Deschutes River Boater's Guide

We got em!

Planning on floating the Deschutes?  Don’t leave home without the Deschutes River Boater’s guide.  Access, camps, whitewater and facilities are all in there.  Plus a bunch of other neat history about the river.

Buy them here...

"The Gorge"

Gorge Fly Shop Team - 541.386.6977

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Tom Larimer - How to rob a bank

Join us June 22nd at the Grand Opening of Gorge Fly Shop's new location

Presenting for us on this Saturday at 1:15 pm at our new casting area is Tom Larimer

 
How to rob a Bank...
Few trout rivers in the western US are as challenging and rewarding as Oregon’s Deschutes. 

G.Loomis Sales Manager, Tom Larimer, will share insights from 15 years of guiding the river for redsides. 

His program will focus on a strategic approach, the critical gear, and useful casts/presentations for finding the river’s biggest fish in deep bank water. 

You will walk away with a solid game plan for success on our home water!

Tom Larimer
How to rob a Bank

Columbia Gorge Fishing Report- (12/11/16)

Well winter has officially arrived in the Gorge!

Winter wonderland in the Gorge

We have been hit with a bunch of snow, ice and rain mixed in for good measure.  Road conditions have improved, but with colder weather on the way it could get icy out there.

Winter Steelhead are starting to move in the area, though it is still a bit early for the major push.  Coastal rivers in OR and WA typically get earlier fish after big rain events.  If you can time it right, hit those coastal rivers as they are on the drop.  The key is keeping an eye on river flows and having the flexibility to go when the conditions are right.

There are still some summer fish kicking around, and some even in good shape.  The Klickitat is now closed above the Fisher Hill Bridge for trout, salmon and steelhead.  There is a winter whitefish season, but make sure you follow the special gear restrictions for whitefish.  The John Day can produce some great action throughout the winter and an occasional fish is hooked on the Deschutes throughout the winter.

My last hurrah of summer steelhead

Trout fishing has been pretty darn good on the Deschutes.  If you can get out there on a decent day, when the wind isn't ripping and conditions are steady for a few days it can be pretty epic.  Most of the fish are being taken on nymphs.  As I mentioned in the last report, typically the name of the game this time of year is small flies.  Blue Wing Olives and midges are a good bet.   The BWO hatches tend to accelerate during rainy, cold, overcast conditions..  Check the back eddies for rising fish and nymph with small pheasant tails, hare's ears, copper johns and midge larvae. Don't just go out there dredging with heavy split and flies though.  If you aren't getting bites, try shallow nymph presentations right near the bank or riffle edges.  Move your indicator around till you find the water column the fish are feeding in.

If you do venture out in this weather, please keep an eye on road conditions and closures and most importantly drive safely and carry emergency supplies and tire chains with you.


Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Clackamas:

USGS

NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing anytime.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977




Ryan Van Duzor
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977


Read More from the "Bearded Pescador"

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Columbia Gorge Fishing Report - (10/09/2016)

***Monday addition***  I previously forgot to mention the world premier of the new fly fishing movie Providence at Andrews Pizza/Skylight Theater this Saturday, October 15.  6:30 and 8:30 shows are $10 each.  This is the new movie from Confluence Films, the makers of Drift, Rise, Connect and Waypoints.  These are some of our absolute favorite fly fishing movies.  They always feature great scenery, incredible adventure, and some dandy fishing.  Please join us for a show, have a beer or two, meet other local fisherpeople and enjoy the best pizza in the Gorge.  Call us or Andrews Pizza for details and I will see you there.


Fishing reports have been sparse this month because we have been out fishing!  I spent a week trout fishing on the Kenai River.  Despite the crowds, the fishing was as good (better) than I had imagined.  TJ Dawson from Lakeview Outfitters really showed me a good time and put me on some dandy fish.  I did also fish several days with Jeff Heiskell from Alaska Troutfitters.  He is alright I guess...  Just kidding Jeff, love ya buddy.  Thanks for the good times.  It really should be on every angler's bucket list.  What a beautiful river with some amazing fish.

Jeff with a "its too small for a picture"
Kenai Rainbow

As far as what is happening around the Gorge:  We finally got a healthy dose of the fall rains that we have been asking for.  This did cause some clarity issues on the Klick and the Hood.  That's OK because the summer steelhead run on the Hood is mediocre at best, but it should get the fall chinook into full spawn mode and flush out the older salmon that are hanging around.  I don't put in much effort on the Hood this time of year, but if I only have an hour or two to fish, it is available and gives up a steelhead every once in a great while.

