Columbia River Winter Steelhead Report: Chilly Days, Promising Bites

Hey folks, Artificial Lure here with your Columbia River fishing report for Friday, January 16th, right around Portland. Winter's grip is on, but the steelhead are whispering promises if you bundle up.

Sunrise hits at 7:45 AM PST, sunset around 4:50 PM—short days, so hit the water early. Weather's classic PNW chill: highs in the low 40s, partly cloudy with light winds from the east, per local forecasts. Tides from Tide-Forecast show a low around 10 AM dropping to about 0.8 feet, high pushing 1 foot by 11 PM—fish the outgoing for best drift.

The Guides Forecast says it's quiet on the mainstem Columbia right now. Crabbing's handed to commercials, spring Chinook months off, but plunking for winter steelhead is your play. Reports note rivers holding fish nicely, with steelhead heating up across the PNW—grab that 2026 license and tags. Recent catches? Scattered winter steelhead from bank and boat anglers, no big numbers but fresh brights showing in the lower river. Bobber dogging's hot: drift yarn or roe under a float.

Best lures: Spin-n-Glo's in black or chartreuse, or small spinners like Mepps. Bait-wise, cured roe eggs or prawn tails on a bobber setup rule—slow and low in the soft slots.

Hot spots: Try Big Eddy Marina east of downtown for deep plunking holes, or bank it at the Portland side of Hayden Island where currents slow.

Steelhead season's official—get after 'em safe, check regs, and wear your PFD.

Thanks for tuning in, folks—subscribe for more reports! This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI