Fishes Owyhee River
Tailwater · Far eastern Oregon in Malheur County, running north from Owyhee Dam and Owyhee Reservoir through a basalt canyon past Nyssa to the Snake River near the Idaho line · Oregon
Owyhee River Fishing Guides
A remote high-desert tailwater below Owyhee Dam with an outsized reputation for very large wild brown trout, thick weed beds and difficult, technical fishing.
Map of the Owyhee River
7 numbered points: 2 campsites, 1 park or conservation area, 2 hazards, 1 spring, 1 USGS gauge. Tap a marker for details. Reviewed Sep 15, 2026.
- Campsite (2)
- Park / conservation area (1)
- Dam / hazard (2)
- Spring (1)
- USGS gauge (1)
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Points are curated from OpenStreetMap and state agency sources; confirm access and hours before you go.
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.
Open the printable mapAll 7 points on this map
| # | Point | Type | Lat, Lon | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Owyhee Dam Bureau of Reclamation | Dam / hazard | 43.64205, -117.24287 | Upstream limit of the tailwater; the bellmouth spillway is part of the same structure. |
| 2 | McGinnis Park Malheur County | Park / conservation area | 43.65144, -117.24667 | Day-use park on the first bend below the dam. |
| 3 | Owyhee Dam Campground Below the dam | Campsite | 43.65149, -117.24777 | The only mapped campground on the tailwater. |
| 4 | USGS gauge 13183000 - Owyhee River below Owyhee Dam Live stage and discharge | USGS gauge | 43.65444, -117.25583 | The gauge this water page reads from; release from the dam sets the whole reach. |
| 5 | Snively Hot Springs BLM day-use | Spring | 43.73023, -117.20322 | Hot spring on the river bank, the reach's best-known landmark; three OSM nodes merged to one point. |
| 6 | Diversion weir Unnamed in OpenStreetMap | Dam / hazard | 43.74590, -117.15278 | Weir straight across the channel; portage or take out above it. |
| 7 | Martin Landing Near the Snake confluence | Campsite | 43.80819, -117.02197 | Campsite close to the mouth; it sits between the lower Owyhee and the Snake. |
Guides on the Owyhee River
Claimed profiles take booking requests. Unclaimed profiles are built from public records so the river is never empty; the guide can claim or remove one any time.
Order on this page: premium and outfitter plans first (labelled Premium placement), then claimed free profiles, then unclaimed — one published price, no bidding for position. How placement works
About the Owyhee River
The Owyhee tailwater is a strange and famous piece of water. Below Owyhee Dam the river runs cold and green through a narrow basalt canyon in the emptiest corner of Oregon, and in about eleven miles of that canyon it grows brown trout that anglers drive across several states to fish. There is no town, no development and very little shade. What there is instead is a nutrient-rich constant-temperature release, deep weed growth, enormous insect biomass and browns that reach sizes a river this size has no business producing.
It fishes like a spring creek despite being a dam release. The water is slow, clear and weedy, the fish are educated, and drag-free presentation on long light leaders is the whole game. Midges matter year-round. There is a legendary blue-winged olive hatch in the shoulder seasons, and a summer evening caddis that can turn the canyon over. Streamer anglers work the undercut banks for the largest fish, often after dark. Most anglers wade; the canyon is narrow enough that a boat is more nuisance than help through much of it.
Two practical things govern trips here. The first is flow. Owyhee Dam is an irrigation project, and releases swing hard with the delivery season – low and fishable in the shoulder months, high and difficult through midsummer, and sometimes cut abruptly in the fall. This gauge sits directly below the dam and reports discharge and stage but no water temperature, so it tells you whether the canyon is fishable and nothing else. The second is remoteness. There is no cell service, no gas and no services in the canyon. Anglers carry water, fuel and a spare tire, because the nearest help is in Nyssa.
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The photo at the top of this page is not Owyhee River.
It is a regional stand-in, honestly captioned but generic — we will not put a name to a river we cannot prove. Send us a photograph you took here and it replaces the stand-in, with your credit on it.
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Access
Owyhee Dam and the top of the canyon - the coldest water and the start of the tailwater reach.
The canyon road below the dam - continuous roadside pull-offs along the fishable eleven miles.
Snively Hot Springs - a well-known access point and the busiest parking on the river.
Greeley Bar and the lower canyon pull-outs - walk-in water toward the end of the trout reach.
Owyhee Reservoir boat ramps - still-water launching above the dam.
Nyssa and the lower river bridges - warmwater bass and catfish access below the canyon.
Rome and the upper Owyhee - the wilderness whitewater reach well above the reservoir.
Seasons
Spring: prime season, with low pre-irrigation flows, blue-winged olives and the best wading of the year.
Summer: high irrigation releases, difficult wading and an evening caddis and streamer game.
Fall: releases drop back, water clears and the big browns move onto the shallow tails to spawn.
Winter: cold, low, lightly fished midge water with road access that can be uncertain after snow.
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Questions
What is the current flow on the Owyhee River?
As of Nov 2, 5:30 am, the USGS gauge OWYHEE RIVER BELOW OWYHEE DAM, OR reads 28 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.
What species can you catch on the Owyhee River?
Anglers target Black Crappie, Brown Trout, Channel Catfish, Largemouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Smallmouth Bass on the Owyhee River in Oregon.
Are there fishing guides on the Owyhee River?
GuidedFloats lists 3 guides and outfitters on the Owyhee River. Claimed profiles accept booking requests; unclaimed profiles are built from public records and link to the business.
Where can you access the Owyhee River?
Owyhee Dam and the top of the canyon - the coldest water and the start of the tailwater reach. The canyon road below the dam - continuous roadside pull-offs along the fishable eleven miles. Snively Hot Springs - a well-known access point and the busiest parking on the river. Greeley Bar and the lower canyon pull-outs - walk-in water toward the end of the trout reach. Owyhee Reservoir boat ramps - still-water launching above the dam. Nyssa and the lower river bridges - warmwater bass and catfish access below the canyon. Rome and the upper Owyhee - the wilderness whitewater reach well above the...
When is the best time to fish the Owyhee River?
Spring: prime season, with low pre-irrigation flows, blue-winged olives and the best wading of the year. Summer: high irrigation releases, difficult wading and an evening caddis and streamer game. Fall: releases drop back, water clears and the big browns move onto the shallow tails to spawn. Winter: cold, low, lightly fished midge water with road access that can be uncertain after snow.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Owyhee River?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Oregon agency site: https://myodfw.com/fishing/regulations