There are no winter steelhead in the Hood River yet... the earliest that winter steelhead have been found in the fish trap on the Hood has been mid November, and that is always after heavy rains.  The winter steelhead really get moving into the Hood well after the New Year.

Dave with a nice hatchery Steelhead
caught on  his brand new Nautilus!

The Klickitat did color up a little bit, but it is reported to not be as bad as expected (as of Saturday).  More rains are coming, but I am not sure how it will impact the local rivers.  The Klick has been producing, but as we are all aware, numbers are very low compared to the ten year average.  This doesn't mean that you won't catch fish, but expect to put in some time and effort for your fish.

The Deschutes seems to have held up pretty well from recent rains.  Clarity is not perfect, but we like a little color to our rivers.

Confluence of the Russian and Kenai Rivers, gorgeous!

Trout fishing has been at near epic levels on the Deschutes however.  Reports of Mahogany Dun Mayflies, October Caddis and even some Blue Wing Olives (on those crappy, cloudy mornings) are all signs that point to good fishing.  Stripping streamers on trout spey rods has been productive too.  For my time and money I am focusing more on the upper river between Warm Springs and Trout Creek, but the fishing has been good throughout the river.


Fall Chinook should be finishing up their spawn here shortly, so opportunities for fresh, hot salmon are about over, but there are a few Coho Salmon around the tributaries.

October trout fishing!

Lakes are still fishing very well.  We heard of a couple of guys at Timothy Lake tying into some monster trout.  Clear Lake can be very good too for big brookies this time of year.  Lost and Laurance are both fishing very well for smaller "stocker" trout and Goose Lake has been pushing out some fish in the 16" range with consistency.

The East Fork Hood River is very colorful right now... but trout fishing (its always closed for steelhead/salmon) has been decent when it has been clearer.  Time shall tell when it clears up, but it closes on Halloween so get in your small stream trout fishing while you can.

Ryan has been slaying nice smallmouth bass on the Columbia lately.  He isn't giving up any secrets, but he appears to be the only person bass fishing out there...

Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.  You can also check water temps here too...

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977

Andrew Perrault
Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Columbia Gorge Fishing Report - (07/17/2016)

Gorgeous sunrise on the lower Deschutes

Fishing remains fantastic throughout the area.  The local rivers have stayed in decent shape considering it is mid July and the Hood, Klickitat and White Rivers will all typically be flowing dirty this time of year.  However, cooler weather has kept them all in good shape so far this month.

Apologies for the lack of reports weekly, the Sage closeout sale has been keeping us all very busy.  We also received our first shipment of Tom Larimer's new casting DVD: Skagit Revolution.  It is a very good video that breaks down spey casting and gives you everything from the basics to some advanced techniques.  It is very clear and easy to understand as Tom is a great instructor, plus the Gorge Fly Shop is a sponsor of the video.  Pick it up while its hot!

Trout Lake Creek is one of the hidden gems of our area.

On to the fishing:  Ryan and I went up to Trout Lake Creek last week with a couple of Tenkara rods.  We caught a couple dozen little trout on a good variety of attractor dry flies like stimulators, hoppers and royal trudes.  It is a fun creek to spend a day chasing small rainbow trout.  While you won't run into any monsters in our small creeks, the scenery, abundance of trout and remoteness make it a little gem in our backyard.

Chris and I also spent a day fishing the lower part of the Deschutes for summer steelhead.  Conditions were great on the river, although it was bright and sunny.  We swung flies all day and all that we caught were a handful of smallmouth bass!  This was very surprising considering the first bass we caught was 8 miles upstream.  That is a considerable amount of whitewater for a bass to navigate in order to end up that far from the Columbia.  We also caught another one over 6 miles from the mouth of the river...  No steelhead landed, but there was one brief hookup on a small purple leechy pattern.  The Klickitat and the Hood are still in decent shape and there are a few steelhead showing up.  As long as we stay under 90 degrees, our local rivers should stay in shape.  The Hood doesn't get a ton of summer fish, but it is an option when there is decent visibility.

Lake fishing for trout has been absolutely phenomenal.  Damselfly and dragonfly nymphs are a huge food source for trout in most lakes this time of year.  Trolling a Carey Special, ultra damsel nymph or even a woolly bugger should get you some nice fish in our local lakes.  Lost Lake has been fishing very well from what we have heard, as well as Laurance, Goose (WA), Timothy and Clear Lake.

Smallmouth Bass are snapping on the John Day (as well as the Deschutes apparently, LOL!).  They are eating everything you can throw at them.  Most anglers prefer to use a small bass popper, but grasshopper patterns, streamers and nymphs work just as well.  Cottonwood Canyon is a great place to get started on the JD.

The Columbia River has been a bit windy this past week, which hampers bass and carp fishing out there, but the fishing has been good when we get a break from the wind. The wind can dirty up the river, so having a full day where it is not "nuclear" out there would be preferable...

The Deschutes has not been fabulous for trout fishing, but it hasn't been awful.  The caddis hatches have not been prolific recently.  Cooler, inconsistent weather has led to smaller hatches, but the trout are still eating...

Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.  You can also check water temps here too...

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977

Andrew Perrault
Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports (07/03/2016)

Happy Fourth of July from all of us at the Gorge Fly Shop.  

In case you have been out of the loop, we are having a huge Sage Sale.

We couldn't ask for better conditions on local lakes and small streams.  The temps are nice and mild, the fish have been cooperative and the water levels are just right.

The bad news comes from the Hood and the Klickitat if chasing summer steelhead is your thing.  The Hood has been coloring up and looks something like wet concrete this morning.  The turbidity in the Klickitat has also been increasing over the past few weeks and is borderline fishable this morning.

The Deschutes is in decent shape, although effort and catch rates have been sparse.  Water temperatures have been high, but not as high as last year.  They popped above 70 for a few days last week, but have stayed under 70 for the most part this week.  We are still a month or more away from decent numbers of fish showing up in the river, but it is a nice place to be, especially when it is not scorching hot outside.

Lake fishing for trout has been excellent across the region.  High lakes like Lost, Timothy, Goose and Laurance have all been fishing extremely well.  There has been good dry fly action early and late in the days with woolly buggers or damsel nymphs on sinking lines being a productive technique in the heat of the day.  The hexagenia mayfly hatch has been happening on many of our local lakes, and a few guys have come in with wide grins as they quietly pick up a handful of hex dry flies without spilling the beans on which lake they have been fishing.

Trout fishing on the Deschutes has been great too.  Caddis hatches have been described to us as "epic" and "overwhelming".  Fish have been eating the dries during the day too, but the best action is as the sun leaves the water in the evening.

Carp fishing has been great.  Old Rubber Lips loves the hex hatch too, and the hatch on the Columbia has been excellent.  Carp will actively chase nymphs like a trout and can even let their normally cautious guard down.  The hexes hatch in the same areas that carp normally hang out too, so get on out there!

Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.  You can also check water temps here too...

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977

Andrew Perrault
Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Columbia Gorge Fishing Report (06/12/2016)

Columbia Gorge Fishing Report - 06/12/2016

What a gorgeous weekend we have had here, I hope everyone got out to enjoy the cooler weather and great fishing across the area.  Trout fishing is still fantastic in most of the usual spots, summer steelhead are slowly trickling in and bass fishing is as good as it gets.

I know that many of our Deschutes River rainbow trout anglers are not very familiar with hatch cycles and tactics for trout after the stoneflies have waned, but it is not as difficult as one would imagine.  Throw small mayfly nymphs in the morning, look for a hatch around mid-day into the afternoon (it may or may not bring fish to the surface near riffles), start throwing caddis pupae in the late afternoon or early evening (some people fish them all day) and then move onto caddis dries when the sun is no longer on the water.  You can always fish a general attractor dry like a Royal Wulff or a Madam X, and fish are still looking for yellow sallies opportunistically throughout the day, so that is an option if you are not into changing flies all that much.  It is likely not as productive as nymphing, but it is sure a lot easier to plan for.  Another productive strategy is to toss a dead caddis dry early in the morning before the sun is on the water.

Early season on the Klickitat...

Summer steelhead are starting to trickle into the Gorge tributaries.  Still no word on any action on the Deschutes.  The water temps on the Deschutes already reached 72 degrees last week, but they have dropped back down with the cooler weather this week.  

