12 RULES OF EFFECTIVE SALMON FISHING

Rule #1
Prepare your tackle and boat before going on the water. Rods should be rigged and hootchies, flies and other lures attached and ready. Boat batteries should be fully charged and, if possible, gas the boat the day before.

Rule #2
Pay close attention to the tides. The best tides have a 3 to 7 foot change. Small tidal exchange areas are the best fishing. With big tide and wind the baitfish hide in the relative calm of kelp beds or very deep in the water.

Rule #3
Fish hard during the peak times, one-hour before-through-after tide change. Dont be tying lures, changing areas or eating lunch during peak time. In the summer, early in the morning or late in the evening are peak times.

Rule #4
Use all the information you can get. Examples are: boat house information, maps and charts, electronics, etc. Watch for birds especially in the winter. The Rhinoceros Auklet will almost always be on top of bait. Other birds in the area will be Seagulls, Common Marine and Ancient Murrelets.

Rule #5
Fish with or across the tide flow, never against it. Salmon face into the tide flow and have a better look at your lure as its coming towards them.

Rule #6
Stay in the area you catch fish or see fish caught.

Rule #7
Dont fish only where there are other fishermen (i.e. famous hot spots). Salmon are around bottom structures or bait. Its better to fish by yourself for ten salmon on a reef, than to fish for two hundred salmon along with 4,000 other anglers.

Rule #8
Explore but learn to fish three areas extremely well then expand your areas by one new area per year.

Rule #9
Use a lure that has sight, sound and smell. Use any color, as long as it is green. The colors that show up the deepest water are greens, blues and blacks. All glow lures glow green. In addition, the new Ultra Violet colors can be added to your tackle box, as they show up at all depths. While we can't see UV colors, salmon see them very well. Use flashers or rattle plugs to create sound. Add scent to your lure, such as Smelly Jelly or other products.

Rule #10
USE COLORS! In the top fifty feet of water use any color. Below fifty feet try blue, green, purple, UV and glow lures. The exception to the rule; use white plugs for mature summer Kings. In Puget Sound, plankton absorb the colors of reds, yellows and oranges. By the time these colors reach 50 feet, they have pretty much turned gray and disappeared from the sight spectrum of the salmon. Two species of salmon do see reds, yellows and oranges better. These are Humpies and Sockeye.

Rule #11
When using bait check your bait every 15 minutes. Remember, you only have three hours of premium fishing time. If using lures, be aware of any change in rod tip action and check lure every thirty minutes or if youve bumped the bottom.

Rule #12
Sharpen your hooks and keep them sharp!

KEYS TO JIGGING KING SALMON

Metal jigs--called slab jigs by many coastal anglers--have been producing impressive catches of various saltwater species for decades. British Columbia anglers have been catching salmon on them for a long time, and about 30 years ago Washington salmon fishermen began to figure it out, with equally good results. Oregon anglers eventually caught on, and now jigging is a fairly well-accepted salmon-fishing technique as far south as the northern California coast.

It's easy to understand the growth of the jig fishery for salmon. Most importantly, jigs work! These little slabs of metal are the approximate size and shape of the herring, anchovies and other small baitfish on which Chinook, Coho and other Pacific salmon feed, so if you put a jig in front of a hungry salmon, it's likely to take it for an easy meal. A couple of metal jigs cost about the same as three or four dozen herring, but will last a lot longer, and without the mess or smell of fishing with bait. In areas where spiny dogfish are a problem, jigs reduce--but don't completely eliminate--the problem of dealing with pesky sharks.

Jigging is especially well-suited to fishing for Chinook salmon, kings of the Pacific. Chinook often congregate where baitfish are plentiful and around certain kinds of bottom contours, near-shore structure or in estuaries before ascending their home streams to spawn. Locate these king salmon concentrations with your depth sounder, drop a jig straight down to them and hang on. Kings can often be teased into striking a jig when other methods fail.

And, in these days of tighter salmon-fishing regulations in many areas, jigs make catch-and-release fishing a lot easier. Salmon rarely swallow a jig, so the vast majority of fish are hooked in the jaw, where they can be easily unhooked and released.

While Pacific salmon, especially Chinook, can be very vulnerable to a well-fished jig, some anglers have been slow to accept this relatively new fishing method. Many give it a try or two, fail to figure the basics of good jigging, and go back to trolling or mooching. But with a little patience and a day of jigging practice, anglers who learn the keys to jigging success soon discover that this is one of the deadliest salmon-fishing techniques of them all

First and foremost, the jig has to move. Even with its finely molded form, realistic finish and lifelike detail, a metal jig simply hanging there at the end of the line doesn't look like food to a salmon. Bait, with its natural scent, might draw fish while it's lying more or less stationary, but a metal jig hanging vertically in the water looks to a salmon like a, well, a piece of metal hanging in the water! Move it, though, and it comes to life, and salmon respond accordingly. Successful jiggers stay active, constantly twitching the rod tip, lifting and dropping the rod, reeling and free-spooling line, so that the lure continually "swims" toward the surface and falls back again, resembling the spastic gyrations of an injured or disoriented baitfish. A crippled anchovy, herring or candlefish is an easy mark for a hungry salmon, and that's what a jig looks like if you keep it moving up and down through the water column.

A metal jig is at its fish-catching best when it's dropping through the water, not when it's being lifted toward the surface, so it's important to let the lure drop as freely as possible. When all tension is released, metal jigs flatten out into a horizontal posture, where they vibrate, wobble and dart erratically as they plummet toward bottom. If you keep tension on the line during the drop, the lure remains vertical and virtually lifeless, so it's very important to "throw some slack" on the downward part of the jigging stroke.

Likewise, allow the jig to free-fall as you're dropping it to the desired depth. Depending on what your depth sounder is telling you about the location of feeding fish, you may want to free-spool the lure all the way down to the desired depth, or, if the fish are scattered, stop it every six or eight feet, giving salmon a chance to hit it before continuing the lure's descent. Whichever way you go, allow the lure to drop rapidly on as slack a line as you can control.

