Stay Cool, Help Fish Do the Same
Morning sun fills the canyon, lighting a textbook loop. Be an early bird on the water to help fish beat the heat.
Best Practices for Dog-Days-of-Summer Fishing
Amidst the drought and raging wildfires, some good news: the data strongly suggests PGE is releasing significant amounts of cooler, cleaner water from the depths of Lake Billy Chinook. As of this writing, our monitoring station near Warm Springs reports 12.83 degrees (55 degrees F.). Maupin reports 15.68 degrees, and Moody 18.08. The reprieve is welcome, but it’s worth remembering that cooler, cleaner water is needed year-round, not just for a few weeks of the hottest part of summer.
While the temperature standard is temporarily being met, pH violations continue unabated. pH is an indicator of excessive aquatic plant growth driven by nutrient-rich water released for eight months out of the year from the surface of Lake Billy Chinook.
Even with the cooler water temperatures, anglers, especially in the mid-summer heat of the lower Deschutes canyon, will need to do their part to help trout, salmon and steelhead thrive. ODFW suggests the following to ensure fish have a fair shot at making it to the cooler, and hopefully wetter fall and winter.
• Use rubberized nets to prevent snagging and reduce injury.
• Keep fish in the water while removing hooks.
• Avoid beaching fish and minimize the time they spend out of the water.
• Use barbless hooks to make release quicker and less harmful.
• Land fish promptly to prevent over‑exhaustion.
• Wet hands before handling fish to protect their slime layer.
• Use pliers or a hook‑removal tool to speed up release.
• Gently support fish in the water until they swim away on their own.
• Avoid fishing during periods of high-water temperatures or poor water quality when fish are already stressed.
On the lower Deschutes, regardless of the water year, the old adage is generally true: there’s magic in the morning. A start in the pre-dawn gloaming leaves you room for a heat-beating afternoon siesta.
The DRA provides real-time water quality updates, including temperature, at all three of our monitoring stations, as well as weekly water quality updates that go out with our Thursday morning email blast. Keep an eye on water temperatures, and plan your angling experience accordingly.
Alongside our coalition partners, and with your continued support, we’ll also continue our persistent efforts to convince Portland General Electric to release the maximum amount of colder, cleaner water from the depths of Lake Billy Chinook. In the meantime, keep yourself cool and hydrated, and do the same for the fish you connect with.
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