Southwest Washington
Fishing Reports
2003 Report Archive
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WDFW Sport Sampling Results:
April 20, 2003
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Salmon/Steelhead -
Cowlitz River - Continues to produce hatchery spring chinook and a few hatchery winter steelhead for bank anglers spread throughout the river. Flows below Mayfield Dam were 8,240 cfs today.
Kalama River - For April 6-12: 169 bank anglers kept 2 summer and 1 winter hatchery steelhead and 7 hatchery spring chinook plus released 6 wild steelhead. 123 boat anglers kept 2 summer hatchery steelhead and 19 hatchery spring chinook plus released 8 wild steelhead and 1 spring chinook.
Lewis River - Anglers are find hatchery spring chinook and a few hatchery steelhead spread throughout the river. Flows below Merwin Dam were 3,470 cfs today.
Wind River - Last week boat anglers averaged a chinook per about every 3 rods. Spring chinook are also being caught in the gorge (from Shipherd Falls downstream to slackwater). Around 120-150 boats at the Wind on Saturday April 19. There can be a hundred or so boats on weekdays.
Drano Lake - Last week, catch rate was similar to Wind River, about a chinook per every 3 boat anglers. Bank anglers averaged one per every 4.6 rods. Effort is lighter than Wind River with a peak count of 68 boats on Friday April 18.
White Salmon River - Spring chinook are being caught here "off and on". Flows were 1,340 cfs today.
Klickitat River - Producing a few spring chinook per opener. Flows at Pitt were 1,960 cfs today.
Lower Columbia from the I-5 Bridge downstream - We sampled over 1,700 anglers last week with 231 adult chinook handled. Including jacks and fish released, boat anglers averaged a chinook per every 6.2 rods while bank anglers averaged one per every 16.0 rods. Best catch was for boat anglers in the Cathlamet area (a fish per every 3.6 rods). 70% of the fish handled were hatchery fish. 68% of the fish kept were of lower river origin.
On Saturday April 19, there were more boats counted in the Willamette and Clackamas rivers (1,188) than in the mainstem Columbia (1,037).
Today, the Technical Advisory Committee upgraded the upriver spring chinook forecast to 193,000 fish. The pre-season forecast was 145,300. The Oregon and Washington departments of fish and wildlife will have a telephone conference tomorrow (April 22) at 10 AM to update stock status, review the sport fishery, and consider possible modifications to the mainstem sport fishery.
Through April 12, an estimated 122,659 angler trips have produced 12,191 chinook kept and 7,296 released.
Bonneville Pool - Including fish released, boat anglers from the Highway 197 Bridge downstream to the Tower Island power lines (about 6 miles downstream) averaged a chinook per every 6.2 rods last week.
The Dalles Pool - Including fish released, boat anglers averaged a chinook per every 2.9 rods while bank anglers averaged one per every 4.1 rods last week.
John Day Pool - Last week, bank anglers averaged a chinook per every 5.9 rods while boat anglers averaged one per every 9.4 rods, including fish released.
Walleye and Bass -
Bonneville Pool - Including fish released, boat anglers averaged nearly 3 bass per rod last week. No in-sample effort for walleye was found.
The Dalles Pool - Boat anglers averaged 2 walleye and 19 bass per rod counting fish kept or released last week.John Day Pool - Boat anglers averaged 2 bass per rod last week. An average of one in 10 boat anglers caught a walleye.
Trout -
Riffe Lake - Bank anglers are catching some landlocked coho and steelhead. The reservoir was reported 15.3 feet below full pool today.
Recent releases of catchable size rainbows last week:
Kress Lake near Kalama - 2,000
Swofford Pond near Mossyrock - 3,200
Odds and Ends
Deep River - A 20 pound striped bass was caught in the select area commercial fishery there last week. The catch was confirmed by a WDFW biologist.