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Your search returned 5 items. Now showing items: 1 - 5.
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Wallowa Lake - June 28th, 2009 |
RECORDED: 
80 °
FISHING: Good
6/28/09 The fishing remains good on Wallowa lake. The frequent fish stocking at the state park will ensure everyone in the family catches fish. We have had a recent report of a monster rainbow being caught using a sinking line and a prince nymph. This would be a good approach if you are on the hunt for bigger game. Using a sink tip line or a full sink line and fishing with prince nymphs, wooly buggers, matuka spruce, copper johns, and soft hackles might get the big one you are searching for. Try using a double nymph set up as well. The inlet remains the best place for walk/wade fishing and a lime green copper john has been a productive pattern.
6/13/09 The lake is stocked frequently with trout at the south end near the state park. Small stockers can be fun but there are some much deeper fish in the lake too. The best fly fishing on the lake is at the inlet where the Wallowa River feeds the lake. The debris coming out of the wilderness here creates prime feeding ground for the trout. Recently we have had reports of good fishing using pheasant tails nymphs, and zugbugs. Bring your wading gear the water is cold, and wading out further at the inlet can produce larger fish.
9-20-08 Slow!
9-03-09 Wallow Lake was stocked with trout for Labor Day, but fishing has been fairly slow in recent weeks. Remember, the river above Wallowa Lake was closed to fishing on Sept. 1 to protect spawning Kokanee.
8/2/08 -Wallowa Lake has been fishing good for stocked trout. Try fishing in the lake near the river mouth -- wade out to where the lake bottom slopes down quickly and fish over the edge with bead-head woolly buggers or nymphs. If you have a boat or float tube you can tru fishing the shore lines will small dries like 16 griffith's knats, humpies, or ant patterns. Kokanne have started spawning early this year in the river that enters the lake -- you will spot the bright orange color -- so best to leave these fish alone.
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Lostine River - June 27th, 2009 |
RECORDED:
75 °
FISHING: Poor
6/28/09 Even though the water is gin clear, the Lostine is just too high to fish. The flow has been peaking in the evening around 650-700 cfs. For the Lostine to be really fishable the water level needs to drop 300 cfs or more. I expect the conditions to be really improving in about 3 weeks. Definitely worth the wait, to fish this secluded drop dead gorgeous stream.
6/14/09 - To high to be really productive, and the rain seems to want the water level to stay that way. However, the water is clear on the Lostine, so if you can find some smooth slicks and eddies along the bank you might have success. Small stimulators, red humpies, and royal wolfs might get a strike in the evening. If you can't get anything to rise, try smaller prince nymphs, copper johns, hares ears, and phesant tails. If you are really brave, you might even attempt to swing larger leech or sculpin patterns in the deeper holes and try land one of the monster bulltrout who call this beautiful river home. The right Wooly Bugger could land you both a nice native rainbow and a brutish bull trout!
8/2/08 - The Lostine normally fisher fair to good for small native rainbows -- if you really work at getting into areas away from the campgrounds.
7/11/08 - Public access to the Lostine starts at the Forest Service boundary south of the town of Lostine. The river is clear, but still high.
current conditions
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Wallowa River - June 27th, 2009 |
RECORDED: 
80 °
FISHING: Good
6/27/09 The fishing is finally on. Recently the local guides have reported 25 fish days, with a portion of the catch above 15", long and fat! The water is still too high to wade but the soft water along the bank is still the best bet. Use large bead head prince nymphs (sz 12 or bigger), hares ears, and copper johns. A large heavy Kaufmann Stonefly nymph in the deeper runs might produce a trophy. The stoneflies are hatching as well, but the trout are not keying on them just yet, but you should definitely have a quiver of stoneflies with you. Good luck, the best fishing of the year is on its way!