Since the jig is most active as it's dropping, that's when most salmon strike. Unfortunately, these slack-line strikes are among the most difficult in fishing to detect and react to. What that means is that the jigger has to be alert and ready to react at all times. If you feel a "tick" on the line as the lure falls, reel down fast and set the hook hard. If the line goes slack, indicating the lure isn't falling anymore, reel down fast and set the hook hard. If the line angle changes...well, you get the picture. Any of these subtle changes in line tension or direction means a salmon has intercepted the jig on its way down, and when it realizes that it has a mouthful of metal instead of a mouthful of meat, it will start trying to get rid of the bogus meal almost immediately. If you don't react quickly with a hook-set, you'll be too late.

As for a reel, most jiggers prefer revolving-spool models over spinning reels because of the line control they afford. You can quickly clamp down with your thumb on the spool of a revolving-spool reel when you have to set the hook in a hurry, while with most spinning reels you have to engage the bail to gain line tension and set the hook.

Your choice of line also is critical to jigging success. Just like a limber rod, a stretchy line will absorb lots of energy and keep you from lifting and dropping the jig effectively. Line stretch is also a problem in getting a good hook-set in deeper water. For those reasons, most jiggers prefer today's "super" braids for much of their salmon fishing. These low-stretch lines let you move your lure up and down with less effort, set the hook better, and offer the added advantage of small diameter and therefore less line drag in the water.

A metal jig will look like the real deal if you're working it the way you should, but it doesn't hurt to make it smell real, too, so use scent on your jigs. The jelly or past type scents work best because they don't wash away like liquid scents do. Besides adding a "realistic" scent to your jig, scents also help to mask the human scent, which can be a real fish turn-off.

Your choice of rod, reel and line will play a big part in your jigging success. Pick a rod that's long and stiff enough to lift and drop your jig when you lift and drop your arm. It sounds simple enough, but many anglers start jigging with a rod that's way too limber, so that when they flail up and down with their arms, trying to work the jig up and down, the soft rod absorbs all the energy, flexing and straightening while the jig remains motionless. A stiffer rod of 7 ½ to 8 feet also gives you more leverage when the time comes to set the hook on a salmon that may be down there 100 feet or more. Berkley's AIR IM7 model A92-7'9" HB is, as far as I'm concerned, as close to a perfect salmon-jigging rod as there is, and it retails for only about $80.

Because even the most stupid salmon realizes its mistake the second it chomps down on a metal jig and starts immediately trying to spit out its mistake, needle-sharp hooks are a must. If you keep hook points sticky-sharp, they'll penetrate that fraction of an inch that will keep them in contact with fish flesh until you can get around the burying the barb for keeps. Salmon will use the weight of the jig to help shake a dull hook in less time than it takes to tell about it. Carry a good hook file and use it every time you bring a jig to the surface.

There's no such thing as the perfect metal jig for all conditions, so carry a selection of sizes and change as the situation dictates. These lures should be fished pretty much straight up and down for best results, and you'll need a heavier jig to get straight down when the wind or current is moving you along at a good clip. On the other hand, if you go to a smaller diameter line or as the water calms, you may reach greater depths with lighter jigs. A lighter lure is generally more active, so you should use as light a jig as you can get away with, as long as it will reach the desired depth.

Just as you should go to lighter or heavier jigs depending on conditions, you should also change your jigging stroke according to changing conditions. You will, for example, need a longer jigging stroke to breathe life into a jig that's 150 feet below the surface, but if you use that same stroke in only 40 feet of water, you'll probably be moving the lure too much, and may actually be pulling it away from interested salmon. Shorten the stroke as you fish closer to the surface, and always be willing to experiment if your "normal" jigging motion isn't paying off. There are simply times when salmon want the lure moving faster, slower, farther or not so far.

SIX TRICKS FOR FALL COHO

As summer gives way to fall here in the Pacific Northwest, the dependable Coho that used to bite so well when they were out and in open water often get harder and harder to catch. Anglers are in general agreement that the good ol' Coho can sometimes be the most cooperative fish in the sea, even suicidal in its efforts to gulp anything with a hook attached. Unfortunately, that user-friendly attitude tends to disappear, as mature silvers get closer to the gravel beds, hatchery ponds or net pens where their lives began.

As spawning time approaches, mature silvers become a whole lot less interested in food, and anglers may have to dig deeper into their bag of tricks to keep catching them. Here are a handful of little gimmicks tricks you may try if you want to continue catching mature Coho from our inshore waterways and estuaries this fall.

1. GET SNEAKY

Coho tend to get more and more paranoid about baits and lures as they run out of vertical space. Even though they may live most of their natural lives in the top 20 feet of the water column, they get increasingly spooky when the water depth is only 20 feet from top to bottom, and their typical recklessness gives way to some instinctive fear of everything having to do with those of us holding fishing rods.

Boats seem to have a significant impact on a fall Coho's sense of security, so try to avoid running over them as you fish. If, for example, trolling is your thing, fish a much longer line than you would earlier in the season; giving wary fish more time to settle down after your boat passes by. It's a given that hooking and landing a wildly jumping Coho is more difficult when you're fishing 150 yards behind the boat than when you're fishing only 50 yards of line, but that longer line just may be the difference between hooking and not hooking fish in the first place.

If you're a boat fisherman who likes to cast spoons, spinners or jigs for your fish, consider using a longer rod and lighter line to increase your casting distance. Getting that lure a few yards farther from the boat may spell the difference between success and failure. Better yet, if you can do so safely and without trespassing, beach the boat and cast from shore. Strange as it may seem, simply getting the boat out of the water and walking up the beach a few yards has paid off for me on several occasions.

I have a friend who takes the sneaky thing farther than most, and I've seen the results. He fishes in camouflage, stays back several feet from the water and keeps as low a profile as possible while casting for wary silvers. As you might guess, his favorite fishing days are the cloudy, rainy and windy ones, when the water's surface is choppy and visibility is low.

2. TEASE 'EM INTO STRIKING

Waiting for "the bite" to occur with fall Coho could result in a very long wait, so you'll probably have to do something to provoke them into striking.

As a general rule, smaller baits and lures work better than larger offerings, since these fish are no longer into filling their stomachs. Two or three-inch plug-cut baits or cut spinners work a lot better than the four or five-inch stuff that produces during summer. Try to keep both the baits action and the trolling pattern as erratic as possible by speeding up, slowing down, lifting and dropping the rod tip and changing direction frequently. All of these things may provoke Coho strikes when a routine, rhythmic bait action won't.

This is the time of year when artificials become a very important part of the Coho angler's arsenal, especially weighted spinners and horizontally fished metal jigs. The flash of a smoothly revolving spinner blade can be irresistible to a mature silver, especially if you vary the retrieve speed and experiment to find the size, style and finish they happen to want that day. I've had days when they've hit nothing but a Vibrax with a silver blade and blue body on one beach, then moved a few hundred yards to another beach where the only thing they'd take was a quarter-ounce Bang-Tail in a black scale finish.

3. TRY HORIZONTAL JIGGING

The metal jigs that catch salmon when you fish 'em up and down through the water column also are effective when worked near the surface in a lift-drop-retrieve technique that I like to call "horizontal jigging." The time-proven Buzz Bomb (see related article on this site) is the traditional lure of choice for this kind of fishing, and certainly one of the best, but it's not the only one you can use effectively. Any of the baitfish-imitating jigs (in smaller sizes and lighter weights so they don't sink too quickly) will entice fall silvers from their shallow-water environs.

The horizontal jigging technique is simple as long as you remember that a free-falling jig is the key to success. Cast as far as you can, allow the jig to drop several feet, and then retrieve it in a series of lifts and drops. Retrieve line on the lift, and then drop the rod tip sharply, allowing the lure to sink two to four feet on a slack line. Jigs draw strikes when they're falling, and they won't fall freely on a tight line, so the quick and pronounced drop is the most important part of the jigging stroke. If your jig of choice is a Buzz Bomb or one of the other free-sliding styles, remember to use the rubber doughnut or some other soft bumper between the lure and the hook to help prevent knot damage when using light line for longer casts. And, whatever jig you use, keep the hook point needle-sharp.

4. FISH HARD DURING THE FLOOD

When your schedule allows, concentrate much of your fishing effort during the flood tide. Fall silvers tend to be more active and sometimes more eager to take baits and lures as the water rises. It's especially true if you're looking for silvers in the shallow estuaries and small bays of central and south Puget Sound, but often applies as well in the deeper, more open waters of the north Sound and eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca. My idea of a perfect day to prospect for fall fish is a day when I can launch on a low slack at daylight and fish an incoming tide the first few hours of the morning.

5. SCRATCH THE SURFACE

Skipping a fly along the water's surface is a time-proven Coho-catching technique in the waters around Neah Bay, but few Coho anglers ever resort to fishing surface lures anywhere else in the Northwest. Well, it's worked for me a few times, and I recommend it when all else fails. There are times when Coho will accept-maybe even prefer-a lure fished right on the surface. It's a trick that salmon anglers might keep in mind this time of year, when mature Coho congregate in our estuaries, often jumping and rolling on the surface as if to taunt us, while refusing to touch all the usual salmon baits and lures fished in all the usual ways.

The idea is to fish something that makes a wake, stops and goes, sputters, gurgles, bubbles, pops, or otherwise creates a surface disturbance that will draw the attention of silvers that are at or near the top of the water column. If you can get them to notice something they aren't used to seeing, you just might trigger that instinctive strike response. Remember, these are goofy, unpredictable, close-to-spawning Coho we're talking about, so an unusual lure presented in an unusual way will at times be just what the doctor ordered.

I like "minnow baits," such as the well-known Rapala and similar lures, and some of the cupped-face ones known to freshwater bass anglers as chuggers and poppers, for this kind of top-water salmon fishing. I fish both types of plug the same way, pulling them to me in one- to three-foot surges. Constantly change the retrieve by taking longer and shorter swipes of the rod, some subtle and some more violent, and varying the length of time the lure rests on the surface between yanks from a second or two to as long as 10 or 15 seconds.

6. KEEP MOVING AND KEEP SEARCHING

Coho are on the move this time of year; so don't spend a lot of time fishing where they may have been yesterday or last week. Stay on the move until you find fish. There's a better-than-even chance that yesterday's productive spot won't be productive today, and you may have to prospect for new places to fish every day. Keep in mind that new runs of fish are moving in from the Pacific all the time, so remember to prospect farther "inside" for fish that that have passed by, and "outside" for fish that are still headed your way. Being mobile, of course, is much easier for boat anglers, but shore and dock fishermen also should have several options in mind with each new day of salmon fishing.

And, while you're moving, keep an eye peeled for signs of Coho activity. Whenever I'm fishing for silvers I'm watching the surface for birds (especially Bonaparte gulls), bait, and jumping or boiling fish. I know some people like to believe that jumping Coho aren't biters, but that's really just a handy excuse for not being able to catch them. When I see Coho jumping-especially when there are lots of them jumping in shallow water-I fish 'em until I figure out what they'll hit or until they quit jumping and go away.

Summer Chinook Info

While Chinook that are still "pasturing" out in the open ocean may feed and chase bait throughout much of the day and throughout much of the water column, the species' feeding habits become more selective and the places they feed more limited as fish mature and move toward the freshwater streams of their origin. As these fast-maturing adult Chinook become more interested in reaching their final destination than in eating, catching them becomes more and more challenging. This principle applies to adult Chinook entering the estuaries of the California and Oregon coasts, just as it does in the so-called "inside" waters of Washington's Strait of Juan de Fuca and northern Puget Sound.

With mature Chinook that are moving toward their home streams, the bite for an entire day may last five minutes, 15 minutes, maybe as long as two hours if you're really lucky, so being in the right place when it happens is critical to success.

One of the "right times" to fish for kings is early morning. Northwest salmon anglers, for the most part, know that king salmon usually bite best at daylight, but many aren't in a position to fish at those times. Just launching your boat at first light isn't the same as being in your fishing spot with baited hooks in the water at first light.

Well-known Northwest salmon-chaser Tony Floor likes to tell the story about how being on the water early put him in position to boat the biggest king of his life. "It was a 53-pounder, and I hooked it as the very first hint of pink was beginning to show on the horizon; the rest of the sky was still dark," he says. It's a safe bet that many salmon anglers were just launching their boats or motoring out of the harbor as Floor slid the net around his trophy-class king.

Longtime Seattle Post-Intelligencer outdoor writer Blaine Freer liked to quote "Haw's Law" in describing the importance of fishing for Chinook salmon during that all-important first crack of dawn. Frank Haw was a former Washington Department of Fisheries biologist and Northwest salmon-fishing guru, and his law, as espoused by Freer, was "If you can see the bait, it's too late." It doesn't get much simpler than that; if you're just hitting the water at daylight, you've already missed your best opportunity of sinking the hook into a big Chinook salmon. You should be baiting your hooks in the dark in order to take full advantage of those first few precious seconds of daylight.

By now you're probably starting to realize that if you're a late sleeper, you're usually going to miss your best chance of the day to put a bragging-size king in the boat. The good news is that first light isn't your only chance. Tide changes during the day also spur Chinook salmon feeding activity, as does the day's second low-light "magic hour," just before dark.

"If you don't score during the morning bite, your best shot at getting Chinook to bite is fishing the tide and current change," says Floor. "The best time is when the current begins to slow and change, on either side of the tide (ebb or flood). The length of time for this bite will vary depending on the extent of the tide and the geography."

Tide changes draw baitfish together in tight concentrations, and where baitfish congregate, adult Chinook come to feast!

The best combination of tide and time depends on where you're fishing, but a current speed of about one knot is ideal. Stronger current makes it more difficult to fish effectively.

Some salmon anglers believe a flooding tide offers the best chance for Chinook, others swear by the ebb, and both are right. It depends on where you're fishing.

Understanding the geography is the main thing. You have to know how the bait reacts to the moving water on which tide. With rare exceptions, you want to fish downhill with the current, going deeper as the water moves you along. Whichever tide carries you from shallower water into deeper water is usually the best fishing tide in that location.

As a general rule, the time of day they're least likely to bite is when the tide is dead-slack. Baitfish schools disperse when the tide is slack, and so do the salmon.

Luckily for salmon anglers, we can all get our hands on tide and current tables that tell us in advance when these events will happen virtually anywhere we might plan to fish. Unlike salmon fishing, tides and currents are pretty much an exact science, so there's no excuse for not knowing when and where they'll happen on any given fishing day.

The day's last flurry of Chinook-fishing activity occurs during the final hour of daylight, and it may provide fishing that's every bit as good as the early-morning bite. A tide change during the final 30 minutes of daylight can be especially productive. Again, though, that means hanging in there through last light, and being prepared for night-running back to the boat ramp or dock. Be sure your boat and your boating skills are up to it.

The success of early morning and late-evening Chinook anglers might beg the question; do these feeding sprees last through the night? The answer is usually "yes," but few anglers capitalize on the possibilities.

"There's pretty good evidence that those salmon you fish for at last light and again at first light are actively feeding throughout the night," Tony Floor says. A man named Art Gallaghan, who retired from Washington's Department of Fisheries years ago, liked to launch at 8 p.m. and come in about 6 a.m., and he caught fish all night."

If you haven't tried it, though, that kind of fishing is very challenging. You can't see your line angle, so you don't always know where you're fishing or where a hooked fish really is, you can't see fish to net them, can't see that tell-tale twitching of the rod tip on a light strike. That's not to mention the deadheads and other dangers you might encounter when you're out there all alone in the darkness.

There's another aspect of timing that's very important to salmon anglers. Besides being on the water with bait on your hooks at the right times of day, you also have to be fishing the right general areas at the right time of year, and some anglers ignore those details.

"State fish and wildlife agencies along the Pacific Coast have years of statistics that show the timing of various salmon runs through our ocean," Floor says. "For example, populations of Columbia River kings passing through Neah Bay, Washington, peak in July. We also know, on a year-to-year basis, when that trip to Neah Bay is probably going to be worthwhile and when it might not be so good. You have to know the run forecast and how it will affect the fishing. Similarly, 90 percent of the Chinook salmon caught off the SW corner of Vancouver Island are bound for Oregon and Washington, and those runs peak in June. So, be in Tofino in June for some pretty good Chinook fishing.

Such run-size and timing information is available for Chinook runs along the entire coast, and it's a good idea to study several years' worth to see how the patterns emerge.

But don't just start thinking about all this in July to plan your summer fishing trips. Do your homework well ahead of time so that you can time your future vacations and fishing trips for the right places at the right times.

FASTEST DRIFT RIG IN THE WEST

JIG & FLOAT TECHNIQUES

3 OZ BOBBER & JIG RIG

TYING AN EGG LOOP KNOT

SPIN & GLOW TECHNIQUES

THE SALMON RIVER

Designated Reach: October 28, 1988. From its headwaters to its confluence with the Sandy River.

Classification/Mileage: Wild -- 15.0 miles; Scenic -- 4.8 miles; Recreational -- 13.7 miles; Total -- 33.5 miles.

The Salmon is one of the few rivers designated for its entire length, from its headwaters in the snowfields high on Mt. Hood to its confluence with the Sandy River. Only an hour's drive from Portland, this clear river cascades over numerous waterfalls in the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness before reaching its lower forested canyons. It is known for outstanding wild salmon and steelhead fisheries, numerous recreational opportunities, and the unique Cascade Streamwatch Interpretive Area at the Bureau of Land Management's Wildwood Recreation Site.

