On the hunt for pigs that tear up paradise

Today's read: Back from the brink

Once thought extinct, big trout is recovering

May 18, 2013 4:00 am

PYRAMID LAKE, Nev. — Hour after hour, Brian Dunn lofted his fly line into the turquoise-blue water of this shimmering desert lake north of Reno. Finally, just after lunch, his line straightened and a smile spread on his face. Before long, a 6-....MORE

Fly-tying corner

May 15, 2013 4:00 am

Caddis. They make their homes in gravel and woody structures and build their cases out of the material around them. The Stick Fly is a great imitator of the cased caddis at its most vulnerable. When trout are not focused on some other food source,....MORE

Hunting & Fishing Gary Lewis

Up a creek in Wallace, Idaho

May 15, 2013 4:00 am

They took out the stoplight on Interstate 90 in 1991 and the townsfolk in Wallace, Idaho, their feelings hurt by the freeway bypass, proclaimed a manhole cover the Center of the Universe. I remember the stoplight. We stopped there in the 1970s on a....MORE

Fishing Report

May 15, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The roads leading to the reservoir are clear.....MORE

Briefing

Free fishing event for kids

May 10, 2013 4:00 am

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Central Oregon Flyfishers invite children to come to a free fishing event Saturday at the Pine Nursery Parkpond in Bend. The event, which lasts 9 a. m. to 3 p. m., gives kids ages 17 and younger a....MORE

Hunting & Fishing

Sage rats from the second story

May 8, 2013 4:00 am

In case you haven't noticed, the price of everything is higher than it used to be. We can't blame inflation because government economic indicators tell us that inflation is low. But consider the price of gas, for example. We are now burning in our....MORE

Angling artistry

• Graceful sport of spey casting gains popularity

May 8, 2013 4:00 am

There’s a scene in the movie “A River Runs Through It" where the stand-in for actor Brad Pitt, Jerry Siem, is casting his fly line in a perfect candy cane loop while standing on a rock in the middle of the Gallatin River. A photo from....MORE

Fishing Report

May 8, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The roads leading to the reservoir are clear.....MORE

Fly-tying corner

May 8, 2013 4:00 am

A fly born in the Old Country, the Diawl Bach, which means Little Devil, is a good stillwater pattern here in the New World. Fish this one in June when trout cruise the shoreline prospecting for tasties in the tules. This pattern is best employed....MORE

Controlled hunt tag deadline nears

May 8, 2013 4:00 am

Hunters who have eyes on trophy wildlife outside of a general hunt have little time to make sure they apply for controlled hunt tags with the May 15 deadline nearly here. Pronghorn, bighorn sheep, deer, elk and Rocky Mountain goat all fall under the....MORE

Adventure Sports

Kids find 'reel' fun at area ponds

• Shevlin Pond one of many stocked fishing spots for Central Oregon youths

May 8, 2013 4:00 am

The smile on my son's face was as bright as the Central Oregon sun on a warm spring day. His laughter echoed across the water. Youth fishing ponds are built to introduce children to the sport and perhaps turn them into lifelong anglers who will....MORE

Fishing Report

May 1, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The roads leading to the reservoir are clear.....MORE

Oregon salmon fishing

Outlook dims for rivers, brightens for the ocean

May 1, 2013 4:00 am

Overall, Oregon salmon anglers can expect another season similar to last year, fishery managers say, with the ocean outlook a bit brighter than in 2012, but prospects for in-river fishing down slightly. Hatchery-reared coho salmon are expected to be....MORE

Fly-tying corner

May 1, 2013 4:00 am

Any fly pattern that employs a spot of red gets my attention. Red definitely gets the trouts' attention. The Red Spot Shrimp uses a spot of fluorescent wool to suggest a freshwater shrimp parasitized with a small round worm. Freshwater shrimp are an....MORE

Gary Lewis Hunting & fishing

Prospecting for pronghorn: archery and black powder

May 1, 2013 4:00 am

According to the numbers, about 2,200 hunters go afield for antelope each season. A lot more would-be pronghorn hunters stay home. With 2,075 applicants vying for 125 tags last year, the most sought-after antelope tag was the Steens Mountain hunt.....MORE

Thawed out and ready for fishing opener

• Mild winter should make for a memorable opening weekend for local anglers

April 24, 2013 4:00 am

A relatively mild winter and spring mean more angling opportunities this weekend for the opening of the trout fishing season on several Central Oregon lakes. Many water bodies are entirely ice-free and accessible, including South Twin Lake, Wickiup....MORE

Fly-tying corner

April 24, 2013 4:00 am

In the spring, stoneflies are on the move and, after a long winter, the trout are ready and waiting. Best times to fish this pattern are in the morning and evening just before and after a hatch. Bird's Stonefly Nymph is a pattern that is suggestive....MORE

Trail update

April 24, 2013 4:00 am

Temperatures Heating UpTrail users will likely see increased use throughout the rest of the week with the forecast in the upper 60s to lower 70s. Trails should be in good condition with the remaining snow levels continuing to melt out. Users are....MORE

Hunting & Fishing Gary Lewis

Spring fishing: Think big for ice-out trout

April 24, 2013 4:00 am

A lot of fishermen trade their dreams of catching a trophy-sized trout for the easier goal of catching a limit of eatin'-sized rainbows. But the big fish hunter is only one cast away from the trout of a lifetime. Early in the season, soon after the....MORE