6/13/09 The river is still high and a bit off color but it is becoming less brown and more green. The water is still too high to wade but the bank fishing on the Wallowa is some of the best fishing in the river. Fishing along the banks behind rocks and in eddies with beadhead hairs ears, and prince nypmhs, and other golden stone larval patterns (sz 10-14). In the evenings fish have been rising to mayflies in the still water (sz 16-18). The fish are there, and as the water level drops toward the normal post snowmelt flow the fishing will get better and better!
10-24 update. Fish taking small dries mid day - 14 / 16 adams, etc. Plenty of Oct Caddis but fish not targeting this fly.
Trout fishing on the Wallowa is still producing some large rainbows on large BH nymph patterns. A few early steelhead have also been caught. Remember, trout season closes Oct. 31, but the river remains open to whitefish and steelhead until Apr. 15th. A tag tag is required to fish for steelhead.
10-04-08 Trout Fishing: Fall trout fishing on the Wallowa River remains good to very good this fall. October Caddis are out in force and some large trout are comming up for dries. Last week a couple of young flyfishers had great fun jerking muddler minnows around on the surface.
9-20-08Trout: The Wallowa River has been fishing great this fall and we expect it to continue into October. There are lots of evening hatches including October Caddis, BWOs, hoppers and misc. smaller caddis and mayflies. Lots of flies are being used, but some of the best have been sz 12 Kaufman tan stimulators and sz 10 or 12 BH prince nymphs. Trout have been slow to hit the larger October Caddis patterns such as sz 8 or 6 sofa pillows, but that should change shortly. A couple of good fly fishers caught some big trout by swinging soft hackles, October caddis nymphs and woolly buggers. A good way to find big fish is to wade the middle of the river and fish back to the banks – BUT the Wallowa is very slippery and we recommend studded boots and perhaps a wading staff.
9-03-08 - Great time of year to fish. Not much pressure on the river and current stream flows are holding up nicely. Weather is still fairly warm and there are still big hatches of caddis and mayflies from mid afternoon into the evening. The biggest fish are still holding in the most difficult water to get to. Try a large hare's ear, muddler minnow, or stimulator in some of the heavier water -- but don't be afraid to switch off to a #16 parachute adams, or elk hare caddis in some of the smooth slicks at dusk. Small nymphs will still land their share of large white fish so use 4x tippets.
8-21-08 Area rivers have good flows compared to the last several years. In fact, the Wallowa River can still be a bit difficult to wade -- but should offer good trout fishing all fall. The Wallowa is offering fair numbers of fish, but the average size of the catch seems to depend in part on the skill of the fisher and their ability their ability to wade in faster water. Large stimulators, hoppers, small red humpies and muddler minnows are some of the favorite dry patterns. Nymphing with misc color/sizes of copper johns, princes and hare's ears also produce in mid day. Best fishing still comes in the evening when the river is covered with a variety of caddis and mayflies. Joseph will have a low temperature of near thirtyfive tonight, followed by a predicted high of near ninety in a couple of days. Nothing like beautiful Indian Summer fall weather to put the fish on the bite, Remember, as irrigation season raps-up, bigger fish from the upper Wallowa Valley will begin to work their way dowstream to the lower river.
8/2/08 - Perfect water levels/conditions. Guide trips on the Wallowa are producing plenty of nice rainbows - mostly in the 10" to 16" range. Hoppers and muddles are fun to fish, but also consider mid to large size nymphs during the bright sunlight of mid day Use size 10 to 14 bh princes, copper johns, or hare's ears in a variety of colors. Simulators are always a good searching pattern. Evenings will bring good caddis hatches -- 12 - 14 high vis, or olive green foam body elk hair caddis are some of our favorites.
7/26/08 Wallowa River continues to drop and is wadable throughout the "canyon." Good evening caddis hatches if you want to fish dries. Big nymphs continue to produce some big native bows throughout the day.