The Salmon River's proximity to metropolitan Portland, Oregon, makes it easy for people to enjoy the diverse recreational opportunities that the river offers. In its resource assessment, the river plan identified recreation, scenery, fish, wildlife, and vegetative communities as being outstandingly remarkable values (ORVs). To qualify as an ORV, each value must be a unique, rare, or exemplary feature that is significant at a regional or national level

Recreation. The river and its corridor offers a wide variety of recreational opportunities, including hiking, nordic and alpine skiing, camping and developed recreation sites. Sport fishing is also exceptional at this river, and its reknowned summer steelhead fishery draws anglers from around the state.

Scenery. The scenery of the area is both impressive and diverse. Some of the things that can be seen at Salmon River are close-up views of Mt. Hood and a narrow river canyon containing a series of 6 waterfalls within a 3 mile segment.

Fish. Along with the important and productive anadromous fisheries, there are several rare native fish species found in this river.

Habitat. The corridor of Salmon River contains a wide diversity orf wildlife habitat that is important for federally listed threatened and endangered species, and also for big game.

Vegetative Communities. Along the length of the river, from its headwaters to its mouth, are a wide variety of life and plant zones. Its meadow complex provides great ecological diversity, including several rare plant communities.

THE ROUGE RIVER

Designated Reach: October 28, 1988. From the Crater Lake National Park boundary downstream to the Rogue River National Forest boundary at Prospect.

Classification/Mileage:

Wild: 6.1 miles

Scenic: 34.2 miles

Total: 40.3 miles

Cutting across the Coast Range and the Siskiyou National Forest, the Wild and Scenic Rogue River begins near Crater Lake in the Cascade Mountains and splashes its way to the Pacific Ocean. The Siskiyou National Forest manages the Wild Section of the Rogue, 35 miles of whitewater racing through the Wild Rogue Wilderness Area.

The Wild Section of the Rogue River is one of the most popular whitewater runs in the world. It's popularity is heightened by a steady water level due to dams upstream, hot, sunny summer weather, and exciting whitewater rapids through lush forests and steep canyons.

THE DESCHUTES RIVER

Designated Reach: October 28, 1988. From Big Springs to Big Cliff.

Classification/Mileage: Scenic -- 20.0 miles; Recreational -- 27.0 miles; Total -- 47.0 miles.

Deschutes features ruggedly beautiful scenery, outstanding whitewater boating, and a renowned sport fishery for steelhead, brown trout, and native rainbow trout. The Upper Deschutes features primarily flatwater boating with limited whitewater and excellent trout fishing opportunities. The Middle Deschutes has excellent hiking opportunities with spectacular geologic formations and waterfalls, but boating is limited. The Lower Deschutes offers the greatest opportunities for whitewater rafting and is one of Oregon's premier steelhead and trout fisheries.

THE WILLAMETTE RIVER

The Willamette River has 13 major tributaries and drains approximately 12,000 square miles, almost one eighth of Oregon's total area. The Willamette River is the tenth largetst river in the continental U.S. in total discharge, with over 24 million acre-feet annually. The 187-mile main stem of the Willamette River extends from its source south of Eugene, northward to the Columbia River at Portland. There are approximately 16,000 total stream miles in the basin. The Willamette River basin is the fastest growing and most economically developed region of the state.

The Willamette basin has long been a place of beauty, where the meandering Willamette River and its tributaries were surrounded by diverse landscapes if wetlands, prairies, and forests. Its multiple resources and myriad uses still reflect the high quality of life for which Oregon is celebrated. The basin encompasses a variety of landscapes; rivers and streams, wetlands and riparian area, cultivated valleys, developed urban areas, and forested uplands.

ODFW RECREATION REPORT

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/RR/index.asp

COMMON FRESH WATER FISH SPECIES OF THE NW

GREEN STOURGEN

Origin To Oregon:

White & Green Sturgeon are native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Acipenser transmontanus. Sturgeon are an ancient family of fish that is little changed from their first appearance in the fossil record during the Jurassic Period – 180-135 million years ago. White sturgeon are bottom-dwelling fish that can live to be over 100 years old. Sturgeon are found from Mexico to Alaska; in Oregon white sturgeon inhabit most major coastal rivers and mainstem Columbia, Willamette, and Snake rivers. They are characterized by their large size, large head and mouth, and long cylindrical bodies. Sturgeon have a long snout equipped with four “barbels” (whiskers) located on the outside of a large, toothless, bottom-oriented mouth. Instead of scales, sturgeon have rows of bony plates (called “scutes”) from gills to tail. Dorsal color is dark to light gray, pale olive, or gray-brown. Virtually all WHITE sturgeon have a uniformly pale ventral surface; a dark stripe along the center of the belly is a sure sign the fish is a GREEN sturgeon. White sturgeon evolved in large river systems with free ocean access. In Oregon, most white sturgeon spawn in the swift waters of the mainstem Columbia and Snake rivers. Female white sturgeon do not reach maturity until they are six feet or longer (age 25+ years); they spawn every three to five years in May or June. Males are able to spawn more often. Smaller females produce about 100,000 eggs; the largest females may deposit more than 3 million eggs. Unlike salmon, sturgeon do not build a nest or redd. Eggs are broadcast directly in the water column. The fertilized eggs then sink and stick to clean rock surfaces. The eggs hatch in about 7 days. The newly hatched larvae swim back up into the water column and are carried downstream to rearing areas. The fry begin to feed about 7-14 days after hatching and may grow over 10 inches in the first year. In their long lives white sturgeon may wander far to feed in freshwater, estuarine, and marine environments. Land-locked white sturgeon are able to live their full life cycle in freshwater, but those with access to the ocean grow faster and spawn more often than the impounded populations. Small white sturgeon feed primarily on invertebrates. As they grow they continue to eat invertebrates, but fish such as lamprey, smelt, shad, and salmon become increasingly important in their diet. White sturgeon are prized by recreational and commercial fishers for their firm white flesh. To protect mature fish, and thus the sturgeon population, harvesting sturgeon over 60-inches in length is prohibited. Currently there are no threatened or endangered populations of white sturgeon in Oregon, but they have been negatively impacted by dams. Populations trapped in Columbia River impoundments are less productive than the population below Bonneville Dam. In middle Snake River reservoirs no harvest is allowed, and white sturgeon are considered at risk due to lack of juvenile recruitment.

