FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2015
Outdoor Recreation
Remembering River Canyon
looked like
silver mir-
rors.
The name
actually
refereed to
the steelhead
run.
I am fairly
certain of the
year because
Grandpa
Colton had
given us his
jeep pickup
because he
THE OUTDOOR COLUMN
had decided
By Steve Culley
he was too old
to drive and
I read with interest an
he
died
in
December
of
article about exploring
1963.
canyon country that ap-
I remember fi shing
peared this month in two
80
yards or so above my
other newspapers.
brother
and he was hauling
John Kirk Townsend
out
a
lot
of trout.
was probably the fi rst to
I
was
retrieving
my
mention this area in 1837
double-bladed
spinner
with
after the Wyeth expedition
an
angle
worm
trailing
be-
lost the Oregon Trail and
hind
when
all
of
a
sudden
a
wandered up the “River
monster
fi
sh
took
it,
made
Canyon.”
a fast run down stream and
He mentioned it being
Snap!
so narrow in one spot that
The line popped like a
you could “throw a biscuit
thread.
across it.”
I yelled at Dan trying to
I know the place.
describe
the big bright fi sh
It is near what we called
that
took
the bait.
Deer Mountain trail just
Dan
was
fi xated on his
upstream from where the
fi
shing
and
didn’t
pay that
river makes a big, “horse
much
attention,
probably
shoe bend.”
thinking I was exaggerat-
It was probably in 1962
ing.
when my brother Dan and
I went back to fi shing
I followed the jeep roads
and
maybe 10 minutes
into there to fi sh for “silver
later
another jet propelled
sides,” the native rainbows
mirror
grabbed my worm
that were so bright they
and made short work of the
monofi lament.
I’m thinking Grandpa
must have bought some of
the fi rst batch of monofi la-
ment ever manufactured
and put it on the old Zebco
reel.
Not exactly steelhead
gear.
To complete the adven-
ture we tried to get through
the brush pile where the
little water fall starts the
run at horse shoe bend and
it was here that I kept here
a clicking sound and was
sure my reel was snagged
it the brush.
I checked it and it and
all was fi ne except for Dan
aiming his pistol at me and
shooting at my feet. Turns
out the clicking was a very
large rattle snake.
He shot its eyes out and
I thought it was dead, only
to nearly get struck when I
tried to cut the rattles off.
Turns out it was a den and
snakes were buzzing all
around us.
Around that time I
hooked a steelhead in
Big Creek where the
little stream of Lick Creek
comes in.
I dragged it to the road
but it broke the line and
got back in.
At that point in time we
never paid a lot of atten-
tion to what was happen-
ing in Hells Canyon with
the construction of private
dams with no fi sh ladders.
We only knew that Eagle
Creek was great fl y fi shing
for trout, which it was but
mostly it was the steelhead
smolts that made it great.
I joined the Marines in
July of 1966 and went to
Viet Nam and Okinawa in
1967.
The last Hells Canyon
Dam was completed in
that year. I always have
wondered how it came
to pass that three private
dams with no fi sh ladders
got constructed instead of
the one federal dam with
passage.
It is complicated having
to do with sputnik, the cold
war and the Red Scare and
economist Milton Freid-
man and privatization and
a fi ve-year rapid tax write
off, and it would be my
guess that maybe a little
political contribution here
and there that allowed the
three dam complex and the
infamous “Rube Goldberg”
fi sh passage system that all
the biologists said would
not work.
It didn’t—and the fi sh
runs were abandoned in
1963. The Powder River,
the Payette, Weiser, Boise,
Eagle Creek and main stem
Snake River lost some-
thing that had been for
millennia.
Salmon and steelhead
that reproduced for free
are now raised in hatcher-
ies and subsidized on our
power bills.
—ODFW Recreation Report—
NE OREGON FISHING
BULL PRAIRIE RESER-
VOIR: rainbow and brook
trout. Remains open to
fi shing all year. The reservoir
is frozen but proceed with
caution as the ice may be
too thin to support anglers.
Approximately 200 trophy
rainbow trout were stocked
last fall and should provide
fi shing all winter. Brook trout
are also available.
GRANDE RONDE RIVER:
steelhead. After a big infl ux
in fl ow, the river has come
back into shape. While the
river is still a bit high, anglers
should have good success.
Fishermen have had a lot
of success on the Grande
Ronde this year and that
success is expected to con-
tinue when fl ows subside.
A healthy proportion of two
salt fi sh has resulted in a
large average size this year.
