In the waning days before the spring opening for trout fishing, state biologist Mike Evenson often is asked for advice.

Will Howard Prairie be as good as usual? What about Diamond or Hyatt lakes? Is it better to anchor and fish bait, or troll?

Evenson typically offers some basic advice, then adds the mantra that has become as much a staple of opening day as worms and lures.

"Get dressed warm," he says. "Real warm."

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Other than that, it’s pick your pleasure Saturday for the traditional start of the spring trout season where the one guarantee is that the Southern Oregon weather will be unpredictable.

Forecasts call for cold weather and the chance of showers in the Cascades, where trout-o-philes have a string of lakes to choose from.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will stock nearly 3 million catchable trout in 300 lakes and reservoirs statewide this year, a large portion of them just in time for trout season.

Though most Oregon lakes are open year-round for trout fishing, about a quarter-million anglers still turn out for the traditional spring opener to target lakes that have been closed since Halloween.

Locally, Howard Prairie east of Ashland draws a few thousand anglers regardless of the weather — and some of the die-hard anglers consider the elements a major component of the event.

"If it isn’t snowing and blowing it isn’t any fun," says Jim Johnston of Howard Prairie Resort. "That way, people can talk about how tough the weather was for the rest of the year."

Another contingent heads north for Diamond Lake in southeastern Douglas County. ODFW recently stocked the lake with 20,000 fingerling spring chinook salmon and 5,000 Eagle Lake rainbow trout averaging 14 inches long.

Last year’s biggest trout at Diamond Lake was 9 pounds, and workers at the Diamond Lake Resort are expecting a 10-pounder in the early days of the season.

"I’ve seen quite a few large ones already just swimming around the marina," says the resort’s Chuck Clearman. Diamond Lake typically draws excellent spring angling under current conditions. "There’s fish 28 inches, if not longer, and there should be some caught real close to 10 pounds.

"Until we can actually go fishing and see what we have, we don’t know," he says.

Hyatt Lake anglers also are curious to see how many trout survived last year’s natural fish-kill caused by an algae bloom. The lake was stocked this week with 7,000 catchable rainbow trout to help offset the fish lost last summer.

Another 10,000 8-inch trout are scheduled for stocking at Hyatt in May.

Other year-round lakes such as Lost Creek, Willow, Fish and Emigrant will draw interest from anglers Saturday as part of the festivities.

Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail mfreeman@mailtribune.com