Creel Survey
February 8, 2009
Contributed by Joe Hymer

Latest Southwest Washington Sport Sampling Summaries [PDF Format]

Salmon/steelhead

Cowlitz River - No report on angling success. The first 6 late-run winter steelhead had returned to the salmon hatchery as of Feb. 4.

Lower Columbia below Bonneville Dam - No salmonid bank anglers were found from Longview downstream during one day of sampling last week.

The first commercial spring Chinook of the year have been landed--with three caught during the February 3 - 4 fishing period, and two more landed during the February 5 - 6 fishing period.

Bonneville and The Dalles Pool - Light boat effort in both pools and no catch was sampled.

Columbia River coho ocean abundance forecasts are now available (see attached). Just over a million fish are expected in 2009. If accurate, it would be almost double last year's actual abundance.

Sturgeon

Lower Columbia below Bonneville Dam - Slow. 10 bank anglers in the Longview area and 8 just below Bonneville had no catch.

Bonneville Pool - Bank anglers were catching some legals. Light effort and no catch from the few boats sampled. Through January, an estimated 17 (2%) of the 700 fish guideline had been taken.

The Dalles Pool - Slow for legal size fish last week. An estimated 69 (23%) of the 300 fish guideline had been taken through January.

Walleye and Bass

Bonneville and The Dalles pools - Boat anglers were catching some walleye in both pools. A couple bank anglers fishing for bass in The Dalles Pool had no catch.

Trout

Plants of rainbows Feb. 2-4:

• Horseshoe Lake in Woodland - 40 brood stock averaging 5 pounds each.
• Battleground Lake - 149 brood stock averaging 5 pounds each.
• Spearfish Lake near Dallesport - 1,100 catchables and 40 five pound brooders.
• Rowland Lake near Lyle - 3,007 catchable size.

Smelt

Lower Columbia River water temperatures have been at, or just under, 40 F during the past two weeks resulting in slowing commercial landings. There were no commercial smelt landings during the February 2nd and February 5th fishing periods. A total of 4,021 pounds have been landed so far this season.