State Record: Record or "over-sized" sturgeon must not be removed from the water and must be released unharmed.

Origin To Oregon:

Chinook Salmon are Native Species of Oregon

Species Information:

Latin Name: Oncorhynchus tshawytscha; Common Name: King salmon, blackmouth. Three “types” of Chinook salmon are found in Oregon waters, based on the time of year the adults leave the ocean environment to spawn. Generally, Spring Chinook migrate back to freshwater from February to May, Summer Chinook in June and July, and Fall Chinook from August to October. (This timing schedule can vary significantly between different salmon populations in various locations throughout the state.) The life histories of different runs of Chinook are also quite varied: some migrate from their fresh water origins into an estuary environment soon after hatching; others (Columbia River populations) may take up to a year to reach salt water. Spring Chinook migrate extensively in the ocean, whereas certain runs of Summer and Fall Chinook may rear closer to the coast. They all remain in large schools and feed heavily on baitfish, like anchovies and herring, for four or five years. Upon re-entering fresh water salmon lose their desire to eat and live off their accumulated fat reserves. At this point, Chinook can weigh upwards of 80 pounds, but the average Chinook weighs 10–25 pounds. The bright silver color of the ocean-going fish, dotted with large black spots above the lateral midline, darkens gradually to a mottled brownish green as they make their way through fresh water to spawn. The male’s jaw develops a mild hook (compared to coho and chum) and large teeth. On reaching the spawning grounds, the females dig a shallow depression in the gravel by performing vigorous swimming movements on her side near the stream bottom. She then deposits eggs in small pockets as the males release clouds of sperm (milt) over them. Then the female covers the eggs with gravel. In one to several days, the female deposits four to five egg pockets (4,800 total eggs, on average); the total nest area is called a “redd.” As do other salmon, Chinook die within days of spawning.

State Record: 1910 - Ernie St. Claire caught an 83 lb. Chinook in the Umpqua River.

Origin To Oregon:

Coho Salmon is a native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Oncorhynchus kisutch; Common Name: Silver salmon. The coho salmon's life cycle generally takes three years. They normally spend their first 1 ½ years in fresh water and the next 1 ½ years in salt water prior to returning to spawn in their natal streams. "Jacks” are males who return to spawn after only one season in the ocean. Typical fresh water rearing habitat for juveniles consists of cool, low gradient tributary streams. Coho typically concentrate in near shore ocean waters. There, they will feed and mature while waiting to begin their inland journey in the autumn months. Spawning migrations usually begin after heavy rains raise stream flows. Coho in salt water are bright silver with small black spots on the back and on the upper lobe of the caudal fin. They have a white gum line (in contrast to the black gums of chinook). Spawning adults become very dark. The head and back are dark green, the sides are a dull red to maroon, and the belly is gray to black. Females are paler than males. Spawning males are characterized by a bright red lateral stripe, hooked jaw with prominent teeth, and slightly humped back. Both sexes retain their small black spots. Adult coho usually weigh 8 to 12 pounds and are 24 to 30 inches long, but individuals weighing 31 pounds have been landed. As do other salmon, coho die after spawning.

State Record: 1966 - Ed Marti caught a 25 lb. 5 oz. Coho in Siltcoos Lake.

BROWN TROUT

Origin To Oregon:

Brown Trout has been introduced into the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Salmo trutta; Common Names: German brown, Loch-leven trout. A native of Europe, the brown has been successfully introduced into almost every section of the United States. In Oregon, it has become well established in suitable environments. The Deschutes River, East Lake, Paulina Lake, Suttle Lake, and Wickiup Reservoir are noted for producing large browns, many reaching 8 pounds or more. The coloration tends to be golden-brownish with dark brown or black spots on the body, and on the dorsal and adipose fins. Usually few or no spots appear on the tail fin. Many body spots, especially those below the lateral line, are edged with pink, red, or orange, forming rings or halos. Breeding males develop strong teeth and a hooked snout. Spawning occurs from October through December. Although brown trout can adapt themselves to sluggish streams and warmer temperatures better than other trout, cold, spring-fed tributary streams with stable water conditions are required for proper spawning success. The brown is known as the wariest of trout and the most difficult to catch. A native of Europe, the brown has been successfully introduced into almost every section of the United States. In Oregon, it has become well established in suitable environments. The Deschutes River, East Lake, Suttle Lake, and Wickiup Reservoir are noted for producing large browns, many reaching eight pounds or more. The coloration tends to be golden-brownish with dark brown or black spots on the body, and on the dorsal and adipose fins. Usually few or no spots appear on the tail fin. Many body spots, especially those below the lateral line, are edged with pink, red, or orange, forming rings or halos. Breeding males develop strong teeth and a hooked snout. Spawning occurs from October to January. Although brown trout can adapt themselves to sluggish streams and warmer temperatures better than other trout, cold, spring-fed tributary streams with stable water conditions are required for proper spawning success. The brown is known as the wariest of trout and the most difficult to catch.