Fishing Report

April 24, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The roads leading to the reservoir are clear.....MORE

Fishing Report

April 17, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The roads leading to the reservoir are clear.....MORE

Fly-tying corner

April 17, 2013 4:00 am

From late February through early May, an angler might luck into a hatch of skwala stoneflies on any Western river. To a big rainbow or brown, it could represent the first substantial meal of the year with the big black bugs on the move below and....MORE

Hunting & Fishing

You can call crappie fighters or goggle-eyes; I call them dinner

April 17, 2013 4:00 am

It was the biggest crappie I had ever seen: A silvery, black-spotted slab my cousin, Brad, pulled out of a freeway lake near Kalama, Wash. That was almost 30 years ago. I still haven't laid eyes on a better one. Brad caught that timber crappie the....MORE

Dispatches

April 12, 2013 4:00 am

• Confluence Fly Shop will open soon in the Old Mill District in Bend. The store is partnering with Deep Canyon Outfitters and will provide equipment testing, fly-fishing schools, clinics and casting lessons. For more information contact....MORE

Bulls on Lake Billy

• Deschutes Arm a good option for browns and rainbows, as well

April 10, 2013 4:00 am

LAKE BILLY CHINOOK—The section of water just downstream of where the Deschutes River flows into Lake Billy Chinook is a special place to me. Not just because of the natural beauty — the stark, rugged cliff walls and abundant wildlife....MORE

Fly-tying corner

April 10, 2013 4:00 am

Trout eat caddis in all the stages of life and the last opportunity to turn Rhyacophila, Hydropsyche or Dicosmoecus into usable protein is when the adult drops, spent, to the surface, its wings spread in submission to its fate. The Spent Partridge....MORE

Chinook fishing starts to pick up

April 10, 2013 4:00 am

Spring chinook fishing on the Umpqua River has started to pick up. It seems that most of the bites are nonaggressive or tentative and many of the hooked fish are coming loose, but the overall activity level has picked up. Also, there has been some....MORE

Fishing Report

April 10, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The reservoir is not accessible by vehicle....MORE

Hunting & Fishing Gary Lewis

Best spring turkey hunting in Oregon

April 10, 2013 4:00 am

Going by the numbers, I logged 650 miles and spent two rainy days and half a sunny one in the field to bag my gobbler last year. I shudder to think of the dollars per pound I had invested in that organic, free-range bird. Looking back, it was no....MORE

Hunting & Fishing

Hunting-dog trainers get more time in the field

April 3, 2013 2:06 am

Texas was 4½ months old, a black-and-white cross between an English pointer and an English setter. Out of the dog box, he shivered in the morning air. Steve Jarvis tied hay bale cord to the end of his leash. After weeks of play, it was time to get....MORE

Fly-tying corner

April 3, 2013 4:00 am

Quick and easy to tie with a foam body and hollow hair that doesn't need floatant every few casts. What's not to like?You need these tent-winged insect imitations on hand to be ready for those days — June through October — when clouds of ....MORE

Fishing reports

April 3, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The reservoir is not accessible by vehicle due to ....MORE

Fly-tying corner

March 27, 2013 4:00 am

When trout nerves have been jangled by trolling gear, when other fly anglers opt for Woolly Buggers and streamers, go small and light with a small soft hackle. These are perhaps the least popular but most productive type of trout fly. The Soft Hackle ....MORE

Yellowstone

Bison hunt’s tally is highest since ‘89

March 27, 2013 4:00 am

BILLINGS, Mont. — Hunters killed more wild bison migrating from Yellowstone National Park this season than they have in decades, with the numbers driven by strong participation from American Indians who harvest the animals under longstanding....MORE

Fishing Reports

March 27, 2013 4:00 am

ANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The reservoir is not accessible by vehicle due to the snow on the roads. BEND PINE NURSERY POND: Although the most recent stocking was in late September, it is likely that many fish overwintered. CLEAR LAKE RESERVOIR: Snow....MORE

HUNTING & FISHING

Jousting with steelhead on the North Umpqua

March 27, 2013 4:00 am

It was cold in the river canyon at Whistler's Bend on the North Umpqua. The fishermen and shuttle drivers gathered in preparation for the day's runs. Some would run the upper section. We would drift from Whistler's down to the dam. It is a section of ....MORE

Hunting & Fishing

Gearing up for spring turkey hunting season

March 13, 2013 4:00 am

My taste in shotguns runs to wood and blued steel. I like two barrels, one on top of the other or side-by-side, but last year I won a Weatherby SA-08 semi-automatic with a $5 ticket in a raffle. I didn't need another shotgun, I told myself, but then....MORE

Fishing Report

March 13, 2013 4:00 am

Here is the weekly fishing report for selected areas in and around Central Oregon, provided by fisheries biologists for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife:CENTRAL ZONEANTELOPE FLAT RESERVOIR: The reservoir is not accessible by vehicle due to ....MORE

Fly-tying corner

March 13, 2013 4:00 am

For smallmouth, trout and carp, it pays to have a small selection of crayfish imitations. Flay's Cray is an easy tie with the profile, color and flash to attract the attention of a predator. I like that it uses a red tag as a strike trigger. A....MORE

Learn about fish restoration

March 13, 2013 4:00 am

Registration closes March 23 for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Salmon and Trout Enhancement Conference on April 6 at Seven Feathers Convention Center in Canyonville. Volunteers, educators, students, anglers and scientists will....MORE