Hungry Trout Await Anglers for Oregon’s South Yamhill Season Opener
OutdoorHub 05.22.12
Anglers will be allowed to keep up to five trout a day on the South Yamhill River starting Saturday when the late trout season opens in many streams and lakes throughout Oregon.
The Yamhill is one of the few rivers in the state stocked with hatchery trout, thanks to a program now in its fourth year. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will release 1,900 hatchery trout in a three-mile stretch of the Yamhill in preparation for Saturday’s opener, according to Tom Murtagh, district fish biologist for ODFW’s North Willamette Watershed. The fish will range in length from 8 to 14 inches.
“There’s going to be a lot of hungry trout in a short stretch of river and you’ll be able to keep up to five of them,” said Murtagh. The fish will be released along Yamhill River Road from Gold Creek Road Bridge crossing downstream to Willamina Creek. There are multiple access points and places to park along the road in this location; however, anglers are advised to respect private property adjacent to the river in some locations.
“This is one of the few places we have in the Willamette Valley where people have a chance to catch some nice hatchery fish in a free-flowing river,” said Murtagh.
The late trout season opens Saturday at many others locations across the state as well, with bag limits in many areas set at two wild trout per day. Anglers are advised to check ODFW’s 2012 Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations before venturing out to any of these streams, many of which have restrictions on the use of bait and other special regulations. The early trout season opened the third week of April in many other locations.