State Record: 2002 - Ronald Lane caught a 28 lb. 5 oz. Brown Trout in Paulina Lake

Origin To Oregon:

Brook Trout has been introduced into the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Salvelinus fontinalis; Common Names: Eastern brook, speckled trout, speckled char, square tail. Originally from the eastern seaboard, the brook trout has been successfully introduced in many Oregon waters, especially in cold mountain streams and lakes where other species are unable to do well. One of the most colorful of the chars, the brook trout is dark green above, with worm-like markings on the back and dorsal fin. Cream and red spots appear on the sides, the red spots bordered with blue. The lower fins are reddish, the leading edges bordered with a white and black stripe. Generally, they weigh up to 3 pounds, but larger fish are frequently taken. Spawning occurs in the fall, usually in spring-fed tributaries or on gravel bars in the lakes. The female may deposit from 500 to 2,500 eggs. If not properly harvested, brook trout may overpopulate a lake and become stunted from lack of food and crowded conditions. Many barren lakes in Oregon have been stocked with brook trout, providing angling recreation where none was previously available. Brook trout thrive in spring-fed lakes and streams where the water remains below 65 degrees.

State Record: 2004 - Burt Westbrook caught a 9 lb. 6 oz. Brook Trout in the Deschutes River.

Origin To Oregon:

Bull Trout is a native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Salvelinus confluentus. Oregon’s native bull trout generally range between 8 to 20 inches but have been known to reach 20 pounds in some lake environments. They need cold clean water to survive and are typically found in the headwaters of Oregon rivers such as the McKenzie, Deschutes, Hood, John Day, Umatilla, Grande Ronde, and Klamath. However, bull trout are now uncommon in most of these rivers and are listed as ‘threatened’ under the Endangered Species Act. In many Oregon rivers and streams, it is ILLEGAL to fish for bull trout, so please check your regulations. Bull trout can be identified by the greenish to brownish back and sides, few or no spots on their fins, and cream or yellowish spots on their sides. Some spots along the side may be deep orange to red. The leading edges of their ventral fins are white. Bull trout are considered a char and are closely related to Dolly Varden , brook trout, and lake trout, all of which display light colored spots on a dark background. In Oregon, bull trout have a variety of life history strategies that include highly migratory and non-migratory populations. Spawning occurs in the fall when water temperatures drop below 50F. Usually, juvenile bull trout feed on insects until they are large enough to eat small fish. Adults feed primarily on fish and have a reputation as voracious predators.

State Record: 1989 - Don Yow caught a 23 lb. 2 oz. Bull Trout in Lake Billy Chinook.

Origin To Oregon:

Rainbow Trout is a native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Onchorynchus mykiss; Common Names: Redsides, coastal rainbow. Rainbow are the best known and the most widely distributed trout in Oregon. Several million of these fish are produced annually in hatcheries. Rainbow live their entire life in fresh water. The other two primary divisions within this varied species are “steelhead,” also known as the sea-run rainbow, and “redband,” a race of rainbow trout that live in closed interior basins. In general, the rainbow is bluish-green on the back, silvery on the sides and belly. The back and sides are peppered with fine black spots, which also dot the dorsal, adipose, and caudal fins. In some locations, the black spots of adults may extend well below the lateral line and even cover the entire lower side. A red or pink band usually extends along the lateral midline. The belly is usually white. Rainbow have short heads; the lip bone on the upper jaw seldom extends beyond the hind margin of the eye. They lack “teeth” on the back of the tongue. The color of all trout varies with environment. Stream and river trout tend to be more intensely colored than lake trout. Spawning trout are characterized by generally darker coloration. Rainbow do not mature until at least their 3rd year, most not until their 6th or 7th year. Most rainbow spawn annually during the early spring months, but some spawn only once every three years. Rainbow can live to the age of 10 or more. The number of eggs produced varies with the size of the fish. A 10 to 12-inch rainbow produces from 800 to 1,000 eggs, while a fish over 24 inches may produce from 5,000 to 9,000 eggs. Rainbow who live in or migrate to lake environments tend to become larger faster than stream-living rainbows. Because they inhabit diverse environments, rainbows range widely in size – adults measure anywhere from 12-30 inches and 2-20 pounds. A rainbow 45 inches long, weighing 42 pounds was recorded in Alaska.

State Record: 1982 - Mike McGonagle caught a 28 lb. Rainbow in the Rogue River

Origin To Oregon:

Redband (Native Rainbow) Trout is a native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Oncorhynchus mykiss gairdneri and Oncorhynchus mykiss newberri. “Redband” is the name given to the native interior rainbow trout of western North America. Redband trout in Oregon live in inland areas of the Columbia Basin and closed water systems in arid parts of the state. Characteristics vary considerably among populations of redband, but generally they can be differentiated from the coastal rainbow trout by their larger more rounded spots, parr marks that tend to remain into adulthood. On redband, the lateral line is more orange-red than the pinkish-red of coastal rainbow, and the background body color is more greenish-yellow than dark green and silver. Redband trout also have very distinct white tips on the anal, dorsal and pectoral fins. Although scientists dispute whether isolated populations are related or not, these fish have clearly adapted to harsh, arid environments with seasonally low water flows. Redband are typically a stream-resident fish that make short spawning migrations either in the same stream or often into smaller tributaries. They prefer cool, clean, relatively low gradient streams but, in some circumstances, are able to withstand wider temperature variations than their cousins, the westslope cutthroat trout. In response to population declines, resident forms of redband trout are considered a species of special concern by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, American Fisheries Society, and all states throughout their historic range (Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, California and Montana). They are classified as a state sensitive species and sensitive species by the U.S. Forest Service and the BLM.

