OCEAN OUTLOOK
COASTWIDE: A hazardous seas warning is in effect through Sunday morning, and that puts a massive damper on weekend ocean activities. Friday’s forecast calls for winds up to 20 knots and wind waves up to 8 feet. That’s followed Saturday by winds dropping to 10 knots but wind waves up to 7 feet. Sunday’s forecast calls for much of the same, but with wind waves up to 5 feet.
The general marine bag limit is five fish in aggregate, with copper, quillback or China rockfish no longer part of the daily limit for boat anglers. Boat anglers can now start keeping cabezon, but that sub-limit should end within two months based on past catches. The lingcod limit is two fish over 22 inches.
Surfperch fishing should pick up later this weekend around river mouths as ocean perch are moving toward estuaries to spawn. Focus close to river mouths. Sandshrimp and mussels are the best bets, with plastic sand worms and shrimp as secondary baits.
Recreational crabbing is open coastwide.
Razor clamming is open from Netarts Bay to California. It remains closed on the north coast, including the popular Clatsop Bay area.
The great morning minus tides are now over. These should be excellent days for clamming. Before digging, call the shellfish hotline at 1-800-448-2474.
LAKE OUTLOOK
AGATE: The lake received 2,500 legal-sized rainbow trout early last month. Don’t expect any more thanks to extremely warm water. Troll worms or fish worms or PowerBait under bobbers near the county boat ramp. Bank anglers need to stay off the ramp. The lake is 60% full. Electric trolling motors are OK. The park closes at dusk.
APPLEGATE: The lake was stocked last month with another 10,000 legal-sized rainbows, the same as a few weeks ago. The Hart Tish Park boat ramp and dock are open, as are the French Gulch and Copper ramps. Fish for rainbows with PowerBait or worms from the bank or slowly troll Tasmanian Devil lures spiced with a piece of worm. Bass fishing on nice days has been fair with plastic worms and grubs fished slowly off the bottom along rocky points and flats. The reservoir was 33 feet from full Thursday. Water releases are at 225 cfs.
DIAMOND: Trout fishing is best on the south end near the Silent Creek channel for both rainbows and tiger trout. But hot weather is sending the trout into deeper water. Fishing is best with worms under bobbers. All tiger and brown trout must be released unharmed.
EMIGRANT: The lake is 24% full and dropping quickly. The county boat ramps are unusable, and that has all but shut off angling activity. The lake received 3,500 legal-sized rainbows in mid-April and 1,000 more late last month. They were all released at the county boat ramp. Fish for them off the bank with chartreuse garlic or rainbow PowerBait or slowly troll worms from boats.
EXPO: The pond was stocked again last month with 1,500 legal-sized rainbows. Catches have been fairly good on worms under bobbers. Some bass and panfish are available. Parking fees are required.
FISH: Fishing is decent in the open water near the marina for rainbow trout. The lake received another 5,000 legal-sized rainbow trout last month. Find them in the cove near the Forest Service boat ramp with worms or PowerBait. All tiger trout must be released. The lake was listed Thursday at 44% full.
HOWARD PRAIRIE: The lake is open but access is poor. The lake was not stocked with rainbows this spring. It was listed Thursday at 6% full. Fishing access is best near the dam. All limits on trout and other species have been lifted due to extremely low water levels.
HYATT: The lake is 14% full and dropping very quickly. The lake received 5,000 legal-sized trout earlier this month, all released near the dam. Fish them with worms or PowerBait off the bank. All limits for size and numbers of trout and bass have been lifted because of poor water conditions.
LAKE OF THE WOODS: Trolling for rainbow trout is fair to good with worms behind flashers in the shallows. Go slow. Perch fishing is good near the resort.
LOST CREEK: The lake received 15,000 legal-sized rainbows earlier this month, and that has supported a fishery that is getting more interest among bank anglers near the Takelma boat ramp, and boat anglers trolling worms and flashers near the dam. The trout were split between the marina and the Takelma boat ramp. Bank fish with PowerBait near the ramp. Wind-drifting worms above Peyton Bridge has been good. The lake Thursday was 56 feet shy of full and dropping quickly as outflows were reduced to 1,850 cfs.
WILLOW: The lake received another 4,000 legal-sized rainbow trout in mid-April. Fish them with worms or PowerBait near the county boat ramp and deeper water across the lake.
SELMAC: The lake was stocked in mid-April with another 5,000 legal-sized rainbows, Fish for them with worms or PowerBait. Bass are getting active.
MEDCO: The first trout stocking of the season came earlier this month with 2,000 legal-sized rainbows.
RIVER OUTLOOK
ROGUE: Spring chinook fishing has steadied in the upper Rogue for boat anglers and has remained slow for bank anglers amid a relatively poor return, particularly of hatchery fish. Also, a few more summer steelhead are showing up and starting to get targeted, primarily by fly-fishers. The middle Rogue has remained a dud for river fishing, especially during this extremely hot weather, and the lower Rogue bay has been good for a mix of late-run spring chinook and early fall chinooks.
That keeps the best bet on the upper Rogue, but just barely over the lower Rogue bay.
The July 1 opener for wild spring chinook on the upper Rogue has been pushed back to July 11. That will allow better escapement of wild springers, which are moving upstream later than normal this year.
The Hatchery Hole is closed until August.
Spring chinook fishing has been best for boat anglers back-bouncing roe and sandshrimp combinations, with a piece of tuna belly also a good addition. Bank anglers casting roe and corkies are doing OK at hot spots like Hayes Falls.
Summer steelhead numbers are starting to show in the upper Rogue, and early returns are improving. These are aggressive biters, with some big fish in the mix. Catch them on everything from plugs and worms to roe and various flies, from streamers to nymphs and single-egg patterns. Most of the interest so far has been by fly-fishers but look for some evening fishing floats with hardware very soon. For plugs, use MagLip 3.5s or 3.0s, with Misty River colors as well as gold, black and chartreuse. K-11 Kwikfish in gold or copper are also decent choices.
Anglers can no long keep any wild steelhead Rogue-wide until 2022.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has decreased outflows to 1,450 cfs.
APPLEGATE: The river is open to trout fishing but anglers cannot target steelhead.
CHETCO: The river is open to cutthroat and rainbow trout fishing.
ELK/SIXES: The rivers have reopened to angling but there is very limited effort.
UMPQUA: The mainstem Umpqua is closed to all retention of wild chinook salmon, including jacks.
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