Sports in the great outdoors
 strengthens your body
and your mind

12/18/2025

Best bets for weekend fishing:

• As a general reminder for Anglers: Maximize distance from bank anglers and other boats. Safely row or motor around anglers and other boats and avoid motoring nearshore and in shallow areas!
• Heavy rain and flooding has blown out many rivers across the state. Fishing will improve next week, when water levels fall to normal. That makes now a good time to finish holiday shopping and your winter to do list!
• Winter steelhead are in the North Fork Nehalem, Necanicum River, Big Creek, and Klaskanine Rivers. These streams get early returning hatchery steelhead and will provide the best opportunity for catching winter steelhead in December. Check for flood conditions before heading out.
• Lost Creek Reservoir has had great reports by folks trolling for rainbow trout.
• Steelhead fishing is good on the Umatilla River.
• Approximately 400 brood trout were released recently at Haystack Reservoir. As a reminder, to allow everyone a chance at catching one of these fish, only one fish over 20 inches long can be harvested each day.
• Anglers report excellent kokanee fishing at Lake Billy Chinook.
• Steelhead fishing has been good on the Grande Ronde, Imnaha and Umatilla Rivers
• Yellow perch fishing is still an option in Recreation Creek, Pelican Bay Area of Upper Klamath Lake, Sevenmile Canal Mouth, and Fourmile Canal.
• Surplus brood trout from Oak Springs hatchery were stocked in Taylor Lake and Pine hollow this week
• Crabbing in Newport is fair. Crabbing in Waldport has been good. Crab quality is good as shells have hardened and are full of meat.

These examples are for demonstration purposes only. Refer to the zone reports for more details and possibilities.

2026 Recreational Bottomfish Season Set

On Friday, December 12, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission finalized the 2026 recreational bottomfish season and regulations. Changes from 2025 are in italics and underlined. 

Bag Limits

• General Marine Species:
• 4-fish bag limit
• Canary rockfish: 2-fish sub-bag limit
• Cabezon: 1-fish sub-bag limit
• 16-inch minimum size limit
• Opens July 1
• Lingcod: 3-fish bag limit
• 22-inch minimum size limit
• Flatfish: 25-fish bag limit
• Sablefish: 10-fish bag limit
• Offshore long-leader fishery: 10-fish bag limit
• Canary rockfish: 2-fish sub-bag limit
• For a 10-fish bag limit to apply, long-leader gear must be used outside (seaward) of the 40-fathom regulatory line
• 10 midwater rockfish species only
• Retention of yelloweye and quillback rockfishes remain prohibited.

The bottomfish fishery will again be open at all-depths year-round (no seasonal depth restriction).

Reminder: Beginning in 2026, an Ocean Endorsement is required for most anglers fishing in the ocean from beaches, jetties, and boats except when taking shellfish or when fishing for and retaining salmon or steelhead unless other marine finfish are retained. For more information on requirements and fees, please visit myodfw.com/articles/ocean-endorsement.

Additional information on the recreational bottomfish fishery can be found on the ODFW sport bottomfish webpage.

12-12-2025

The Rogue- South Coast Steelhead season runs from Dec 1- Apr. 30. The Rogue-South Coast Steelhead Validation is required for all winter steelhead anglers fishing in the Rogue Basin or on the South Coast. A harvest tag is required to keep wild winter steelhead in this area. Check the regulations for details:

https://www.eregulations.com/oregon/fishing/southwest-zone

Find the weekly trout stocking schedule here.

Best bets for weekend fishing:

• Winter steelhead are in the North Fork Nehalem, Necanicum River, Big Creek, and Klaskanine Rivers. These streams get early returning hatchery steelhead and will provide the best opportunity for catching winter steelhead in early[DO1] December. Check for flood conditions before heading out.
• Lost Creek Reservoir has had great reports by folks trolling for rainbow trout.
• Steelhead fishing is good on the Umatilla River.
• Taylor Lake was stocked recently with 400 surplus brood trout from Oak Springs.
• Approximately 400 brood trout were released recently at Haystack Rock. As a reminder, to allow everyone a chance at catching one of these fish, only one fish over 20 inches long can be harvested each day.
• Anglers report excellent kokanee fishing at Lake Billy Chinook.
• Steelhead fishing has been good on the Grande Ronde, Imnaha and Umatilla Rivers
• Yellow perch fishing is still an option in Recreation Creek, Pelican Bay Area of Upper Klamath Lake, Sevenmile Canal Mouth, and Fourmile Canal.
• Best fishing for wild, native trout in the Klamath Basin will be the Klamath River.
• There are some nice holdover trout in the Malheur River below Warmsprings right now.
• Surplus brood trout from Oak Springs hatchery were stocked in Taylor Lake and Pine hollow this week
• Crabbing in Newport is fair. Crabbing in Waldport has been good. Crab quality is good as shells have hardened and are full of meat.

These examples are for demonstration purposes only. Refer to the zone reports for more details and possibilities.