June 30, 2000
Contact: WDFW Public Affairs, (360) 902-2259

• Sockeye are one of five species of salmon native to Washington. Adult sockeye typically weigh five to seven pounds. The fish returning to Lake Washington are bound for the Cedar River and other streams feeding the lake, to spawn and complete their life cycle.
  
  
• An unusually large run of returning sockeye has created a surplus of fish, allowing a fishery to be held in Lake Washington for the first time since 1996. While scientists are uncertain about the exact reasons for the strong run, favorable ocean and weather conditions, recent fish passage improvements at the Chittenden Locks in Ballard and artificial supplementation all are believed to play a role. Past years' stream flooding, which can wash away salmon eggs, also creates variations in run size from year to year.
  
  
• Biologists have determined that 350,000 sockeye must survive to spawn in order for a healthy run to be maintained. Surplus fish above that number are available for tribal and state harvest.
  
  
• State and tribal scientists will closely monitor the sockeye fishery as it progresses to ensure that conservation and allocation requirements are met.
  
  
• Since mid-June, biologists with the Muckleshoot Tribe and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) have been counting returning sockeye as they pass the locks. Those daily counts along with other information on sockeye are available on the WDFW website.
  
  
• The sockeye fishery will not affect ongoing efforts to recover Puget Sound chinook, listed under the federal Endangered Species Act as a threatened species. Most chinook do not return to the lake in significant numbers until mid-August.
  
  
• For anglers who plan to take part in the upcoming Lake Washington sockeye fishery, here are a few tips from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to increase the odds of heading home with a salmon:
  
  
  • Fish by trolling, preferably from a boat equipped with a trolling motor
    
    
  • Go very slow. The most successful sockeye fishing is done at a dead-slow pace
    
    
  • Use a rig consisting of a bare 3/0 hook colored red or black (in a pinch, use a waterproof marker to color a plain hook), about 18 inches of 15 to 20-pound leader and a 0 or 00 dodger/flasher. For weight, use about four to 6 ounces of lead or a "diver" 24 inches in front of the dodger.
    
    
  • Fish at depths of 50 to 80 feet. Morning fishers should start at 50 feet, and drop down as light intensifies through the day.
    
    
  • Try spots that historically have been successful for catches including:
    
    
    • The Seward Park Channel, toward the Mercer Island side
      
      
    • Near the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge (Note that fishing is closed within 100 yards of the bridge)
      
      
    • Southwesterly from the southern tip of Mercer Island
      
      
    • In the east channel between Mercer Island and Beaux Arts area on the eastern shore of the lake
      
      
    • Off the Leschi and Madrona areas north of the Interstate 90 Bridge
      
      
  • Remember the rules: There is a two-fish daily limit; fish must be at least 15 inches in length; fishing is allowed in daytime hours only, from one hour before official sunrise to one hour after sunset.
    
    
  • Fishing is allowed only in waters south of the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge except for the following areas which are closed:
    
    
    • Waters within 100 yards south of the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge
      
      
    • Waters within 100 yards of the Interstate 90 floating bridge
      
      
    • Waters within 1,000 feet of the mouth of the Cedar River
      
      
  • Watch for closures. In order to coordinate recreational fishing and tribal commercial fishing, there will be brief closures to the sport fishery throughout July. The non-tribal sport fishery will be closed for the season when the non-tribal allocation is reached. For the latest information, check the WDFW fishing rule change hotline at (360) 902-2500, press 2 for recreational rules.
    
    

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