Lower Deschutes

February 18, 2024March 15, 2024

Time Flies but Still It’s Winter

As I’m writing this post the snows have returned.

Not as deep as before, but there is still some shovel work required. We understand it’s winter and yet days under gray sky seem more numerous this year than any in the past.

We don’t lament the inevitable and in fact look forward to a seasonal shift. It has been common in Central Oregon for snowy winter days to be followed by sun and blue sky. Usually in equal amounts.

Not this year.

The week didn’t start with snow on the ground. Mid-February started with a spring-like feel.

It’s referred to as false spring, but regardless, we took advantage and headed to Maupin to spend the day on the Deschutes.

Rivers remain swollen from January’s melted snows so the fishing wasn’t great.

However, the day was sunny and temperatures pushed into the fifties. We sat up chairs on river’s edge, enjoyed the day and waited for winter to return.

We didn’t have long to wait.

October 15, 2023October 13, 2023

A Fall Day

We never seem to get used to how quickly fall overtakes summer. In what seems like a couple of days, the hillside shifts from shades of green to ochre.

Morning walks now require a warm coat and hat. However, by noon we are back in shirt sleeves. Fall is without a doubt our favorite season.

I’ve renewed the pursuit of Steelhead in the Deschutes River. To that end, this week we made our third, but not final, trip to Maupin.

Seasonal runs of these ocean dwelling rainbow trout aren’t always open to anglers, so one needs to take advantage when opportunity knocks.

The Deschutes Canyon still holds summer green along river’s edge. Higher up the slope underbrush has started to take on the reddish hues of fall.

The real sign of seasonal change is the presence of mule deer moving through the canyon on their winter migration . . . their gray fur a perfect camouflage on the hillside.

We watched as a pair of does with two yearlings work their way along the slope. Cartoon-sized ears keeping track of our presence as they search out another river access point.

Numerous casts to deep pools came up empty, but then Steelhead are often described as the pursuit of a thousand casts.

Clouds moved in around mid-day and the rains came as we headed back upstream and out of the canyon.

We’ll return in a few weeks to increase that cast count and hopefully meet with success. Regardless, time on the Lower Deschutes is well spent.

June 4, 2023June 3, 2023

On the River

Though rarely, there ARE times when we don’t want to be on a river.

After the middle of June, the Lower Deschutes Canyon is off our calendar. What we avoid is a summer influx of tourists and high desert heat . . . an aversion acquired while living in Western Montana and constantly cultivated.

River levels have returned to seasonal normal.

A highly anticipated Stonefly hatch usually precedes rafter season in Maupin.

After the runoff has calmed and waters have cleared AND before summer’s heat, we try to get one last day on the Deschutes.

This typically involves multiple trips as it turns out the Lower Deschutes is nice in the spring . . . and the fall as well.

It’s still spring in the canyon. The barrage of summer’s heat hasn’t penetrated this far.

Wild flowers are still blooming, families of waterfowl hang in the reeds and the days are short enough to offer cool mornings.

The Subaru serves as a base of operation but loses its appeal when parked under a summer sun. A couple weeks ago, camp chairs at the road’s edge worked, but this week that approach required we find some afternoon shade.

Adult Golden Stonefly; Salmon Flies are similar, but have a red and brown mottled body color.

Stoneflies rest in foliage during the day, flying over the water in the evening to deposit eggs.

The seaonal Golden Stone and Salmon Fly hatch is dictated by nature and water temperature. The term ‘hatch’, gets used to describe an individual event, but could also mean a series of similar events.

We’ve found it best to start with the latter. With an understanding of aquatic invertebrate life cycles, you can be on the river at the proper time . . . be patient.

Since late winter, we’ve been making the trek to Maupin to check progress on the stonefly’s crawl to river’s edge. A scientific study that has been well documented.

Seemed likely this trip would end the season, so I tied up an old standard, two actually; Box Canyon Stonefly and Langtrey Special. Both caught fish.