State Record:

Origin To Oregon:

Steelhead are native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Oncorhynchus mykiss; Common Names: Redsides, sea-run rainbow. Steelhead are sea-run (anadromous) rainbow trout. Young steelhead are indistinguishable from rainbow. However, ocean-going fish develop a bright silvery sheen over the blue-green back, which is covered with fine black spots. Spots cover both lobes of the tail but are absent below the lateral midline of the body. Steelhead have silvery white bellies. The silvery sheen gradually fades in fresh water, and steelhead become difficult to differentiate from resident rainbow trout as the spawning period approaches. The steelhead’s life history is complex and diverse. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife recognizes 295 local populations of O. mykiss, all with slightly different life strategies! In general, steelhead parallel Pacific salmon for much of their life-cycle. They hatch in fresh water, often far upstream in small tributaries. Young steelhead spend 1-4 years in fresh water before migrating to the ocean. Some may then travel thousands of miles; others remain near their natal rivers. Unlike salmon, steelhead are loners and do not form cohesive schools. After 1-3 years feeding in the ocean, most steelhead return to their natal stream to spawn. However, up to 20% explore different streams and spawn in them. These “wanderers” populate new streams, which helps the steelhead race maintain its genetic and behavioral diversity. Summer steelhead are those adults who return from the ocean between May and October in an immature state and require several months of maturation in fresh water before they spawn. Winter steelhead are those fish who return to fresh water between November and April and are already mature. Both runs spawn during the winter months, but with the great overlap in return times, some Oregon rivers have steelhead coming in nearly all year. Females dig redds for their eggs, as salmon do; each female lays 2,000 – 10,000 eggs. Unlike salmon, not all steelhead die following their spawning cycle. Although survival percentage is low, some steelhead live to spawn twice or more. Summer steelhead average 24 inches and weigh an average of 6-10 pounds; winter steelhead are often a bit larger.

State Record: 1970 - Berdell Todd caught a 35 lb. 8 oz. Steelhead in the Columbia River.

CUTTHROAT TROUT

Origin To Oregon:

Cutthroat Trout is a native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Oncorhynchus clarki; Common Names: Native, mountain, speckled, black-spotted, blueback, harvest trout. Second only to the rainbow in angling importance is the cutthroat trout. As with rainbow trout, several races (with numerous and diverse life histories) occur in Oregon. For the angler, differences are primarily in degree of color. A sea-run form, commonly called blueback or harvest trout, inhabits coastal streams, spending much of its life in the ocean or brackish bays and lagoons. Sea-run cutthroat do not confine themselves strictly to salt water, but may run in and out of streams in search of food. At maturity, generally around 3 years, they ascend the rivers to spawn. The mountain or native race, more highly colored than its seagoing relations, confines its life to inland streams and lakes. The black-spotted cutthroat is found well distributed throughout the Wallowa Mountains. The name “cutthroat” is derived from the two red streaks on the underside of the lower jaw. On some fish, especially fresh sea-run fish, these marks may be indistinct or absent. In addition to the slash marks, the presence of “teeth” on the back of the tongue distinguish the cutthroat from the rainbow. The cutthroat’s lip bone on the upper jaw extends well beyond the hind margin of the eye; the rainbow’s is shorter. Coloration is generally dark green above, with olive sides and silvery belly. Sea-run fish tend to be bluish. Numerous black spots appear on the head, back and sides, and on the dorsal, adipose and caudal fins. Cutthroat will run up to three pounds; larger fish are occasionally taken. Spawning usually takes place in the early spring months. After spawning is complete, the spent fish drop back into lakes, larger streams or ocean bays. Cutthroat can live to be 9 years old and, unlike salmon, can spawn for a number of years before dying.

State Record: 1986 - Phillip Grove caught a 9 lb. 8 oz. Cutthroat in the Malheur River.

CUTTHROAT/RAINBOW HYBRID TROUT

Origin To Oregon:

Hybrid cutthroat-rainbow is a native species of the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Names: Oncorhynchus mykiss x Oncorhynchus clarki. “Cut-bows” can resemble either parent's morphology, but the telltale red slash marks of the cutthroat along the lower jaw line tend to be present, even in rainbow-looking fish. Natural hybridization between rainbow trout and cutthroat trout has been documented in several southern Oregon basins. Hybridization may be more prevalent in degraded habitats, in populations with low numbers of spawners (of either species), or in areas where natural distributions overlap.

State Record:

BROOK/BROWN HYBRID TROUT

Origin To Oregon:

Brook/Brown trout hybrid has been introduced into the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Names: Salvelinus fontinalis x Salmo trutta; Common Names: Tiger or zebra trout. The introduced brook trout has been hybridized in hatcheries with the introduced brown trout by combining brown trout eggs with brook trout sperm. This cross produces the usually sterile tiger or zebra trout, which has proven a very good game fish. Although biologically possible, this hybrid is extremely rare in the wild. The body shape of tiger trout is most like a male brook trout, but their scales are larger, like those on a brown trout. The tiger's spotting pattern is considerably different from either parent and is quite striking. The normal vermiculations of a male brook trout seem to be enlarged and contorted into stripes, swirls, spots, and rings. The hybrid displays a greenish cast overall. There are advantages and disadvantages to the creation and use of hybrids. Most grow faster (hybrid vigor) than either parent, but some do not fare as well with regard to survival from egg through fry stage. Some are more fitting to certain types of habitat than one of the parents, and some are more catchable (in terms of angling) than one of the parents. The inability of tiger trout to reproduce is viewed as an advantage in systems where a native species could be compromised by crossing with a non-native fish, as is the case with Oregon’s native bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) and the introduced (but naturalized) brook trout. Very often, the introduced species out-competes the native, and in cross-breeding with it, weakens native genetic traits.

State Record:

Origin To Oregon:

Lake Trout has been introduced into the state of Oregon.

Species Information:

Latin Name: Salvelinus namaycush; Common Names: Mackinaw, lake char, togue. Originally from Canada and the Great Lakes region, lake trout have been introduced into suitable Oregon waters. Largest of the chars, lake trout reach weights of 20 pounds over much of their range. A commercially taken lake trout was recorded at 80 pounds. This trout is gray to dark grayish-green in color with light spots over much of its body, which is slender with a long head. The tail is deeply forked. Lake trout need deep cold water with plenty of oxygen and proper spawning areas. They must also have an abundance of forage fish to flourish. Spawning occurs in the fall with the males appearing first on rocky shoals or ledges to prepare the nests. The female then moves up from deep water and deposits her eggs in the crevices among the rocks. No attempt is made to cover the eggs. Food of the young consists of small crustaceans, while the adults feed almost exclusively on other fishes.

State Record:

1984 - H.V. Hannon caught a 40 lb. 8 oz. Lake Trout in Odell Lake.

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