If you put your ear to the wind, listen closely … you will likely hear the sound of winter steelhead fishers slamming the door on what has been a somewhat disappointing winter run, following an exceptional 2022, where we saw better-than-expected abundance. The 2023 season might be remembered for its[Read More…]
Outdoors
Conditions are hit-and-miss post winter storms
With the largest part of the energy going into California, a recent series of storms slammed into the West Coast, bringing gusty winds, heavy rain and some snow, but mostly rain to all the western states. To the good fortune of Oregonians we have for now escaped the catastrophic flooding[Read More…]
Oregon steelhead production remains consistent
Reports of winter steelhead finding their way home to Oregon’s coastal rivers have been modest although somewhat persistent throughout the length of the far western part of our state. In part one of a two-part series I will give you a general overview of all the winter steelhead possibilities on[Read More…]
Casting about for the right licenses
I do have some positive winter steelhead news and I will get to that a little further down the column. With the winter solstice upon us, we have entered a season of renewal and it’s time to renew those soon to be outdated fishing licenses and other game retention tags.[Read More…]
Braided lines a key to success all year
Oregon anglers historically saw the first of the winter steelhead arrive in our coastal waters about the end of November. But it’s been a couple of decades since Oregon anglers have been able to consider the Thanksgiving holiday weekend as the kickoff of the year’s winter steelhead season. For many[Read More…]
Early November rains paying off for anglers
Early last spring we had no idea that the coming summer would be so hot – in fact, the hottest summer in Willamette Valley history. May and June were awfully wet and the late-season precipitation felt like an endurance contest for anglers and other outdoors enthusiasts. But coming behind a[Read More…]
Ocean salmon fishing ending; Stay aware of all regulations
The ocean coho season unceremoniously came to a halt Sept. 30. Characteristic of a good part of the ocean salmon season, hazardous bar conditions and rough seas in the last few days of the season keep many anglers from taking advantage of what was generally a fair season of coho[Read More…]
Cool weather offers ‘jump start’ for anglers
The recent cool-down and a little early fall rain has been a welcome event for anglers across our region. The largest opportunity for anglers in Oregon is always trout: catch and release for wild trout and catch and keep for hatchery trout. The ODFW’s trout stocking program is winding down[Read More…]
Recalling the beauty before climate change
Editor’s note: This is the first of two parts. As I began to do the research for this week’s Angler’s Log, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration climate summary for July and August became available. Now we all know it was hot but the summary revealed that at about 74[Read More…]
Dream fishing trip comes true in Idaho
You plan, you do the research, you have expectations, but until you find yourself on the way to a new adventure it’s sometimes hard to fully grasp the depth of the experience you are about to have. And as we stood at the edge of the gravel runway on the[Read More…]
