Rivers Molalla River Fishing Reports

[nikita_pdx]

I went to the Molalla River today in the morning just above the city of Molalla, and there were lots of fish jumping. One I saw was clearly larger and golden in color. Could this be a brown? If so what other species may be in this River?
I went out with the fly rod reel line combo @Averax sold me, awesome set up.

I see lots of guys using dry flies on smaller moving water, but is this as effective as sub-surface presentations? I had plenty of caddies larvae, midges, stoneflies, and prince nymphs but no dries. Got only a few fish in the end..

 

[troutdude]

No that is not a German Brown trout. It's a Rainbow.

 

[nikita_pdx]

No that is not a German Brown trout. It's a Rainbow.

I understand, I’m saying that there was one trout that jumped and wasn’t caught that was more yellow.

 

[troutdude]

Still wasn't a brown. The Molalla only has 'bows and cutties (and small steelhead runs). Maybe it was a smallie?

 

[nikita_pdx]

Ah I see

 

[troutdude]

There are lots of smallmouth in that river. Hopefully NOT munchin' on steelhead fry. I love catchin' smallies on topwater plugs.

 

[nikita_pdx]

There are lots of smallmouth in that river. Hopefully NOT munchin' on steelhead fry. I love catchin' smallies on topwater plugs.

Nice

 

[olshiftybiscuits]

I understand, I’m saying that there was one trout that jumped and wasn’t caught that was more yellow.

In that watershed, it's not completely out of the question that you saw a bull trout. They're making a slow but noticeable comeback in west side streams. I've seen them throughout the entire upper Clackamas drainage, and all throughout the Middle Fork Willamette watershed as well. Bull trout are apex predators and only show up in ultra-pristine water. They're an indicator of an ecosystem in balance. Up near their headwaters, most of our local streams are extremely clean, clear and well-oxygenated. The Mollala has at least one tributary, the Table Rock fork, that is considered one of the most pristine waterways in the state. Perfect territory for bull trout. If you're lucky enough to hook one, keep it in the water through the entire release process. Don't even pull it out of the water to take a picture, just snap a shot of it in your net and set it loose. Please don't target them.

 

[Grant22]

Still wasn't a brown. The Molalla only has 'bows and cutties (and small steelhead runs). Maybe it was a smallie?

Man I wish they still stocked it with steelhead, lots of great water just basically none to catch.

 

[BrandonBeach]

The big fish could be “suckers”, don’t know the exact name, but they can get fairly large. They don’t usually jump, but I have seen it..

 

[olshiftybiscuits]

The big fish could be “suckers”, don’t know the exact name, but they can get fairly large. They don’t usually jump, but I have seen it..

Largescale and bridgelip suckers are absolute monsters, are present in most of our local streams and are a ton of fun on a fly rod. They’ll break your heart during summer steelhead season! They’re also relatively rare native fish and a cool catch.