7/24/08 – So – this morning two very good fly fishers from the East Coast came into the shop for their morning report. This was their third day on the Wallowa River and fishing had been excellent. I could tell they were excited. It turned out that both of them had hooked a 20 plus inch rainbow – at the same time. They asked me if it was possible the fish were steelhead -- unlikely, but not an uncommon question when one of the Wallowa hogs are hooked in mid summer. Both fish were hooked on large nymphs, a size 8 possie bugger and a size 8 prince nymph – both fished in relatively deep pools near the bank in early morning. In addition they had been catching smaller bows, some to twelve or fourteen inches, on mid sized Kaufman stimulators – throughout the day. Fishing reports have been good all week, but fishing pressure has been very light. To date I have not heard of more than four fishers being spotted at one time in the eight mile section of the “canyon” between Minam and Wallowa.
7/19/08 - The river level has dropped sharply this past week and is in great shape to fish -- although a bit high to wade accross the river. Best public access is in the "Canyon" between the towns of Minam and Wallowa. The golden stone fly hatch has pretty well come and gone -- but still a few. We still like searching the seams and banks with sz 6 Kaufman golden foamulators. Lots of caddis -- try sz 8-14 tan or orange body stimulators, 12-16 goddard caddis, chrystal para caddis, or sz 14 olive or blk foam caddit. Also a mix of mayflies including green drakes -- or try red or yellow humpies. Also, be ready to experiment with different flies. Normally misc. colors of prince nymphs, copper johns, and hare's in sizes 14 - 8 are bread and butter Wallowa River, but last night a fly fisher tried these with limited success and ended up catching a series of large trout on a yuk bug!
7/11/07 - Still running very high -- will be too high to wade for some time. However, the river continues to drop and the color is chaulky green. Some nice fish are being caught in slicks, back-eddies, and seams near the bank. The lower river near Minam still has an active stonefly hatch.
7/6/08 – Catch this! A good fly fisher went down to the Wallowa River yesterday evening to fish for Chinook (the season just opened from July 4 to July 13 on limited sections of the Wallowa and Imnaha Rivers). The Wallowa River is running very high and colored – perhaps only three or four inches of visibility. When he didn’t find anyone else fishing for Chinook he thought he might be confused about the season and didn’t fish for Chinook. So, he broke out his trout rod and tied on a size 12 Royal Wulff . Fishing a back eddy to a big pool he proceeded to catch a 20” trout that he could not get his hands around, a 17” trout, and two 12” trout. The fish are “kegged-up” in this type of water next to the bank, and most of them still have to eat. I have heard similar stories of fly fishers duplicating this type of action on both the Imnaha and Grande Rondee over the past several weeks.
Backpackers are also starting to report on their High Lake fishing in the Eagle Cap Wilderness (in most cases they are still crossing some snow fields). Best results are on weighted nymphs and/or sinking lines fished deep in the deeper end of the lake. Brooke trout like a gold or orange fly such as a gold bead copper john, or gb hare’s ear, perhaps with a split shot, retrieved very slowly.
7/4 - The Wallowa remains "blown-out" -- very high at perhaps 4,000 cfs and colored. It is difficult to predict when it will be fishable from the shore or from a boat -- perhaps a week or two weeks (?). It may not be easily wadable until August (?). We will try to post any info as soon as we get it.
6/24 -- The good news is that we are going to have plenty of water all summer and fall. The bad news, of course, is that the big snow pack is still melting and most area streams are "blown-out." Current forcasts for hot weather will probably continue this trend for the next week or two -- or longer. We actually started to catch a few fish on the Wallowa the last few weeks, in the slicks near the bank, but rising water has made this more difficult. The stone flies are hatching. We will try to continue to get reports, but at this time the river has very few fishers.
