Fishing the Alsea this weekend!

[vanbrunt]

Hey everyone. I'm hitting the Alsea saturday and sunday (camping). So what's the story this time of year? I'll be searching the archives for info but any tips, lure/fly patterns, and general knowledge would be much appreciated.
I usually fly fish in the summer on rivers this size. I've fished it for steelhead in the winter a couple of times but from what I can gather there's no summer steel.

 

[RunWithSasquatch]

No summer steel. Resident cutties, and of course your sea runs. You'd probably really enjoy fishing Drift Creek, trib of the Alsea. Over abundance of trout, and some lunker sea runs.

 

[troutdude]

Won't find too many SRC's upstream just yet, but plenty of their smaller native cousins are available. However, Squatch's idea to fish Drift Creek, is a GREAT idea!

Be sure to read the reg's before you go. I can't find my copy; but I want to say that the Alsea is C & R only...and flies & lures only too.

 

[troutdude]

By the way, if it is still a legal method:

A slip bobber (adjust for depth), and drifting a night crawler is DEADLY on upstream cutties (and bows).

You can get lots of bows, by dead drifting Pautzke's eggs into holding pockets too.

 

[flocaster]

Just looked at the regs & its ok to use bait for salmon & steelhead on the alsea but not when targeting trout. It also opened up to the targeting of both salmon & steelhead on the first of August. Drift creek is the same except you can't keep salmon or steelhead until October 16th. Hope that's at least slighty helpful

 

[troutdude]

It just occurred to me; that you mentioned you'll likely be fly fishing. Stop in at a fly shop in Albany, or Corvallis, and pick up some Borden Specials. Those flies were specifically designed, for blue backs (SRC's) on Alsea. They are so deadly on SRC's, that Mitch @ Two Rivers Fly Shop in Albany, can't tie 'em fast enough sometimes...because people buy them by the DOZEN!

 

[Troutski]

By the way, if it is still a legal method:

A slip bobber (adjust for depth), and drifting a night crawler is DEADLY on upstream cutties (and bows).

You can get lots of bows, by dead drifting Pautzke's eggs into holding pockets too.

I have caught many a Steelhead on my favorite creek doing just that targeting Trout; quite a fight when using ultra light equipment. Sounds like a great place to be a Trout angler....
Do small spinners fool the Resident Trout?

Chuck

 

[vanbrunt]

Thanks for all the info everyone!
Troutdude, I'll stop by the fly sop in Corvallis and pick up the Barton special. I've heard that they shop there is great. I wish that bait was legal this time of year for trout but the regs state "artificial flies and lures" during august. Flocaster mentioned using bait for salmon/steel but I can't get the regs website to pull up this morning to double check. I think the ODFW site must be updating or something.
I was also thinking of setting up a plunking rig during the heat of the day. If there is no bait allowed is scent permissible? I have used a spin-n-glo with scented yarn combo in the past with some success on other rivers.
I think all also bring the ultralight and toss some tiny panther-martins around.

 

[flocaster]

Hope its not too late but the the book says scent isn't considered bait. They include in their classification of bait "molded soft plastic or rubber imitation worms, eggs or other imitation baits" but not scent. Good luck...hope you catch a big one