The White River likely caused the lower Deschutes to muddy up too, but again, no one has told us if that happened, it is just typical when it is hot in the area.  The Klickitat was in poor shape last week after all of the hot weather caused the river to muddy up, but it looks decent today (Sunday).  Not a lot of action reported on the Klick, but there are a few fish around and all I need is one.

While we haven't heard of much happening on the Washougal, it is a favorite June steelhead stream for local anglers.

Jim reported to us from the North Umpqua last week.  He fished a dry all day, all week and had one fish come to his dry in four days; but he was super excited about it even though it didn't stick to the hook.  That is the proper attitude of a dedicated steelhead fisherman.  Thanks for the report Jim.

Smallmouth Bass fishing is nothing short of incredible on the John Day.  Poppers all day long...  The Columbia River has been windy and cold most of last week, so we have heard few reports from the usual anglers, but the fish are still in shallow water from the few guys we have talked with.

High mountain lakes are the only places to find a brownie here

My favorite fishing this time of year is to hit the small mountain lakes as soon as the roads are open to get into them.  There are hundreds in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and dozens in the Mt Hood National Forest that hold nice trout.  While you are unlikely to find ten pound monster rainbows, you will find solitude, beauty and great fishing at any number of out-of-the-way places.

Lost Lake, Laurance Lake, Goose Lake, Clear Lake and Timothy Lake are all bigger lakes in the forest that have good camping and great fishing.  The rest of them shall remain unnamed on this report, but will be there when you find them.

Small streams are fishing well for trout too!  Eagle Creek has been very good, as well as the upper Clackamas, and Trout Lake Creek.  The East Fork Hood was very muddy last week when I went by, but it has cleared up with this cool weather.

Carpin' is another good option, especially when it is sunny, warm and calm.  With carp, it is more about the presentation than the actual fly as long as the fly is in the right ballpark.  They are in every pond and in the main river all throughout the Gorge. Also, we now have a good selection of carp flies...

Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977

Andrew Perrault
Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Columbia Gorge Fishing Report (05/22/2016)

May 22, 2016

It has been a great spring for fishing in the Gorge so far and the fishing outlook improves even more in the next week or two.  The Oregon general season trout opener for rivers and streams is next Saturday, so our favorite small streams like the East Fork Hood and Eagle Creek will be open on May 29.

Other streams in Washington open in the next few weeks too.  The Klickitat opens June 1, while other streams in WA like Trout Lake Creek open on the first Saturday in June (June 4).

Rainbow Trout fishing on the Deschutes continues to be good.  The best fishing has been around the Trout Creek area and upstream to Warm Springs, but good trout fishing can be found anywhere along the river now.  While fish are still eating bigger stonefly imitations, refusals are common with the big bugs.  Try smaller stoneflies like a Yellow Sallie on the surface.  Trout are certainly eating PMD nymphs during the day, as well as caddis pupa in the evenings while snacking on the occasional stonefly and maybe even some caddis surface action before dark.

Lost Lake is the closest place to catch a nice brown trout.

Trout fishing in the local lakes has been really good too.  The flying ant hatch is in full swing at Lost Lake among others, and the fish are happy.  Have some black ants, woolly buggers and parachute adams and you will be a happy fisherman too.

Early summer steelhead fishing has been occurring, but reports are spotty.  The Clackamas seems to be kicking out some fish as well as the Kalama, but there has been very little action reported in the Gorge as is typical for our area.  Summer steelhead wont arrive in numbers for a couple of months, but there are always a few hanging around if you can find them.  The Klickitat opens next Wednesday (June 1), so that will at least provide more options for local anglers looking to swing into an early chromer.

Spring Chinook fishing has been good throughout the area.  Many locals put down the spey rod and pick up a baitcaster this time of year, but it is possible to swing a fish or two.  The locals that hang around the mouth of the Hood River have been catching the occasional Springer lately.

Smallmouth bass fishing has been fantastic lately, although Ryan's trolling motor has been broken, so we haven't been getting on the bass this week.  Other anglers have been crushing 'em though.  The full moon really gets bass riled up.  There are a few spots along the Columbia that someone could get them from shore, but having a boat helps tremendously.

Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Clackamas:

USGS

NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977

Andrew Perrault
Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports (05/15/2016)

What a sunset in the Deschutes River Canyon!  

