Print it. Bag it. Bring it.Phones die, screens crack, and most of this water has no signal. Print this map, fold it into a zip-top bag or dry bag with your license, and you have a backup your electronics can’t give you. Every marker is numbered so you can say exactly where you are.
| # | Point | Type | Lat, Lon | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Metolius Springs Head of the Metolius | Spring | 44.43402, -121.63803 | The river rises here full-size at the foot of Black Butte; the whole sheet reads downstream from this point. |
| 2 | Riverside Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.44121, -121.63500 | First Forest Service camp below the springs, on the Camp Sherman road. |
| 3 | Camp Sherman RV Park Private RV park, Camp Sherman | Campsite | 44.45987, -121.64753 | OSM carries this as 'Camp sherman rv park'; the spelling is corrected here. |
| 4 | Camp Sherman Road Bridge SW Camp Sherman Road | Bridge crossing | 44.46027, -121.64363 | The village crossing at Camp Sherman, the landmark everyone measures the upper river from. |
| 5 | Camp Sherman Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.46343, -121.63968 | |
| 6 | Allingham Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.47240, -121.63770 | |
| 7 | Pine Rest Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.48165, -121.63845 | Small walk-in camp on the west bank. |
| 8 | Gorge Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.48519, -121.63947 | |
| 9 | Lower Canyon Creek Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.50161, -121.64167 | At the Canyon Creek confluence, the last camp above the hatchery. |
| 10 | Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery ODFW hatchery and visitor site | Agency / conservation office | 44.52354, -121.63282 | Open to visitors; the bridge here is the usual dividing line between the upper and lower river. |
| 11 | Allen Springs Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.52821, -121.62917 | |
| 12 | Pioneer Ford Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.55222, -121.62244 | |
| 13 | Forest Road 12 Bridge Lower Bridge crossing | Bridge crossing | 44.55651, -121.62052 | The crossing at Lower Bridge Campground; OSM names the way for the road, not the bridge. |
| 14 | Lower Bridge Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.55765, -121.62035 | |
| 15 | Candle Creek Campground Deschutes National Forest | Campsite | 44.57512, -121.61912 | The last road-accessible camp; below here the river runs into the reservation and the canyon. |
| 16 | USGS 14091500 - Metolius River near Grandview USGS streamgage | USGS gauge | 44.62623, -121.48394 | The lower-canyon gauge; the Metolius is spring-fed and runs remarkably steady year round. |
Gauge: USGS 14091500 — METOLIUS RIVER NEAR GRANDVIEW, OR. Live flow on the web page.
Species: Brown Trout, Bull Trout, Kokanee Salmon, Mountain Whitefish, Rainbow Trout
Regulations: myodfw.com/fishing/regulations
Emergency: call 911 and give the number of the nearest point on this map plus its coordinates.
Head of the Metolius: the spring itself, a short walk from the parking area.
Camp Sherman: village access, footbridge and the most-fished water on the river.
Allingham, Smiling River and Pioneer Ford Campgrounds: Forest Service camps with river frontage.
Gorge Campground: popular upper-river access below Camp Sherman.
Lower Bridge and Candle Creek: mid-river access down the west-side road.
Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery: parking, trail access and the start of long walk-in reaches.
Bridge 99 and the lower river: the roughest road and the fewest anglers.
Open year-round with fly-only, wild-fish regulations; the river never blows out.
March through May: blue-winged olives and March browns, cool days, easy access.
June through September: green drakes, caddis and terrestrials; the coldest water in the region.
October through February: kokanee and bull trout activity, midge fishing, snow on the road but a fishable river.