OCEAN OUTLOOK

SOUTH COAST: The ocean is getting restless again, with a hazardous-seas warning in effect through Thursday morning. Thursday’s forecast calls for 20-knot winds and 12-foot swells, followed Friday by 15-knot winds and 9-foot swells. Saturday sees things ramping up a bit again, with forecasts calling for 15-knot winds and swells building to 12 feet — tough conditions for anyone not interested in separating themselves from their breakfast.

All ocean salmon fishing and halibut fishing is closed along the California coast.

For bottomfishers when you can get out, remember that cabezon are off limits until July 1. Quillback and yelloweye rockfish are also on the catch-and-release ledger for all of 2024.

Bottomfishing looks like a bust except if early morning conditions are a bit more calm and boaters can hang in close to shore well alee from the winds — not exactly a rousing reference to make the trip.

Surfperch fishing is very surf-dependent but has been decent at times when the surf calms down. But this weekend’s winds and high surf make this a non-starter now. Shrimp, mussels and Berkley Gulp sandworms or shrimp are the best baits when the weather cooperates. The surf perch have moved off the Rogue River sand spit, but there’s good action around the rocks north of the Winchuck River mouth when weather allows.

The ocean is now open to recreational crabbing, but conditions have kept crabbers in bays like Charleston and Coos Bay near Charleston. A new series of afternoon minus tides hits late next week.

Razor clamming is closed along the South Coast from Cape Blanco to the California border, but bays are open for butter and gaper clams. Bay clamming and mussel harvests are open statewide. Before digging, call the shellfish hotline at 1-800-448-2474.

LAKE OUTLOOK

AGATE: The lake has been off most anglers’ charts thanks to low and muddy water conditions. The lake has risen quickly this past week and has jumped again to 70% full. Electric trolling motors are OK but no gas motors. The park closes at dusk.

APPLEGATE: The French Gulch ramp is now is the only one usable for trailered boats as the lake’s mid-winter season has crept in. The lake is starting to fill aggressively, and it was up to 1,907 feet Tuesday, or 80 feet from full. That’s on schedule for filling by May 1. Tuesday’s in-flows were 442 cubic feet per second, with outflows just 248 cfs. The lake has a 10 mph speed limit.

DIAMOND: The lake is sporting snow and ice along most of the outer areas but lots of open but inaccessible waters further out. The ice is not safe for ice fishing. The lake has a mix of mostly rainbow trout as well as brown and tiger trout that are stocked to prey on the lake’s small but omnipresent tui chub population. All tiger trout and brown trout must be released unharmed. Some are eclipsing 8 pounds.

EMIGRANT: The lake has risen significantly to 31% full and likely will start creeping up. Trout fishing is available but slow, and bass fishing remains slow and will until we get a series of warmer, sunnier days. The county launch is too low for launching trailered boats at the county ramp.

EXPO: State wildlife biologists stocked 1,500 legal-sized rainbow trout here more than three months ago, and their numbers are now thin. Catch them with Panther Martin lures, single salmon eggs or worms under bobbers. Parking fees are required.

FISH: The lake has plenty of open and accessible water, but fishing interest remains light at best. Catches are best with worms or PowerBait near submerged springs near the Forest Service ramp and out past the marina. The lake was actually up a hair this past week to 55% full Tuesday. That’s basically inflows from underground springs and very little runoff as snow levels climb.

HOWARD PRAIRIE: The lake is open to angling, but the marina is closed. Some ice is around the lake, but it’s thin. The lake was listed Tuesday at 38% full, which is up over the past week.

HYATT: The lake was up a hair to 49% full this past week as some runoff is finding its way into the reservoir. Ice is starting to form, but it remains too thin for fishing.

LAKE OF THE WOODS: The lake remains ice-free and fishing decently for perch and some rainbows in shallow water just off the marina.

LOST CREEK: The lake’s winter trout fishing has been fair to decent near the dam and off Takelma Boat Ramp. Both ramps at Takelma and Stewart State Park are usable. Effort has been very light. Good catches come when trolling worms behind flashers during calm days. Upstream of the bridge is a no-wake zone. The reservoir was listed at 56% full this week and about 4 feet shy of normal for this week as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers siphons off some of last week’s inflows. Flows out of the reservoir were down to 1,189 cfs and inflows were down to 1,822 cfs as the reservoir sits relatively stable but murky. Drier weather is in the forecast.

MEDCO: The lake was stocked in June with 2,000 legal-sized trout. Catch what’s left of them on PowerBait or worms.

RIVER OUTLOOK

ROGUE: Water levels are starting to bounce around, and that has winter steelhead anglers excited about this extended weekend, with Free Fishing Weekend also coming Saturday and Sunday.

The best bet will be the middle Rogue downstream of Grants Pass, which is due for a slug of fresh steelhead and good angling conditions normally seen each mid-February. Flows at Grants Pass were forecast to be 3,800 cfs Thursday and peaking over 4,000 cfs by early Friday, followed by another spike to about 3,950 cfs Sunday. That makes Friday and early Saturday nice options for winter steelheaders either from drift boats or from the bank. Bank anglers are fishing Spin-Glo’s or plugs off side-planers at places like Chair and Rainbow riffles. Drift boaters are doing decent on a mix of fake egg clusters, pink worms under bobbers or pink or chartreuse plugs. The fish remain quite spread out, and water temperatures are cool, and that has slowed the bite a bit.

In the upper Rogue, fewer than two dozen winter steelhead have made it to Cole Rivers Hatchery, but there are enough around for seasoned anglers to run into one or two per drift boat trip. Plugs are out-fishing roe and plastic baits, though all are legal river-wide now. Flows at Dodge Bridge were forecast to rise to about 3,100 cfs Thursday before dropping again and then ticking back up to 2,700 cfs Sunday — that makes Friday and Saturday as pretty good early-season bets in the Shady Cove area.

The lower Rogue in the Agness area is pulling nicely into shape for plunkers at places like the old Champion mill site and Dunkelberger Bar, as well as the Quosatana and Lobster Creek bars. Flows at Agness were forecast to rise Thursday and set to peak at about 12,000 cfs Friday before dropping rather quickly through early next week. That could bode very well for plunkers.

Rogue, Applegate and other South Coast winter steelhead anglers will need their new regional steelhead validation to fish. New $2 validations are needed each Dec. 1, even for those catch-and-release fishing. Those are valid for the next 12 months. All wild steelhead harvest on the Rogue is now closed.

The far upper Rogue in the Union Creek area was stocked in mid-September for the last time this year. Fish around the Union Creek Campground and the mainstem Rogue near River Bridge. Worms, single salmon eggs and small pieces of worms are the traditional favorites.

APPLEGATE: The river is open to angling for steelhead, but no winter steelhead have been reported. No winter steelhead have reached the fish trap near the base of Applegate Dam. Outflows from the dam were down to 244 cfs, with downstream flows Tuesday at 449 cfs at Wilderville. That’s not enough to entice fresh winter steelhead to power upstream but they’ll be showing up very soon.

Fish these winter steelhead with spoons, small egg clusters or egg flies. There is no fishing from a floating device, and all wild steelhead must be released unharmed.

CHETCO: The river was forecast to rise all day Thursday and peak around 7,200 cfs before dropping for the next two days then inching back up Monday. That could make for a nice weekend of high-water steelhead fishing upstream of Ice Box. Winter steelhead are well distributed river-wide. A $2 South Coast Steelhead validation along with a fishing license is needed to fish here, even if it’s all catch and release.