Recreation Report
Siuslaw River: Winter steelhead angling is slow to fair. Low flows and clear water have slowed fish movement and catch rates. Focus on deeper holding water and the lower river during these conditions.
Chetco River: Water flows are low and clear. Anglers fishing smaller baits and lighter line are doing the best. Boat and bank angling pressure is light.
Coos River Basin: All the steelhead rivers are still low and clear. A few bright fish might move into the rivers with the forecasted rain for this weekend. There are a lot of darker-colored and spawned-out steelhead in the rivers.
Crabbing has been decent from boats and very slow from the docks. There were a lot of boats out crabbing last weekend, and most boats were getting a keeper crab on every pull of their traps.
There are decent non-negative low tides for digging bay clams during the late mornings/early afternoons this week.
Coquille River Basin: The steelhead rivers still are low and clear. Steelhead fishing has been slow at LaVerne Park on the North Fork with this low, clear water and decent from Broadbent to Powers on the South Fork.
Elk and Sixes rivers: Water flows are low and clear. Steelhead fishing has been good for anglers able to get out and fish when river conditions permit.
Garrison Lake: Weather conditions have been perfect for trout anglers.
Pacific Ocean and beaches: A few lingcod and rockfish are being caught along the jetties inside the bays. Effective baits to use for lingcod are bouncing a jig with a big plastic tail or bouncing a herring near the bottom.
There have been a few reports of surfperch being caught. Best fishing is usually on an incoming tide with ocean swells less than six feet.
Rogue River, lower: Water levels have dropped and cleared. Boat anglers are faring the best by fishing plugs and/or side drifting eggs. The number of fly anglers on the river has picked up and success has been pretty good.
Tenmile Basin: Steelhead fishing has been decent in Tenmile Creek.
A few largemouth bass have been caught in the lakes with the warmer weather. The water temperature is still in the upper 40s, so fish with slow-moving baits like jigs or plastic worms.
Umpqua River Mainstem: It will be more difficult to catch hatchery fish due to the sheer number of wild steelhead present relative to number of hatchery fish. Water conditions will remain low and cold this week, making fishing more difficult.
Southwestern Zone hunting: Cougar and coyote seasons currently are open.
