Friday, December 25, 2015

Santiam Secrets

(Updated Text)
(Confirm Waterloo Regs & North Santiam Access)
In the spring of 2015, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife updated gear restrictions for Waterloo Falls, a very narrow passageway that is a pausing area for spring chinook and summer steelhead migrating towards the hatchery at Foster Dam on the South Santiam River. The natural feature just south Lebanon is a legendary combat fishing area known for a few unsavory characters that some of the more ethical anglers jokingly refer to as "Waterlosers." Oregon State Police issued multiple citations at this location on a regular basis, and district fish biologist Elise Kelly says that the public has repeatedly reported incidents of floss-fishing and snagging. Anglers are now limited to using bobbers with a leader less than a yard and fly-fishing gear. The leader on the bobber must be suspended in the water column and not resting on the bottom. The regulations extend from 200 feet above the falls to the bridge which is about 500 feet downstream.

Waterloo Falls and Waterloo Park boat ramps are marked by signs for Waterloo Rd. just off Hwy 20. There are a few options within the vicinity of Waterloo to fish if you want to avoid rubbing elbows with the locals. If you want to make room for yourself to fish the falls, go across the bridge from boat ramp at Waterloo and follow the trail on the right down to the river. You'll be face-to-face with the battleground of the combat fishery, but at least you'll be on the side where the sun shines and you can get a tan if they aren't biting. You'll have to jump into the casting order if there's a crowd across the river, but the angle of the shoreline tends to blow out your drifts, so keep them short. If you plan to fish the falls by boat, be there before "crack of dawn" early and don't have expectations of being there first, you'll just be questioning why you didn't hit the snooze bar. It's not unheard of to be the 6th boat in the water to fish the falls at 4am.

If that sounds unappealing, you can launch a boat just upstream from the falls at Waterloo park. On the same bank as the ramp, just downstream there is a short stretch of water with a deeper trench that is a travel lane for fish who've just tackled getting up the falls. You'll want to keep the boat to the right side of the river as you're fishing downstream until it starts to curve towards the right, then you can row into shallow slackwater back upstream to an island just above the ramp. From either side, running plugs or backbouncing can produce fish splitting around the island. There are a couple more holes on the park's side of the island that are accessible from the bank.

If you want to devote the day to your trip, floating upriver sections from the Pleasant Valley boat ramp to Waterloo Park or to Pleasant Valley from the boat launch near Foster Dam can be productive floats. There are a couple of bank access areas near the dam, including Wiley Creek that are as competitive as they are productive combat fishing zones. With the change in regulations for Waterloo Falls targeting some of the flossers and snaggers, there's a good chance you may end up floating past or rubbing elbows with them in these areas. Upriver of Waterloo Park to Foster Dam is easily navigable with a drift boat or pontoon. If you cross the dam and take a left onto North River Rd, you can fish a short stretch of bank access at the site of the old hatchery. If you go a little further down the road, you'll reach an unpaved parking area on the left commonly known as "Church Camp," because there's a trailhead that goes between a Church of Christ summer camp and a baseball field. The trails are marked with signs that read "Fisherman" pointing the way to the river.

Keep in mind that these areas along the South Santiam are fished heavily because there's a lot of fish in them. Sand shrimp or small presentations of eggs can produce spring chinook or summer steelhead, increasing the opportunity for a mixed bag. Trout and Mountain Whitefish are common by-catch. During low flows and heavy fishing pressure, try using low-visibility line like light flourocarbon. Smaller presentations like drifting a corkie and strip of scented yarn or a single-egg pattern of some sort tends to be more productive. Cleardrift floats tend to be less distracting for the fish looking up at your bait in clear water as well. Spinners and spoons will draw bites from fish that are shy on the bite. Anise and shrimp are pretty reliable flavors of choice as well.

If you want to avoid the traffic of the South Santiam, head North. Contact the ODFW regional office in Corvallis about getting a key to access the North Santiam float from Greens Bridge in Scio to Jefferson. They don't actually start locking the gate until July 1st. There is a short application process they will send you by email as well as a confirmation of your approval. The purpose of closing this area off and making it accessible to anglers is to prevent the launching area from becoming a local riviera. Once your approval is confirmed, you can purchase a key to the gate from Clyde Lock and Safe for around $5. To get to the gate, from I-5, take exit 238 onto Jefferson Hwy 99 East. After you cross the mainstem of the Santiam River, you'll take a right on South Main St and continue onto Jefferson Scio Drive to Greens Bridge. Continue over the bridge and take a right onto Densmore Road the gate to the boat launch under the bridge will be on the immediate right. There's a few holes on the north fork float that hold fish and you'll know them when you see them. Pikeminnow run rampant through this stretch, so bring plenty of bait. The confluence of the North and South forks of the river can be difficult to push a boat through in low water, but also creates a unique opportunity to catch fish holding in the area to move up the North Fork as well as fish on their way up the South Fork. There's a few other holding areas on the mainstem, but plan on spending most of your time upstream in the North Fork of the river and don't be afraid to anchor up and focus your most of your energy on those holes earlier in the day.



