More than 18,000 hatchery trout, including plenty of trophy-sized rainbows, are heading to 15 Western Oregon lakes in the week before Oregon’s next Free Fishing Weekend.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will plant these fish between February 9 and 13. That’s just ahead of the state’s first Free Fishing Weekend of 2026, which is scheduled for Saturday, February 14, and Sunday, February 15.
This winter free-fishing event lines up with Presidents’ Day Weekend and also includes both Valentine’s Day and Oregon’s birthday (both on February 14).
Additional free-fishing days are coming up in early June and late November. You can find more details here. That article includes suggestions for the best opportunities to catch fish and shellfish during each time of the year.
For February, there’s winter steelhead and a few other options, but stocked trout are the easiest game in town if you want to invite a new or infrequent angler out and have a high probability of catching fish.
Free fishing sounds even more appealing these days, as the cost of fishing licenses and tags have increased. A typical annual fishing license is now $50, not including harvest tags, endorsements, shellfish licenses, etc.
But on those two days in the middle of February, you won’t need a fishing license, harvest tag, or special endorsement. You will need to follow all the other rules, including catch limits, special seasons, tackle requirements, and so on. Here’s the Oregon fishing regulations to check out.
Now, to boost your odds of catching for the coming week, I built the following table based on ODFW’s stocking reports. I’ve grouped waters by region to make it easier to find the best spot where you plan to fish.
Where the name of the lake, reservoir, or pond is a link, you can click to find a more in-depth article to help you raise your odds even further of catching fish there.
Trout Stocking
The following Oregon waters are scheduled to be stocked during the week of February 9-13.
| Location | Total |
|---|---|
| NORTHWEST OREGON | |
| Olalla Creek Reservoir | 2,700* |
| Alder Lake | 500 |
| Munsel Lake | 500 |
| Big Creek Reservoir 1 | 1,000 |
| Big Creek Reservoir 2 | 2,200* |
| Dune Lake | 300 |
| Cleawox Lake | 1,000 |
| SOUTHWEST OREGON | |
| Reinhart Park Pond | 300 |
| Selmac Lake | 5,000 |
| WILLAMETTE VALLEY | |
| St. Louis Pond | 1,000** |
| Mt. Hood Pond (MHCC Campus in Gresham) | 666 |
| Henry Hagg Lake | 1,000** |
| West Salish Pond | 500** |
| Row River Nature Park (Cottage Grove) | 1,000 |
| Silver Creek Reservoir (Silverton Reservoir) | 500** |