Club Events
Join our club for fun fishing events! Monthly, we host casual meetings for anglers of all ages to share tips and stories about warmwater fishing. Enjoy group outings and be part of our fishing community. Don’t miss our casual fishing contests! Whether you’re experienced or a beginner, our events promise great memories. Check out our past events on our Facebook!
Monthly Meetings
Monthly meetings are held in Portland, Oregon throughout the year. Activities are planed from March through October. Come join us for learning opportunities, friendly fishing contests, and volunteer activities.
What’s more, these evenings offer treats to nibble on and exciting opportunities to win prizes. Just for attending, you’ll have the chance to score a prize—and don’t forget to buy raffle tickets for a shot at other amazing goodies. Simply place your tickets in the box beside the item you’re eyeing, and you could be a winner while supporting the club at the same time. Whether you’re a seasoned angler or just dipping your toes into the world of fishing, these gatherings are a wonderful way to connect with the community and celebrate the joys of the sport.
Meetings are typically held on the fourth Thursday of the month from 7-9 pm at St. Philip Neri Church, Carvlin Hall, 2408 SE 16th Avenue, Portland, OR 97214 . Visit the Events calendar for up-to-date information on meetings, activities and outings.
Club Outings and Fish-Ins
Join us on our exciting club day trips to nearby locations, where we cast our lines and reel in not just fish but lasting memories. Our overnight weekend camping trips or “fish-ins,” let you immerse yourself in nature while building friendships with fellow warmwater fishing enthusiasts. Picture yourself lounging by a crackling campfire, sharing fishing tales, and potluck dinners that are sure to keep you hooked! As part of our supportive and social community, you’ll find that every outing is another chance to tackle the great outdoors together. So, whether you’re a seasoned angler or just getting your feet wet, join the club and have some fun!
Volunteering and Community
ODFW Projects
Prineville Lake Crappie Collection
For many years the club has worked closely with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife projects to enhance warmwater fishing in lakes and ponds throughout Oregon. Our members have assisted ODFW in catching fish in one lake then transporting and releasing them into another. We estimate that over the years, 22,500 crappie have been collected and relocated to other bodies of water for the enjoyment of others.
Davis Lake Bass Transfer
In 2013 our club was asked by ODFW to assist with relocating Largemouth Bass that they had collected at Davis Lake and transported to Prineville Reservoir. We discovered that the task was to distribute about 450 very large, Largemouth Bass to various locations with some being miles away from the loading site. Our volunteers gave not only their time, but a significant amount of boat gas to help the bass fishery at Prineville Reservoir.
Spider Block Fish Habitats
For many years, the Oregon Bass & Panfish Club has partnered with Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and other interested parties to Construct and Place Spider Block Fish Habitats in Henry Hagg Lake. These Spider Blocks provide structured habitat for all fish in this manmade lake. Through Restoration & Enhancement funds, ODFW is able to purchase the cinder blocks, 1” PVC tubing and concrete needed to construct these environmentally-sound structures.
OBPC provides the majority of the volunteers and organizes the work effort to build the fish habitats and place them in various locations typically in the no-wake area of Hagg Lake under the direction of ODFW. As of 2024, there are over 1,100 spider blocks in strategic locations throughout the lake enhancing fish retention, recruitment, and sustainability. The Lake, the fishery and recreational anglers have all prospered due to the partnership of ODFW, Washington County Parks and OBPC.
ODFW Warmwater Fish Records
Back in the early 60s, the Oregon Game Commission (now known as the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, or ODFW) asked the Oregon Bass and Panfish Club (OBPC) to take care of state records for all warmwater fish. Since we were already tuned in to what everyone was catching across the state and ODFW just didn’t have the resources to keep track of it all, they figured we were the best fit for the job. Big shout out to our first contest chair, Roy Hughes (who has since passed), along with the other chairmen who followed him—thanks to their hard work, we’ve become the go-to source for this info. Now, every district office of ODFW and other bass clubs in Oregon know to reach out to us with new records or questions. We even share this info with the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame and the International Game Fish Association for their official record publications!