10/24 – Trout on the Wallowa. By the time you read this it may be too late – but the very warm weather the past three days have October Caddis hatching all over the Wallowa. Forget about nymphs, the trout aren’t interested. Use a salmon fly pattern like a large (sz 8 or 6), stimulator or sofa pillow or Kaufman foamulator and fish the seams/boulders/banks from mid afternoon until dark. The native trout are big and aggressive. Cooler weather later this week may put down the hatch. Remember trout season closes 10/31 so after that date you must fish for white fish or carry a steelhead card.
Trout fishing on the Wallowa River remains fair, but erratic, as weather seems to change daily. Sporadic October Caddis hatches appear mid day. Copper Johns continue to produce trout and whitefish in the boulder fields near the banks.
Best access to the Wallowa River is along the 8 miles of road that parallel the river upstream from Minam, or along the railroad tracks on the east bank of the river below Minam.
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current conditions
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Imnaha River - June 27th, 2009 |
RECORDED:
80 °
FISHING: Good
6/27/09 The Imnaha is running at around 900 cfs, below the running average but still a bit high for the best trout fishing. But the water is clear! Golden Stoneflies have been hatching with gusto and large Stimulator and Fomulator patterns have been successful. Don't hesitate to try for a spring run Chinook!! The bait fisherman are having incredible success so swinging large egg patterns or egg-sucking leech patterns might just get you into the fight of your life.
6/13/09 The Imnaha is running very high and off color, however some locals have had success in using large golden stonefly patterns along the edge of the river in the softer water. The our massive golden stone hatch happens earlier in these lower and warmer canyons, like the Imnaha. Large (sz 8-12) fomulator and stimulator patterns in brighter colors like orange and yellow will work wonders whent the hatch is on.
10-24-08 Several new reports suggest plenty of steelhead in lower river near mouth - and downstream from mouth in Snake. One report had a nice mix of steelhead, bass and smaller bulltrout in Snake. Good site fishing in lower river, and steelhead being caught upstream to town.
We are not getting many reports on Imnaha steelhead, but believe fishing is generally fair. Most people are fishing near or below Cow Creek, but permission is being granted on other sections of river when a person takes time to ask the landowner. We will try to update this report when we have more info.
10-04-08 Steelhead: Fair numbers of steelhead are now being caught between Cow Creek and the Snake. Expect the eary fish to be scatteered upstream to the town of Imnaha this week. Deer hunting season opened this weekend so the river may be a bit crowded for a week or so as hunters take a break and try a little fishing.
9-20-08 Lots of rain today, so we will be watching river levels over the next few days. The higher water should move steelhead into the lower river. We will report as soon as we have info.
9-03-08We still do not have confirmation of steelhead being caught this year -- but fair numbers of Imnaha steelhead as recorded by their "pit tags" have been crossing Lower Granite for some time. River levels are average for this date, 140 cfs.
The Imnaha is fishing very good for trout on private lands above and below town. A recent report from the Cow Creek area found equal numbers of trout and bass being caught in the 10’ – 12/14” range. The report went on to say that hoppers and small nymphs produced good numbers of smaller fish, but that a size 6 bh black woolly bugger with green chrystal flasdh consistently produced larger fish. Steelhead should also start entering the lower river soon, so after Sept. 1 put on your hiking boots for the trail below Cow Creek.
8/2/08 - Bass have moved into the lower river near the Snake -- up to Cow Creek and above. Try big hoppers or woolly buggers then see what hits - trout or bass or dolly. Fishing for trout remains very good on the mid section of river above and below town, but be sure to get permission to fish on private property. We have also had two reports of decent trout and whitefish fishing upstream near the Hwy 39 campgrounds. This area of the river is not stocked and normally does not fish well. However, fish will sometimes migrate upstream to find cooler water.
7/19/08 - The Imnaha River is down 450 cfs -- perfect early summer fishing. Try hoppers, hoppers, or more hoppers. We also like stimulators or attractor dries. For nymphs try large, size 14 to 10 princes, hare's ears or copper johns. The Imnaha has a fair number of large bull trout which (some of which you can sight fish) so try a size 6 olive woolly bugger, muddler minnow or any fresh or salt water minnow pattern. Bull trout may be targeted on the Imnaha, but must be released unharmed. Bass will move into the lower river when the river lowers and warms. Higher/cooler water levels in the Columbia and uppers tribs could also mean better than normal fall stealhead fishing on the Imnaha this fall.
