Southwest of Corvallis and just past Mary's Peak is the Alsea River, my personal favorite winter steelhead river in Oregon. When it comes to winter steelhead fishing, the Alsea has it all: abundant hatchery steelhead, good bank access, plentiful boat ramps, and a highway that runs right along the river. Many of the boat ramps are now in excellent condition thanks to the hard work of our  Mid Valley Chapter. Beware, there are also a couple of ramps that will test your skill in backing up a trailer and your strength in winching the boat back on the trailer. When it comes to steelhead fishing, I like to divide the Alsea into four parts. 

The upper part, from the North Fork Hatchery to the top ramp at Mill Creek, is bank fishing only and is the section to fish when the river level is over six feet. Next is the river from the Mill Creek ramp to the boat slide and cable launch at Missouri Bend. In this section, the bottom is primarily gravel, the water is easy to read, and the water is all class I, unless a tree happens to fall in the river. I like floating this section when the Alsea is between five and six feet.

Once you hit Missouri Bend, the character of the river changes. The bottom is now primarily bed rock, the water is more difficult to read, and an increase in boat skills is required. There are also miles of river to cover from Missouri Bend down to the next take out at River's Edge park. Generally, the boat traffic is sparse in this section because of the rapids, the long distance between ramps, and the few good fishing holes. There are, however, some excellent fishing holes in this section, especially where Fall Creek flows into the mainstem.

From River's Edge to the ramp at Five Rivers, the water is similar to the best water by "the Oregon Rock." You cannot miss it as the rock face is almost identical to a map of Oregon. I like fishing this section from Missouri Bend to Five Rivers ramp when the Alsea is running between 5.5 and 4.5 feet. The Alsea then changes once again where Five Rivers flows into the Alsea. Five Rivers is the largest tributary to the Alsea, and both salmon and steelhead hold in this section figuring out which way to go.

The lower Alsea has several boat ramps spaced every couple of miles with the last "ramp" being just below the Barclay Bridge. This take out is nothing more than a bedrock shelf and is for 4WD vehicles. If you have never taken out here before, scout it ahead of time. The next ramp is miles downriver in tidewater, and you will miss dinner; hell, maybe even breakfast. Once again, the river bottom is primarily bed rock, not that easy to read, and there are a couple of rapids where you must be on the sticks. One of these rapids is just below the Rock Crusher. This rapid and I have never gotten along. I would say I have gotten my passenger wet here 50 percent of the time. It is even more exciting when you hook a steelhead just above the rapids and it decides to go down river! I prefer fishing here when the river level is between 3.8 and 5 feet. Once the river get below 3.8 feet or so, the rapids get a little tight.

There is some good bank access in the Five Rivers area as the highway parallels the river here with good parking. This area also has the best plunking shack in Oregon just below the Mike Bauer bridge. The parking spaces here are plentiful, there is a nice restroom, and even handicapped access. The people at the shack are friendly, there is always a fire going, the fishing stories flow, and there's even the occasional sound of a ringing bell. 

When it comes to techniques, the Alsea is no different than any other steelhead river in Oregon. It is a fairly snaggy river, so bring lots of tackle. I personally focus primarily on float fishing, usually with steelhead beads. Of course, you can never go wrong drifting roe. There are some excellent tailouts I do like to plug, and a few holes where I will toss spinners. Because the river is so snaggy, I seldom use a diver and bait setup. 

The Alsea used to be primarily a December and January river, but that has changed with hatchery practices as fishing is more spread out with the season lasting well into March or the start of the spring Chinook season.