McKenzie River
The best month to fish the McKenzie River is July. The month to avoid is May. Right now, in August, it is worth going.
- January: 70 out of 100
- February: 75 out of 100
- March: 78 out of 100
- April: 55 out of 100
- May: 46 out of 100
- June: 74 out of 100
- July: 82 out of 100
- August: 79 out of 100
- September: 77 out of 100
- October: 79 out of 100
- November: 74 out of 100
- December: 76 out of 100
GAUGE 14158740 · COLOURED BY AUGUST
Month by month
| MONTH | TYPICAL FLOW | RANGE (P20–P80) | WATER | AIR HIGH | RAIN | SCORE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 339 cfs | 277–417 | 41.1°F | — | — | 70 |
| February | 327 cfs | 273–369 | 40.9°F | — | — | 75 |
| March | 279 cfs | 262–410 | 41.0°F | — | — | 78 |
| April | 392 cfs | 293–619 | 41.4°F | — | — | 55 |
| May | 538 cfs | 306–620 | 42.1°F | — | — | 46 |
| June | 280 cfs | 218–530 | 42.5°F | — | — | 74 |
| July | 236 cfs | 191–261 | 42.8°F | — | — | 82 |
| AugustNOW | 199 cfs | 179–246 | 42.5°F | — | — | 79 |
| September | 189 cfs | 173–215 | 42.3°F | — | — | 77 |
| October | 200 cfs | 167–221 | 41.8°F | — | — | 79 |
| November | 215 cfs | 196–302 | 41.5°F | — | — | 74 |
| December | 299 cfs | 273–359 | 41.4°F | — | — | 76 |
WHERE THESE NUMBERS COME FROM
Flow and water temperature are medians of the monthly means reported by USGS gauge 14158740 over 2016-2025. Air temperature and precipitation are ten-year normals from Open-Meteo at this river’s gauge coordinates.
The window is deliberate. USGS’s own full-record statistics for a dammed river reach back before the dam — at Lees Ferry, to 1922, forty-one years before Glen Canyon closed — and describe a river that no longer exists.
Flow is scored against this river’s own fishable band of 215–327 cfs. There is no universal band: 8,000 cfs is low water on a big tailwater and a flood on a spring creek.
Water temperature is a ceiling rather than a weight. Above about 68°F a trout that is fought and released frequently dies anyway, so no month above that line is scored as worth booking, however good its flow.
The McKenzie River is at its best in July — water around 43°F, flows near 236 cfs.
← RIVERS GOING WELL IN AUGUSTRegulations, licences and access change without notice and are not reproduced here as fact — check the state agency before you travel. A median describes twenty years; it does not forecast your week. Source: U.S. Geological Survey, National Water Information System.