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http://www.omniture.com --> Sections Home Page Local News AP News Blogs Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Multimedia Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Road Cams Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Women in Business Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info 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 March 22, 2007 Fishing and Hunting Report River Outlook ROGUE — The Rogue is fishing quite well for winter steelhead in the middle and upper reaches, while early spring chinook are biting fairly well in the lower Rogue, but the action remains a bit slow to justify a trip to the coast. That leaves the best bet the upper Rogue for now, where steelhead are running over Gold Ray Dam at an incredible clip. A few hundred fresh steelhead are streaming over the dam daily now, and that's good news for upper Rogue anglers. Flows remain a tad high for good fishing, with Wednesday's flows at 3,700 cubic feet per second at Dodge Bridge. That means driftboat fishing will remain much better than bank fishing. The fish count at Gold Ray Dam was updated March 15 at 6,503 fish. That's an extremely good showing for winter steelhead at this time in the run. In the middle Rogue, flows at Grants Pass were at 5,400 cfs Wednesday, also a tad high for optimum fishing. But the river has a nice green hue to it, and that also means driftboat fishing should be good and remain good through the weekend. About half the fish are spawned-out kelts that should be released unharmed because their edibility is poor despite some of them looking bright. The kelts are very skinny. Try not to take them out of the water when releasing them. Advertisement A few spring chinook have been reported as high as Rainie Falls, but no one's targeting them yet. Steelhead fishing is too good to bother prospecting for chinook. In the lower Rogue, a handful of spring chinook are getting caught daily, but the catch remains a bit low. Anchovies along inside turns of gravel bars and at tailouts is definitely the way to go. A few winter steelhead are chomping the occasional anchovy, but few people are targeting winter steelhead there now. Halfpounders remain in the Lower Rogue Canyon, but few are targeting them. They have yet to make their mass exodus back to the Pacific. When they do, catches of these 14-15 inch fish should be great for a few days around Agness. Downstream from the hatchery to the mouth, anglers may keep one wild steelhead a day over 24 inches, and no more than five of those per season. . Fin-clipped hatchery fish over 16 inches can be kept as adults, and up to two a day for those (except it's just one hatchery fish if you keep a wild steelhead that day). Many of the steelhead are cookie-cutter, 5-7 pounders for which the Rogue is famous. Some big steelhead in the 15-plus pound range, however, have been caught already this year. For daily flow reports out of Lost Creek Lake, call 800-472-2434. APPLEGATE — Fresh steelhead are present throughout the Applegate, and fishing is improving daily. Flows were dropping into perfect shape, with the river Wednesday running 861 cfs at Applegate and 1,200 cfs at Wilderville. At these levels, the entire arsenal is at hand. Bait, spoons, nymphs, egg flies, rubber worms, worms and watermelon corkies and plugs all work well at this time of year and flow level. Fly-fishing will improve as the water level drops. All wild steelhead must be released unharmed, and no fishing from a floating device. Most of the Applegate is on private lands and access is limited. CHETCO — The river was flowing at 2,500 cubic feet per second Wednesday and dropping, making for very good conditions to catch a lot of pretty dark winter steelhead. The river is loaded with late-run spawners and spawned-out kelts, with roe and plugs working well. The fish are well distributed. About half the steelhead caught now are spawned-out kelts that should be released unharmed. Angler can keep one wild steelhead a day and up to five a year as part of their limits, but wild kelts should be released unharmed. Hatchery steelhead are less prevalent than wild steelhead. ELK/SIXES — Both rivers were dropping and fishing fairly well for late-run winter steelhead. Winter steelhead are well-distributed throughout both rivers. The Elk and Sixes get a late splash of fish each February and March, and these steelhead are aggressive biters of plugs. ILLINOIS — The Illinois dropping and again loaded with wild winter steelhead, biting yarn patterns and corkies. Still too high for effective spoon fishing. Virtually all the steelhead are wild and must be released unharmed. Also, no bait is allowed. UMPQUA — The North and South Umpquas were fishing very well for winter steelhead amid very good conditions. The South Umpqua is fishing best, with driftboaters logging double-digit steelhead days side-drifting roe or high-grading with plugs. The North Umpqua has taken off for winter steelhead this week in the lower and middle sections, with roe out-producing plugs and flies. The upper end of the main-stem Umpqua also has decent steelhead fishing, but the majority of the fish caught are spawned-out or dark. A