Download / print this Cast (PDF)
Foster · Green Peter: Sunny Warming Weekend & Twin Santiam Bass
Foster Reservoir & Green Peter Reservoir · Fri Oct 2 – Sun Oct 4, 2026 · bank / kayak / boat · times PT
South Santiam sisters open early October under a warming dry high — pack a shell for the low-50° dawn, fish Foster grass and Sunnyside timber before the sun climbs, then rotate to Green Peter rock when you want smallmouth that still eat a tube on the first stone.
WEEKEND OUTLOOK
NWS Portland (PQR) north-band corridor forecast (PQR 121,64), pulled early Friday morning, keeps the Sweet Home / Foster / Green Peter corridor under a quiet dry high with cool nights and warming days into the upper 70s–upper 80s. Friday opens sunny with a high near 79°F after an overnight low near 53°F, west-southwest wind 0–6 mph, and almost no rain in the forecast; Friday night settles near 51°F. Saturday climbs to near 86°F / overnight low near 54°F, sunny, light north breeze 0–3 mph. Sunday peaks near 88°F / overnight low near 56°F, sunny, southwest wind 0–5 mph. No active NWS watches or warnings for the corridor at the early-Friday pull. Nearby METARs around 4 AM PT Friday: KSLE ~30.00 and KEUG ~30.01 inHg — a settled high over twin Santiam pools.
For largemouth on Foster: lean the low-light grass edges, Sunnyside timber, and Gedney Creek cuts hard while nights stay in the low-to-mid 50s, then expect a morning-shallow / midday-slide pattern as highs climb into the mid-80s under sunny skies. For Green Peter smallmouth: fish Whitcomb Creek and Thistle Creek rock before the sun climbs, then slide a Ned or tube along deeper stone once light hits the walls. Soft recreational pressure — no named Foster or Green Peter trail event Fri–Sun.
Friday Oct 2
- Sunny
- Sunrise 7:08 AM · Sunset 6:52 PM PT
- Best bite: first light–~9:30 AM PT on Sunnyside grass/timber and Green Peter rock; midday thicker wood and shaded points
Saturday Oct 3
- Sunny
- Sunrise 7:09 AM · Sunset 6:50 PM PT
- Best bite: dawn in Gedney Creek backs; midday Whitcomb / Thistle rock once park traffic builds
Sunday Oct 4
- Sunny
- Sunrise 7:10 AM · Sunset 6:48 PM PT
- Best bite: first light–mid-morning on lee grass; midday windward rip along thicker timber or GP rock if any breeze stacks bait
Bite tie-in
Cool nights + warming sunny days = morning largemouth on Foster grass and timber, with Green Peter smallmouth honest on rock and points. Keep a bluegill-profile swim jig and a craw-colored tube ready — that is still this twin-pool early-October menu.
DAM & CURRENT / GENERATOR SCHEDULE CHEAT SHEET
Foster and Green Peter are USACE Portland District (NWP) South Santiam flood-control / multi-purpose lakes near Sweet Home. Foster summer full sits near 637 ft; Green Peter summer full sits near 1,010 ft. There is no public hour-by-hour hydropower unit board for anglers — both are flood-control sisters. Live numbers below are USGS instantaneous values from the early-Friday pull; pool and releases can change.
| Source | Live pull (Fri Oct 2 early PT) | What it means this weekend |
|---|---|---|
| Foster pool USGS 14186600 Foster Lake at Foster |
619.18 ft ~4:20 AM PT Oct 2 Summer full ~637 ft |
About 18 ft under summer full — late-season drawdown is normal. Sunnyside and Gedney ramps still fish; confirm Linn County Parks before you trailer if the pool keeps easing. |
| Green Peter pool USGS 14186100 Green Peter Lake near Foster |
887.28 ft ~4:20 AM PT Oct 2 Summer full ~1010 ft |
Deep late-season drawdown (~123 ft under summer full) — concentrates smallmouth on remaining rock, Whitcomb Creek, and Thistle Creek edges. Confirm ramp feel before you trailer. |
| Santiam context South Santiam downstream ~1,340 cfs |
~1,340 cfs · early Fri PT Oct 2 | Modest early-October Santiam context — soft current near dam-face neighborhoods, not a sweeping generation push. Soft outflow→bite only. |
Failover before launch: USACE NWP Foster / Green Peter · USGS 14186600 / 14186100 · Linn County Parks. Dam restricted zones stay off-limits. Soft pool→bite — lower late-season pools concentrate fish on remaining grass, timber, and Green Peter rock.
Foster · grass & timber
With pool near 619 ft, fish Sunnyside County Park grass, Gedney Creek timber, and the first channel cuts. Largemouth and panfish both show where wood meets grass on the mid-lake backs.
Green Peter · rock callout
Whitcomb Creek and Thistle Creek rock fish a classic early-fall Green Peter pattern: crawfish on stone early, then smallmouth sliding deeper along points as the sun climbs. Calm dawn pockets favor a compact tube.
HOW TO FISH IT — BANK / KAYAK / BOAT
Bank
Shared: Cool Friday dawns and hot Saturday–Sunday afternoons reward a shell early and water later; PFDs on wet rock; dam restricted zones stay off-limits. Start on Sunnyside County Park shoreline and Foster Lake / Gedney Creek walking grass and timber before picnic traffic. Rotate to Whitcomb Creek and Thistle Creek on Green Peter when you want rock for smallmouth. Dawn under the sunny high favors a compact buzzbait along Foster grass; once the sun climbs Saturday–Sunday, slow down with green-pumpkin creatures in wood holes and a Ned on Green Peter stone.
