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Retention of Wild Chinook prohibited on Umpqua

Effective Feb 1 through June 30, 2020, retention of hatchery Chinook salmon is allowed on the mainstem Umpqua River.  Retention of wild Chinook salmon is prohibited.

Steelhead Fishing Closure on the Columbia River

Effective through March 31, 2020, all steelhead fishing is closed from McNary Dam to the OR/WA border.

Bag limit reduces on the Snake River

Effective through April 30, 2020, the daily bag limit is one hatchery steelhead.

John Day, Umatilla, Walla Walla bag limits reduced

Steelhead, fall Chinook and coho bag limits reduced to one per day through April 30, 2020.

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Silver Creek Falls

Recreation Report

Plan to fish, hunt or look for wildlife this weekend? You’ll find the latest information on conditions and sightings for the places you want to go in the weekly Recreation Report. Be sure to check out the latest regulation updates (especially for fishing) at the top of each zone or area update.

January 22, 2020

Highlights from this week’s Recreation Report:

Hunters have just one week to report their 2019 hunts

Hunters have until Jan. 31 to report their 2019 hunts. If you purchased a tag, reporting is mandatory even if you didn’t hunt or harvest an animal.

Ways to report your hunt.

Last week for Zone 1 duck hunters

Zone 1 duck season ends on Jan. 26. Waterfowl success has been picking up thanks to recent stormy conditions. Given the current forecast, the last week of the season could be good.

Register your new hunter for a hunter education class/course

Hunters 17 years old and younger need to complete a hunter education course and field day before they hunt this fall. Traditional classes and field days are available now, and online courses can be taken anytime. Taking care of hunter education now will be one less thing to worry about as hunting season approaches.

Best bets for fishing

  • Steelhead fishing has been hot on the Chetco. Current conditions have been favoring anglers plunking from the bank.
  • Anglers have been catching steelhead on the lower Rogue using a variety of techniques, but plunking is the current favorite.
  • Anglers have been landing winter steelhead in the Galice area of the middle Rogue. With rain in the forecast, except steelhead numbers to increase.
  • Trout have been biting in the Holy Water, the stretch of the upper Rogue between the hatchery and the Lost Creek Lake spillway.
  • Bank anglers are catching some nice trout from the bank at Ochoco Reservoir, which also will get 100 brood trout this week.
  • The Crooked River continues to offer good opportunities for trout and whitefish up to 16 inches.
  • It’s getting to be prime time for winter steelhead on the Sandy and Clackamas rivers. Keep an eye on water levels and be ready to hit the waters as they begin to drop.
  • Ice conditions, and fishing, have been good on Chickahominy Reservoir.
  • Steelhead fishing on the Grande Ronde can be quite good in January and February, when flows cooperate. Look for uncrowded conditions and lots of open water.

Deadline to apply for a spring bear tag is Feb. 10

The controlled spring black bear season opens April 1.

Ways to apply for a tag

Header photo by Kathy Munsel