WALLOWA COUNTY FISHING

Wallowa County has some incredibly gorgeous rivers, each one offering something unique and special. Majestic mountain ranges are a towering backdrop as streams wind their way through flowering meadows and emerald green forests, or boil through the narrow gorges of Hell’s Canyon, before becoming placid again with deep quiet pools.

Wallowa Lake: From ice fishing in the winter to kokanee and trout in the springtime, nothing beats the stunning beauty of fishing Wallowa Lake, whether you are fishing from the shore or bring your boat. There are two marinas for launching your boat or you can rent one at the marina at the head of the lake.

Wallowa/Eagle Cap Mountains: Whether you decide to fly in to the Minam Lodge where you can stay in comfort in one of the cabins and eat in the lodge, courtesy of Shawn & Shelly Steen, or you hike or ride your horse, this is a trip everyone should make at least once in their life.

This spectacular country with its many pristine lakes and rivers is a true fishing paradise.
You can fish for a variety of trout, steelhead, and salmon.

Snake River: From Hell’s Canyon Reservoirs or Dug Bar, the Snake River is teeming with many variety of game fish. Crappie, small mouth bass, sturgeon, catfish, and several variety of trout are yours for the taking.

Minam, Imnaha, Grande Ronde Rivers; Excellent fishing can be had on any of these rivers, including steelhead, salmon and trout. The Grand Ronde at Troy has blue ribbon steelhead fishing.

Almost any stream in Wallowa County has great fishing, including the smaller irrigation streams. I came home from work one night to find a monster brown in my sink. I was sure my husband had bought it at the store, but he swears to this day it came from our little irrigation stream.

WALLOWA COUNTY HUNTING

Wallowa County is home to a variety of wildlife which makes it a hunter’s paradise. The county touches on seven wildlife management units. We are surrounded by three wilderness areas and Hell’s Canyon Recreation area.

Deer and elk are a popular game for both archery and rifle seasons in the fall and whitetail deer is a season the local hunter’s look forward to.

Lucky hunters might draw a once in a lifetime big horn sheep tag or a mountain goat or cougar tag. Spring bear is also a popular hunt.

I often tell my husband that if there were tags to go gopher hunting with a slingshot, he’d be first in line to buy one. Recently, I found out you have to purchase a license in order to shoot ground squirrels. So I guess we’re getting closer to that slingshot tag.

If you are a bird hunter there are good opportunities to bag a turkey, chuckar, grouse, pheasant, or quail. And there is no problem taking a limit of geese or ducks. Providing you know how to shoot.

There are a variety of big game hunts from an easy day trip out to Chesnimnus or Sled Springs Units to a guided trip into the backcountry units of Minam, Snake River or Imnaha. There are several good outfitting businesses or you can pack yourself in.