Fly Lines

The reports were not good before we left on our trip to the lower Deschutes. According to the fish passage center, we would be looking at a below-average run of steelhead.

Throughout July, the numbers had been down slightly, but well within acceptable levels. In early August, with warming in the Columbia, the migration had all but stopped.

In the lower Columbia, thermal barriers like the one that has stopped this season's run, are not at all uncommon. During the heat of summer, migrating fish start their long journey inland while the river temperatures at the mouth of the Columbia are still cool. However, sun-baked days create rapid warming, especially in the high desert areas east of the Cascades.

As the river temperatures begin to climb, the fish become stressed, they stop migrating and rest.

As this thermal condition develops, the fish will typically migrate to the Bonneville Dam (which is the first counting station on the river). Once over Bonneville they begin to encounter warmer water at The Dalles. Large numbers of fish will become trapped in the Bonneville pool.

This year, with a continuing heat wave and July temperatures well above normal, the thermal barrier is larger and more intense than usual. Most recent reports now show that the fish are not even making it to Bonneville. They are being trapped even farther down in the lower Columbia.

This stalling of the run is temporary. At the first sign of cooler temperatures, the fish will move on. Fishing should pick up dramatically after some rain and a few cooler nights. But, in the near term, it does not look good.

In spite of these poor reports, we felt our family fun trip had been planned and we should go ahead with it. We had been aware when we first made the arrangements that the fishing might not be great.

So we launched off with limited expectations. It certainly would not be the first steelhead trip we didn't catch fish.

I was pleasantly surprised the fist morning when I managed to solidly hook two fish. The fact that I couldn't land either one was only mildly disappointing in light of the fact that I hadn't really been expecting to find any fish at all.

For the rest of the trip, we managed to hook fish here and there. If I had successfully landed even 50 percent of the fish I had on the line, it would have been a pretty good trip. Even so I had to consider it "successful."

The second morning my 15-year-old son managed to bank his first steelhead on a fly. That was a highlight. All along we managed to find fish even if we did have to work a little harder than usual for them.

As we floated along, other guides and fisherman with whom we spoke seemed to be having about the same results. We saw a fish landed here and there. In general we seemed to be as successful as anyone.

The conclusion of our downriver exploration is there are a few fish around; some up as high as Mack's Canyon. If you're hungry to catch a steelhead, the chances of success are not too bad.

But, if your are making plans for your only trip of the season and you want it to be a major success, you might consider waiting a little until the weather cools. If you can be flexible, try to time your trip for right after the first cooler weather ­ that could be prime time.