So, expect a few larger fi sh
and some screaming drags!
Remember, only adipose-fi n
clipped rainbow trout may
be retained and all bull trout
must be released unharmed.
HOLLIDAY PARK POND:
rainbow trout.Remains open
all year. The pond is now
free of ice. Carryover trout
are being caught and should
provide fair angling until
stocking occurs in April.
IMNAHA RIVER: steel-
head. Flows have stabilized
and angling is good. Anglers
are fi nding steelhead from
the mouth all the way up to
the town of Imnaha. Angers
will fi nd fi sh on anything
from bait to fl ies. Fishing on
the Imnaha in late winter
and early spring is often in
tee-shirt weather with plenty
of action. Steelhead will be
moving into Big Sheep Creek
as they push toward the
hatchery facility.
JOHN DAY RIVER:
steelhead. River fl ows have
dropped and water condi-
tions are great. Steelhead
are being caught with most
of the fi sh between Service
Creek and the town of John
Day and in the North Fork
up to Monument. Water
temperatures are still cold
and steelhead are holding in
slack water along the edges.
ODFW encourages all an-
glers to keep any ad-clipped
steelhead taken in this fi sh-
ery. All wild (adipose intact)
steelhead must be released
unharmed.
LONG CREEK POND,
CAVENDER POND: trout.
Remains open all year. Both
ponds are now free of ice.
Several trout stocked last
year survived the winter and
will provide good fi shing
until stocking occurs again
in April.
MAGONE LAKE: rainbow
and brook trout. Remains
open all year. Portions of the
upper lake are ice free so
proceed with caution if at-
tempting to ice fi sh. The ice
may be too thin to support
anglers.
MARR POND: surplus
steelhead. Marr pond has
been stocked with 100 sur-
plus steelhead that returned
to Wallowa Hatchery. Once
these fi sh are placed in still
water fi sheries they are
considered “trout” and do not
need to be recorded on a
harvest card. This is a great
opportunity to get young
anglers into some big fi sh.
Try catching these fi sh by
fl oating bait under a bobber
mid water column. Brightly
colored lures and spinners
may also be productive.
PEACH POND (Ladd
Marsh): rainbow trout. The
pond was stocked with
trophy-sized rainbow trout
in late September. The pond
has no ice cover.
ROULET POND: rainbow
trout. The pond was stocked
with trophy-sized rainbow
trout in late September. The
pond has no ice cover.
ROWE CREEK RES-
ERVOIR: rainbow trout.
Remains open all year. The
pond is now free of ice.
Fishing is fair for carryover
trout but the water level is
very low.
UMATILLA FOREST
PONDS: trout. The for-
est ponds remain open to
angling year around and can
provide a good opportunity
for ice fi shing during the
winter months.
UMATILLA RIVER: steel-
head. Steelhead continue to
enter the system in record
numbers, anglers should
be able to fi nd fi sh scat-
tered throughout the river.
Steelhead fi shing was good
last weekend with upper river
anglers averaging 4.6 hours
per steelhead caught. During
the three days creeled last
week, 73 anglers caught
35 native and 7 hatchery
steelhead. Water conditions
in the Pendleton area drop-
ping quickly back into shape,
fl ows are about 600cfs and
water temperatures are in
the low 40s. Steelhead are
distributed though out the
system. Anglers are fi nd best
success using bobbers and
jigs and drift fi shing for steel-
head. Anglers should consult
the synopsis for detailed
regulations.
WALLOWA LAKE: rain-
bow trout, kokanee, lake
trout. As spring approaches
anglers will start to fi nd some
stocked trout that held over
from last season’s stock-
ing. These fi sh often range
15 to 20 inches and can be
caught in multiple numbers.
These fi sh are normally more
common later in the spring;
however with the warm
weather and early spring
anglers should start seeing
these fi sh soon. Some expe-
rienced fi shermen are pick-
ing up large lake trout trolling
at depth with downriggers.
While lake trout aren’t abun-
dant in Wallowa Lake it’s not
uncommon to fi nd fi sh over
25 pounds.
In 2014 the lake was
stocked with tagged rainbow
trout in an effort by ODFW to
better understand the utiliza-
tion of this fi shery. Tagged
fi sh have been caught at
very high rates and over
$2,700 in rewards have been
paid. Some of these fi sh
have likely held over from
last year and are available
to anglers. If you catch one
of these tagged fi sh, please
report the number, location,
date, where in the lake the
fi sh was caught and the size
to the ODFW offi ce in Enter-
prise or online.