The biggest problem on the Imnaha is good public access to the areas that hold the most trout. Best fishing is found above and below town ten or fifteen miles, but most of this portion of the river bank is privately owned (in Oregon it is illegal to fish on private property without permission - does not have to be fenced or posted) -- so ask first. More land has recently been posted between Horse Creek and Cow Creek. Access is still good near and below Cow Creek. Finally -- lets talk upper river (the south end near Hwy 39 and the Forest Service camp grounds). Regs do not require release of native rainbows, this portion of the river is not stocked and does not include residual steelhead smolt (like the Wallowa), and the river is glacial fed and receives a fair amount of fishing pressure from campers. The net result is it can be pretty tough fishing.
7/11/08- Still high but decent color. Fishing is fair in the bigger pools and slicks along bank. Stoneflies have moved through the lower end and hoppers starting to appear. A fair number of bull trout seem to be following the Chinook upstream.
7/4/08 - Imnaha flowing about 1200 cfs this week. That's high, but the color is not bad, and the river is fishable. Not many reports.
111/21/07 – Imnaha Steelhead. Please refer to our Grande Ronde River report for a general discussion of steelhead flyfishing in this area -- this time of year. Like the Ronde the Imnaha can be a great winter steelhead fishery -- if conditions are right. For the most part access to the river is good below Horse Creek on the bottom twelve miles of river -- above the confluence with the Snake River (although portions of this section are private). The road leading to this section is poor so a good four wheel drive is best. We like water levels between 200 – 600 cfs for lots of good “holding water.” However, the river can be fished at higher and lower levels. For flies and fishing techniques please refer to our Grande Ronde River report.
11/2 – Imnaha Steelhead: Nothing new. The water flows have dropped to 118 cfs - not much holding water. Still, there are fish from town to the mouth, and some locals are having fair to good success.
10/24 – Steelhead on the Imnaha: Fish are now scattered throughout the lower river with reports of several fish being caught near the town of Imnaha. At these water levels, holding water is still somewhat limited. Expect fishing to continue to improve as time passes. Fishing below Cow Creek has been fair to good, but expect to find jet boats stacked in the Snake near the Imnaha mouth.
10/20 River flows have doubled the last few days to 237 cfs - just what we needed. Once the river stabilizes and clears -- which doesn't take long on the Imnaha -- look for new fish in the lower river. The Imnaha fishes well for steelheat up to 300 cfs - or even 500 cfs or more - if it is clear. Higher water levels mean a lot more "holding water" and allows fishers to spread out on this small river.
10/10 Reports are comming in of steelhead being caught above and below Cow Creek. However, at 108 cfs the flow is 74% of normal and holding water is limited. It is still a bit early and some additional water will be needed for numbers to improve.
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current conditions
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Grande Ronde River - June 27th, 2009 |
RECORDED:
80 °
FISHING: Good
6/27/09 Stoneflies are taking over the Grande Ronde canyon! I was on the river last week, and the stoneflies were thick. The water is still high but the water is clearing and fishing is improving. Suggested flies: orange stimulators #8-12, fomulators #6-10, caddis #10-14, bead headed prince nymph #8-12, Kaufmann stonefly nymph #4-8, bead headed hares ears #8-14.
6/13/09 Haven't had many reports yet this year... but we know the water conditions are high and off color, like the tributarties of this river such as the Wallowa. The river is running high, but water clarity is improving rapidly. Like other rivers in the area the fish will be on the banks relaxing in the calm eddy water behind natural structure like boulders and log jams. The golden stonefly hatch will be on soon, so fishing brightly colored stimulator patterns, and stonefly nypmh patterns should produce. Also try smaller mayfly patterns in the evening. June is arguably one of the best months of the year for fishing trout on the Ronde and as the water drops and clears the action will heat up fast!
