Northeast Zone

April 10, 2025‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌

Best bets for weekend fishing

• Trout fishing on the Wallowa River can be good throughout the spring months.
• Steelhead will be available in the Wallowa and Imnaha Rivers through the rest of the season.
• Steelhead are still trickling into the Umatilla River with anglers having best success between Rieth and Pendleton.
• Boats can now launch on Wallowa Lake, and spring can be some of the best times for kokanee fishing.
• Kinney Lake was stocked last fall and should have good numbers of trout going into the spring.
• Winter range closure for the Phillip Schneider Wildlife Area has been extended to May 1. This moves access to Aldrich ponds back to May 1st now rather than the typical April 15th opener.

Trout stocking

Stocked March 31-April 4:

McNary Channel, Hat Rock Pond, Willow Creek, Willow Creek Res, Tatone Pond,

Scheduled to be stocked April 7-11:

Kinney Lake, Roulet Pond.

Check out the 2025 stocking schedule.

Trout stocking maps

Check out the ODFW fishing and trout stocking maps to find nearby fishing locations, driving directions and descriptions of amenities.

Announcements‌

Ice fishing safety

With ice covering many local waterbodies, anglers need to be cautious. Take the following precautions: use the "buddy system," wear a PFD in case of thin ice, carry a throw-rope, and use a heavy metal staff to check for thin-ice. The Minnesota DNR has developed guidelines for ice thickness and other safety tips. Remember that any hole cut in the ice for fishing can't be larger than 12 inches in diameter.

If your favorite fishing spot is no longer listed

It's probably because that river, lake or reservoir is closed for the season, inaccessible due to snow and bad roads, or offers limited fishing opportunities during the winter months. These waterbodies will re-appear in the Recreation Report when they re-open next spring, or when access and/or opportunity improves.

Sign up for the latest information on boater access

Marine Board's Opportunities and Access Report incorporates information from federal and state agencies, local facility operators and fellow boaters to provide up-to-date information so boaters can decide where to recreate and what to expect this season. Subscribe to receive email updates.

Updates by waterbody

ALDRICH PONDS (Roosevelt and Stewart Lakes): Trout (2 fish limit)

Access to the ponds closed on Dec. 1 for the annual mule deer and elk winter range closure. The access road will reopen on May 1, 2025. Last updated 4/10/25.

GRANDE RONDE RIVER: Trout, whitefish, steelhead

Steelhead fishing will slow as fish move upriver into the Wallowa River. However, steelhead will continue to be available through the season closure on April 30th. Trout and whitefish can be caught year-round in the Grande Ronde, and anglers may have some good fishing for trout and whitefish when flows are not too high. Last updated 4/10/25.

HAT ROCK POND: Trout

Hat Rock Pond is scheduled to be stocked with rainbow trout the week of March 17. Anglers should find success using PowerBait, worms or spinners, and focusing their efforts in the mornings or evenings. Last updated 3/5/25.

IMNAHA RIVER: Trout, whitefish, steelhead, bass

Steelhead will be available in the Imnaha River throughout April although catch rates may slow as more fish move upstream to the hatchery. The best public access is downstream of Horse Creek. Anglers fishing the Imnaha closer toward town need to be sure to get landowner permission before accessing private lands. Bait, jigs and flies can all be effective ways of targeting steelhead in the Imnaha River.

Anglers should remember they might encounter bull trout in the Imnaha River. They cannot be harvested and must be released. Last updated 4/10/25.

JOHN DAY RIVER: Steelhead, bass

The river is running high and turbid, making for some very challenging fishing conditions. John Day River Steelhead fishing is often hit or miss in April due to frequent high flows and turbidity, but fish are present and moving through the system. The North Fork John Day is often popular in the late spring as flows and turbidity are often less variable, but this has been an abnormally cold and wet spring with frequent small flood events resulting in high turbidity.

