04-21-2002, 04:35 PM
Fisheries Update<br> <br>April 19th - April 25th, 2002<br><br> Fishing for springers on the Columbia is not just a bust from the poor water conditions we are experiencing right now but also for the lack of fish available. Most anglers are crying, "wrong number" as dam counts and sport success indicate the ODF&W modeling program must have caught some sort of whirling disease virus before it spit out the final number! An emergency meeting on 4/17 had some agencies calling for an immediate closure but sport success is so low, there is no danger of significant impact on wild fish until river conditions improve. <br><br>Thankfully, the sturgeon action in the gorge is enough to keep some anglers fishing this beautiful stretch. Sturgeon action in other parts of the Columbia are par for this time of year. The Willamette experienced big flows and heavy turbidity and likely won't fish until Monday or Tuesday. Good weather is on the way and when water conditions improve, we will be in the thick of the season on the Willamette. Have you got your Willamette technical report that maps out the best spots and methods? It is available from our technical report page at: https://secure.max.net/cgi-bin/sform/the...hrpt.shtml <br><br>The Clackamas and Sandy Rivers are also a bit on the high side but the Clackamas was fishable by 4/17 with some steelhead being taken. The recent warm/wet front that passed through provided significant snowmelt to bring levels higher than they have been in some time. The north coast also had a significant rain freshet which should give anglers another shot at wild winter steelhead and a look at a possible springer. The Wilson, Trask and Nestucca Rivers all hold potential. Crabbing will likely be poor with all the recent fresh water. And have you heard about our great photo contest? Log onto our contest page at: http://www.theguidesforecast.com/photocontest.shtml to check out the great set of prizes we are offering to contest winners! <br><br>This week, the following lakes and ponds were planted with hatchery trout: Bay City Reservoir, Cape Mears Lake, Carter Lake, Cleawox Lake, Coffenbury Lake, Cullaby Lake, Devil's Lake, Hebo Lake, Lost Lake (Clatsop County), Lytle Lake, North Lake, Smith Lake, Spring Lake, South Lake, Tahoe Lake, Woahink Lake, Town Lake, Carmen Reservoir, Cottage Grove Reservoir, Detroit Reservoir, Dorena Reservoir, EE Wilson Pond, Foster Reservoir, Freeway Lake East, Green Peter Reservoir, Junction City Pond, Timber Linn Lake, Walling Pond, Walter Wirth Lake, Canby Pond, Haldeman Pond, Henry Hagg Lake, and Trojan Pond. Catch more by reading The Powerbait System in the long version of The Guide's Forecast newsletter! <br><br>Always more at http://www.theguidesforecast.com/<br><br>Get more Oregon fishing information at<br>http://www.theguidesforecast.com