Gorge Fly Shop Blog: Columbia Gorge Fishing Report

Deschutes Steelhead

The weather is changing out in the desert. It's even been periodically rainy as of late! Look for stable weather patterns to produce the best fishing. One thing Deschutes steelhead hate is change. Even theoretically positive weather changes. Dark and rainy for several days in a row is good. So is bright and sunny. The day when the weather changes drastically from one to the other tends to be tougher. We get that a lot later into the fall and it's just a part of the program.

On the plus side, water temps on the lower river couldn't be much better. Temps have been hovering in the 56-59 degree range down at the mouth and it doesn't get any better than that! All methods are viable, but it's hard to deny how good the dry line fishing has been. Be ready with some smaller comeback flies. If you find a biter and can't seal the deal with your go-to searching pattern, show the fish something small and buggy, like a Steelhead Coachman or Undertaker. And don't be afraid to go really small. Sometimes it seems like the only limitation to how small of a fly they'll grab is having a hook stout enough to hold a fish!

Deschutes Trout

It's an awfully sporty time to be trout fishing out there right now! The cool and rainy weather has spurred some BWO activity. Caddis are still present to some degree. There have been a bunch of October Caddis around, too. Though the adult is sadly not a huge part of the game, the trout definitely love the pupa. If you do some indicator fishing out there, mix a big October Caddis pupa into the program. They love 'em!

Fall is also a great time to streamer fish. With much colder weather impending, some of the bigger trout are looking for more of a mouthful. Smaller sculpins and a variety of leech patterns will do the trick

Mount Hood Lakes

The local stillwater season is winding down. Check the regulations as many of the alpine lakes close to fishing at the end of the month. With colder weather up high, expect many of the lakes to be in the process of turning over if they haven't done so already. This tends to mean there will be some color in the water. If that's the case, stick with darker leech patterns. Slowly strip them along on an intermediate line, or fish them below an indicator.