Klickitat County offers some of the finest freshwater fishing in the lower 48 states. It is truly a fisherman’s paradise with lots of opportunity for family fishing. Its rivers are renowned for bragging-size 40-pound-plus chinook, as well as coho salmon and river run steelhead. Anglers will also find Columbia River sturgeon that reach 14 feet and weights in excess of 500 lbs as well as trophy walleye, bass, trout, catfish, and abundant panfish.
The Columbia River runs along the entire southern length of Klickitat County and boasts some of the best sturgeon fishing holes in the river. The Columbia is also home to large-mouth and small-mouth bass and trophy walleye, not to mention runs of steelhead, salmon, and shad. Salmon and steelhead are caught in numbers both off the mouth and within the White Salmon and Klickitat Rivers.
Numerous ponds and lakes throughout the county, especially those created from the construction of Bonneville, The Dalles and John Day dams, hold populations of bass, trout, catfish and other species of fish. These provide easy-access shore angling for young and old alike.
The Klickitat River has a significant anadromous fishery supporting steelhead trout, Chinook salmon and coho salmon, and offers exceptional fishing from July through September when this glacier-fed river runs clear.
The Yakama Nation have been dip-net fishing continuously in this area for generations to catch salmon and steelhead and have their own Tribal fishing regulations. Please share the river with respect.
River and Stream Fishing
- Eagle Creek Overlook Group Campground
- Klickitat Trail
- Klickitat Wild & Scenic River
- Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness: Columbia Gorge
- Sandy River Delta
- Confluence Trail (#4433)
- White Salmon Wild & Scenic River