Local fishing has been superb lately!  Rainbow Trout fishing is still the best bet for a day of great fishing in the area.  The Salmonfly/Stonefly hatch on the Deschutes is going strong from Maupin up to Pelton Dam.

Salmonflies are popping from Maupin to Madras

The bulk of the bugs were up around Trout Creek, but they were flying thick throughout the entire stretch.  I noticed many anglers fishing nymphs under bobbers during my float last week.  I am not sure how they were doing, but I fished a Clark's Stone for three days and had no issues getting fish to come to the surface.  I am heading back out to do Trout Creek to Harpam again this week and planning on fishing all dries again.  I am prepared to fish smaller yellow sallies as they are starting to pop too.  I saw a couple of green drakes, a pile of PMDs, and a huge caddis hatch also, but the fish were sure eager to eat a stonefly all day.  Camping upstream of North Junction on Thursday night, I have never seen so many stoneflies flying at once right before dark.  The sky was nearly black with bugs, birds and bats were happy.  It was definitely very impressive.

Wild Horses rule the Warm Springs Reservation!

Spring Chinook Salmon fishing is still moving along in the Gorge.  There is very little effort from the fly anglers towards salmon.  They are not the most aggressive fish, nor do they tend to sit in spots that are easily accessible for most fly anglers, but they are in the local rivers and plenty of anglers catch them given the time and energy.

Smallmouth Bass fishing has been great too!  The Hood River Marina is a great place to go catch a pile of fish on a lunch break.  Without a boat, bass fishing is a little more difficult, but there are plenty of places in the area to pull off the road and catch some smallies.  Fish are definitely in shallow water, looking to spawn during the full moon this next week.  They turn on to poppers more after the spawn.  I seem to do better right now stripping buggers slower near the bottom for big fish, but if you can find them, they will likely eat a variety of flies throughout the water column moving at various speeds.  

Golden Stones are everywhere on the Deschutes.

Local lakes have been fishing really well too.  Laurence, Lost and Kingsley have all been kicking out loads of fish on dries, nymphs and buggers.  I am sure other lakes are fishing really well too but we haven't heard much from them in the past week or two.  Most anglers are hitting the Deschutes while it is good.  

Shad are starting to pick up.  By the first of June, they should be in the Columbia in catchable numbers.  

Summer Steelhead are starting to trickle in.  There are always early fish in rivers like the Sandy, Clackamas and Kalama, but the big runs of fish in the Deschutes and Klickitat don't start moving in until late July or August.  Westside rivers get more early steelhead than the Eastside rivers. 

Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Clackamas:

USGS

NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977

Andrew Perrault
Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

"Fly Fish the World with Us"

Columbia Gorge Fishing Report (05/07/2016)

Salmonflies a plenty on the Deschutes!

The fabled Salmonfly hatch on the Deschutes River is now in full effect on the upper river.  Sam Sickles of Steelhead Outfitters and I, along with our buddy Jamie did an overnight float from Trout Creek to Maupin on Wednesday and Thursday (May 4-5).  We were not expecting to see the hatch moving along as quick as it was, but were happy to have the river mostly to ourselves with very eager fish snapping at our flies with gusto.

The biggest concentration of the insects were from North Junction to Whitehorse.  Nymphs were crawling all over, Golden Stones were more prevalent farther downstream, but there were an incredible number of bugs around the entire 30+ mile stretch of river.

Sam does have a few openings coming up during May if you want to fish with one of the best on the river during this fantastic time of year.  You can do a camp trip, a day float or a jet boat trip (on the lower river).  No matter how you go, it is worth it to get expert advice and a world-class experience.

This fattie was eager to eat a Clark's Stone

The fish we caught  mostly ate dry flies. They seemed to like smaller flies more than the big mamas that get thrown alot.  They should turn onto the bigger patterns soon as they are seeing more and more adult flies everyday.  Our three best flies for the trip were a #10 Yellow Stimulator, a Clark's Salmon and a #10 Purple Chubby Chernobyl.  Sam caught his biggest Deschutes trout to date on a Clark's, while I caught my biggest Deschutes trout to date about ten minutes later on a Stimulator.

