The Willamette River is a freestone river in Oregon, listed as Featured sport-fishing water by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
4 USGS gauges on the water report flow; Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife lists 5 species, including bass, panfish and salmon. 16 guides and 2 shops nearby are listed here.
Willamette River is a freestone river in Oregon.
Pick one of its USGS gauges and hear from us when the flow moves into or out of its usual range for the date, or crosses a flow you set. We check the public USGS reading every 2 hours and email only when it crosses, at most once every 6 hours. Flow alone is not a fishing forecast or a safety call.
Signed in: one step. Otherwise we email a confirmation link first. Every alert has one-click links to stop it.
Start from the agency's public access map. Nothing on this page grants or implies access: check the agency map, posted signs and landowner permission before you fish.
Nothing on this page grants or implies access.
Gauges, shops and guides within 40 miles
Map of Willamette River: gauges, shops and guides
Map of Willamette River with 4 USGS gauges, and shops and guides with an exact address within 40 miles.
Restrooms within 2 miles of Willamette River in a straight line, nearest first, with what anglers found when they went. The map says a restroom is there, not whether it is clean or open today.
Map of 6 restrooms near Willamette River
Skip the map; every place is in the list belowMap of 6 restrooms near Willamette River, numbered as in the list, with the water’s point marked.
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Run by City of Salem (as mapped)
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Not rated yet — be the first to tell other anglers if it's clean.
Mapped on OpenStreetMap · see or fix it on the map
Restroom locations and map details: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License, read Oct 24, 2026. Ratings, answers and photos are members' own; who shared them is never shown, and every photo is reviewed before it appears. Visits older than 18 months no longer count. Distances are straight-line miles, not driving. Nothing here grants access to private land. Community guidelines.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not Santiam RiverThe Alsea River, Lincoln County, Oregon (aerial). Photo: Sam Beebe, Ecotrust, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Santiam River.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not South Fork Yamhill RiverThe Clackamas River in winter, Oregon. Photo: Bonnie Moreland from Oregon, United States, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons Not South Fork Yamhill River.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not Molalla River
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not Tualatin RiverThe Necanicum River at Klootchy Creek Park, Clatsop County, Oregon. Photo: Jsayre64, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Tualatin River.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not North Fork Santiam RiverThe Metolius River at sunrise with Mount Jefferson. Photo: Bonnie Moreland, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Not North Fork Santiam River.
Featured sport-fishing waterRepresentative photo · not South Fork Santiam RiverThe McKenzie River near the Goodpasture covered bridge, Oregon. Photo: pithecanthropus4152, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not South Fork Santiam River.
Seasons, limits, special regulations and closures for each reach are on the agency pages below. Read them before you go.
Each comes from the agency's own published list; where the list names a reach it is quoted. A designation applies to the listed reach, not necessarily the whole water. Listed in the finder under trout, salmon & steelhead, bass.
On the ODFW featured waters: Oregon's top steelhead rivers list (Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, read 2026-11-05). All waters with this designation
On the ODFW featured waters: Oregon's top steelhead rivers list (Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, read 2026-11-05). All waters with this designation
Measured from the NHDPlus High Resolution (flowlines and waterbodies) (U.S. Geological Survey, read 2026-11-04) for this water’s own mapped feature. Rounded figures; they describe the channel, not today’s conditions.
Listings marked Unclaimed are built from open map records and the business's own website: confirm licensing, rates, dates and hours directly.
14 guides name it on their website
Dallas, OR · 13 mi
Drift boat · Saltwater & ocean charters · Columbia & Tillamook Bay
Names this water
Albany, OR · 24 mi
Drift boat · Saltwater & ocean charters · Salmon & Umpqua
Names this water
Portland, OR · 44 mi
Saltwater & ocean charters · Willamette & Sandy
Names this water
Portland, OR · 46 mi
Multi-day trips · Columbia & Willamette
Names this water
Gresham, OR · 46 mi
Saltwater & ocean charters · Beginners & lessons · Willamette & Columbia
Names this water
Portland, OR · 46 mi
Saltwater & ocean charters · Willamette & Sandy
Names this water
Portland, OR · 49 mi
Float trips · Drift boat · Willamette & Columbia
Names this water
Tillamook, OR · 49 mi
Drift boat · Raft trips · Willamette & Columbia
Names this water
The species the agency lists here; presence varies by reach and season.
