Local Waters

← Around Portland, OR

Lake / pond Open — summer low / warm

Big Lake (Santiam Pass)

Sisters / Santiam Pass, OR · about 2 hours from Portland, OR (typical, off-peak)

The pass lake under Washington — not the Justesen ranch pond.

Salt River / stream Lake / pond Shop (desk) Guide only Parking Stay State access Private — ask first

Around now

Most likely in this drive this week. Not a guarantee — confirm the official rule.

  • Smallmouth bass Smallmouth bass
  • Trout Trout
  • Sunfish and crappie Sunfish and crappie

Also worth a thought: Largemouth bass.

Season
Legal on many waters. West-side streams drop and warm. Fish dawn. Confirm ODFW. Official rule
License
Oregon angling license (ODFW)
Park
USFS Big Lake Campground on FR 2690 south of Hwy 20 at Santiam Pass. Vault toilet, ramp. Forest / camp fee.
Walk in
Short from camp to the shore.
Wading
Campground bank or small boat.
Usual window
After the pass melts. Confirm ODFW.
Monday conditions

Wind ? mph.

Sky
⛅ 90° partly
Sun and moon
Rise 9:19 · 🌔 Waxing gibbous · Set 11:00
Wind at dawn
0 mph · Mostly Clear · 58°F
Wind later
  • dawn: 0 mph
  • 10am: 0 mph
  • 2pm: NE 2 mph
  • dusk: NE 7 mph
A setup that belongs here
5-wt.
Notes
Named USFS campground. Confirm ODFW.
Maps Call shop

Log this trip

Private. On this phone, and in your test book if you signed in on Journal.

? mph · Mostly Clear

How did it go

Pictures only — no video.

Opens a map. Locate finds you, then tap to drop or drag the pin. Private — not the public map.

Shops

The Fly Fisher's Place

151 W Main Ave, Sisters, OR 97759
Call — high-desert hours

Metolius, Crooked, Cascade Lakes. The Sisters desk.

Call Website

The Patient Angler

50 SW Century Dr, Bend, OR 97702
Call

Bend trout desk. Cascade Lakes and the in-town Deschutes.

Call Website

Fly and Field Outfitters

35 NW Hawthorne Ave, Bend, OR 97703
Call

Bend shop. Stillwater and river.

Call Website

The Caddis Fly Angling Shop

168 W 6th Ave, Eugene, OR 97401
Call — valley hours

Willamette Valley desk. McKenzie, the Willamette, and a first Oregon trout day.

Call Website

Stay

Hand-checked, not a hotel scrape. Check dates on their site. Default two nights.

Riverside Campground (Camp Sherman)

Campground · 2 min to the water · Summer — Recreation.gov

On the Metolius. Northwest Forest Pass / reservation in season.

Dogs: Yes, on leash — confirm USFS

Check dates

Best Western Ponderosa Lodge

Motel · 20 min to the water · Year-round

Indoor bed in Sisters. Camp Sherman is a short dawn drive.

Dogs: Ask

Check dates Call

Cabins and rentals (you leave Local Waters):

Cabins on Airbnb Cabins on Vrbo

Guides

Shop desks, plus a few independents who fish public water. We do not take a cut. Call them.

No desk pinned yet. Ask the shop above who they trust here.

If this isn’t the day