Winter fishing means rain and off-colored water so you should use dark-colored flies that present an obvious silhouette to the fish. Black and dark brown always show up well in murky water.

When selecting the fly size, keep in mind that the goal is to fish the nymph as close to the bottom as possible without constantly hanging up. In most cases, river flows will dictate what size fly to use so Williams carries Brooks Stone flies in sizes 2-6. He also likes the Riffle Dancer, an old subsurface nymph pattern tied on a size 4 hook with peacock herl and palmered brown hackle.

If you fish lures at this time of year, you only need remember one word -- slow. Most fishers cast and quickly retrieve the lure, then cast again. Maybe it’s the caffeine from the two cups of double espresso while waiting for the weather to warm. Maybe it’s from watching all those bass fishing shows on television. The fact is, trout are simply not going to move far nor will they move fast to intercept a fast-moving lure in cold water. Instead, try casting into a current seam. Allow the lure to drift with the current, then let it hold for several seconds in the current. The wobbling, diving or spinning action often will provoke a strike from a sluggish fish. Save your fast-moving lures for summer bass fishing.

For those who toss gear, Williams suggests several tried-and-true lures that have caught tons of fish over the years and still catch them. He likes the Luhr Jensen Krocodile in chrome, Luhr Jensen Super Duper in gold-red or Worden’s yellow Rooster Tail. In fact, the largest resident Willamette River fish Williams ever hooked was a rainbow estimated at over 6 pounds. It took a yellow Rooster Tail, then did everything it could to try to break his light-weight spinning rod.

Not every fish in the river is that big, but there are many legitimate 20-inch rainbow that tip the scale at 4 pounds. A very healthy population of 14- to 17-inch trout swims this river as well. Should you land one of the big boys of 20 or more inches, know that Oregon classifies all rainbows that size as steelhead and only fin-clipped steelhead may be kept. The average trout is a foot long, according to the expert fly-tier. And that’s not bad for a river flowing through a major metropolitan area.

Chris Daughters of the Caddis Fly shop in Eugene agrees there are 20-inch rainbows. He said there would be more big resident fish if they weren’t so often caught on the egg baits used by salmon fishers working the same areas. He says cutthroats run a bit smaller than the rainbow but average between 10-13 inches.

For winter trout he favors small flies like the Pheasant Tail or olive-bodied soft hackle in 14-18. For mid-sized patterns, he favors golden stones or darker flies, including the black winter stonefly in sizes 8-12.

If you fish the “Town Run” or the area below Dexter Dam you stand a chance of hooking a steelhead. ODFW fish biologist Jeff Ziller has tinkered with summer steelhead stocks for several years to create a viable urban steelhead fishery. He trades Willamette River smolts for Santiam River smolts, acclimates the Santiam fish at various urban release spots, and then sends them out to sea. Instead of returning to their hatchery home, they seek their release points, then establish themselves in “steelheady lies” according to Brian Marz, owner of The McKenzie Angler. The Town Run is Island Park to Valley River.