Grande Ronde River Oregon and Washington Hatch Chart
Northeast Oregon into southeast Washington. A long desert-canyon river fed by the Wallowas, Blues, and Elkhorns. Wild redband rainbows in the upper and middle river. Summer steelhead and smallmouth in the lower canyon.
Trout fishing turns on after spring runoff, usually June into early fall. Golden stones are the signature trout hatch. Caddis, PMDs, and hoppers carry the rest of summer. Fall olives and October caddis overlap the first steelhead.
Dates move with snowpack and flow. Confirm current ODFW regulations and Washington rules below the state line before you go. Wild steelhead must be released. A Combined Angling Tag is required to fish for steelhead.
Shop by type: dry flies, nymphs, Euro nymphs, hoppers and terrestrials, streamers.
Steelhead fishery (not a hatch)
Summer-run fish enter the Columbia in summer and reach the lower Grande Ronde in early fall. A few show in August. The main push is September through November. October is the usual peak for fresh fish and for skating a dry or waking fly in the lower canyon. Winter holds fish through March. By late winter and early spring many fish have moved up the Wallowa and other tributaries.
Typical Oregon season on this drainage has been September 1 through April 30, with hatchery steelhead legal in defined stretches. Exact open dates, bag limits, and closed water change by year and by section. Check the current pamphlet.
- Late September to mid-October: low, clear water favors a floated line and a waking fly or muddler at first and last light.
- Midday and colder months: swing streamers or dead-drift heavy stonefly nymphs.
- Caddis dries can raise fish in early fall when trout and steelhead overlap.
Year at a glance
| Month | Primary hatches | Also carry | Typical sizes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | Midges | Steelhead nymphs and streamers | 18-22 midge |
| Feb | Midges, BWO | Steelhead nymphs and streamers | 16-22 |
| Mar | BWO, early Skwala | Steelhead as fish move upriver | 14-20, Skwala 8-12 |
| Apr | BWO, March Brown, Skwala | Early caddis | 12-18 |
| May | Caddis, stonefly nymphs | BWO | Caddis 14-16, stones 6-10 |
| Jun | Golden stone, salmonfly, PMD | Caddis | Stones 6-10, PMD 16-18 |
| Jul | PMD, caddis, yellow sally | Smallmouth on the lower river | 14-18 |
| Aug | Caddis, hoppers, ants | Late PMD, first steelhead possible | Hopper 8-12 |
| Sep | Hoppers, BWO, October caddis | Steelhead arrive | 10-18, BWO 18-20 |
| Oct | October caddis, BWO | Steelhead peak, streamers | Caddis 8-12, BWO 18-22 |
| Nov | BWO, midges | Steelhead, streamers | 18-22 |
| Dec | Midges | Steelhead nymphs and streamers | 18-22 |
January
Cold canyon water. Trout eat small. Steelhead are still in the lower river when the season is open.
- Midges - 18-22. A zebra midge or other small fly from the Euro nymph box.
- Steelhead: heavy nymphs and streamers.
February
Same small-fly trout program. Steelhead fishing can be good on moderate winter flows, then slows as fish push toward the Wallowa.
- Midges and a few BWO on gray days.
- Pheasant tail nymphs for both olives and small stones.
March
Olives steady up. Skwala nymphs crawl when water leaves the low 40s. Steelhead season often continues, but many fish are already in the tributaries.
- BWO - 16-20. Dry and Barr's Baetis emerger.
- Skwala - 8-12. Rubber-leg nymph along banks, Stimulator-style dry on warm afternoons. See nymphs and dry flies.
April
Runoff can color the canyon. Fish edges and any clear seam.
- BWO and March Brown on cloudy days.
- Skwala still useful on the first warm bank water.
- Early dark caddis.
May
Caddis build. Stonefly nymphs move before the June adults.
- Caddis - 14-16. Elk hair caddis and the caddis assortment.
- Stonefly nymphs 6-10 from nymphs.
- BWO on gray afternoons.
June
The trout month after the river drops and clears. Golden stones are the hatch most guides wait for.
- Golden stone and salmonfly - 6-10. A West Fork Salmonfly or Stimulator tight to the wall, golden stone nymph as a dropper.
- PMD - 16-18. Pale Morning Dun with a pheasant tail underneath.
- Evening caddis.
July
Reliable dry-fly trout water on the upper and middle river. Lower canyon can get low and warm. Smallmouth show in the lower river.
- PMD mornings.
- Yellow sally in fast riffles - small yellow dry.
- Caddis evenings. Elk hair.
- Smallmouth: bass flies and streamers.
August
Heat thins the midday hatch. Banks matter. A few early steelhead can show in the lower canyon.
- Evening caddis.
- Hoppers, ants, beetles - hoppers and terrestrials. Hopper-dropper along grass.
- Late PMD on cool mornings.
September
Trout stay good into early fall. Steelhead season typically opens September 1. First fish are often still scarce until later in the month.
- Hoppers and ants until frost.
- BWO returns - parachute BWO and the Baetis emerger.
- Early October caddis - large orange caddis dry.
- Steelhead: start swinging streamers. Keep a waking fly for low, clear evenings.
October
Best mixed month on the river. October caddis and olives for trout. Peak window for fresh steelhead and for a dry-fly steelhead eat.
- October caddis and BWO.
- Midges in slow tails.
- Steelhead: skate a dry at first and last light, swing a streamer or nymph through the day.
November
Short days. Steelhead still hold in the lower canyon if water stays fishable.
- BWO and midges.
- Streamers and stonefly nymphs.
December
Midge and steelhead program. Watch winter storms. High, dirty water shuts the canyon down.
- Zebra midge and small nymphs.
- Olive or black streamers.
A western dry and nymph assortment covers the trout year. Add stones, hoppers, and a streamer box for the lower river.