View Full Version : Deschutes Report Anyone?
Rodwavr
09-09-2003, 01:44 PM
Been trying to get a house ready for my mother-in-law to move into and we're still not finished :depressed: so I have to live vicariously through you guys. Come on, cough up the stories!
I'll have one for you tomorrow...hopefully a fishy one :smile:
Running milky green from confluence of White River to the mouth with about 1' visability. The guides aren't even going out so I wouldn't bother for a few days.
Riverkeeper
09-23-2003, 12:44 AM
My pops reports that the river has cleared, and yesterday he got two, one 5-6lb nate and one long line release. Walking up from the mouth. I got to get down there one of these days.
Darian
etacada
09-27-2003, 10:15 AM
any new reports?
24 on/ 48 off
09-27-2003, 10:43 AM
As of Last Wednesday, the river below the White was fine. Trout fishing was great!
--spud-- :smile:
baitslinger
09-27-2003, 10:59 AM
Has steelhead been doing much in lower river? It seemed real dead about a month ago when i went over there, someone said that the D was running about as warm as the coumbia and so all the fish were just swimming by instead of hanging out down low like they usually do? Anyone know if this is true?
joliver
09-28-2003, 08:23 PM
I just came off of a 4 day trip on the lower river and report that fishing was slow at best. The water is still warm and the fish are either not there or are really off the bite. We fished from the mouth clear up to Macks with only five fish on for 4 very accomplished fishermen. Other than July the fishing has been consitently bad so my guess is that they are not there. I talked to the park host at Heritage and he reports the Columbia has been dead all month as compared to the years past. Maybe some rain might help but that will fill the White if the freezing level doesnt go up. I am back on the river Friday so I will report again next week.
Patrick Kollodge
09-29-2003, 11:40 AM
After five days without a hookup I finally landed a nice 28" two-salt hatchery buck this morning, only to accidently release it while holding it by the tail as I walked to shore. The hook was still in his mouth and he had a couple good runs in him, but he shook loose as I was landing him for the second time. Dang.
graemlins/stupid.gif
The last four days I have had only an hour of fishing time before and after work, but last year that was plenty of time to hook into a couple fish near Maupin. Not the case this year. I'll have more time to fish through Wednesday, but reports have not been encouraging.
A couple guys camping near Oak Springs reported hearing traffic as early as 3:30 a.m.. Headlamps were blinking at 5:00 a.m. as they approached the water they wanted to fish.
When it gets crowded I fish some secondary runs that involve suicidal wading and ridiculously long casts so I can usually wake up a little later than 0darkthirty and still be first fly through.
Don't sweat it Rodwavr. You aren't missing much. Yet.
From reports I've read the White River has silted up the lower end again.
With thousands of fish going over the Dalles Dam and limited success from nearly everyone I've talked to one had to wonder where those fish are.
Did the nets get them? Trollers at the mouth and the guys fishing around the bridge are not getting many fish either.
The water temp. last week was just barely above 60 degrees.
joliver
09-29-2003, 08:13 PM
I am not sure why, but this year there were no mesh size restrictions and steelhead could be kept and commercially sold by the tribal netters. It is my understanding that there is never a commercial harvest or sale of steelhead in Oregon. I dont know why it changed this year. I know in the past the Washington coastal streams have been hit hard to almost extinction on tribal steelhead harvest. I hate to see the impact on these runs that cannot rebound like the prolific salmon. I guess I am with stupid! graemlins/stupid.gif
Slow and Low
09-30-2003, 06:51 AM
Hi All,
Last weekend I did TC to Harpham. I fished extremely hard through SJ area where I always catch Steelies (to no avail). Saw maybe 6 fish all the way down. Talked to one other boat where they had landed one.
Prior weekend I floated Pine tree to Heritage caught one lost 2. The two lost were nymph fishing. The one caught was dry lining at dawn.
Could be a poor year. Look at the Clack and the Sandy, both were a bust for summer fish. Worst comes to worst start trout fishing.
