Freestone · Volcanic · Oregon, US

Clackamas River

Fast whitewater rapids on the Clackamas River flowing past moss-covered boulders and fall-coloured trees, Oregon.

The Clackamas is the Sandy's quieter sibling on the south side of Portland — another metro steelhead river with winter and summer runs, salmon in season, and the useful bonus of a hard run-strength number, because adult fish are counted at River Mill Dam as they pass PGE's hydro projects.

Tomorrow · About as good as it gets
Sculpin Streamer
Forecast · Tomorrow
About as good as it gets
On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% projected
Today's fly
Sculpin Streamer
Sculpin Streamer
Conditions on the water · Tomorrow
Live gauge
Level
Steady
3.27 m
Water temp11.1°C
ClarityClear
Weather10°C
WindN 9 km/h
Pressure1021 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

The nearest gauge doesn't record temperatures, so we've estimated it — defer to the river keeper's advice.

Water temperature for Steelhead
Ideal
11°C est.ideal 4–13°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Steelhead
When
Winter steelhead Dec–Apr; summer fish summer into autumn. Best on the steady drop after a rise.
Where
The Clackamas is the Sandy's quieter sibling on the south side of Portland — another metro steelhead river with winter and summer runs, salmon in season, and…
Why this works
Excellent — water temperature is right today, though time of day could be better.
Likely species
Chironomids
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · tomorrowPeak at 9pm

12pm(now) — Western Blue-Winged Olive

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 59%
Also:Black Midge23%
Peak emergence window5 food groups active

Peak activity at 9pm — Brown Dun (Brown Dun, 4 food groups active)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

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Evidence
Records-basedModerate confidence

Based on species-occurrence records, not local invertebrate surveys.

Through the year
0–3 scale · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Brown DunHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Western Green DrakeHatch
2
2
Flav (Small Western Green Drake)Hatch
2
3
2
Mahogany DunHatch
2
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Steelhead fly box
MT
Marabou Tube
8–10 · Salmon fly
Swing it through the holding lie at a steady pace.
SH
Silver Hilton
12–16 · Fly
A dependable searching pattern for these waters.
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Retain hatchery steelhead, release wild (ESA-listed Lower Columbia DPS)
  • Reach/run/season-specific — verify ODFW Northwest Zone.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 1
Sandy River
18 km
86
Steelhead · Chinook salmon · Coho salmon
Gallery · 2
  1. Fast whitewater rapids on the Clackamas River flowing past moss-covered boulders and fall-coloured trees, Oregon.
    Clackamas River, Oregon
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The Clackamas is the Sandy's quieter sibling on the south side of Portland — another metro steelhead river with winter and summer runs, salmon in season, and the useful bonus of a hard run-strength number, because adult fish are counted at River Mill Dam as they pass PGE's hydro projects. That count is the closest thing a steelheader gets to certainty: pair the trend at River Mill with the flow and the clarity and you have a genuinely informed read on whether it's worth the drive. The river itself is part-managed by the upstream dams, so it runs a touch steadier than a wild freestone, and it takes a hatchery-and-wild mix of fish that keeps the rules complicated and the wild-fish handling important — Lower Columbia steelhead are ESA-listed. Swing flies through the classic runs on the steady drop after a bump, keep the hatchery and wild fish straight, and use the dam count the way it's meant to be used.

  • Volcanic
Conservation note

Lower Columbia River steelhead are ESA-listed threatened. Legal fishery on hatchery fish — retain fin-clipped fish, release wild steelhead in the water. We read shape and run timing (River Mill Dam counts help), never a harvest score on wild fish. Chinook and coho present, hatchery/wild mix.

Water quality · US Clean Water Act
  • Aquatic life: Impaired
  • Fish consumption: Impaired
What this classification means

Fish consumption: Consumption advisory (Mercury) — fish for sport, not the table.

EPA ATTAINS assessment unit 'Clackamas River' (OR_SR_1709001106_02_104597), 2022 Integrated Report. Aquatic Life use: Not Supporting. Listed impairment causes: Temperature, Oxygen Depletion, pH Acidity Caustic Conditions, Mercury. This is a Clean Water Act assessment-unit classification (the US analogue of WFD), not a live reading.

Status is for the Clean Water Act assessment unit covering this reach.

EPA ATTAINS (Clean Water Act) · OR_SR_1709001106_02_104597

Why this score · for Steelhead
  • Temperature10028% weight
  • Flow8022% weight
  • Clarity9518% weight
  • Feeding Time4513% weight
  • Pressure757% weight
  • Insect activity6812% weight
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 1 January → 31 December
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts