Trout fishing near Corvallis?

[brandon.goes]

Just curious, anyone know of any tribs to the Willamette near Corvallis worth hitting in the winter for trout?

I live in pacific city but spend a decent amount of time in and around Corvallis so figured it’s worth at least asking. Someone told me about the Luckiamute and Marys once but didn’t really elaborate

 

[olshiftybiscuits]

Just curious, anyone know of any tribs to the Willamette near Corvallis worth hitting in the winter for trout?

I live in pacific city but spend a decent amount of time in and around Corvallis so figured it’s worth at least asking. Someone told me about the Luckiamute and Marys once but didn’t really elaborate

They can be okay when they’re in shape, which is rare during the winter. Fish counts aren’t super high, and many stretches of those tribs just don’t hold fish at all, but there are some quality wild cutthroat to be found. The Luckiamute and Little Luckiamute are probably the best options for year-round Willamette tribs in that area. Public access is limited on both, but there is some decent water in the upper reaches. On the lower portions agricultural runoff is an issue.

You can nymph the Little Luckiamute up to around 250 CFS as long as the water is dropping and not muddy. Start above Falls City. Ideal is under 50 CFS. You can use the LL gauge to estimate what the other local streams will look like. The Yamhill and all its tribs are open year round too but I’ve never managed to find a fish in winter. The water is just too high and cold. Having to get above the farmland is a limiting factor since these streams get steeper and skinnier the higher you go.

http://levels.wkcc.org/?f=8w3

March and April can offer up some nice dry fly days. The rest of the year it’s a nymph and streamer game. Certainly worth a cast or two, but nothing in the Corvallis area is going to come close to the quality of fishing you have in Pacific City. Trout stocking starts next week on the mid coast, so you’ll have plenty of legal options until general trout season opens. Once it does, the Nestucca is a great early season trout stream.

 

[troutdude]

FYI Both the Luckiamute and Yamhill are catch and release only.

 

[troutdude]

Also…according to what I see in the ref’s…the Nestucca is not currently open, for trout fishing.

 

[olshiftybiscuits]

Also…according to what I see in the ref’s…the Nestucca is not currently open, for trout fishing.

Correct, as I mentioned, once general trout season is open it's a great early season stream for resident trout (May, June).

It should go without saying, check and know the regulations before fishing any body of water.

 

[brandon.goes]

@olshiftybiscuits @troutdude
Thanks so much for the info y'all, seeing how much I can get out of a subtle question like this really makes joining OFF seem like a no brainer. I've asked folks in my local shop about this area and they've simply said, "Don't go there" or "Not worth it", without telling me why.

Most of the time, I enjoy the adventure of exploring a new place just as much as I do fishing it, regardless if the place is a bust, so the quality of the fishing makes up half the value. At least now I have enough info to decide on my own if it's worth taking the motorcycle out on a sunny day and exploring the area, and whether or not I should pack the flyrod

and of course, it should be common practice knowing your regs, and especially this time of year, stay up on any changes that may have occurred for the new season

 

[olshiftybiscuits]

@olshiftybiscuits @troutdude
Thanks so much for the info y'all, seeing how much I can get out of a subtle question like this really makes joining OFF seem like a no brainer. I've asked folks in my local shop about this area and they've simply said, "Don't go there" or "Not worth it", without telling me why.

Most of the time, I enjoy the adventure of exploring a new place just as much as I do fishing it, regardless if the place is a bust, so the quality of the fishing makes up half the value. At least now I have enough info to decide on my own if it's worth taking the motorcycle out on a sunny day and exploring the area, and whether or not I should pack the flyrod

and of course, it should be common practice knowing your regs, and especially this time of year, stay up on any changes that may have occurred for the new season

I'm with you, Brandon -- that's really annoying advice to get from a fly shop. Would I go out of my way to fish the Little Luckiamute in July, when all my favorite local streams are open and fishing well? No. But if I were in Corvallis on a regular basis anyway, I'd very much find it worthwhile to know where to cast a fly. And in winter, the options for small stream trout fishing are limited. In general, I've found that anything listed as open year-round for trout in the regulations is worth at least exploring. They might not offer prolific fisheries but they hold trout and most are in pretty places. I think the "don't bother" advice is born from the guide's mentality. They wouldn't be able to make a living off that river, so they're not going to send a paying customer there. I happen to think one fish caught in a new place is as gratifying an experience as a 30-fish day on an old favorite.