Driving from San Jose to Oregon - Where to fish?

[schplurg]

I'm going to drive up to Salem, Oregon soon to visit my family. Since I have my van set up for camping I thought I might stop along the way and fish. Maybe take a few days to get there.

 

Any suggestions for bank fishing? Black bass or other. Planning on taking Hwy 5 but not necessary. I have no time limit.

 

I did the drive a month or so ago. Shasta is so low. There is also a nice looking river along Hwy 5 once you cross into Oregon. Dang it looks pretty.

 

I'm not worried about where to sleep. No campground needed. I just want to be able to park somewhere, hike if necessary, and fish. Creeks, lakes, rivers.

 

Shasta seems like a possibilty if I can access the water from somewhere. I'll check a map and get reaquainted with it. Been decades since I've been.

 

I'll have a packpack so can hike a bit, as usual.

 

Once I get to Oregon my sister will take a few weeks off work and we'll see about finding my first ever smallmouth.

 

Actually I'm up for suggestions in the Salem area as well. That's where I will be staying.

[Sphynx]

Get up by the Columbia, find you a nice rocky bit of shoreline about 2.5 hours before sunset, and bring a bunch of swimbaits (soft plastic keitech style) and a bunch of Tylenol, you'll need it the next morning after the river smallies get finished with you, picked up 15 out of 17 (including a new PB smallmouth) hooked in 90 minutes tonight, have also had a bunch of success this week on squarebills/lipless in reflective and solid shad/sexy shad type colors, and ned rigs and shakey heads.

[schplurg]

I will check my map right now! Thank you!

[Sphynx]

6 minutes ago, schplurg said:

I will check my map right now! Thank you!

About 65 or so miles north of Salem, Don't let the size throw you off, it's an enormous river but the smallies hang out shallow in the rocks mostly, if you find the backwater lakes/Eddie's you can find all sorts of Largemouth, crappie, and panfish of various sorts as well, walleye, salmon, steelhead, catfish, sturgeon and tiger musky are plentiful in the main river as well, if you can't find something you enjoy fishing for in the Columbia, you probably need a new hobby.

[schplurg]

9 minutes ago, Sphynx said:

About 65 or so miles north of Salem, Don't let the size throw you off, it's an enormous river but the smallies hang out shallow in the rocks mostly, if you find the backwater lakes/Eddie's you can find all sorts of Largemouth, crappie, and panfish of various sorts as well, walleye, salmon, steelhead, catfish, sturgeon and tiger musky are plentiful in the main river as well, if you can't find something you enjoy fishing for in the Columbia, you probably need a new hobby.

 

 

Awesome. My family - sister and parents - want me to move there so I wanna check out the fishing while I'm there too. Don't really want to move to Oregon but I do want to leave Cali pretty bad. At least Oregon has water and fishing! After driving 800+ miles what's another 65 or so to fish? Thanks again.

[Sphynx]

Let me know how you get on, I am always interested in fishing reports from the river, helps me help the kids out here where I work get on them and learn how to have fun without video games all the time

[Sphynx]

Now that I think about it, if you want a sizeable detour, Crane Prairie reservoir in Central Oregon, and the Klamath Falls area is supposed to have some really solid largemouth and crappie fishing

[schplurg]

I'm checking out Shasta now. Hard to tell where to go because it is very low, I saw it a month or two ago from the bridge. It all looks great on a map but some coves don't exist right now. Thinking maybe keeping it simple and hitting either the dam area or Silverthorne and Bridge bay areas near Hwy 5.

 

Does the Willamette have good fishing near Salem?

[Sphynx]

1 minute ago, schplurg said:

I'm checking out Shasta now. Hard to tell where to go because it is very low, I saw it a month or two ago from the bridge. It all looks great on a map but some coves don't exist right now. Thinking maybe keeping it simple and hitting either the dam area or Silverthorne and Bridge bay areas near Hwy 5.

 

Does the Willamette have good fishing near Salem?

Never really fished it, but it probably holds bucketmouth and panfish at the very least, it's a much less current heavy river, and is an arm of the Columbia, I'd be willing to bet dollars to donuts you'd find a bunch of trout in there too if you were so inclined, holdover hatchery fish at least, but also probably a bunch of browns and brookies, be sure to check your regulations if you want to fish for that kind of stuff though, pretty sure oregon does not permit brown/brook trout to be released, also if you fish tributaries of the Columbia don't forget to get your Columbia River basin endorsement in addition to any other licenses you get.

[WRB]

I5 cross over lake Shasta at Bridge Bay resort, the area is good bass fishing.

The Willaimette and Umpqua Rivas both have excellent Smallmouth fishing. The Columbia is a large rice bordering Oregon and Washington, big fast river with excellent bass fishing.

Rivers from shore limits your access.

Tom

[Sphynx]

15 hours ago, WRB said:

I5 cross over lake Shasta at Bridge Bay resort, the area is good bass fishing.

The Willaimette and Umpqua Rivas both have excellent Smallmouth fishing. The Columbia is a large rice bordering Oregon and Washington, big fast river with excellent bass fishing.

Rivers from shore limits your access.

Tom

This is good to know, getting anybody out here to talk about a non-salmonid is virtually impossible it seems, so lots of places I go are just shots in the dark hoping something will turn up.

[schplurg]

22 hours ago, WRB said:

I5 cross over lake Shasta at Bridge Bay resort, the area is good bass fishing.

The Willaimette and Umpqua Rivas both have excellent Smallmouth fishing. The Columbia is a large rice bordering Oregon and Washington, big fast river with excellent bass fishing.

Rivers from shore limits your access.

Tom

 

 

Thanks, Tom. Checked out Bridge Bay and Bailey Cove areas on a map last night. I almost got a campsite near Bailey Cove but the water is so low....not sure I wanna bother. Maybe I will just concentrate on fishing when I get to Oregon.

 

I would like to fish Shasta though. maybe just stop by Bridge Bay for a few hours. Can always hit it harder on the way home too, maybe even camp. Sites are available weekdays near Bailey.

 

Yes I think the river I saw along 5 is the Umpqua, looked that up too. Really nice looking scenery all up that area of Oregon.

 

Once at Shasta as a kid my cousin saw fishing line and hooks hanging in a tree. He climbed up and grabbed them. We caught trout with sticks off the side of the houseboat and ate em for dinner. I'll never forget that time. Some great days man at Shasta and Trinity.