Includes updates to fishing, crabbing and clamming, hunting

Recreation Report holiday break

Due to the upcoming holidays, we'll be taking a break from the Recreation Report the weeks of Dec. 23 and 30. The Rec Report will resume publication the week of Jan. 6, 2025.

Give the gift of the outdoors

Consider giving the gift of the outdoors to the hunters, anglers, and outdoors people on your list. You can now buy 2025 fishing and hunting licenses and tags online and at all retail license agents. Raffle tags, parking permits and waterway access permits are also for sale and make great gifts.

Late season duck hunting tips

Frigid temperatures, frozen water, wary birds – the last weeks of the duck hunting season can be tough. Here are some tips for closing the season strong.

10 tips for winter steelhead fishing

Anglers are already catching early returning steelhead, and there are plenty more where they came from. Here are 10 tips to help you catch more winter steelhead this season.

Report your big game hunt

If you're already on your phone scanning the news or doing some holiday shopping, why not open the MyODFW app while you're there and report your big game hunt? Or, report with a retail license agent while you're stocking up on winter fishing gear. Here's information on who needs to report and how you can do it.

Best bets for weekend fishing

Oregon anglers are blessed with year-round fishing opportunities. Here are some early winter possibilities:

• Anglers are catching winter steelhead in the NW Zone (No. Fork Nehalem, Necanicum, lower Columbia tribs), SW Zone (Coos, Coquille, So. Umpqua, Smith and lower Rogue) and Willamette Zone (Clackamas and Sandy).
• In the NE Zone, steelhead fishing can be good on the Grande Ronde, Imnaha and Umatilla.
• If steelhead aren't biting, consider some trout fishing in places like Lost Creek Reservoir and Garrison Lake.
• XXL broodstock trout have been stocked in Row River Nature Park Pond, Taylor Lake and Pine Hollow Reservoir.
• Fishing for trout and mountain whitefish on the Metolius, Fall, Crooked, Klamath, lower Deschutes and Wallowa rivers can be good throughout the winter as access allows.
• Lingcod fishing has been good off the coast.
• Bay crabbing has been good in Newport and Waldport, with good ocean crabbing out of Depoe Bay. Crab quality is good as shells have hardened and crabs are full of meat.

This list is for demonstration purposes only. Check the zones reports for even more options.

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