View Full Version : Sandy river questions?
Radke
04-15-2003, 07:11 AM
A few years back PGE had a number you could call that gave fish count information for fish going over marmot dam. They even broke it down by summers, winters, chinookies. Does anyone know if that number (or some rendition of it) still exists? I called PGE, the person I spoke with had never heard of it. Second question (I asked same question last week, no one answered). Is anyone doing any good on the Sandy for other than native winter fish? Thanks
Artwo
04-15-2003, 08:46 AM
Radke,
Sorry, I can't help you with the phone number but I can tell you what I've heard about the fishing. I spoke with Jack's wife last Saturday and was told that the steelhead fishing was fair (mostly up high) and that an occasional springer is being picked up, very occasional. Jack is actually working in the Willamette due to the lack of springers in the Sandy and the Columbia being closed above I5. A few more weeks would be my perdiction, things usually don't get rolling good for the springers until May anyway.
JK
Radke
04-15-2003, 09:44 AM
Thanks for the reply! I've also been doing okay high up, but all I am seeing are native winter fish. I was hoping to bump into a summer steelhead one of these days. Oh well, I'll just keep trying... - Thanks again.
danger
04-15-2003, 10:38 AM
I spent 4 hours or so last Sunday on the lower river near troutdale, we were plunking for springer and summers and we didn't get a bump, heard of one native springer caught early in the morn and we had a lot of db pass us. Patience is the key, I think a couple more weeks.
Bankbound
04-15-2003, 01:10 PM
Pink worms!!!!!
bob-n-jig
04-15-2003, 03:01 PM
yes....pink worms
KillerDave
04-15-2003, 03:18 PM
I could be wrong, but aren't all Sandy River Summer Steelhead hatchery fish? If so, they don't let them go above Marmot Dam anymore.
doublel
04-15-2003, 08:09 PM
The fish are trapped and sorted at marmot dam. All fin clipped fish are either recycled into the lower sandy or dumped in Roslyn lake. The non fin clipped fish, regardless of species are allowed to go on up the Sandy. The Sandy above Marmont dam is a wild river and only wild fish (unclipped) are allowed to go above the dam. It is understood that neither summer steelhead or spring chinook were native to the sandy system but over the years the origion of fish in the sandy is very confused due to planting practices. All fish are now planted at Cedar Creek and the only fish above that point are native. The people at the hatchery that sort the fish at Marmot told me they have not had a clipped fish in the marmot dam trap since january.
bob-n-jig
04-16-2003, 12:10 AM
the fish ARE there....you just have to work for them.....
one thing VERY IMPORTANT.....sharp hooks!!!!
Adofish
04-16-2003, 12:28 AM
The number can be found in the appendix of the popular book "Fishing In Oregon".
Radke
04-16-2003, 10:26 AM
I have seen summers come out of the sandy as early as 1975, and I don't think they were being planted at that time. I caught three in January of this year, none with a clipped fin, but like the previous post said, they were probably off-spring of hatchery stock. Funny thing about them though, they were unusually large, probably 34-36 inches, which makes we wonder if they were hatchery.
Just because they where unclipped and where caught in the Sandy... doesn't nessisarily mean they originated in the Sandy River. Wild steelhead have 15% stray rates and hatchery stray rates have been found to be far higher.
Don't forget that the Toutle river repopulated itself with "wild" fish from strays.... exact origin unknown. It would be safe to assume that some of these wild fish may not spawn in the Sandy, they may just be hangin out, then backout and head to there stream of origin.
It is not a safe assumption that these fish are wild and are from parents of hatchery origin.
Artwo
04-16-2003, 01:51 PM
Ty,
Same thing for the clipped fish also. Last winter I caught a clipped WS up at Oxbow that had a tag in it next to the dorsal fin which read Wind River.
JK
Thanks JK,
That hatchery fish you caught was tagged possibly at a hatchery, so I want you all to think about hatchery fish recycling and what that possible means in terms of straying?
Yep think I mentioned that hatchery fish have higher stray rates than wild fish. Also notice I am careful to not say "native" as this defintion is and isn't applicable to the life history of steelhead dictated by geographic area's not nessisarily by river.