10-21-08 STEELHEAD: Grande Ronde – Mostly fair to occasionally good. Good , at times, if you know the river and are a pretty good fly fisher; mostly fair to poor, at times, if you don’t/aren’t. However, it also depends on the bite/weather on any given day. A number of GR guides have reported “no hookup” days even with experienced clients The Grande Ronde has not lived up to expectations this fall based on the number of steelhead over the dams (118% of the ten year avg., 25% wild). Fishing pressure has been heavy at times, but on most days good water can be found. The ODFW Angler Survey for the Oregon section of water near Troy for Oct. 13/14/18/19 surveyed 136 anglers who averaged 8.4 hrs/fish caught (not bad). The same survey for the Washington section of river included 80 anglers who averaged 22.7 hrs/fish (not good). All the same, we continue to be optimistic that fishing can be good on any given day over the next two to three weeks.
A young flyfisher was in the shop this morning buying flies and reported that over the past four days he and his three friends (mostly experienced, guide quality flyfishers) landed 22 steelhead (thirteen out of one hole) in Washington. Most likely they got into a surge of fish that had just moved into their section of river. They were swinging and nymphing a variety of leech and stonefly nymph patterns, mostly in black and purple. Some of the better flies were #6 “Princess” nymphs, and #8 prince nymphs with an orange beadhead. There seems to be some agreement that any number of flies (purple perils, green butt skunks, marabou leeches, egg sucking leeches, etc). are effective if put in front of a steelhead’s nose and he is inclined to grab them. However, it is also agreed that some steelhead will take a drifted nymph when they have already rejected the swung patterns. Just to confuse the matter, one of the more effective techniques seems to be dead drifting several patterns (prince nymph and woolly bugger, for example) under a strike indicator (3/4” thingamabober) then allowing it to “swing-out” at the bottom of the drift. We also continue to get reports of some steelhead taking small, #14/16 copper johns, etc. when matched with a large stonefly nymph.
10-4-08 Steelhead: Rains again this weekend – great for moving fish upstream. The Grande Ronde continues to fish well for this time of year. An East Coast flyfisher was in the shop this morning and reported hooking six steelies waking flies in the Washington section of the Ronde last Thursday. Floating the same section of water the next day, however, he did not hook-up. Fishing the Ronde near Troy has also been productive for those who know the river. As always a mixture of techniques are used including waking, skating, greased line swings, and nymphing using both single-hand and spey rods.
9/23/2008 – Steelhead Update: Good News. Rains last weekend increased flows on the Grande Ronde from 550 cfs to 750 cfs -- moving steelhead upstream. On a trip yesterday near Troy, guided by Winding Waters guide Tom Farnam, a client landed three Steeies in the 28” – 32” range, swinging a purple spey fly. Check out the photos at: www.windingwatersrafting.com. Tom’s schedule is starting to fill-in, so be sure to book a trip now for the next thirty to forty five days. This may be one of the best steelhead seasons in years!
9/20/08 – Steelhead: It’s raining hard and steady today – just what we needed to move the steelhead upstream. This morning the Grande Ronde had risen 50 cfs from last night’s rain, so we will be watching over the next 48 to 72 hours to see how high it goes. Fish that had moved into the Troy area from the mid August rains provided good steelhead fishing over Labor Day weekend. However, fishing has really slowed the last couple of weeks – evidenced by very few fishers on the river. Dam counts still look good, so it should be a great October. As of this date 60,000 steelhead have crossed Lower Granite, 125% of the ten year average. We will try and update the Ronde fishing report this week as we receive reports. As hard as it is raining, it may take a day or two for the river to settle-down – or not (?). Lots of different flies are used on the Ronde – for example: muddlers riffle hitched, Oct. caddis, or bombers on top; black or purple marabou leeches, spey flies, purple perils, etc - all swung; and misc. nymphs including a variety of prince nymphs, stone fly nymphs, and even some small size 12/14 copper johns in misc. colors used as dropperes.
9-04-08 – Beautiful Indian Summer weather – a great time to fish. The Big New News – “Steelhead show up at Troy.” We have been saying this will be a great, early steelhead season. Check our home page link for fish counts over the dams and select “LWG – Lower Granite Dam,” the last dam on the Snake River before our rivers. To date 27,395 steelhead have passed LWG versus the ten year average of 17,573 (155% of avg.). The Grade Ronde is flowing 736 cfs – right on average for this date. Recently several freshets took flows to near 900 cfs and moved fish upstream. Remember, the Ronde is known for the prospect of taking steelhead on the surface (waking or skating flies) and we have reports of several fly fishers doing just that this past week. Another person fishing at Troy for trout, using a 4 wt rod and a woolly bugger, caught “a mess” of bass and trout, and hooked and lost 3 steelhead in fast water. Both the Imnaha and Wallowa Rivers are also fishing well – check our river reports.
8-21-08. Steelhead season will open September 1 in Oregon. To date we have not heard of any steelhead being spotted in the Troy area. Despite fairly good water flows in the Wallowa Valley, a very hot summer has led to larger than normal irrigation needs in the Grande Ronde and Wallowa Valleys. Water flows at Troy dropped below 600 cfs last week but surged to near 900 on rains of the past few days. We will try to keep an eye on flows over the next sixty days. There are very good numbers of steelhead coming up the Snake River, so fall steelhead fishing will depend on river levels over the next thirty to sixty days. Check our links to river levels and steelhead counts.
8-21-08 - Steelhead season will open September 1 in Oregon. Still, we have not heard of any steelhead being incidentally
8/2/08 - The first steelhead of the summer have been caught at the mouth of the Ronde where it hits the Snake in Washington. Good water flows mean that some of these fish could arrive at Troy in the next thirty days. Steelhead season opens on Sept. 1 in Oregon -- and a good early season it will be. We do not have many reports of trout/bass fishing near Troy or upstream to Rondowa, but it appears to be a bit slow.
7/11/08 - River still high, but we are getting a few reports of bass and trout being caught near the bank in the river below Troy.
7/4/08 - Raft trips from Minam to Troy this past week report the river still blown out.
11/29/07 – Steelhead on the Grande Ronde. When there is no “slush ice” in the water fishing has been very good. The ODFW creel checker counts for 11/25-11/27 were around 5 to 6 hrs per fish in Oregon and Wash. (Troy/ Bogans area). Steelheading doesn’t get much better than that kids. That means some of the better fishers can’t keep fish off their hooks. At 850 cfs water levels are ideal. Snow and snow/rain is forcast for the next ten days, so keep an eye on water levels and nighttime temperatures. See the report for 11/21, below, for additional info.
11/21/07 – Grande Ronde Steelhead. This time of year the trick is picking the right day for good water conditions. For example, the river levels shot up this past week (generally a good thing to bring more fish out of the Snake – but the best fishing is often during stabilized or dropping flows) and it was 5 degrees Fahrenheit in Joseph last night so slush ice in the river could be a problem if it remains cold. For this reason many of the fly fishing guide services, like ours, in the Troy area and in the lower river in Washington, call it quits for the year (some don’t). It is too difficult to predict fishing conditions for clients coming in from Boise, Seattle, et cetera. Having said that, I have caught hundreds of steelhead flyfishing the Grande Ronde and Imnaha in November and December – when conditions were right. Our problem is getting good reports on river/fishing conditions this time of year. Check our home page for links to the water flow web site.
