Any Umpqua smallie reports?

DaleDor · 07-15-2003, 09:27 AM

Hi.
Thinking about heading there in the near future. Is it too low of water? How's the fishing for smallmouth been?

Thanks in advance!

Best Fishes · 07-15-2003, 09:49 AM

Fished last week on the Umpqua from Yellow Creek to the Umpqua RV Park. Caught over 200. I am not a fan of using night crawlers but that was the ticket!! We fished the drop offs where there were shawdows (shade) and it was a fish everytime for my 8 year old son!! The fish were smaller. Only a few about 18 inches.

Best Fishes,

Doug

DaleDor · 07-15-2003, 10:10 AM

Best Fishes: Sounds like a memorable father-son trip....can't complain about that!

By the way, what hook size do you recommend for nightcrawlers? What type of setup for the earthworms (split-shot, etc.??)

Thanks!

Best Fishes · 07-16-2003, 07:10 AM

Dear Dale:

It was really a father / son trip since I took my father (73) also. Three generations of fishermen!

We used size 8 hooks. I should add that the fish often would take the hooks deep. We piched down our barbs to assist in releasing. I used a slit shot 1/8th & 1/4 ounce anout 16 inches up.

We cut the nightcrawlers into thirds and pushed part of the worm up over the eye of the hook. We then left about 1/2" of the worm dangling off the end of the hook. We normally could catch about 3 fish per worm since the worm would normally slide up the line when we fought the fish.

Best Fishes

Hooker · 07-16-2003, 03:23 PM

We fished from Osprey to Yellow Creek about a month ago and did really well. We had 100 fish days per angler.

My buddy used nightcrawlers (cut in half) on a size 1 bait hook--de barbed. He added about a 1/4 oz split shot about 20" above the hook.

I mainly used a 4" grub on a 1/8 oz jig head. The colors that worked best for me were dark blue, purple, and brown. The bass usually hit these on the drop.

spin33 · 07-22-2003, 12:29 PM

The smallie fishin' is real good, I fished yellow cr. to rv park also. 150 fish, all released to grow bigger, and bigger. I don't think it nessessary to use nightcrawlers as bait. They just take it too deep to save allot of them. You can put them back in but not all will live. My son and I have great luck using 1/16 jigheads with 3 or 4 inch plastic worms, mostly in purples.
Also the "zoom" 4' lizards in watermellon get the larger ones every trip. I cannot remember having a fish take it so deep I had to kill it, and it is really easy fishing, with easy release.
I just don't wish to see that particular section
of river, that is accessible to all of us get overfished (Actually I mean overkilled)

Sir Fishalot · 07-28-2003, 09:29 PM

I've been fishing the Elkton section of the Umpqua lately and have been knocking them dead using 3" curltails in every color. It's rediculous to use bait when considering those smallies will hit just about anything. I even pinch down the barb because it's not a big deal when one gets off, and I hate killing fish I'm not gonna eat.

DaleDor · 07-29-2003, 09:57 AM

We went the previous weekend and did pretty well. My brother added a worm segment to his fly and did way better. Fish seemed to be almost everywhere. If you launch real early in the day you'll miss much of the upstream winds that occur in (mostly) the afternoon on hot days. Fish were not big. Most other fishermen who had great success were using 1/2 of a nightcrawler. Plastic worms were also good for them. The more lava rock sections (vs. the more "freestone" sections of the river) seemed to be the best. One guy said that from roughly 12:30PM to roughly 4:30PM, on a very warm day, is less productive....anybody have any thoughts on that (in fact, he wasn't even fishing during that time since he felt it was so unproductive)?

We used the Umpqua RV parks shuttle service (basically it was, well, FREE for us, as it turned out...we camped at the park.) What has been other people's experience using the shuttle service at the Umpqua RV park? I'd like to know.

spin33 · 08-01-2003, 09:19 AM

I have found that the Umpqua river RV park operators are NOT dependable in providing a consistant shuttle service for boaters.

Two weeks ago they could not provide me with a ride and I had to call it a day early, so that I could walk back up the highway to my truck. :depressed: It appeared as if they couldn't have cared less. And this from a customer that has used their services for 4 years. [img]graemlins/berry.gif[/img]
Maybe a better bet to try Arleens in Elkton for a shuttle? [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img]

I am going back to riding a mountain bike back to the truck, it ain't that tough.

DaleDor · 08-01-2003, 09:32 AM

Spin33: You appear to be one of the most experienced Umpqua smallie fishers on this board...glad to get your feedback.

One question though: you said you had to call it in the day before...do you mean they didn't give you a ride since you DIDN'T call it in the day before or that you DID call it in the day before and they still didn't give you a ride?

Also, what's roughly the percentage of times that this (not being able to get a ride) has happened to you there (10%, 70%, etc.)?

Thanks!

Best Fishes · 08-01-2003, 12:30 PM

The RV Park charges $5 for the shuttle and $5 to use their ramp.

When I have called the day before they will let me know if they can handle my shuttle. They do not want to drive your car, they have always reuested that I launch my boat, drive back to the RV Park and then drive me back to the launch site. I like this.

I was told that the charge for a shuttle at Arleens is $20. For this price you do get some good info on where to fish & what to use.

Regards,

Doug Anderson

spin33 · 08-01-2003, 02:09 PM

The price is right at the RV take out, the owner usually will make some sort of arrangement with another camper, or a local to take you back to your ride. I would say it is a 20% failure rate in making a shuttle connection. I don't know the shuttle rate for Arleens, $20 sounds pretty stiff.
I'm not trying to knock the RV park too much, but they did leave me in a lurch the last time.
The main thing is catch some fish, and man it is good fishing now. I was there yesterday with my son, we caught at least 200, but the big ones seem to avoid us that day. Landed 3.6 #er last week, made a nice picture. Man the wind does blow in the afternoon. I was thinking I might put IN at the RV place, and blow UPRIVER to yellow creek.

DaleDor · 08-01-2003, 02:12 PM

Thanks, guys!

DaleDor · 08-01-2003, 02:17 PM

Spinn33: good thinking about blowing upstream!

Now there's a thinkin' man. he he he

When we were there, we launched real early and didn't fish all day, so we took out around 12:45 PM, and we AVOIDED most all of the wind that day (a 90 degree day.) The day before we LAUNCHED at around 12:45 and did battle the wind most of the day.