Kayak
Launch Sunnyside or Gedney Creek when you want short paddles into Foster timber pockets boats rush past, then ferry toward Green Peter’s Whitcomb / Thistle arms for rocky points with a Ned and tube. On calmer dawn pockets Friday–Sunday, work lee grass edges with a ⅜-oz swim jig or stickbait where bluegill chatter, then slide a small crank parallel to Green Peter rock once the sun hits stone. Pack a dry bag — valley evenings cool after sundown PT — and give bigger boats the main-lake lanes after late morning.
Boat
Sunnyside County Park ramp puts you on Foster grass and wood first; Whitcomb Creek / Thistle Creek access is the Green Peter trailer play when you want rock smallmouth. Idle the first hour on a frog or waking bait along grass edges, then chatterbait stained banks if a breeze or release color shows, and keep tubes plus small cranks ready for Green Peter points. Confirm both USGS pools if trailer depth looked skinny last trip — late-season 619 ft / 887 ft still fishes, but creek backs change feel week to week. Weekend recreational traffic builds by late morning even without a trail blast-off.
LURE BOX
Top
- Compact frog (black / white) over Foster grass
- Buzzbait on shaded timber edges
- Walking bait in slick dawn pockets
Mid
- ⅜ oz swim jig (green pumpkin / bluegill)
- Chatterbait or spinnerbait on stained windy banks
- Small crank / squarebill along Green Peter rock
- Soft stickbait for pressured wood
Bottom
- Texas-rig creature in grass and wood holes
- Tube or Ned on Green Peter riprap and points
- Light football jig on rock transitions
- Wacky stickbait when fish suspend off timber
Stain / clear match: Darker profiles if South Santiam releases dirty a bank; translucent bluegill, green-pumpkin, and natural craw on clearer Green Peter rock. Tie colors to bluegill / crappie and crawfish first.
BASS LIFE STAGE
Early-fall transition on the South Santiam sisters. Cooler nights in the low-to-mid 50s and a warming sunny high should pull largemouth onto grass edges, timber pockets, and the first channel cuts at Foster while smallmouth stay honest on Green Peter rock. Fish are not locked on a winter deep stack yet — treat this as a morning-shallow, midday-slide pattern as highs climb into the mid-80s. Skip the spawn talk; that chapter is closed.
What’s on the menu: Dated hatch reports for this exact window are thin. Most-likely forage this weekend is bluegill and crappie in Foster grass and timber, with crawfish on Green Peter rock and riprap once the sun climbs, and leftover juvenile baitfish wherever birds tip a school. Start on bluegill-profile swim jigs and creatures at Foster; keep a craw-colored tube ready for Green Peter stone midday.
ALSO HOT / ALSO IN SEASON
Smallmouth · Green Peter rock
Green Peter’s calling card on Whitcomb / Thistle stone — keep a tube or Ned ready when Foster grass goes quiet. Soft language only; confirm seasons and creel on the live ODFW page before you keep fish.
Crappie · panfish mix
Panfish still matter in Foster timber and Gedney Creek backs — a small jig or soft plastic covers mixed bags when bass pause. Same access rules as bass — legal bank and ramp water only.
Crowd / Heavy Traffic
No named Oregon club / trail event pulled for Fri Oct 2 – Sun Oct 4 on Foster or Green Peter. Expect normal weekend recreational traffic at Sunnyside / Whitcomb — earlier launch still beats the picnic crowd. Weekend trail traffic elsewhere stays on Siltcoos / Lower Columbia / John Day Pool / Prineville club — not here.
Looking ahead
NWS trend stays dry and warm into early next week with highs pushing the mid-to-upper 80s — classic early-October twin-pool mornings if nights stay cool and both pools keep easing. Heavy Traffic this weekend stays on other OR waters — none named Foster or Green Peter at the early-Friday pull. Next Cast: Monday window.
Pure-Gas.org E0 · this water
Ethanol-free stations near the Sweet Home / Lebanon corridor (no pump prices).
- Sweet Home Gas & Deli — 1810 Main St, Sweet Home, OR (~3 mi) · ethanol-free UNION 76 92 on Pure-Gas.org — verify grade
- Peter Goldstern — 2412 S Santiam Hwy, Lebanon, OR (~14 mi) · ethanol-free SHELL 92 on Pure-Gas.org — verify grade
- Lebanon Fast Gas — 1550 S Main St, Lebanon, OR (~14 mi) · ethanol-free VP RACING 92 on Pure-Gas.org — verify grade
- Brownsville Body Shop — 105 W Bishop Way, Brownsville, OR (~16 mi) · ethanol-free UNBRANDED 92 on Pure-Gas.org — verify grade
Stations from Pure-Gas.org OR list (saved for this water). Listings move — verify literal E0 / ethanol-free grade at the pump. No pump prices published in this Cast.
Sources: NWS Portland (PQR) north-band corridor forecast grid PQR 121,64 · METAR KSLE / KEUG · USGS 14186600 Foster pool, 14186100 Green Peter pool, South Santiam context · USACE Portland / Foster & Green Peter project info · Linn County Parks · orbass.com Oregon master schedule · Pure-Gas.org ethanol-free station directory · ODFW Willamette Zone recreation report (live regs). Schedules change — confirm pool, ramps, and the forecast before launch.
Freshwater Cast · Friday Cast · Foster Reservoir & Green Peter Reservoir · Fri Oct 2 – Sun Oct 4, 2026 · drafted Fri Oct 2, 2026 ~7:15 AM PT