The John Day is largely comprised of wild fish that must be released unharmed. Fall is often one of the better opportunities to harvest a hatchery stray. Please be cognizant of minimizing stress to wild fish by always keeping them in the water and handling them as little as possible before release. The John Day arm below Tumwater Falls to the mainline railroad bridge is now open for fishing. Last updated 1/29/25.

JUBILEE LAKE: Rainbow trout

Jubilee Lake was stocked the first week of July. Anglers have found success fishing in the morning and evening. While bank fishing on Jubilee is effective, anglers who fish from a watercraft seem to do better. Last updated 7/10/24.

MAGONE LAKE: Rainbow and brook trout

Access to Magone Lake during the winter is often only possible using snow machines, but ice fishing is popular and can be very productive. The access road remains impassable to vehicles currently due to snow.

McNARY PONDS: Walleye, bass and trout.

The McNary ponds are scheduled to be stocked with rainbow trout the week of March 17. Trout are likely to be the most active in the morning and late evening hours. Anglers should find success using PowerBait, worms or spinning lures. Last updated 3/5/25

McKAY RESERVOIR: Bass, perch, rainbow trout.

McKay Reservoir opened on March 1. The reservoir is currently about 75 percent full. Last updated 3/3/25

MORGAN LAKE: Rainbow trout and bass

Morgan Lake closed on Oct. 31 and will reopen on late April 22, 2025. Last updated 4/10/25.

UMATILLA RIVER: Fall Chinook, coho, summer steelhead, trout, bass, walleye

This season, more than 1,400 summer steelhead have migrated past Three Mile Falls dam. The cold, low-water conditions experienced in early February gave way to muddy, high-water conditions making fishing difficult in February. However, fishing should improve as water levels subside into March.

There is now a new regulation in place with a hook gap size that may not exceed 3/8 inch in the section of the Umatilla River above the CTUIR reservation. This new regulation is to protect bull trout and decrease the chance of hooking mortality. As a reminder, if you catch a bull trout, recognized by its white spots, please keep it in the water and release it as quickly as possible. No targeting of bull trout is allowed in the Umatilla River. Last updated 3/3/25.

WALLOWA COUNTY PONDS: Rainbow trout

Stocked trout are available at local ponds including Marr Pond and Kinney Lake. Kinney Lake may be one of the best local trout fishing spots as it gets a healthy stocking of fish in the fall that grow all winter. Some fish may be available at other local ponds, but fishing at those sites will improve later in the spring as more fish are added.

This spring, surplus steelhead were released into Marr Pond. When fishing Marr Pond, anglers do not need to have a combined angling tag or Columbia Basin endorsement to fish for the steelhead in Marr Pond. Any steelhead caught in Marr Pond count toward the angler's trout limit and do not need to be recorded on a combined angling or hatchery harvest tag. These steelhead are likely starting to get lethargic and old by this portion of the season though. Last updated 4/10/25.

WALLOWA LAKE: Rainbow trout, kokanee, lake trout

The ice on Wallowa Lake has melted, and anglers can now launch boats. Now through June will be the best time of year for kokanee fishing. Rainbow trout can be caught near the river mouth, and lake trout are dispersed throughout the lake. Last updated 3/17/25.

WALLOWA RIVER: Whitefish, trout, steelhead

Steelhead fishing will probably slow in the coming weeks, but fish will still be available until the season closure on April 30^th. Fishing for trout and whitefish can be good in the spring on the Wallowa River especially when flows are moderate and water clarity is good. Trout and whitefish can be caught on a variety of baits, lures, and flies. Casting flies like wooly buggers and nymphs to pockets of slower moving water near shore can be good ways to catch trout and whitefish on the Wallowa River in the spring. Last updated 4/10/25.

WILLOW CREEK RESERVOIR: Trout, crappie, bass

Fishing for trout on Willow Creek Reservoir is fair, with limits of legals being caught along with a trophy-size fish here and there. Last updated 5/15/24.