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3. Moving to Oregon

So, I'm moving to Eugene, OR at the end of June. Of all the motivations that I have for making this move, fishing is certainly at the top of the list. So I just figured I'd see if anyone on here would be willing to give me a head's up on the fishing scene in that area. Now, I'm not looking for step buy step directions to all the best spots. Just a basic rundown of what I should expect, and any obvious mistakes or misteps that I should avoid.

Of course, if anyone would be willing to go fishing with me out there, that would be just fine too!!

Thanks guys.

Hello Keystoner-

Welcome to the Pacific Northwest. I recommend you start here.

My experience in the Eugene area is limited despite the fact that I spent a year in Oregon (Coos Bay), but here's what I know:

Tie up some caddis fly imitations with a yellow body, grey hackle, and grey wings, sizes 12 and 14. Hit the MacKenzie River with these in the early evening hours, in fairly fast glides in early to mid-summer, for redband rainbow trout. This worked for me all those years ago (1993).

Hope this helps!! Good luck in your move!!

Jonathon

Good luck with your move! Hope you find some nice trout water up there.

Thanks Guys! I followed Taxon's link and purchased a bunch of guide books/maps. I've also got a bunch of flyshops I plan to hit up when I get there, as well as a fly fishing club that operates in that area. So I'm sure I'll figure it out.

I was also kinda wondering about the overall vibe out there, as a lot of what I've read seems to indicate a kind of "locals only" mentality at a lot of spots. Almost similiar to the surf scene in Malibu. Could all just be a bunch of B.S. I guess I'll see. I will be looking into Oregon plates at my earlist convienence. Just because I'm the "Keystoner", dosen't mean I have to make it obvious. Thanks again!

I don't have any advice about Oregon, but I did get a chuckle out of your comment about license plates.

A Spence-length story:

When I first moved to State College from Texas in 2005, I (in my typically lazy fashion) failed to get my plates swapped out for over a year. Of course, during that year I probably fished Spring Creek an average of 5 days a week.

Many times that year, I'd run into other fishermen, start chatting, and at some point in the conversation you'd see the light bulb go off in their heads and they'd blurt out: "So YOU'RE the guy with the Texas plates! I see that car all up and down the creek, and I've been wondering for a while who that was, and how that guy had so much time to be fishing up here! Everywhere I turn I see that car..."

There was one guy in particular who actually lived right there on the creek near one of the spots I often parked, and who I could tell kinda had a problem with me because of the Texas plates (I was clearly an interloper catching fish quite literally in his front yard). He'd often stroll down to the creek as I was getting back to my car and ask me how I did. My first response was always my usual response when posed that question: "A few, here and there."

He'd look at me with a sideways glance and follow up with: "How many is 'a few', exactly?"

I knew I wasn't telling him anything he didn't already know about the creek, so I'd always be honest with him. Usually, my next answer was: "I'm not sure exactly, but probably around 35-40. A few nice ones, too."

This would always make him visibly frustrated - he was a pretty polite guy, so wouldn't say anything, but you could tell by the look on his face he wasn't catching nearly that many, and it kinda pissed him off that some punk-ass kid from TEXAS of all places was catching all of those fish in his "own back yard".

So one day I parked by his house, but fished a much longer stretch of water than what I'd ever fished from that parking spot before. The water wasn't great, but I'm glad I checked it out. I finally emerge from the creek a couple of miles from my car and start the long walk back down the road to my car. Just as I'm getting to the road this guy pulls up in his car, and I think maybe he's going to offer me a ride back to my car (since I'm parked right in front of his house).

He immediately starts off with: "So, you did you do today?"

ME: "A few, here and there."

HIM (with an even more suspicious look than usual): "How many is a few?"

ME: "Well, it was a really slow day; I think I only caught about a dozen."

HIM: "I fished all day, and I only caught one. I had to stop and see how you did, because if you had told me you had caught 30 again today, then I would have known you were full of shit all along!"

Then he drives off. Never saw the guy again (though I fished in front of his house many times after that).

Hi Keystoner-

Of course, you can run into unfriendly folks anywhere you go, but generally speaking, I suspect you will find most folks out here to be both friendly and helpful.

I've probably spent 60-70 days fishing Oregon over the past 12-14 years. We have friends that have a horse ranch in the high desert east of Bend and we usually go out for 10-14 days a year to see them. Most of my fishing has been in Central Oregon and nowhere near Eugene. You could spend a lifetime on the Deschutes and Crooked Rivers alone and never get bored. The Deschutes in particular has so many moods and faces that it can be like fishing a different river every day. But that's a ways from Eugene. I've fished over on the west slope of the Cascades a bit and as a general rule of thumb, when you add in the good wild trout fishing in portions of the McKenzie, there is a lot of good wild trout fishing in the Willamette Basin, from the small tribs of the McKenzie and its South Branch to the Middle Br. of the North Fork of the Willamette itself. You'll have more good fishing than you'll know what to do with.

