Maybe I can bring a bit of hope into this thread and change its direction. The Deschutes is open. Opening day was Monday, a new concept for the river according to a long-time fly fishing guide that I talked to. Early in the week, the fish were grabby, maybe because they hadn’t been dodging spinners and spoons on the lower river. I had some success throughout the week and encountered some hot fish that I didn’t land. It appears that the river has cleared the next hurdle so it will be open for the remainder of the fall. It felt great being back on the river swinging flies for steelhead. The Deschutes Angler has a great recent post about being conservation-minded when fishing for steelhead and being content with one or two fish per day. I agree.
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