Slow
letsfish
10-01-2003, 08:59 AM
Fished the 29th and 30th in the Maupin area. Though I was targeting trout, I would say the majority of fishermen were Steelheaders.And never saw or heard of one fish being caught.
Speculation on the poor fishing seemed to focus on high water temps, though a few pods of hatchery fish shot through last week. White river has the lower river looking ugly for quite a stretch.
Some researcher was running down the road in a pickup with a BIG antanea(sic) set up.He said he could read only 7 fish in the river with an estimated 1:100 ratio of marked to unmarked fish that means 700 fish in the river. Quite low. He said lots of fish at the mouth ready to come up.
Streetwalker
10-14-2003, 06:31 PM
Fished the Macks area from 10/5 thru 10/11. River was a bit colored but enough visibility to fish it. It was pretty slow all week, managed to hook 9 fish for the week but 4 of them were in one morning & 3 in another morning, rest of the week was pretty sparse. I couldn't get a take with the fly rod, started all but one morning with that & switched to the driftrod & spoons when the sun hit the water & thats when all the action took place. With the visibility maybe should have stuck with the fly rod a bit longer with the sun. I did see the drift boat guides pulling out early to head above White River. It was very uncrowded in the Macks area even Sat & Sun maybe due to river conditions but I'll take marginal conditions w/ no crowd anyday. Been going there since the late 80's & this is probably the slowest steelhead year I can remember, Oh well I dont go there for #'s I go for the experience & it was as good as ever!
Hey Streetwalker,
Were you with the group pitched up there at pipeline watching the bighorns, with the green motorboat?
Kevin
Streetwalker
10-14-2003, 10:02 PM
No we stayed at Mack's all week but I saw those guys. The guy at the most downstream camp at Mack's told me he had 2 Ewe's and a Ram IN HIS CAMPSITE!! & got as close as he dared & the Ram put his head down so he got back in his camper.
garyk
10-14-2003, 11:23 PM
So that's where those sheep were! I was looking for them.
We fished the evening of the 10th for an hour, then about six hours on both 11th and 12th.
The 11th was pretty good. With our usual 'crack of 10am start' we fished below White River and above Beavertail, I landed two natives and mrs.garyk landed one native and had another on briefly. The creel checker at 7pm said he had about 25 fish released for 60 anglers.
The 12th was a bust as the overcast lifted and it got knock-you-down windy. We fished the same places and got absolutely zippo (which is more typical of how Deschutes steelhead usually treat me).
Slow and Low
10-16-2003, 07:10 AM
Not sure if you guys care about the upper float. I floated Friday through Sunday TC to HF. Out of three guys two caught fish. Boated four total and had several break offs on the take despite carrying a shock loop. Massive guide traffic...never seen anything like it. I am pretty sure it's on up there. Makes it hard to tell when you are fishing behind people all day.
As for the sheep I see them at Harris.
Slow and Low
10-21-2003, 07:50 AM
Floated South Junction to Harpham over the weekend and really put the hammer on them. Boat traffic was lot's better and the river was up. Saturday we hooked 9 landed 5 between three. Sunday went 0 for 4. Hooked all but one with sinktip and black leach pattern. The fish are upriver.
straightweave
10-23-2003, 10:18 PM
I know that you bug tossers are focused on the riffles and slots and runs, oh my, but what is the bird situation, ie, chuckar and quail, lookin like? Many coveys to speak of? We're looking to do a cast and blast before it gets toooo cold.
Haftafish
11-04-2003, 08:09 PM
Floated Warm Springs to Trout Creek last Wednesday. The weather was overcast and raining at times. Very cold in our pontoon boats but the fish were hungry. I worked each drift for steelhead, and trout. Most all of my hookups were on the trout rig and I caught some big fish. Some too big to get in and look at. A 6wt sometimes just isn't big enough up there. As always it was a great trip and the Deschutes always provides me with a great day.