Ron Newberry
360-754-5432
rnewberry@theolympian.com
Chester Allen
360-754-4226
callen@theolympian.com
Sturgeon fishing is scheduled to reopen in the Columbia River estuary next week.
A huge surge of hatchery summer steelhead (estimated to be 1,000 fish) has returned to the Cowlitz and Lewis river facilities. As of Wednesday, hatchery-reared chinook can be kept in the Cowlitz, Kalama and Lewis rivers.
Sturgeon fishing is heating up on the lower Columbia. Sampling at Deep River and Knappton ramps last weekend showed boat anglers averaged a legal kept every five rods while bank anglers from Knappton to Chinook averaged a legal kept every 17 rods. Boat anglers fishing from the Wauna power lines to Marker No. 85 also have been catching some legals.
River fishing has been a mixture of fair to good this week.
Fishing opportunities got a lot better Sunday with the re-opening of numerous Western Washington rivers.
Summer-run steelhead fishing took a turn for the better over the weekend.
Coastal saltwater fishing has been fair in Westport and pretty good at Ilwaco.
The northern pikeminnow sport reward fishery opened May 5 in the lower Columbia and Snake rivers and will remain open through Sept. 28.
Last week, spring chinook fishing in Columbia River tributaries was a real challenge and not very productive. And it’s not looking any better this week.
Saturday's opener of Washington's lowland lake fishing season produced lower-than-normal catch rates because of cool water temperatures.
Overview
OVERVIEW
Drive along the Columbia River on any day but a Tuesday, and you’ll find masses of boats from Bonneville Dam downstream to Portland.
Anglers face short ocean salmon fishing seasons off the Washington coast this summer, and Oregon anglers might not get offshore at all this year.
Spring chinook salmon are starting to steal the angling limelight — but don’t forget about the late steelhead runs to the Cowltiz and Kalama rivers.