We did use the nymph rods a couple of times when they were not responding well to the dries.  On Wednesday, rapidly declining weather caused the fishing to be a little spotty, so we used the nymphs a about a third of the day.  On Thursday, it was just for an hour or so in the morning before they started eating on top and we never looked back.  A competent angler should be able to crush fish for the next couple of weeks on dries, especially if fishing from about 10:00 to dark.  Early mornings can be tough during the hatch before the bugs get moving as it warms up.  Late evenings can also see a slowdown in activity; some days they eat all day and some they don't.

Salmon Fishing continues in the Gorge for Spring Chinook.  Drano Lake has been tough, but anglers are catching enough fish to keep most everyone happy.  When the Columbia is high and cool, salmon don't move into the lake as much as they do when the water is low in the big river.  The big reason that Drano is so popular is that it can be a cold water refuge for salmon as they migrate up the Columbia.  They will pop in for a day or two, cool off and then head up the big river.  They don't seem to be doing that as much this year as others because of good conditions in the Columbia.

A few fish have been caught on the Hood River as well.  There are few fly anglers that put in any effort towards salmon on the fly.  The chances of hooking one is pretty minimal, but it certainly does happen occasionally.  There is not much of a salmon run on the Hood, but it is open until the end of June.

The Klickitat is another option for salmon anglers in the area.  There is only one good spot open for salmon: the famed Pine Tree Hole about one mile upstream of the mouth.  The river is closed above Lyle Falls (1.4 miles upstream of the mouth), which is just upstream of the Pine Tree Hole.  It is only open three days a week until June 1 (Monday, Wednesday and Saturday)

June 1 is just around the corner and the Klickitat opens for Summer Steelhead.  While there are very few fish around before August, it is nice to get back out on one of the most scenic rivers anywhere after a long winter.  Just a note:  The Stinson Boat Launch is gone.  It collapsed into the river this winter.  Here is a post from Rolf of Klickitat Trader showing the damage.  No word on rebuilding efforts.  Anglers will have to launch at Leidl Bridge three miles upstream of Stinson if they want to float the canyon section this year.

The Clackamas is a great river to float in May and June to look for early Summer Steelhead as that is when the bulk of the summer fish return to the Clack.

Ole One Eye Sally put up a great fight

Smallmouth Bass fishing is still incredible right now on the Columbia River and it's impoundments.  Fish are pushing into the shallows, scouting out spawning beds, and generally being aggressive.  The fishing is best when the Columbia is high, which it has been, but regardless of water levels the bass fishing is great right now.  They love just about anything that is moving, from big buggers to clousers to poppers and I bet that they would eat just about any winter steelhead fly in the box.

The Loomis GLX Crosscurrent
is very impressive

Tom Larimer and I went out to a little impoundment on the side of the Columbia last week for a few hours in the morning. Bass fishing was great.  We caught some nice fish and I was able to try out a couple of G. Loomis rods that I had wanted to cast.  The 8'8" 8wt Shorestalker was a fun rod to pound the banks with.  It is very accurate and easy to pick up big flies.  I was a little concerned that it would be too short for the float tube, but it was great.  The other rod that I really, really liked was the GLX Crosscurrent 9'0" 7wt.  It was very impressive, lightweight, and powerful.  A fabulous streamer rod for trout, saltwater rod and bass rod.

The John Day River is a great place to go whack some Smallmouth Bass.  It is better from about mid-June through the summer, but it is available right now.  People have been catching them but water clarity and levels have been less than ideal.

Lost Lake is fishing well for rainbow trout, as well as Kingsley Reservoir and Laurence Lake.  I would imagine that Goose Lake should be accessible any day now.  The May 5 road report from the USFS in Trout Lake says that the lake is still inaccessible, but it shouldn't be long before the last of the snow clears off the road.

Flows:  The USGS sites give us real-time flows, while the NOAA site shows us predictions based on weather patterns.  Both are invaluable tools.

Hood River:

USGS

NOAA

Klickitat
USGS
NOAA

Clackamas:

USGS

NOAA

Deschutes near Madras:

USGS

Deschutes at the mouth:

USGS

NOAA

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam Water Temps
Columbia @ Hood River (The mouth of the Hood backs up at 75 feet)

As always, we are happy to talk fishing any time.  Give us a call if you have any specific questions on local rivers, gear, and tactics, or if you just want some encouragement to get out of the office.  541.386.6977

Andrew Perrault
Columbia Gorge Fishing Reports
Gorge Fly Shop | Product Specialist
541.386.6977

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