22 miles of hiking • 1500' elevation gain • 1 night
I have the whole week off (sort of), so I thought I'd spend a few days hiking and fishing. The Metolius River was recommended as a great place to fly fish and hike in the winter, so I thought I'd give it a shot.
This trail is a mix of complete solitude and crowded trails. There are stretches where I would see no one for miles and then I would see a bundle of people near the populated spots. Also, it should be noted that the backpacking options on the upper parts of the river are more tricky as parts are private land or not really conducive to camping. Farther down, however, there are some great sites.
Started at the Allingham bridge and headed north. There are trails on both sides of the river for about 10 miles or so, and then the trail turns into a closed dirt road which can be walked for another 15 or so miles if one wants. I criss-crossed the river at the fish hatchery and then back again at Bridge 99. I then went a few miles into the dirt road path and backtracked to just above the Lower Bridge Campground for some great hidden riverside camping. The firewood was dry compared to the west side of the Cascades so I was able to get a good fire going.
Tuesday, I hit the other side of the trail and ended up coming out the Canyon Creek campground side of the trail—probably the coolest section of the trail—and doing a little bit of road walking along the west side before cutting back to the trail.
I brought the Tenkara rod in hopes of catching some serious fish, but nothing was biting. Nonetheless, this is a very relaxing and enjoyable river to fish and walk along. May and June are probably the best time to go, when things get more green.
I had an extra day so I went out to the Crooked River for some more fishing. This place is great—and great car camping options that I'll definitely keep in mind next time I'm around Bend.
Comments
Chris
March 28, 2013
Wet flies, dry flies, and just about everything the fly shop in Sisters said was working right now—BWOs, midges, caddis. I talked with guys using traditional rods and they said they weren't having luck too, but I'd bet I also wasn't doing something right. It made me want to brush up on my technique—another project for this spring.
Kyle Meyer
March 28, 2013
This is awesome man. Great photos. What were you using to attempt to catch fishes? Probably need to target pocket water (like the area in that last photo) with wet flies—nymphs, sekasa kebari, something like that.