Mackenzie River scares me.

[plumbertom]

I want to try fishing the Mackenzie river but trying to figure out where and how from the regs is almost a sure invitation to a ticket.

 

[rogerdodger]

yeah the McKenzie river is a special case, super complex, there is usually a 1 page summary of the regs for it that is available at various locations, I think that I picked one up at Cabela's last year....it really helps...cheers, roger

 

[plumbertom]

yeah the McKenzie river is a special case, super complex, there is usually a 1 page summary of the regs for it that is available at various locations, I think that I picked one up at Cabela's last year....it really helps...cheers, roger

It could be greatly simplified with basic map of the sections of the river with special regulations.
I still think ODFW is trying to increase their revenue by purposely making regulations nearly impossible to follow.

 

[rogerdodger]

It could be greatly simplified with basic map of the sections of the river with special regulations.
I still think ODFW is trying to increase their revenue by purposely making regulations nearly impossible to follow.

that is what the 1 page write-up has, rules for each section and a simple map.

the problem I see with your second theory is that it needs 2 components: complex regs and strict enforcement. we only have one of these things, complex regs, and there is a simpler explanation for them- they get more complex over time because that is how it goes, sort of an entropy thing...

a good analogy might be a small town with a highway running through it and over time, due to schools being built, businesses, and such, it has a crazy set of speed limit changes, down to 35, then a 20 zone, back to 25, up to 45 then down to 20 again for another school, stuff like that. you might drive through and think, wow, they did all this intentionally to make it difficult to comply and thus raise revenue. then you notice the one cop in town is almost never out enforcing the speed limits...

 

[sapo]

Good analogy RD

 

[hobster]

Pretty sure the Mac is catch and release flies/lures all year. I know the areas i fish are (lower Mac), i usually have enough steel in the freezer so i never harvest trout. I think it's closed for hatcheries, or will be soon.

 

[rogerdodger]

Pretty sure the Mac is catch and release flies/lures all year. I know the areas i fish are (lower Mac), i usually have enough steel in the freezer so i never harvest trout. I think it's closed for hatcheries, or will be soon.

actually it looks to be open all year to retention of clipped chinook, clipped steelhead, and non-clipped steelhead over 24" from mouth to Leaburg dam. The trout rules are what appear to change based on location.

 

[jamisonace]

Except that there are staters dedicated to barely more than enforcing these regs. Don't feel bad plumber, I've been nailed twice to the tune of $600 in fines.

that is what the 1 page write-up has, rules for each section and a simple map.

the problem I see with your second theory is that it needs 2 components: complex regs and strict enforcement. we only have one of these things, complex regs, and there is a simpler explanation for them- they get more complex over time because that is how it goes, sort of an entropy thing...

a good analogy might be a small town with a highway running through it and over time, due to schools being built, businesses, and such, it has a crazy set of speed limit changes, down to 35, then a 20 zone, back to 25, up to 45 then down to 20 again for another school, stuff like that. you might drive through and think, wow, they did all this intentionally to make it difficult to comply and thus raise revenue. then you notice the one cop in town is almost never out enforcing the speed limits...

 

[plumbertom]

that is what the 1 page write-up has, rules for each section and a simple map.

the problem I see with your second theory is that it needs 2 components: complex regs and strict enforcement. we only have one of these things, complex regs, and there is a simpler explanation for them- they get more complex over time because that is how it goes, sort of an entropy thing...

a good analogy might be a small town with a highway running through it and over time, due to schools being built, businesses, and such, it has a crazy set of speed limit changes, down to 35, then a 20 zone, back to 25, up to 45 then down to 20 again for another school, stuff like that. you might drive through and think, wow, they did all this intentionally to make it difficult to comply and thus raise revenue. then you notice the one cop in town is almost never out enforcing the speed limits...

Actually it been shown that Small towns with those types of speed traps derive a great deal of their revenue from traffic citations.
Lately some towns and small cities have actually been disincorporated or had their townships removed by court order and their courts closed for exactly that reason.
But enough of the politics.
After studying the regs it looks as if I can fish the river from the Hendricks (Hwy126) bridge upstream to the dam for trout or steelhead from now until the end of the year without much concern about gear or take restrictions so long as I only take clipped fish.

