Weather chasing salmon or steelhead fishing the Rogue River is a Must for every angler. From The Gold Rey hatchery all the way to the Rogue River mouth at Gold Beach, Oregon, the mighty Rogue River produces some of the greatest fishing in the Pacific North West. Much of the river can be guided on a day trip, only the lower section of the Wild and Scenic part of the Rogue River require over-night trips and special use permits.

However, the upper section of the Wild and Scenic Rogue require a special use permit, such know as the Middle Rogue Permit. Oregon Fishing Adventure has a permit for the Middle Rogue (MRP #223), and here you will catch a ton of fish.The Rogue River flows about 215 miles from the Cascades to the Pacific Ocean ending at Gold Beach, winter steelhead and fall king salmon are Oregon’s most prized game fish and two of the most challenging to catch.  

The promise of large hard-fighting fish, fresh from the ocean, lures many fishermen to fight the cold, wet conditions in search of a Rogue River trophy salmon and steelhead.Famous for its Chinook salmon and steelhead fishing The Rogue has the largest wild fish populations of any of Oregon’s coastal rivers and the production program out of Cole Rivers Hatchery is one of the biggest in the state.

It has been proven that dam’s have played a major role in the decline of fish populations on all rivers including the Rogue River. Recently a enormous dam removal project has been completed on the Rogue River. This is a grand time for the Rogue River, its salmon, steelhead, and trout fishery can only get better in the years to come.

In the last few years, three older dams Savage Rapids, Gold Hill and Gold Ray have been removed resulting in 157 miles of free flowing river. Many parts of the Rogue River have now changed and continue to change as the mighty Rogue re-shapes itself into becoming an even greater fishery then in the past. These dam removals on the Rogue River, along with ongoing habitat protection and restoration efforts will clearly benefit the Rogue’s fish populations.

These dams were located in the best steelhead and salmon fishing areas of the Rogue. As a longtime resident on the Rogue spending many years pursuing both salmon and steelhead, I have already seen the increase in fish numbers since the removal of these dams.