Yep. This is a great time of year to fish. The McKenzie is coming on strong with nymphs and dries, Spring Chinook are in the Lower Willamette just begging to be shown a fly to eat, there are many lakes stocked with hatchery trout, and in the weeks before spring chinook nose into a few coastal rivers, there are still a surprising number of nice hatchery winter steelhead willing to respond to our flies.
If you are on the prowl on coastal rivers now, make sure you check the regulations because some rivers are closed for a while, but others remain open, like the Wilson, Trask, Nestucca, and Siletz. The steelhead pictured here swooped in from the ocean late last week, and reports from the weekend indicate that more fish slid in during the last few days. These fish ranged from about five to about 12 pounds, and interestingly, all three had harbor seal marks from recent close encounters.
The first few summer steelhead have also been reported, and the first spring Chinook may be expected any day now.
Check the regulations, have fun, and make your decision about where to fish, because there are plenty of opportunities.
The Caddis Fly Shop can schedule you for a guided trip for any of the locales mentioned here, so if you would like to try your hand at anything from coastal lakes trout, McKenzie wild rainbow and cutthroat, or coastal river anadromous species, give us a call and we will gladly explore options to tailor your trip.
JN
Way to go Jay!! Glad you are still working the waters. As always, thanks for great advise. Was that an egg you were using?
I was fishing two flies: an egg-sucking leech-thing with an egg-fly trailer. Both flies got ate by different fish. Or is it eaten? Consumed? Whatever, they both delivered. JN