One place I wouldn't miss if I were you (although it is a ways out of Eugene) is the Metolius River. It holds primarily wild redsides and can be pretty tough fishing over picky fish. But is the most beautiful river I've ever fished, hands down. Comes right out of the ground already about the size of Spring Creek at Bellefonte and at about 44F.

You might also want to consider getting a pontoon boat or a good float tube. The stillwater fishing for large bows and browns in the Cascade Lakes like Davis, Hosmer, East and a bunch of others is probably unequaled in the lower 48.

I think you'll like it out there..

Find the Oregon fisheries dept website, and don't be afraid to ask questions.

I spent some time in the Blue River area, chasing spotted owls with the USFWS -not fishing. Steep country with dark native cutts in the tribs, as well as young coho.

Found that website. It seems a non-resident angling license goes for 106 bucks out there. OUCH! Yet another reason to get those Oregon plates squared away.

Flatstick-Good story. Did you really catch 35-40 fish? That is a number that I cannot even fathom at this point. My biggest day so far has been 9, which I considered to be "epic." So the numbers you mention just about blow my mind.

Some of my guide books came the other day so I've been studying dilligently. Getting REALLY excited to get out there and get to it. It seems that on the whole, the flies are much bigger. I've seen a lot of #12s & 14s on the hatch charts, so, as a beginner, it will be nice to cast a fly that I can actually see for a change.

Matt,

I think Oregon would be a great place to explore...I was watching a show last night on PBS about great lodges and parks out that way...Looks pretty interesting. I had a client who retired out that way because he had promised his horticulture loving wife that she could pick where they retired...They bought a ranch with the Little Applegate running right through their property...Salmon spawn right in front of the guys house! He calls me every year to tell me about it and to get my butt out there!

His wife picked it because the area was supposed to have one of the most moderate climates in the US.

There's some pretty famouse steelhead rivers out that way...I think you will do just fine! PA will still be there if you need it.

Good Luck!

Spence

Hey Flat-Stick...That short enough for ya?! :)

Keystoner,
Knowing the general area flatstick was fishing I can believe that number. Sometimes it is embarassing just how blessed Central PA is in terms of trout water.

JW

Keystoner, when you get out there check out South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in Charleston (just south of Coos Bay on the coast). It's a very beautiful place with lots of trails and even some fishing for sea-run cutthroat trout. Tell 'em Jonathon DeNike sent ya (research assistant, 1992-93) and ask about fishing Winchester Creek. And perhaps you should tie up some big (I mean BIG - size 6-8) red ant-type patterns as there are big red termites out there, and when they go on mating flights and land on the water the sea-run cutts gobble them up...

Just another tidbit of Oregon fly-fishing info for ya. Good luck!!!

Jonathon

Just a quick update for anyone who might want to know...

I have finally made it out here. There were a couple of mechanical snags which held me up. But what did I expect from a VW with 207,000 miles on the clock before I even left?? All things considered, I guess West Germany is to be commended for their work on this fine vehicle. But I digress...

At any rate, I'm here, but with little money, and not enough to afford a non-resident license. I have done inquiry at the local fly shops however, which was helpful. One shop owner spent about 30 minutes giving me the low down, drawing me maps to spots, and just generally making me feel very welcome. Should be employed soon, which, should yield a license, at which point I'll be ready to start testing the waters (no pun intended). As oit stands now, I haven't fished for about 14 days, and I'm getting seriously jittery...

Yeah, John's right - those numbers were more a product of the creek than of my prowess. Spring Creek is really a great little fishery - there's a reason why Cripple (I think a few guys here may know who I'm talking about) always called it "The Gem".

Your 14 days comment made me laugh - I trout fish exactly once a year (when I go back up there for me yearly trip).

Last year I made the trip up there a little later than usual, and water was low and warm everywhere. Shawnny and I did our homework and found some water to fish, but it was nowhere near any water we'd ever fished prior.

The first day I always think: "Am I going to remember ANYTHING about how to catch trout?" - throw in the fact that it was a stretch I hadn't fished before, and I was particularly anxious.

Found a decent looking bit of water, and got on it about 2 hours before dark. After about 3 minutes I nymphed-up my first, and it kept on at that pace until dark. The Gem as I remembered it - good times.

This year I'm again making a late trip; I should find myself standing in Spring Creek in about 222 hours, 37 minutes, and 30 seconds. Roughly. Not that I'm keeping track or anything...

Damn I miss the Crip. He could tell some great fish stories.


