Page 47 - SOUTHERN OREGON MAGAZINE FALL 2019

Q – How are you involved in fish habitat restoration?
Scott – That’s become my passion at this point. I’m mostly
involved with Rogue Valley tributaries that are the spawning and
rearing tributaries for summer steelhead in the Rogue River.
When a small fish made it over my fish ladder last year, I said,
“The best fish I ever caught in my life is a six-inch juvenile steel-
head that used one of the ladders I built.” This year we were
trapping above the fish ladder, catching juveniles that spawned
there. I’ve gone from being happy to see one juvenile steelhead
to now transporting coolers with 800 fish a day. There’s been
a lot of success, and the rewards are greater than anything I’ve
ever caught with hook and line.

Q – So you’ve opened up creeks to spawning that
had obstructions?

Scott – We built a fish ladder on Jackson Creek just upstream
of Central Point. Now, fish can go all the way into Britt Park.
It’s not only opened up five miles of habitat, it’s opened up the
best habitat. I don’t think steelhead have accessed this section
since that box culvert was built in the 60s. You’re talking 40 or
50 years those fish haven’t been able to access that section of
Jackson Creek. It’s one of those “if you build it, they will come”
things. The following year we must have had 10 or 12 pairs of
adult steelhead spawning. After we built a fish ladder on Lazy
Creek, we were getting fish all the way up to the hospital. Fish
and Wildlife did some trapping on Lazy Creek and they were
trapping 40 to 50 juveniles a day using it for wintering habi-
tat. There is a lifetime’s worth of work in the Rogue Valley that
needs to be done. I’m refocusing on that.

Q – How do you sell Southern Oregon as a place to fish?

Scott - Southern Oregon sells itself to traveling anglers. This
region is home to two of fly fishing's most fabled rivers. The
Rogue and North Umpqua rivers are on the bucket list of nearly
every fly fisher and has been since the 1940's and 50's. Both
rivers have been frequented by some pretty notable characters.
Zane Grey, Clark Gable, and Earnest Hemingway once called
these streams their favorite fishing destinations. You could argue
that the “Camp Water” section of the North Umpqua is the most
famous stretch of steelhead water in the world. I consider the
North Umpqua to be the most beautiful river I've cast a line. As
for the Rogue, I don't know of a more consistent place to catch
a steelhead on the fly. A few years back, I went on a five-year
stretch where I never had a fishless day. This is basically unheard
of on other steelhead rivers.

Q - What does the future look like for sport fishing in
Southern Oregon?
Scott - I am very optimistic about the future of our fisheries in
Southern Oregon. Most of that optimism stems from the fact
that we now understand the value of preserving and rehabili-
tating fish habitat. And more importantly, we're acting on that
understanding. Generally, our streams are healthier now than

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