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SUNNY Temp: 53 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Thursday, November 21, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend September 19, 2002 Fishing & Hunting Report River Outlook ROGUE — The fall chinook salmon bite remains good throughout most sections of the river where fall chinook fishing is allowed, and the drop in water levels is helping make fly-fishing for steelhead better in the upper Rogue. The best bet, though, remains the middle Rogue downstream of Grants Pass. The area is packed with fresh fall chinook and dozens of anglers, making several of the most popular spots very crowded. Taylor Creek Canyon and the hole near Morrison’s Lodge are awash with anglers, but they are all catching fish. Kwikfish bounced with lead off the bottom has been the best bet, but fishing with roe is good. Roe, however, is attracting the squawfish, and their constant pecking can be a nuisance. The waters downstream of Savage Rapids Dam remain good for bank anglers, and Rainie Falls is packed with bank casters each day. Other popular and good spots are Griffin Park, Finley Bend and Ennis Riffle. Several salmon in the 45-pound range are getting caught daily. In the lower Rogue, fall chinook are present from Agness all the way to the ocean, where bay fishing remains very good. Trollers in the bay are finding good success in the afternoon recently, but there has been a drop-off in the number of 50 pounders caught each week. Schools of salmon are also running upstream regularly, and bank anglers using roe are doing well for these migrating fish. The lower Rogue also is good for summer steelhead and halfpounders, with most of the halfpounders remaining downstream of the mouth of the Illinois River. Hot-spots recently have been Huntley Park, the waters near Lobster Creek Campground and spots downstream of Agness. Access to the lower Rogue improved Wednesday when Bear Camp Road was finally opened by the Forest Service, which had been using it as a fire line around the Biscuit fire. In the upper Rogue, the spring chinook salmon season is over and the summer steelhead activity is picking up now that the water levels are down around 1,400 cubic feet per second. Flows will continue to drop to about 1,000 cfs by the weekend. Look for steelhead fly-fishing to get better early next week after the steelhead have a chance to adjust to the drop in flows. Egg flies and prince nymphs are the top producers. There are lots of salmon present as well, and be careful not to foul-hook them. Anglers can no longer keep any wild steelhead on the Rogue for the remainder of the year. Only fin-clipped hatchery steelhead may be kept as part of the two-fish daily limit. The rule allowing a third hatchery steelhead expired July 12. COOS/COQUILLE — Fishing for fall chinook salmon has been very good, with catches of fish 25-35 pounds caught regularly upstream of Coquille. Just outside the jetties at the river mouth, however, has been excellent for trolling and mooching with anchovies. Recent modifications to the inland salmon fishing regulations allow chinook angling in the Coquille from the tips of the jetties up to the South Fork. Night fishing for striped bass in the lower Coquille has been good recently as well. UMPQUA — Steelhead fishing is slow in the main-stem, while fall chinook fishing remains only fair so far. Most of the main-stem angling now is for smallmouth bass, which is excellent in the Elkton and Roseburg areas. Smallmouth bass fishing is also good to very good in the lower sections of the South Umpqua, which is also open to rainbow trout fishing. In the North Umpqua, summer steelhead fishing is fair in the all-angling and the fly-only sections. The fly-only section is restricted to single-point unweighted flies. Lake Outlook HOWARD PRAIRIE — Trout fishing is picking up again now that cooler weather has reached the Dead Indian Plateau. Trolling is getting better, but the trout remain in deeper waters during most of the day. Still-fishing remains best with various colors of PowerBait, with light colors the best. The daily limit is five trout 8 inches or longer, with no more than one of them allowed to be more than 20 inches long. HYATT — Trout fishing is fair in deeper water near the dam, with still-fishing best. Worms, single salmon eggs and PowerBait are all working. Bass fishing is good with small lures, with the Orchard Hole one of the more popular spots. The daily limit is five trout 8 inches or longer, with no more than one allowed to be more than 20 inches long. DIAMOND — The mouth of Silent Creek has been good for rainbow trout, with a mixed bag of the 2-pound trout as well as the pan-sized legals stocked earlier in the year. The chinook salmon are also present and contributing to the catches, chiefly for bait anglers. Rainbow and Spring Green colors of PowerBait are the top choices among Diamond Lake anglers this summer. The most effective tactic is using 4-pound test leader with an egg sinker and very small hook so the fish do not feel any tension until they swallow the bait. For trollers, early morning and late evening is good for those slowly trolling a No. 2 Needlefish or a No. 7 Rapala, with chub-looking lures the best. The daily limit is five trout more than 8 inches long, but only one of them can be more than 20 inches long. LOST CREEK — Trout fishing is starting to get better throughout the lake as cooler weather has helped draw trout out of the deep water as well as the upper reaches of the lake. Trolling worms or small spinners remains the most popular technique. The lake has dipped slightly beneath the normal low winter level for flood control. The smallmouth bass bite is good around rock points and ledges, but most action is trolling or bank fishing for trout. Angling access off the water intake tower, along the southeast corner of the dam and along the dam’s upper face is open again. The daily limit is five trout at least 8 inches long, but only one trout over 20 inches. For bass, the limit is five a day with no more than three over 15 inches long, but most bass fishing is catch and release. APPLEGATE — Trout fishing and smallmouth bass fishing are both good, but effort there remains light. Smallmouth bass are thick along the face of the dam and around debris piles, with trout in deep water off points. The creeks are all open to trout angling, but be careful to make sure you are fishing only in