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Sections Home Page Local News AP News Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Since We Asked Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Readers Choice 2006 Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Our Valley Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend May 18, 2006 Fishing & Hunting Report River Outlook ROGUE — Spring chinook salmon fishing continues to disappoint mid-May anglers from the Hatchery Hole to the jetties at Gold Beach. While the Rogue struggles to transform from winter steelhead fishing to spring chinook, the best bets are slim or stay home. Those who don’t stay home can focus on any number of areas, but expect some frustrations. In the lower Rogue, catches have been very poor this week despite 54-degree water. That’s usually good for this time of year. The Agness area also is slow, with a few fish taken off the banks at traditional gravel bars but nothing worth the gas it takes to get there. In the middle Rogue, the spring chinook seem to be absent from regular haunts like Rainie Falls, the base of Savage Rapids Dam and Pearce Riffle. A few springers have been around, but catches are slim. The fish ladders at Savage Rapids Dam are operable after being out most of last week while the impoundment behind the dam was filled. That has slowed migration into the Gold Hill area and the upper Rogue. Through May 10, the Gold Ray Dam count was still a putrid 728 spring chinook. That’s thousands down from what it should be. Upper Rogue angling was, therefore, sparse this week. A few fish have been caught from the bank and reports have trickled in of a handful of springers taken by boat anglers. But everything is slow. Advertisement For spring chinook, the limit is two chinook a day, but the wild chinook limit now is one per day and no more than three per year. For daily flow reports out of Lost Creek Lake, call 800-472-2434. UMPQUA — Shad are starting to move into the main-stem river in good numbers, and fishing will improve almost daily as water levels drop. The warming water has improved the smallmouth bass bite in the Roseburg-Scottsburg area. Spring chinook fishing has been spotty. The South Umpqua remains closed to angling. In the North Umpqua, spring chinook fishing is slow. COOS — Shad fishing remains good from boats with lead shad darts. The river closed to steelhead fishing. A few striped bass have been caught recently. The Charleston boat ramp is now open in the lower end of Coos Bay. COQUILLE — The system remains closed to trout or steelhead fishing until May 27. A few striped bass have been reported in the Prosper area, but catches and effort have been light. Surf perch are moving into the bay in good numbers, and they can be caught on small lures, sand shrimp and bright-colored flies. KLAMATH RIVER — Fishing for native redband trout has improved on flies and lures. River fishing from Keno Dam downstream to Topsy Reservoir is very slow. The boat ramp at Topsy is closed due to construction. Angling in the cold water reach from J.C. Boyle Dam to the powerhouse is fair for small redband trout, most of which are under 12 inches. Lake Outlook HOWARD PRAIRIE — The lake’s water temperature is improving daily and trolling for trout has picked up a bit this past week. Trolling is best, with anglers doing fairly well near Grizzly Campground as well as around the Howard Prairie Resort. The feeding trout are mostly in waters around 10 feet deep. Needlefish and black Panther Martins are popular. Still fishing is best with worms or PowerBait, but catches have been slow. A few bass are starting to show up in the catch. The lake’s limit remains five trout over 8 inches long per day, but only one of those trout can be over 20 inches long. HYATT — The lake is ice-free and full, and trout fishing is slowly picking up amid cold-water conditions. A few trollers are working the shallows around the lake, but effort has remained light. Hyatt Lake normally heats up by late May for trolling, with evening trolling of Needlefish or Tasmanian Devils a good bet. The lake’s limit remains five trout over 8 inches long per day, but only one of those trout can be over 20 inches long. DIAMOND — The lake is ice-free and open for angling, with the new 20-fish daily limit and no size restrictions now in place. Catches of freshly stocked legal-sized rainbow have been good on PowerBait and trolling worms and Needlefish. LOST CREEK — The lake is officially full and the surface temperatures is up to 65 degrees thanks to the recent hot weather. Trout trollers should start working deeper and earlier in the day, while bass fishing is heating up throughout the day along shorelines full of cover. In-flows of almost 3,500 cubic feet per second have left the top end of the reservoir in poor shape for trout and bass fishing. A few early salmon flies have been reported. EMIGRANT — Fishing has improved in the reservoir for warmwater fish as the water starts to warm and clear in the lake’s upper ends. The lake is full. Trout fishing has picked up a bit in the lower reaches of the reservoir. Mercury levels in smallmouth bass have created a warning against eating anything but the lake’s trout. APPLEGATE — Trout fishing has heated up on both legal and lunker rainbow trout stocked this spring. The lake is full, and in-flow remains high and cold. Trolling, still-fishing with worms or PowerBait is good around the dam and the intake tower, while trollers are doing well with worms or lures. Bass and panfish fishing is improving as well amid increasingly warm days. The Hart-Tish boat ramp and store are open. Anglers can keep up to five rainbow trout, stocked salmon or recycled winter steelhead a day, but only one fish can be more than 20 inches long. Also, no bass between 12 and 15 inches can be kept, and only one bass larger than 15 inches can be kept. WILLOW — The lake is fishing very well for recently stocked with legal-sized and lunker-sized rainbow trout. Crappie fishing is picking up now that the air and water temperatures have warmed. The boat ramp and store are open and trout catches have been very good for trollers. ALL SPORTS POND — The pond was stocked this week for a kids’ fishing event Saturday. Adults are asked to stay away until Sunday, when fishing should remain good near the boat ramp for stocked rainbow trout. WHETSTONE — The pond at the Denman Wildlife Area was stocked again recently with legal-sized trout for last week’s kids derby. Adults and kids can fish the pond. Catch these trout with worms, small spinners and PowerBait. SELMAC — The lake near Selma was stocked recently with larger-than-normal rainbow trout, and catches were still good with worms or rainbow-colored PowerBait. KLAMATH/ AGENCY LAKES — Fishing for large Klamath trout is picking up near the mouths of the Wood and Williamson rivers as well as the springs around Rocky Point. Ocean Outlook Razor clam harvest has opened in beaches north of Florence, but domoic acid levels mean south coast beaches remained closed to all clam harvest. The ocean chinook salmon season remains slow out of Brookings, where less than a dozen fish were landed Monday and Tuesday. A small-craft advisory Wednesday limited effort. Surf perch fishing has been good on the beaches and off the sand spit near the Gold Beach jetties. Crabbing has been good in South Coast bays. Lingcod fishing is excellent throughout the coast. Red tail perch and even lingcod are getting caught off the beach near Gold Beach as these species move closer to shore. The new aggregate limit is six marine rockfish a day. Hunting Outlook JACKSON/JOSEPHINE — The spring turkey hunting has been slowed by hot weather and tight-lipped birds. The birds are most active right at dawn. Cougar hunters can expect an average year and will find greatest success using a predator call in areas that have good deer numbers. When snowfall occurs, hunters should look for fresh cougar tracks and pursue. Good cougar hunting opportunities exist throughout southwest Oregon. 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 on Whetstone Pond, just north of the ODFW office. CURRY — Aleutian Canada geese are passing along the coast toward wintering grounds in Northern California. Look for them around Cape Blanco. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems California Casinos Men's Clothing Southern Oregon Loans --> GMAT Prep Fundraisers Send Flowers Texas Electric Choice Entertainment Guide --> Casinos Canada Trunks, Footlocker Online Casino Reviews Advertisement s