At current water levels (1,160 cfs and dropping on 11/21) fishing on the Grande Ronde should be good. More fish than normal came over the Snake dams this year. With cold water conditions try to get your fly down to the bottom – whether swinging or nymphing. If swinging flies we like 10 or 12 foot class 6 or 8 sink tip lines combined with a weighted fly like a black or purple egg sucking “starlight” bunny fur leech. Cast quartering downstream, then immediately mend hard as necessary for depth and water speed to get to the bottom. Perhaps even more effective is nymphing. You will probably want to use a large strike indicator, but some “soft” runs don’t require one. Nymph like you would for trout, remembering to limit your casting distance for good line control and hook-set. Our favorite fly is a size 6 gold bead prince nymph, but we also like some close imitations including the same fly with a bright orange beadhead or the “tungsten BH Princess” – a flashback prince nymph with red wings and tail. Feel free to use a second nymph such as a black stonefly pattern, but expect most hits on the prince nymph or its variations. Typically the top fly is three to five feet below the strick indicator. Contact the Joseph Fly Shoppe if you need to order lines, flies, et cetera. Good luck and good fishing. We close our shop from January 1 to May 15.
11/7 -Grande Ronde Steelhead- Quick update (see 11/3 report) - fishing near Troy has been fair to good with the last ODFW report showing 6.8 hrs/fish in Oregon, 16.3 hrs/fish in Wash. Our guide trips continue to find fish each outing. Unlike our last report, however, the river has not been too crowded this past week.
11/3 – Grande Ronde Steelhead: Water levels continue to drop – with no rain forcast in the near future. Current levels are 634 cfs (vs normal flow of 885) – which makes the Minam to Troy float pretty skinny. Fishing near Troy has been fair to good this past week. The last ODFW creel cheek for Oct. 25/26 was 8.7 hrs/fish in Oregon and 17 hrs/fish in Washington. Recent guide trips near Troy have produced some nice fish for our clients. Best catch rates came from nymphing, although swinging flies remains the most popular approach. The river has been fairly crowded so avoid weekends or bring your own rock.
10/24 – Steelhead on the Ronde: The recent spike in water levels did move fish upstream. Current water levels and conditions are near perfect (as is the nice shirt sleeve weather). Expect both more fish and fishers. The warm weather the past few days has brought on a nice hatch of October Caddis. One fisher reported steelhead rolling and playing on the surface, so think about waking/skating. Weather is expected to cool, but fishing should stay good.
10/20 - Wow! River flows have doubled in the past few days to over 1000 cfs. Just what the DR. ordered. Watch for flows to drop and stabilize (check our river flow link on our home page) -- perhaps give the fish a few days to move upstream -- then drop everything you are doing and call us for a guided trip -- or just head to Troy. Over 135,000 steelhead have crossed Lower Granite Dam this season!
10/10 – Steelhead!! A few are being caught on Grande Ronde, but the river remains fairly low – it’s still a bit early. We could use some rain or snow to move more fish upstream. Counts over Lower Granite Dam exceed 135,000, so the fish are in the Snake somewhere. Of course a few special flyfishers are picking up multiple steelhead daily, although the ODFW average was 27 hours per fish on the Ronde last week. On our last guided trip a few days ago, a client landed his first two steelhead on a fly using a nymph – at three in the afternoon, near Troy. We expect fishing on the Ronde to continue to improve as the month progresses. The fish are in the Snake so it is only a matter of time and/or water levels. The Ronde is currently running 600 cfs – 77% of normal for this date.
10/4 – Steelhead fishing on the Grande Ronde has picked-up this week. Water levels have increased from their lows of 450 cfs to over 600 cfs – approximately 80% of normal flow for this time of year. In the past few days we have received numerous reports of multiple steelhead taken on flies in both Washington, and in Oregon near Troy. Over 90,000 steelhead have passed Lower Granite Dam -- exceeding the 10 yr average for this date. We will be guiding steelhead fishers in the Troy area most of this week and will report activity.
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current conditions
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