishing has remained fair in Nehalem Bay
Nestucca River: Fall Chinook fishing in the Nestucca has been slow to fair in estuary
Salmon River: Fall Chinook is open and picking up in the Salmon River
Siletz River: Fall Chinook has opened on the Siletz
Siuslaw River: Fall Chinook has started to pick up the last few weeks on the Siuslaw river!
Trask River: The Trask gets a hatchery coho run, and some of these fish should be pushing into the lower river
Wilson River: Fishing is fair
Ben Irving Reservoir: Trout fishing should be picking up with the cooler rains over the last week
Cooper Creek Reservoir: Trout fishing is doing better at Cooper Creek this week
Coquille River: Coho salmon has been spotty on the lower Coquille River
Diamond Lake: Trout fishing should really be picking up right now with the colder weather
Galesville Reservoir: Fishing should be great at Galesville
Lake Marie: Trout fishing should be good now as waters cool off
Lemolo Lake: Trout fishing should be great
Umpqua River: Chinook fishing has picked up in the lower river
9-22-2023
Keep dogs away from salmon carcasses Whether it's spawned out salmon or dead fish placed for stream enrichment, letting your dog...... Read More