WALLOWA RIVER: steel-
head, mountain whitefi sh.
The steelhead season is in
full swing on the Wallowa
River. Catch rates dipped
below 4 hours per fi sh last
week! Fishing is good and
there really is no good
excuse to not be out there.
Anglers are fi nding fi sh in
good numbers and the ratio
of two-salt fi sh to one-salt
fi sh is high. This means
there are a lot of larger fi sh
available so, oil your reels
and make sure that drag is
working well.
Remember the Wallowa
River is a whitefi sh factory.
Whitefi sh can be a great way
to keep kids interested while
steelhead fi shing and can be
great table fair. Simply tie in
a small bead-head nymph
dropper while fi shing under
a bobber rig and let the fun
begin. Also, steelhead will of-
ten take a bead head nymph
hanging under a jig.
WILLOW CREEK RES-
ERVOIR: trout. Anglers
are reporting good catches
of rainbow trout from 12 to
20-inches. Best catches are
falling for PowerBait and
night crawlers fi shed on the
bottom.
BAKER COUNTY
HUNTING
Cougars can be found
throughout Baker County but
hunters should target areas
with high concentrations of
deer and elk. Setting up on
a fresh kill or using distress
calls can all be productive
techniques. Hunters are re-
quired to check in the hide of
any cougar taken, with skull
and proof of sex attached.
Remember to pick up a 2015
tag.
Coyote numbers are good
throughout the district. Try
calling in early morning and
late afternoon. Remember
to ask for permission before
hunting on private properties.
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 11
Brownlee
boat ramp data
Submitted Photo.
The snowpack conditions that have materialized
thus far above Brownlee Reservoir are below nor-
mal. Therefore, the amount of space required by
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) within
Brownlee Reservoir for the purpose of system fl ood
control is less than has been required in some
recent years. This is great news for recreation
within the reservoir this spring. Brownlee Reservoir
elevation is currently 2,053 feet, or 24 feet below
full pool. We anticipate that the reservoir elevation
will decrease an additional 3-4 feet before the end
of February to meet the end of month fl ood control
target set by the USACE. At this target elevation,
all boat ramps with the exception of Spring Recre-
ation will remain accessible for launching boats. As
we move through the fl ood control season, these
planned operations may change. Updates will be
made available as soon as possible. Please visit
our Idaho Power website, http://www.idahopower.
com/OurEnvironment/WaterInformation for current
reservoir elevation information.
2014 annual
wolf report
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW)
posted its annual wolf report for 2014 on Tuesday.
Gray wolves (Canis lupus) in Oregon are listed state-
wide as endangered under the Oregon Endangered
Species Act (ESA). Wolves occurring west of Oregon
Highways 395/78/95 continued to be federally protected
as endangered under the federal ESA.
The 2014 Oregon minimum wolf population is 77
wolves. Nine packs were documented and eight of those
packs met the criteria as breeding pairs. Known wolf
packs occurred in parts of Baker, Jackson, Klamath,
Umatilla, Union, and Wallowa Counties. In addition six
new pairs of wolves were also confi rmed in Oregon;
fi ve within the Eastern Wolf Management Zone and one
within the Western Wolf Management Zone. 2014 marks
the third year that the conservation population objective
(four breeding pairs in eastern Oregon), as defi ned in the
Oregon Wolf Conservation and Management Plan
(Wolf Plan), was achieved.
Six wolves were captured and radio-collared in 2014
and throughout the year as many as 18 GPS radio-
collared wolves were monitored. At year-end 13 wolves
(17% of the population) were radiocollared in Oregon.
Three radio-collared wolves dispersed out of state. No
adult mortality or incidental take was documented in
Oregon during 2014.
Confi rmed depredation of livestock decreased; 11
incidents of wolf depredation were confi rmed in fi ve
areas of Oregon in 2014. Per the Wolf Plan the Oregon
Department of Fish and Wildlife (department) and area
producers implemented non-lethal measures to minimize
depredation.
The Oregon Department of Agriculture’s compensation
program awarded $150,830 in 8 counties in 2014. Most
funds were used for preventative measures and second-
arily for direct payment of confi rmed depredations.
Public interest in Oregon wolf management remained
high in 2014. Members of the public can sign up to be
automatically notifi ed of new wolf information and in
2014 the number of subscribers increased by 31%. Cur-
rently, 4, 496 people subscribe to the department’s wolf
update web page.
The Oregon State University/ODFW wolf-cougar
research project in northeastern Oregon continued in
2014.
The full report is available online or by contacting
ODFW.
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