Dear Oregon Anglers,
I would like to gather ideas for positive, conservation-oriented regulation changes needed for wild fish and start working them through ODFW’s staff process starting early in 2021.
I would be grateful if anglers would share any rule changes that are needed or new rules that should be implemented on the rivers within your zone (to the coast – out to the cascades, up and down the Willamette, the Umpqua and forks, etc.).
Please leave your ideas in our “Leave a Comment” link.
Thanks very much
Chris Daughters
Barbless only on the Umpqua and its tributaries, including Winchester Bay. It would certainly cut down on the mortality of wild coho and steelhead in the watershed.
Ban fishing with lead weights in favor of tin or other non-toxic materials in fresh water. Maybe this would be the most beneficial for weights 2 oz and less (I don’t think I can troll for salmon very well with 12 oz of tin on my line).
A few I would have:
1. A water temperature curfew/limit for all salmonid (or cold water native species) fishing that is state wide and is just a standing rule instead of just having it implemented after it becomes a problem. Have it down in the regulation book so its there in black and white.
2. More implementation of single point barbless hook regulations just in general throughout the state.
3. The trout season to be opened longer. Mostly for the extremely late state wide opener (last Saturday in May), to be started earlier like in the beginning of April or even March. We tend to lose some fishing because of run off at the end of April through May-ish. It ends late, end of October, and that feels fine to me but I also don’t see why it can’t be year round like other western states.
4. This is a long shot idea and has a zero percent chance of happening, but I would like to see some rivers left alone from catch and keep fishing and hatchery supplement, and others with full catch and keep allowances and hatchery supplement. On paper and in my head it sounds like a good idea, but I’m also not a fisheries biologist so in practice I don’t know if this is even viable
The elimination of bait fishing while targeting steelhead on the John Day River would be beneficial to protecting what is primarily a wild run. Would certainly cutdown the mortality rate on released fish.
1. Single barbless fly only on the McKenzie from Forest Glen up; no retained fish of any species.
2. Dramatic reduction on number per year of wild Chinook which can be harvested on all coastal streams. I am most familiar with the Nestucca, where both fly and gear anglers keeping too many wild Chinook. Also, a limit in inches where all Chinook over X inches must be released. Jay Nicholas, and other smart Chinook anglers, can determine what number X inches is. I think X inches should be about a 20 lb. fish.
I’d like to see the upper Deschutes from its source to somewhere near Bend be listed as flyfishing only, barbless hooks and catch and release. The fish in that stretch are in trouble due to massive irrigation water withdrawal.
I’d also support restoring the end of the fishing season below Wickiup Dam to October 31 (currently it’s Sept. 30).
Ban the use of bait in all rivers this includes plastic baits.
Barbless only. No treble hooks
No fishing during spawning season.
Fly fishing only on more waters or certain sections.
Ban gill nets or increase net opening size.
I would like to see less restrictive regulations for trout fishing on the North Umpqua ABOVE Steamboat Creek. I understand that the steelhead in the river need protection, but almost none of the steelhead go above Steamboat Creek. There is a great trout fishery that could be enjoyed by a lot of people if the regs would allow the same techniques that are permitted on most other rivers in the state. There would be no effect on the steelhead since they don’t go above the creek. More happy trout fishers would mean more people advocating for the health of the river.
Single barbless fly only on the South Fork of the Mckenzie.