few spring chinook have been caught recently in the lower section of the main-stem Umpqua. Nothing red-hot yet. Sturgeon fishing has slowed in the estuary now that the flows are clearing. COOS — Steelhead fishing is good amid high but clean water conditions. The season runs through March. COQUILLE — The South Fork has dropped and was fishing much better for late-run winter steelhead. Most of the fish are dark now, but there are some good, fresh winters in the mix. Fish plugs from driftboats, or small clusters of roe in deeper, slower water. Lake Outlook HOWARD PRAIRIE — The lake is closed to angling. HYATT — The lake is closed to angling. LOST CREEK — The lake's surface temperature has improved and 25,000 fresh legal-sized rainbow trout are set for stocking this week. The fish will be distributed at Takelma Boat Ramp and the marina. The lake is now less than 17 feet from full, but look for continued filling as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues to release most of the inflow at this time. The surface temperature is holding steady around 48 degrees, which has kept the smallmouth bite slow other than on sunny afternoons. EMIGRANT — Winter weather conditions are starting to break on the lake and some mid-day bass fishing has been good around willows and in the shallows. Perch are biting, primarily because there's just so many of them in the lake. Crappie fishing is poor, and trout fishing is fair for trollers and still-fishermen who find a little clean water to ply. A health advisory has been issued about eating all but trout from the lake because of elevated mercury levels. APPLEGATE — Trout fishing has improved for both legal-sized rainbow trout and stocked salmon, which tend to school at rocky points. Anglers can keep up to five rainbow trout or stocked salmon 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. EXPO POND — One of the ponds near Gate 5 was stocked earlier this year with excess summer steelhead from Cole Rivers Hatchery. The pond also will get a complement of legal-sized rainbows and grade-out steelhead this week. Trout catches should be good, but catches on the old winter steelhead released there in January remain poor. Only one of these steelhead over 20 inches can be kept daily, and they are legally considered trout that do not have to be added to a salmon/steelhead tag. KLAMATH/ AGENCY LAKES — Fishing for large Klamath trout has improved throughout the lake during as warming temperatures have gotten fish moving. Ocean Outlook The ocean outside of Brookings has been excellent for bottomfishing this week, but the seas have gotten a bit sloppy for the rest of the week. A few boats are going out very early and heading south while staying close to shore. Lingcod catches have been huge, with anglers catching and releasing many fish while culling out their two big lings for the daily limit. Lots of big black rockfish as well. Most of the action is closer to shore, mainly in waters 70-80 feet deep. Dungeness crabs are very plentiful throughout South Coast estuaries, but the vast majority of crabs this season has been undersized. Perch fishing has been good off the beach at Kissing Rock near the mouth of Hunter Creek as well as the rock bay at Ophir. But wait for the surf to die down at least two days before trying again. The entire Oregon coast is now open for razor clams, bay clams, and mussels. Before doing any clamming, check for any updated health advisories by calling the Oregon Department of Agriculture's Shellfish line at 800-448-2474 for updates. For more information about razor clams and current status of particular areas see the ODFW razor clam web page at " target="_blank">http://www.dfw.state.or.us/MRP/shellfish/razorclams. Hunting Outlook JACKSON — Cougar hunters are reminded to buy a 2007 cougar tag. With low snow levels cougars tracks maybe easily located along ridge line, Predator calls have been successful for both cougars. 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. SOUTH COAST — Spring break brings whalewatching to the South Coast. Look for spouts past the surf line at places like Harris Beach and Cape Arago. GENERAL — The Oregon Coast Birding Trail Guide at www.oregoncoastbirding.com is a website that highlights great birding opportunities all along the Oregon coast. It's divided into sections of coastline, and the north coast is only a click away from the main home page. Links to checklists and sponsors can be found on the home page as well. COAST — Gray whales are migrating south from the Bering Sea on their way down along the Pacific coast to the Baja area. Late December and early January is the peak of the migration season, but the migration continues through March. There are a number of excellent places to view the whales from. From north to south, including Harris Beach near Brookings and Cape Arago near Charleston. Binoculars are recommended. Advertisement Copyright © 1997-2007 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Online Casino Reviews Trunks, Footlocker Fundraisers UK Homeowner Loans Casinos Canada Cord Blood Banking Discount Hotel Reservations Texas Electric Choice Compare Electric rates in Texas Windermere Van Vleet Men's Clothing Debt Help New Hampshire Primary