Listed by the state agency
Species guide
Winter steelhead fishing on the Skagit River, Washington (Doug Wilson, U.S. National Archives and Records Administration). Photo: Doug Wilson, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
1 hatch charted for the region, not measured on this water. From Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife.
Salmonfly (May)
None of our destination hubs is within 40 miles in a straight line. The trip planner builds a trip around the water itself: the guides and shops listed within 40 miles of it, its gauges and its nearest towns and airports.
No hub within 40 miles
Matched on the fish the agencies list for both waters first, then the same water type, an official designation or flagship listing on both, and a similar mapped size where USGS hydrography covers both.
At most two waters per country. A shared fish is a listing, not a promise: presence varies by reach and season.
Like the Willamette River? Same fish, overseas.
Freestone river
Freestone riverThe Santa Cruz River from National Route 40, downstream of Lago Argentino. Photo: Fredlyfish4, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped, via Wikimedia Commons
Freestone riverRepresentative photo · not Dean RiverThe Chilko River at Lava Canyon. Photo: Kevin Teague, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Dean River.
Southern seasons open while ours close.
Flagship waterPenstock Lagoon, Central Highlands, Tasmania. Photo: Mike Cline, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Freestone riverRepresentative photo · not Río PetrohuéThe Río Puelo at Las Gualas, Cochamó. Photo: Nicolás from seno de reloncaví, Chile, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Río Petrohué.
Lake or reservoirRepresentative photo · not Lago LlanquihueThe Río Simpson passing Coyhaique, Aysén. Photo: Manxuc, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Lago Llanquihue.
Lake or reservoir
Flagship waterRepresentative photo · not Mataura RiverThe Oreti River near Lumsden, Southland. Photo: Krzysztof Golik, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped, via Wikimedia Commons Not Mataura River.
Flagship waterGreat Lake, Tasmania. Photo: Peripitus, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
A wade-fishing checklist for big western trout rivers: a 9 ft 5–6 weight outfit, nymph, dry and streamer setups, waders, boots and a wading staff, with estimated prices by tier and where to buy.
9′ rod, 5–6 weight, floating line · Rainbow and brown trout, whitefish
Open the checklistSeams, shelves and soft water, shown on real rivers.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
Not sponsored All videos on reading water
Indicator rigs, depth and detecting the take.
Public YouTube videos from established channels, chosen by us to support this page. Not sponsored; the creators are not affiliated with Legendary Fly Gear.
Not sponsored All videos on nymphing
Trip stories anglers chose to share publicly and tagged with Willamette River.
No stories from here yet.
Not a statement of access, fish presence or conditions.
A water page organises discovery. It does not assert public access, legal access, current fish presence, guide availability or fishing conditions.
Flows, gauge statistics and flood stages come from USGS and the National Weather Service when the page is shown. Regulations, stocking, species and season statements link to the agency that publishes them; this page copies only the species names and the quoted sentences. Guide and shop listings come from the Legendary directories. Position: the USGS gauge WILLAMETTE RIVER AT SALEM, OR. Water type is our own classification.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not Santiam RiverThe Alsea River, Lincoln County, Oregon (aerial). Photo: Sam Beebe, Ecotrust, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Santiam River.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not South Fork Yamhill RiverThe Clackamas River in winter, Oregon. Photo: Bonnie Moreland from Oregon, United States, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons Not South Fork Yamhill River.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not Molalla RiverSteelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not Tualatin RiverThe Necanicum River at Klootchy Creek Park, Clatsop County, Oregon. Photo: Jsayre64, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not Tualatin River.
Steelhead / salmon waterRepresentative photo · not North Fork Santiam RiverThe Metolius River at sunrise with Mount Jefferson. Photo: Bonnie Moreland, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Not North Fork Santiam River.
Featured sport-fishing waterRepresentative photo · not South Fork Santiam RiverThe McKenzie River near the Goodpasture covered bridge, Oregon. Photo: pithecanthropus4152, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Not South Fork Santiam River.
