Trout Unlimited Volunteer Bill Laroux battles a coastal cutthroat during a McKenzie River Little Yellow Stonefly hatch.

ALONG THE LOWER McKENZIE RIVER - Thanks to record snow pack, water levels have been high all over Oregon and the lower McKenzie is no exception, with 30 to 50 percent higher water than historical 75-year averages.

Nonetheless, fishing has been just fine in the lower river and the high water is very good for the health of the fishery.

The cold water will make excellent fishing in the lower river hold up longer than usual. The high water offers more cover for fish to hide from predators like ospreys, it provides more bug habitat, and it provides a better habitat for juvenile trout, salmon and steelhead. The high water also allows fry to hide in willow branches to avoid wading birds, and makes the hatches last longer. 

These high water years are a great help to the fishery. With high water, great insect numbers, excellent fish habitat, and catch and release angling on the lower section since 1981, the Lower McKenzie River fishery has a great long-term outlook.

About the Lower McKenzie River

The lower McKenzie River is an often overlooked watershed that offers something most rivers around the Pacific Northwest do not – year round fly angling for native trout. The storied upper river above Leaburg Dam features white water, large native "red side" rainbows, and great scenery, but the lower river has significant advantages.

The Lower McKenzie River runs from below Leaburg Dam down to the confluence of the Willamette River, roughly 30 miles of broad glides with better walk-in access than the upper sections of the river for wading anglers on foot.

The lower section is also easier for boating, with a large number of ramps and very few, easy rapids. The lower river is also easy water to read, with plenty of riffles, drop-offs, pools and flats that hold fish. Shuttle services are available for out-of-town boaters.

The McKenzie is just as close to Portland as the Deschutes River, if you're looking for a wild trout fishery, and you can fish from the boat. It is typically less crowded than other prime fly fishing water and the access is very simple from I-5. 

The Fish

Native cutthroat are the big draw on the lower river. The Western Coastal cutthroat are a sleek, silver, spotted fish with red slits under the gills. Normally these fish don't get quite as big as the rainbows, but they're numerous and willing.  Average fish range from 8 to 14-inches, with 15-18 inch fish being exceptionally big.

Wild big native rainbows are less numerous in the lower section, but also available. The rainbows range between 8 to 18-inches with an exceptional fish at 20 inches. Anglers also may find the occasional spring/summer steelhead passing up through the system.

This river is not stocked in the lower river until the fourth Saturday in April, and the river below Hayden Bridge is not stocked at all. The lower fifteen miles of river support all wild fish, which must be released, no kill.

Early Summer on the Lower McKenzie

The season on the Lower McKenzie often begins with the March Brown hatch, a large dark brown mayfly that can start hatching as soon as February. As the March Brown wanes, caddis gains importance. The first couple of warm spring days bring blizzard caddis hatches and then the river explodes with insect activity.

Little Yellow stones, Mothers' Day Caddis, Pale Morning Duns, McKenzie Green Caddis, and Golden stones round out the best of the early summer hatches.

The Green McKenzie Caddis is a huge gray insect with a vibrant green under-wing. This caddis fly is not widely distributed, endemic to the lower Willamette Valley Region. Fish chase it up to the surface as it emerges. This bug is also an active egg layer, skittering on the surface, so moving and skating the fly is very effective. The best imitations for this hatch include the Karnopp's Riffle Diver, McKenzie Caddis Wet and CDC McKenzie Caddis.

Fly tying instructional video - The CDC Green McKenzie Caddis

Little yellow stone is a free emerging stonefly, meaning that the insect behaves more like a mayfly in how it emerges from its nymph stage. The little yellow stones emerge in the middle of the river, often blanketing the surface with blizzard hatches on summer evenings.  Little yellow stones ride low in the water and feature a prominent egg sac – so Yellow Sallys and yellow elk hair caddis with the bottom hackles trimmed flat are great imitations.  

Pale morning duns are a cloudy day, afternoon bug. If you see some emerging in the morning, try fishing the soft hackle. But in the evening you'll have adult duns on the water, which are imitated by Sparkle Dun PMDs. The spent mayflies in the later evenings can be imitated with the rusty spinner.

Fly tying instructional video - The Pale Morning Dun (PMD) Sparkle Dun

As summer continues, early and late parts of the day become the best options for fishing the lower river. Anglers should try fishing faster water during the midday. Evening dry fly fishing can be excellent - anglers just need to scale down the size of their offering (size 16 and18 pale morning duns, pale morning dun spinners, little yellow stones(sally's) and small caddis) are best.  

Matt Stansberry is a Eugene, Oregon-based blogger and outreach coordinator for the McKenzie Upper-Willamette Chapter of Trout Unlimited. Chris Daughters is a fly fishing guide and owner of the Caddis Fly Shop in Eugene. Stansberry and Daughters blog at www.OregonFlyFishingBlog.com.