 

[rogerdodger]

Actually it been shown that Small towns with those types of speed traps derive a great deal of their revenue from traffic citations.
Lately some towns and small cities have actually been disincorporated or had their townships removed by court order and their courts closed for exactly that reason.
But enough of the politics.
After studying the regs it looks as if I can fish the river from the Hendricks (Hwy126) bridge upstream to the dam for trout or steelhead from now until the end of the year without much concern about gear or take restrictions so long as I only take clipped fish.

plumbertom: here is the regs handout that I was referring to from 2013:



as for my analogy, either I missed your drift or you missed mine. it has been my observation that enforcement of the regs in Oregon is weak due to lack of Troopers, people abuse the regulations and take fish they should not and they overcatch in many locations...so it is like a small town getting no revenue from the speed traps, meaning the complex speed limits are not actually speed traps, they are just the speed limits that came about as the city developed and changed...

I accept the concept of complex regs being intentional to raise revenue as a bit of humor; I just reject is as reality. The regs are just not that complex if you want to understand them, in my opinion...cheers, roger

 

[plumbertom]

plumbertom: here is the regs handout that I was referring to from 2013:

Yeah, it's not so complex that even a long time user can figure it out.
Like that simple map. It tells nothing but the stocking schedule for part of the year in a given section of the river.
Now a map just like that with the regulations for each section would be the thing.
I appreciate the effort to get me informed.
I think I'm correct that between Hwy 126 and Leaburg Dam I can fish for trout or steelhead using bait without getting fined so long as I release and non fin clipped fish at least until Dec. 31st.
Seems like down river from the 126 bridge is a bit dicier, as well as above the dam.
I took a drive out Deerhorn Rd. yesterday. I may just give it a try next week if I can find a place where the rivers edge isn't too difficult to access.
By the way, in SoCal, and the rest of the state for that matter, over the last few years that I was there, DF&G enforcement took a big hit in budget cuts even though the bulk of their operating money came from license fees, (Seems as though lawsuits from the bunny huggers on every regulation change was the true culprit) but the sportsmen there took up the challenge through their WeTip hotline. When a call was made they would send a warden to the area or other LEOs to hold violators until a warden could get there.
But information supplied by the caller needed to be complete as possible. Things like accurate descriptions and vehicle license numbers.

 

[Iki Jime]

Yup, that pdf isn't even close to describing all of the separate sections of the river that dictate where flies only can be used, where the limit is only 2 trout of a specific size, where catch and release only is the reg all year, except from this date to that date...

I've read online that ODFW will strive to make the synopsis easier to understand in 2016, because there are a lot of misunderstandings.

Both times that I caught Salmon in Winchester Bay this fall, I had other anglers advising me wrong about what I could and could not keep. I luckily bumped into a ODFW guy and got the straight scoop.

James

 

[Iki Jime]

I have the synopsis right here... and from what it sounds like, is this:

McKenzie River (from the mouth up to Hayden Bridge): for trout, it's catch and release only, and artificial flies and lures. Open all year for hatchery Chinook and steelhead, and native steels larger than 24".

(from Hayden Bridge upstream to Hendricks Bridge): open for trout all year (catch and release only), except between April 25- Oct 31. 5 hatchery trout per day, no min. length. Open for hatchery chinook and S/H all year. Bait is only allowed when angling for salmon/SH w/ hooks 5/8" gap or larger. Angling restricted to artificial flies and lures from Jan 1-April 24. Use of bait allowed April 25-Dec 31.

Actually, I'm tired of typing this all out. Think I'll see if I can post a pdf from the ODFW site...

Well... not sure what I just did there...

James

 

[Iki Jime]

McKenzie River trout regs and brain puzzle

McKenzie River trout regs and brain puzzle

Plumber,

I'm supposed to meet up with a friend tomorrow to fish the Mac. I think it's okay to keep trout from Hendricks Bridge upstream to Leaburg Dam, as long as they're hatchery through Dec. 31 with bait and flies/lures. You can keep your limit on hatchery steelies & native steelies greater than 24" with the tag.

Walterville and Leaburg Canals have separate regs. Steer clear of Leaburg powerhouse trailrace and within 200' from the dam.

from the ODFW site:

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/docs/2015/2015 Willamette Zone Sport Fishing Regs_r11-5-14.pdf