If you keep up with the nwsportsmanmag.com headlines, you may have recently read that the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is regulating the kind of gear that can be fished at Waterloo Falls, a very narrow passageway that is a pausing area for spring salmon and summer steelhead migrating towards the hatchery at Foster Dam on the South Santiam River. The natural feature just south Lebanon is a notorious combat fishing area known for a few unsavory characters some of the more ethical and knowledgeable anglers jokingly refer to as "Waterlosers." Oregon State Police have issued multiple citations at this location and district fish biologist Elise Kelly says that the public has repeatedly reported incidents of floss-fishing and snagging. Anglers are limited to using bobbers with a leader less than a yard and fly-fishing gear. The leader on the bobber must be suspended in the water column and not resting on the bottom. The regulations extend from the falls to the bridge which is about 500 feet downstream.

Waterloo Falls and Waterloo Park boat ramps are marked by signs for Waterloo Rd. just off Hwy 20. There are a few options within the vicinity of Waterloo to fish if you want to avoid rubbing elbows with the locals. If you want to make room for yourself to fish the falls, go across the bridge from boat ramp at Waterloo and follow the trail on the right down to the river. You'll be face-to-face with the battleground of the combat fishery, but at least you'll be on the side where the sun shines and you can get a tan if they aren't biting. You'll have to jump into the casting order if there's a crowd across the river, but the angle of the shoreline tends to blow out your drifts, so keep them short. If you plan to fish the falls by boat, be there before "crack of dawn" early and don't have expectations of being there first, you'll just be questioning why you didn't hit the snooze bar. It's not unheard of to be the 7th boat in the water to fish the falls at 4am.

If that sounds unappealing, you can launch a boat just upstream from the falls at Waterloo park. On the same bank as the ramp, just downstream there is a short stretch of water with a deeper trench that is a travel lane for fish who've just tackled getting up the falls. You'll want to keep the boat to the right side of the river as you're fishing downstream until it starts to curve towards the right, then you can row into shallow slackwater back upstream to an island just above the ramp. From either side, running plugs or backbouncing can produce fish splitting around the island. There are a couple more holes on the park's side of the island that are accessible from the bank.

My first ever steelhead, a summer fish from church camp
If you want to devote the day to your trip, floating upriver sections from the Pleasant Valley boat ramp to Waterloo Park or to Pleasant Valley from the boat launch near Foster Dam can be productive floats. There are a couple of bank access areas near the dam, including Wiley Creek that are as competitive as they are productive combat fishing zones. With the change in regulations for Waterloo Falls targeting some of the flossers and snaggers, there's a good chance you may end up floating past or rubbing elbows with them in these areas. Upriver of Waterloo Park to Foster Dam is easily navigable with a drift boat or pontoon. If you cross the dam and take a left onto North River Rd, you can fish a short stretch of bank access at the site of the old hatchery. If you go a little further down the road, you'll reach an unpaved parking area on the left commonly known as "Church Camp," because there's a trailhead that goes between a Church of Christ summer camp and a baseball field. The trails are marked with signs that read "Fisherman" pointing the way to the river.

Keep in mind that these areas along the South Santiam are fished heavily because there's a lot of fish in them. Sand shrimp or small presentations of eggs can produce spring chinook or summer steelhead, increasing the opportunity for a mixed bag. With this year's low flows combined with heavy fishing pressure, try using low-visibility line like light flourocarbon. Smaller presentations like drifting a corkie and strip of yarn or a single-egg pattern of some sort tends to be more productive. Cleardrift floats tend to be less distracting for the fish looking up at your bait in clear water as well. Spinners and spoons will draw bites from fish that are shy on the bite. Anise and shrimp are pretty reliable flavors of choice as well.

If you want to avoid the traffic of the South Santiam, head North. Contact the ODFW regional office in Corvallis about getting a key to access the North Santiam float from Greens Bridge in Scio to Jefferson. They don't actually start locking the gate until July 1st. There is a short application process they will send you by email as well as a confirmation of your approval. The purpose of closing this area off and making it accessible to anglers is to prevent the launching area from becoming a local riviera. Once your approval is confirmed, you can purchase a key to the gate from Clyde Lock and Safe for around $5. To get to the gate, from I-5, take exit 238 onto Jefferson Hwy 99 East. After you cross the mainstem of the Santiam River, you'll take a right on South Main St and continue onto Jefferson Scio Drive to Greens Bridge. Continue over the bridge and take a right onto Densmore Road the gate to the boat launch under the bridge will be on the immediate right. There's a few holes on the north fork float that hold fish and you'll know them when you see them. Pikeminnow run rampant through this stretch, so bring plenty of bait. The confluence of the North and South forks of the river can be difficult to push a boat through in low water, but also creates a unique opportunity to catch fish holding in the area to move up the North Fork as well as fish on their way up the South Fork. There's a few other holding areas on the mainstem, but plan on spending most of your time upstream in the North Fork of the river and don't be afraid to anchor up and focus your most of your energy on those holes earlier in the day.


This article was published in the July 2015 issue of Northwest Sportsman Magazine

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