the Oregon side of the streams. Even though the area is accessible only through Oregon, a California angling license is needed in the upper Carberry Creek areas. LAKE of the WOODS — Fishing for rainbow and brown trout is fair to good, with catches best very early in the morning and late in the evening. Fishing the deeper holes during the day can generate some nice fish as well. Trolling Rapala lures is good for stocked coho salmon, which are part of the daily trout limit. The lake is open for fishing 24 hours a day so anglers can better target the brown trout in the evenings. EMIGRANT — Bass fishing is fair, with trout fishing fair to good around cool-water creek mouths and in the deeper holes near the northern end of the lake. Ocean Outlook Chinook salmon season has closed, but fishing will re-open Oct. 1 off the mouth of the Chetco River. The annual "bubble" season targets fall chinook returning to the Chetco. Fishing will be good through the season, which lasts until Oct. 13. The season will close, however, if anglers fill the fishery’s 1,000-fish quota. The limit is one chinook a day. Catches in the Chetco bay have been poor so far this year, but bait fish are starting to move into the estuary and the salmon will soon follow once weather conditions ease. Rockfish fishing was good when weather conditions have allowed, but most of the action is for salmon. Anglers may keep one lingcod a day over 24 inches, with the maximum size restriction lifted. However, of the 10-fish rockfish limit, only one can be a canary rockfish. Hunting Outlook ROGUE — Archery hunters have fared poorly so far this season for deer and elk, chiefly because of extremely hot and dry weather. Elk are scattered and most numerous at high elevations along north slopes and near water sources, but the bulls are not answering bugles by hunters. With cooler weather and the prospect of a weekend sprinkle of rain, hunters hope a small taste of fall will get the elk moving and talking. Bear hunters are finding bruins either at very high elevations or in low foothills near residences, food sources and water. The regions around the various wildfire areas are also thick with bears displaced by fire. DOUGLAS — This week’s rains allows state and federal forest managers to lift access closures the county. Bowhunters, therefore, can get one last weekend in before the general rifle season begins Sept. 28. Look for deer and elk at high elevations and on north-facing slopes. KLAMATH — Good numbers of doves still remain around the basin. Good numbers of bears and cougars exist in the Cascades. Cougars can be found scattered throughout the county. The general deer and elk season for archery hunters remains poor because of hot and dry forest conditions and a shortage of open lands. U.S. Timberlands has closed its land in Klamath and Lake counties, taking 600,000 acres out of public access. That has forced hunters to crowd into the Winema and Fremont national forestlands and the federal Bureau of Land Management lands that remain open. Pronghorn antelope seasons are underway, but success has been fair as antelope are scattered. SUMMER LAKE — Archery season for mule deer will close Sunday night to little fanfare because very little archery activity has occurred at the Summer Lake Wildlife Area. The Wildlife Area is within the Wagontire Unit, so the bag limit for archery hunters is one buck with visible antlers. A small population of resident mule deer can be found on the north end of the wildlife area. Hunting pressure for doves has been very light as well. The Youth Waterfowl hunt for kids 15 and under will take place Saturday and Sunday and prospects are favorable for a good hunt. The last weekly bird count done Sept. 11 found more than 30,000 ducks and nearly 1,700 geese on the wildlife area. PRINEVILLE — Archery hunters continue to have tough conditions, with deer and elk hovering on cooler north slopes or moving onto irrigated pastures. Success has been poor. Dove hunting is good around agricultural areas around Prineville and Madras and the Crooked River National Grasslands, but public access is limited. BAKER — Archery hunters are finding an extremely dry forest that has made deer and elk hunting difficult. Recent cooler and wet weather may help stalking conditions at higher elevations. The season ends Sunday. Sage grouse season is closed. Hunting for forest grouse and mourning doves has been good. GRANT — Forest grouse are fairly abundant, with ruffed grouse hanging around water sources like springs, creeks and rivers. Blue grouse will remain congregated on open ridgetops and in dense forest stands. Most mourning dove hunting is occurring along watery ravines below Picture Gorge and Monument. HEPPNER — Fewer blue grouse have been found thus far this fall, and hunters should expect somewhat lower success this season. Ruffed grouse production appears to be similar to previous years with birds being found throughout the forested area. Hunters with dogs and who are willing to cover much area should have a fair opportunity for birds. Fewer doves were counted this summer in the Heppner area and hunting is expected to be poor. Better hunting is expected to the north in the Hermiston and Boardman agricultural areas. Hunters should seek permission before entering private lands. NORTH COAST — Most private lands on the north coast are closed to all public entry at this point due to high fire danger. Access is still open on all public lands, but could change with continued dry weather. Archery hunters should find good numbers of bulls in the Saddle Mountain, Wilson and Trask units, but less healthy deer populations. Hunters seeking bears should watch forest openings and clearcuts in the early morning. Bears will make increasing use of berry patches as the fruit ripen. Predator calls may be used with some success on bears. Finding an active area with fresh sign of bears and having patience are keys to more successful calling of bears. Watchable Wildlife ROGUE — A covered viewing station on the Denman Wildlife Area provides a good opportunity to view waterfowl, egrets, raptors and songbirds. The structure was built by the Oregon Hunters Association and is accessed by a paved, wheelchair-accessible pathway. It is located on Whetstone Pond, just north of the ODFW office. Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search M Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy web master feedback A D V E R T I S E R S