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79 °F Forecast | Road Cams Saturday, June 19, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Prime Times Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend June 10, 2004 Fishing & Hunting Report River Outlook ROGUE — The spring chinook salmon bite should turn on for the weekend thanks to good rains in the Grants Pass area and cooler water conditions throughout the Rogue. Spring chinook are charging upstream and starting to get into the upper Rogue in time for a mid-June bite that should be good. The best bet for boat anglers is the lower stretches of the upper Rogue, where fresh fish are starting to move in daily. Bank anglers who don’t mind congestion can focus on the Hatchery Hole, where steady catches of chinook continue each early morning as well as late afternoons. The hole and other waters downstream to the Highway 62 bridge close to all angling at 7 p.m. through July. Gold Ray Dam fish counts updated as of June 1 by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife show the migration is starting to catch up to average. The run-to-date total as of June 1 was 14,566 chinook, with about 6,000 of those coming in the previous week. About 2,600 of those have already reached the hatchery and about 700 of those fish have been recycled into the upper Rogue. Getting these springers to bite has been a problem all along the river. Tuesday’s rains should help lower water temperatures in the lower Rogue, where some late-run catches occurred Tuesday and Wednesday thanks to the cooler weather. Spring chinook catches in the Agness and Quosatana Creek areas have spiked this week as well, but effort is light. In the middle Rogue, the cold and wet weather dropped the river’s water temperature to 55 degrees and increased the flow at Grants Pass to nearly 3,000 cubic feet per second. Both should trigger good spring chinook fishing from boats and the bank over the next few days. The middle Rogue hot-spot continues to be downstream of Savage Rapids Dam for bank anglers, and boat angling in the Pearce Riffle area is starting to improve thanks to better conditions. While the spring chinook are late, the summer steelhead are early. Through June 1, 113 have crossed Gold Ray Dam and six have already made it to the hatchery. When the count gets to 500, start thinking about a steelhead trip. Advertisement On Wednesday, water releases from Lost Creek Lake were up to 2,808 cfs, up about 400 cfs from last week. For daily flow reports out of Lost Creek Lake, call (800)472-2434. Remember, all wild steelhead must be released unharmed for the remainder of the year. The impoundment upstream of Cole Rivers Hatchery is starting to get a fair hatch of stoneflies, but the main flurry could come this week. Evening fly-fishing with dry flies is best in the impoundment. The far upper Rogue near Union Creek is getting stocked weekly with legal-sized rainbow trout, and catches of these fish are good on small lures, single salmon eggs, worms and flies. APPLEGATE RIVER — The river is open to angling for rainbow trout and cutthroat trout, and there should be a mix of late winter steelhead as well as steelhead smolts, some rainbow trout and some cutthroats. All wild fish must be released unharmed. Some fly-fishing can be good in the evenings. Lake Outlook HOWARD PRAIRIE — Trolling for rainbow trout remains very good, especially very early in the morning, with the occasional great bite early in the afternoon. Focus on the top 15 feet of water early, trolling a No. 2 Red Dot Frog Needlefish, red Midge Wobblers, or any of the natural-colored Tasmanian Devils. Trolling with lead-core line is best. Still fishermen are starting in waters 10 to 15 feet deep early in the morning, but by 10 a.m. they are working in the 30-35 foot range. Velveeta cheese and light-colored PowerBait are the most productive baits, although a lot of people are picking fish up on red eggs as well. The limit remains five trout a day, with only one over 20 inches a day allowed. HYATT — The lake is warming and making for good June trout fishing, with still-fishing starting to heat up early in the morning and at dusk. Some of the bigger fish are still getting caught by slowly trolling outside the weed lines and stumps. Still-fishing with PowerBait will be best, while worms and single salmon eggs are good back-ups. The limit remains five trout a day, with only one over 20 inches a day allowed. DIAMOND — The lake’s anglers are still targeting the large Williamson River rainbows, with several over 10 pounds caught so far this spring. However, these fish tend to move to deep waters in June, so they’ll start getting more scarce. Another batch of 3,500 Desert Springs rainbows were stocked last week, and catches of them will immediately be good around the Diamond Lake Resort boat ramp. Trollers should use Rapalas, Needlefish and Flat Fish lures, especially those that look like chubs. The limit remains five trout a day, with only one over 20 inches a day allowed. LOST CREEK — Trolling for trout remains very good near the dam and off the points near the marina, with lots of trout hovering about 40 feet from the surface. Troll slowly, with flashes and Wedding Ring lures or even worms. Bass fishing remains best off rocky points and near the shoreline. Stoneflies on the surface are good bets for trout and bass in late evening. The lake is starting to drop slowly and the surface temperature has slipped to 61 degrees. Bank fishing remains good for trout with PowerBait near the Takelma ramp and off the intake tower. The lake is open year-round for trout and bass fishing, with trout anglers out-numbering bass anglers throughout the cold-weather months. APPLEGATE — Fishing for trout is good in the evenings at Seattle Bar and around the rim at the far end of the lake. Trolling flies or worms is best. Bass fishing has improved around willows, submerged trees and rocky points. 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. No bass between 12 inches and 15 inches can be kept, and only one bass larger than 15 inches can be kept. FISH — Fresh legal-sized rainbow trout were stocked last week for Free Fishing Day, and catches near the ramp should be good throughout the weekend. Trolling for rainbows also has been good along points and coves. Fish are starting to move toward deeper water. WILLOW — Fishing for trout and bass is improving as warmer weather comes in. Bass are hovering off points and along weed lines. LAKE of the WOODS — Fishing for rainbow and brown trout is starting to pick up. The lake had another 500 trout stocked this week for Free Fishing Day, and bank fishing with PowerBait near the resort ramp should be very good throughout the weekend. The resort and marina are open Thursday through Sunday. EMIGRANT — Smallmouth and largemouth bass fishing remains good, but the lake is dropping rapidly and the lack of depth is exposing most of the willows. For smallmouth, concentrate on the rocky points regardless of depth, and fewer of the willows are now submerged. The upper end of Emigrant Arm is loaded with perch, with some more than 10 inches long. Trolling for trout is fair early in the morning near the county park before the skiing traffic hits the lake. Ocean Outlook Chinook catches have tailed off a bit, and swells are forecast to be 8-10 feet until Friday. If they drop and the wind dies, the recreational fleet can get back out there. Decent schools of chinook remain 4-6 miles off Brookings and close to the California border, but make sure you don’t stray into California waters without that state’s license. Fish in the 30-pound class have been caught, and a lot of bait has already moved into the Chetco River estuary. The fin-clipped coho season does not start until June 19, and catches should be very good as soon as the season opens. Surf perch fishing remains very good at the mouth of the Rogue River, at Winchuck Beach near the California border and at Nesika Beach just north of Gold Beach. Hunting Outlook ROGUE — Spring turkey hunting has ended. Hunters are awaiting the controlled-hunt draw, with notification of success in drawing big-game tags due June 20. KLAMATH — Turkey hunting closed Monday. 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. Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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