Where should I fish this weekend??

[Skunked]

My girlfriend is leaving for the weekend so I think I will take off for a little adventure of my own. I've got a few ideas of where to go but it's so hard to decide.
I could drive down the coast looking for steelhead (wilson/tucca/siletz).
A buddy of mine is going to the crooked, so I could join him there and then hit the deschuttes on the way home. Or do the crooked and then some CO lakes.
I've also thought about trying to get into a little hike in lake in the cascades.

Anyone have any thoughts, suggestions, other ideas?

Thanks

[AndyK]

I've also thought about trying to get into a little hike in lake in the cascades.
I don't think you will be hiking into any of the lakes; too much snow.

As you have seen on this board, some of the CO lakes are fishing well right now. The Deschutes is running very high. Coastal Cutthroat will open this weekend (don't forget to check the regs).

If I had a whole weekend, I would try the CO lakes.

[etacada]

Were are the CO lakes Andy? Never heard of them.

Thank you,

Chris

[AndyK]

Were are the CO lakes Andy? Never heard of them.

CO = Central Oregon

Pick one!

[Skunked]

Coastal Cutthroat will open this weekend (don't forget to check the regs).

Good point, one more reason to go to the coast. Haven't been to CO in awhile though.

[Ryan Pultz]

I am going to fish hard local if the sandy gets better color I might hit it Monday but it is ripping high right now I dont know the color rp

[Twitchs_Tackle]

Well, my buddies and I ( 3 people total) landed over 250 fish in about 5 hours on a stocked pond between corvallis and the coast:wink: range from 8" to 3#

[Steeleman]

Well, my buddies and I ( 3 people total) landed over 250 fish in about 5 hours on a stocked pond between corvallis and the coast:wink: range from 8" to 3#


Rub it in! Rub it in!! I will be fishing in my dreams! Too much homework this weekend.

Steeleman

[FishWonk]

Floated the Siletz on Thurs, and didn't see any sign of summer steel, though the river was in beautiful shape....

[steel_beaver]

Tried the tucca on Monda and Thursday.... saw one steel on Mon (gear guy) and one Nook on Thurs (Bait guy). Two other fly guys and I got skinked (a few cutties on the smaller flies). Good Luck

S_B

[Skunked]

Thanks everyone for posting advice, I just got back.
Saturday morning I fished some upper willamette tribs and hooked and lost a couple nice rainbows (I would guess in the 12-14" range) oh well, it was a fun fight and saved me the trouble of unhooking them. That afternoon I drove over hwy 58 to camp at fall river and caught nada, very pretty river though. Oh and wow there is a ton of snow on willamette pass for late may.
Sunday I fished some streams around Bend and got lots of small trout on drys and 1 pretty good sized whitefish on a nymph. I had never caught a whitefish before and I have heard a lot of people talk about them like they are trash fish but it put up a pretty strong fight, didn't jump or run wildly from side to side like a trout I suppose but it definitely had some strength.
Came home late last night to do some chores today.

[Dullhook]

1 pretty good sized whitefish on a nymph. I had never caught a whitefish before and I have heard a lot of people talk about them like they are trash fish but it put up a pretty strong fight, didn't jump or run wildly from side to side like a trout I suppose but it definitely had some strength.


They're pretty tasty in the smoker too, Skunked. Some folks confuse them with suckers but they're actually more closely related to the trout family. They prefer living in cold, clean, often moving water feeding mostly on bottom dwelling insect larva. Anytime fishing Odell Lake, Crane Prairie, or the North Santiam, the big ones always wind up in my fish basket. They have mild flavored, white, flakey meat with enough oil to make them perfect for the Little Chief.

Just gut them out and chunk them leaving the skin and scales on. Soak them in brine over night just like salmon or steelhead. After they're done the skin peals off like a glove and the meat flakes away from the bones easily. I remember a late fall trip to Crane Prairie years ago when the lake was super low due to irrigation draw-down. We fished way up in one of the channels and didn't do all that well on the trout. We did catch a bunch of whitefish in the 20" size range and took them home to smoke. Been hooked ever since! :food: :cheers: