CAMP SHERMAN, Ore. (AP) - Even in the dead of winter, the Metolius River has the ability to inspire.
Something about the pine-needle-softened trails, the crystal-clear water and the towering ponderosa pines invigorate me on every visit.
If I fail to catch even one fish - and let’s face it, it is easy to get skunked on the Metolius - I come away happy.
On a recent Thursday, I made the 40-minute drive from Bend to the Metolius, planning to do some hiking and fishing on a day when the Central Oregon Cascades had just received their first significant snowfall in several weeks.
I parked near Allingham Bridge, which marks the boundary of where fishing is currently allowed. (Fishing is closed upstream of the bridge until late May each year, leaving about 20 miles of river available for angling until then.)
The Metolius is located at an elevation low enough (from about 2,000 to 3,000 feet) that almost no snow lined its banks when I visited. A brief snowstorm of just a couple of minutes gave way to simply cold and cloudy conditions.
Bursting out of the ground from springs beneath Black Butte, the spring-fed river, limited to fly-fishing and catch-and-release angling, is a majestic product of the Cascade mountains. Located near Sisters, the Metolius flows 23 miles on a route north and then southeast to Lake Billy Chinook.
After an hour or so of trying to tempt lethargic redband trout with a pheasant tail nymph, I told myself not to get frustrated and decided to focus on the surroundings.
The Metolius is lined by intricate trails on both banks and by numerous campgrounds on its east bank. Navigating these trails and areas can make for an interesting exploratory hike.
The paths wind along the river and in and out of the pine forest, from areas of thick vegetation to open meadows. Most of the campgrounds were empty, typical for this time of year, and I used this visit as a chance to scout sites for tent camping this summer.
Solitude abounds on the Metolius. The river can sometimes seem devoid of humans in the spring or fall - in winter, it can be downright desolate. I hiked along trails - which alternated between frozen and muddy - for about 5 miles and encountered only one other person, an angler just upstream from Allingham Bridge.
Jeff Perin, owner of the Fly Fisher’s Place in Sisters and an expert on the Metolius, calls November through March the “second season” on the picturesque river. He says opportunities to catch fish are available all winter long.
Perin recommends parking at the Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery and walking downstream to various fishing holes.
The river is home to native rainbow trout, bull trout, kokanee and whitefish. According to Perin, the rainbows on the Metolius average about 14 to 15 inches long, and the bull trout average 6 to 7 pounds
For those fishing for hefty bull trout, which can measure up to 30 inches long in the Metolius, Perin suggests finding water that is about 8 or 9 feet deep, with logs or boulders nearby. Bull trout will often hang out at the bottom of such pools, where they feel more protected. Streamers and nymphs tend to work well for catching bull trout on the Metolius during the winter months.
For dry-fly fishing on the Metolius in the winter, a blue-wing olive pattern usually works best. Those hatch during the warmest part of the day, from noon to 3 p.m.
The Metolius is so daunting to anglers because of the high water flows (more than 1,000 cubic feet per second) and the low fish populations (estimates are at about 600 fish per mile) compared with other Central Oregon waters. For example, the Crooked River near Prineville boasts about 5,000 trout per mile, with flows often less than 100 cfs.
But because the Metolius is a spring-fed river, water temperatures stay somewhat consistent through the winter, keeping the fish active even during periods of below-freezing air temperatures.
While I had no luck landing a trout, the experience was still worth the drive. After all, there is just something about the Metolius.
“This place,” Perin once told me, “is a gift.”
A gift that keeps on giving more than just a chance to hook wild trout.
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The original story can be found on The Bulletin’s website: https://bit.ly/1cp61Jk
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Information from: The Bulletin, https://www.bendbulletin.com
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