Don't think I was selling Flatstick's skills short it still takes skills to put up those kinds of numbers on SC, and heaven knows I've gotten skunked up there a time or two. However part of catching large #'s of fish is being on a stream or stream section that has lot's of trout in it (the same thing goes for catching big fish).
JW

No worries, John - I didn't for a second think you were selling me short. And you're right - the sheer numbers of trout in SC do make things easier, for sure. But there are other good streams in the area that seem to habitually eat my lunch - BFC comes to mind...

I'm about the least "technical" fly-fisherman you'll ever meet, and describing my flybox as "minimalist" would be kind. There have been many times where I've had "experienced" guys stop and watch my unorthodox flogging of the water for five minutes, give me a few very basic pointers (out of pity, presumably) and walk away shaking their heads, clearly thinking "Wow, that guy is sunk..."

But I do catch a lot of trout, including a good one every now and again - what I do is weird, but it works for me.

With respect to numbers, What if comes down to for me is that I just like catching fish. I love catching trout, and I almost never get a chance to do it (literally once a year) - so when that opportunity is there, I try to catch as many of them as I can. That's what brings me joy - catching fish.

Other guys derive their enjoyment from ID'ing bugs (something I have no interest in and am horrible at), others focus on their tying (it's not an accident that Shawnny is one of the most creative tiers you'll ever meet - his brain NEVER stops thinking about new patterns, or tweaks to old ones), others will spend hours over a single fish - and will consider the outing successful regardless of whether they catch that one fish, still others are focused on improving their technical abilities.

I guess my point to Keystoner would be: don't worry about the numbers. If what you're doing is bringing you enjoyment, you're succeeding. If you had fun the day you caught those 9, then it WAS epic.

As to Terry (The Crip), I never got to meet him in person. We communicated with each other a lot online, and always talked about getting together to fish The Gem, but it never materialized - and then we has gone. Even never having actually "met" him, it saddened me greatly when he passed - I think he was probably as genuine an ambassador as fly-fishing has ever had. That dude absolutely LOVED to fish, and he seemed to love ANYBODY who shared that passion. Really a great model for how the rest of us should approach not just fly-fishing (and other fly-fishers), but life in general...

Great post, Duane. Ditto to all sentiments expressed.

We all could use some role models, even us old set-in-his-ways Michiganders...Maybe John & G could share a good "Crip" story with us..I'm a softy when it comes to damn good lore and this guy sounds like someone I would of enjoyed sharing a day with on a stream somewhere. Maybe a few cold "root-beers" after as Mickey Redmond likes to say...

Spence

Spence,
Of all the characters I have met in the fly fishing world Crip was far and away the most unique of all of them.
His handle alone told you a ton about him. He had two congenitally malformed arms and hands and many people told him he would never be able to fly fish. He learned to nymph and proved them wrong. Then they told him he would never be able to fish dries. The baetis hatch on Spring Creek (aka The Gem) happened and I was there to watch him catch his first fish on a dry fly. He was so overjoyed he litterally sat on the bank and cried.
Terry's disabilities made it very dangerous for him to wade a stream but his teenage sons would grab him around the waist and away they went.

Crip was a trout fisherman first and foremost it didn't matter what tackle he loved to fish. He spent many years helping the PAFBC stock trout in many counties spanning central PA and one of his most memorable stories revolved around a time he was helping stock a stream and took a particularly nasty slide down a steep bank into water that was barely 32*. After foundering for a minute or two he was hauled out and climbed back up the bank to throw a few more buckets of trout in. When the stocking was done he stripped down out side his car to change revealing his "purple acorn". After hearing this story our cicrle of angling friends instituted the Purple Acorn award for those souls hardy enough to fish in sub freezing temps and dumb/clumsy enough to float their hats.

To show how he and his boys were they passed up the chance to spen a weekend fishing to help me move into my current house. This doesn't sound like much however the boys had only ever met me once prior to that and it was close to 150 miles for him to get to my place. During the move any time a significantly heavy item was to be moved Crip would yell for the boys and it was their backs that did the heavy lifting.

Then there was his wife "Queenie". She was one of the most naturally talented fly tiers I had ever met. Show her a pattern once and she would nail it every time.

Unfortunatly there were a host of other medical problems which plauged Crip and they over whelmed him several years ago. On one of the many occaisions we fished together Terry and I had a very deep and solemn conversation where he told me he was not afraid of dying because he knew wherever it was he was going was going to be a stream just like the GEM and he would finally have good arms and legs to really get after the fish. I just hope that I have the privilege of having him ghillie for me when we meet in the here after.

(Sorry for the sappy ending but that is the kind of thing Terry could bring out in a person)
JW