Upper Tualatin River fly fishing

F
Fred
I want to go fly fishing near lea falls and explore around that area. First, I would like to know if that area is open to fishing I think it is a catch and release only? Two has anyone fished the upper Tualatin. Three is there a good population of trout there? if anybody has gone up there, are there any fly patterns that would recommend?
 
troutdude
troutdude
From the 2018 reg book: Tualatin River and Tributaries

The following apply to open sections below: *
  • Open all year for trout. Harvest allowed May 22 – Oct 31, 2 per day, 8 inch minimum length, remainder of year catch-and-release.
* Mainstem mouth to Hwy 47 bridge at Gaston
  • Open for coho salmon Aug 1 – Oct 31.
  • Use of bait allowed.
* Mainstem above Hwy 47 bridge at Gaston and all tributaries
  • Artificial flies and lures only.
So...the section that you wish to fish is open, until October 31st. You can keep 2 trout per day, until then. After that it switches to C & R only.

I've never been out that way. So I'll have to defer to others, for fly selection. As well as how large the resident population is.

Let us know how you do.

P.S. I believe that part of the stream, is closed to Salmon harvest / retention.
 
P
pinstriper
This highlights a conundrum about the Tualatin.

It is open for coho right now, but how would you target them ? The water is quite cloudy like chocolate milk. So not terribly friendly to jigs or flies. They can't see 'em.

But the water is also moving VERY slow. So it isn't like you could plunk a spinner or plug. And that would even assume you found a spot where you wouldn't snag up and lose $20 of gear putting something on the bottom that would rattle/spin/wiggle/wobble.

I suppose you could throw a spinner or plug and constantly retrieve and keep it shallow.
 
troutdude
troutdude
The lower river is indeed slow, murky, and a snag fest. A warm water fishery for sure.

But is that also true, of the uppermost reaches? It's a longer stream than I had imagined. Until I looked at mapquest, to see where Lee Falls is.

I do, however, stand corrected on my "closed to Salmon rentention" comments. Thanks PS; I misinterpreted that reg.
 
F
Fred
troutdude;n614281 said:
From the 2018 reg book: Tualatin River and Tributaries

The following apply to open sections below: *
  • Open all year for trout. Harvest allowed May 22 – Oct 31, 2 per day, 8 inch minimum length, remainder of year catch-and-release.
* Mainstem mouth to Hwy 47 bridge at Gaston
  • Open for coho salmon Aug 1 – Oct 31.
  • Use of bait allowed.
* Mainstem above Hwy 47 bridge at Gaston and all tributaries
  • Artificial flies and lures only.
So...the section that you wish to fish is open, until October 31st. You can keep 2 trout per day, until then. After that it switches to C & R only.

I've never been out that way. So I'll have to defer to others, for fly selection. As well as how large the resident population is.

Let us know how you do.

P.S. I believe that part of the stream, is closed to Salmon harvest / retention.

Thanks that helped a lot^
I won't be going after coho but if I do see one that is not all beat up and nasty I might try and catch it and release it. I'll be targeting cutthroat trout and rainbows if they are any there. I'm want to kayak the entire situation, I also want to hike up to where it starts which is a tiny spring coming out of the ground. Here are some cool articles on the subject.
https://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guide/Lee_Falls_Hike
https://www.oregonlive.com/washingtoncounty/index.ssf/2009/10/an_unexpected_river_runs_throu.html
 
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troutdude
troutdude
You're welcome. I'll look at those links at home. Cheers.
 
F
Fred
I want to Kayak the entire Tualatin river
 
troutdude
troutdude
That would be a MIGHTY long trip. It's 83 miles long!
 
F
Fred
Yes, it would be.:lol:
It would be fun to see the landscape change and the different fish species as I go down. need to consider the weather best time to see wildlife, flora, water levels, water clarity etc.
My main problem is I would need to find places to camp, but I could also stay at hotels but that's expensive.
 
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A
Anthrobe
A buddy of mine used to live outside of Cherry Grove. We used to fish the Tualatan down stream of Lee Falls. There is a healthy population of trout in there. Largest I have pulled out is maybe 8" or so. Water is clear and clean. I doubt you could get a Kayak through there for it gets shallow in spots and there are some good shoots through rocks and such.
My son and I like to Kayak around Cook Park and fish for bass. I have also been entertaining the idea of targeting for Coho. We went out on the Kayaks last night and was surprised that the river was actually clearing up around there despite the low water flow. I jigged a little bit while my some flipped a rubber worm. We did not get a bite on this trip.
 
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