Official Records
OBPC Community Events
Take A Soldier Fishing Day
Every year, OBPC members volunteer to assist with the “Take a Soldier Fishing” Oreganization at Henry Hagg Lake. Volunteers with boats spend a fun-filled day of fishing with Veterans and Active-Duty members from any branch of the armed services and their immediate family members. Shore volunteers help with registration and set up. This is a great way to honor our veterans and active-duty military for their service to our nation.
Commonwealth Lake
Special Kids Fishing Event
Every day of fishing is special; some more than others. Our special day was Friday, May 10th with a group of High School kids at Commonwealth Lake in Beaverton. Several years ago, OBPC member Eric Apalategui with Best Fishing in America, introduced us to his special needs students through this event.
The sky was a lovely blue, the water a brownish green, and all around was a pleasant warm breeze. A perfect day to catch the one and only fish of the day. A catfish. The kids erupted with cheer and you would have thought someone had just won the Bassmasters Classic! In a way, they did. It was a “fish”.
Commonwealth will never be a Tournament Fishery, nor a pristine wilderness lake, but to these kids it was a little piece of Heaven. It was one they shared with some very special volunteers from the OBPC. Eric Apalategui, thank you for this day! Tim and Barb Dugan, Daniel Cain, Paul Ingraham, Mike Myrick and Bill Ramsour, I wish to thank you for helping some kids achieve what we just take for granted.
C.A.S.T For Kids
For those not familiar with the CAST for Kids Event, “CAST” stands for “Catch A Special Thrill”. This is an annual event at Henry Hagg Lake that provides the opportunity for kids with special needs to spend a day on the water fishing. Our Club has provided many volunteers for more than a decade.
Kids participating in this event receive a CAST for Kids tee-shirt and hat, a fishing rod and reel, a tackle box and lunch with the volunteers following their morning of fishing. Participants also receive a plaque with their photo to commemorate the day.
The number of kids able to participate is directly related to the number of Boat Captain volunteers bringing their boats. Shore volunteers help with registration and passing out tee-shirts, hats, tackle boxes and fishing rods. Experienced boat trailer driver volunteers launch and retrieve boats.
This is a fun day that you won’t want to miss! Hagg Lake parking fees are waived for this event. Volunteers enjoy lunch with the kids, boat captains receive CAST hats, and everyone receives a year’s worth of memories!
Fishing Challenges
All Species Challenge
Every fall for the last 23 years we have provided to our members an opportunity to compete against one another by holding an event we call the “All Species Challenge”. This is usually held at Scappoose Bay Marina. The goal is to catch and document 1 each of the 10 warmwater fish know to inhabit this stretch of the river. Winners are determined by a point system with each different species counting as 10 points. No team has ever caught all 10 during the event but 9 have been recorded more than once. Every year is different, so each team has to come up with their own strategy for success. The fishing is usually followed up with a hot lunch served during the weigh in. This event is a great way to make new friends and learn more about the fishery.
We have now introduced a new “Challenge” event out at Henry Hagg Lake that includes bank anglers. This event has 3 separate categories of anglers to include all members and is usually held in the spring. We know of 7 different warmwater species in this lake.
Annual Club Fishing Awards
OBPC offers its members a chance to compete against one another throughout the year with our Annual Club Fishing Contest. There are 2 categories, Boat Anglers and Bank Anglers. We also offer a Youth Division for those members under 16 years of age whose parents or grandparents are members.
When a fish is caught and properly documented, it is recorded by the club contest director and displayed on the leaderboard. At the end of the year, the first and second place winners in each category are recognized during the awards ceremony at the next year’s January meeting. Other achievements are also recognized during that meeting such as team event winners and fish caught of exceptional size for that species. The winners receive a certificate and a chance to tell the audience about their experience. All participants are then entered into a drawing for a grand prize just for participating. This is usually in the form of a gift card and is a way of thanking everyone for their participation.