WDFW Sport Sampling Results:
March 6-12, 2006

Latest Southwest Washington Sport Sampling Summaries [PDF Format]

Salmon/Steelhead -

Cowlitz River - Bank anglers from Camelot downstream are catching later winter run steelhead. I-5 upstream - 15 anglers had no catch. During the past week, Tacoma Power employees recovered 101 winter-run steelhead and seven spring Chinook salmon adults during four days of separator operations at the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery. Due to icy and snowy road conditions no adults were hauled during the week.

River flows at Mayfield Dam are approximately 6,060 cubic feet per second on Monday, March 13. Water visibility is 8 feet.

Kalama River - Anglers are catching late winter run steelhead. Some spring chinook are also being report caught.

Lewis River - Effort is generally light but some spring chinook are being caught.

Under permanent regulations to protect spawning steelhead, March 15 is the last day to fish on several lower Columbia River tributaries. Those streams include: Abernathy, Cedar, Germany, Gobar, Mill (Cowlitz Co.), Rock (Skamania Co.), Salmon (Clark Co.), Skamokawa creeks and Coweeman, Elochoman, Grays, E.Fk. Lewis, Washougal rivers.

Wind River from Shipherd Falls downstream to boundary line/markers and Drano Lake - Will open to fishing for hatchery chinook and hatchery steelhead beginning March 16. Night closures and non-buoyant lure restrictions will be in effect. Expect the fishery to start slowly as no chinook had been counted at Bonneville Dam through March 3.

Lower Columbia from the I-5 Bridge downstream - Last week we sampled 357 salmonid anglers (including 147 boats) with 15 chinook kept and 4 released. Boat anglers averaged a chinook kept/released for every 16.8 rods; no catch was observed from the bank. Chinook catch was scattered throughout the river.

79% of the fish caught were adipose clipped. 87% of the fish kept were lower river stock based on Visual Stock Identification.

During the same period in 2005, boat anglers averaged a chinook kept/released per every 37 rods based on the 900 anglers sampled, or about ½ this year's catch rate. In 2004, anglers averaged a chinook per every 14.6 rods, similar to last week's catch rate.

Yesterday (Sunday March 12) a total of 235 boats plus 168 OR and 49 WA salmonid bank anglers were counted from I-5 Bridge downstream during the ODFW flight. No comparison was available to last year; in 2005, the flight was on Saturday which is typically a higher effort day. In 2004, a similar Sunday flight was made and 534 boats, 480 OR and 163 WA bank anglers were counted, substantially higher than yesterday's count.

A 38-pounder was reported caught near Woodland last week. I'm trying to get pictures. In addition, GI-Joe's in Vancouver reports a 32-pounder was weighed in March 10.

In February 2006, an estimated 2,500 salmonid angler trips produced a catch of 21 spring chinook and 19 steelhead kept.

Bonneville Pool - No effort for salmonids was observed.

The Dalles Pool - Boat anglers are catching some steelhead.

John Day Pool - Bank anglers are catching some steelhead.

Tower Islands (located approximately 6 miles below The Dalles Dam) upstream to McNary Dam opens to fishing for hatchery chinook and hatchery steelhead beginning Thursday March 16.

Ringold - (From Paul Hoffarth, WDFW Fish Biologist) - With the return of warmer sunny weather, angler activity at Ringold has picked up. We had 94 anglers out fishing this past weekend (46 boat, 48 bank). Catching is improving as well. Anglers are averaging 8.5 pole hours per steelhead (1 steelhead for every 2.5 anglers). Bank anglers are doing slightly better than boat anglers. Fishery will be open to bank and boat anglers through the end of March and then "bank only" from April 1 to April 15. No spring chinook fishery at Ringold is scheduled for this year.

Sturgeon -

Lower Columbia below Bonneville Dam - Slow for legal sized fish. An estimated 29 legals were kept from 4,100 angler trips in February 2006.

Bonneville and John Day pools - Boat anglers are catching some legals

The Dalles Pool - Bank anglers are catching some legals.

Walleye and Bass-

Bonneville and The Dalles pools - Boat anglers averaged a walleye kept per rod. Little to no effort observed for bass.

John Day Pool - Boat anglers averaged a walleye per every 3 rods when including fish released. About half the fish were released. Boat anglers were also catching some bass.

Trout -

Recent trout plants -

• Klineline Pond - 1,000 rainbows weighing two-thirds pound each and 3,500 smaller size browns March 6-8.
• Lacamas Lake - 6,000 rainbows weighing over one-half pound each and 7,200 smaller size browns March 6-8.

Smelt -

Mainstem Columbia - Observers monitoring Cathlamet area fishers participating in Sunday’s (March 5) tangle-net test fishery reported some smelt bycatch. Smelt may also be as far upstream in the mainstem as the Lewis River/St. Helens area based on recent bird activity. The Columbia River is running about 42º downstream of the Cowlitz River.

• 0 lbs March 6th (0 lbs/delivery) 0 lbs March 2nd (0 lbs/delivery)
• 13,221 lbs Cumulative since late-December (includes a more complete accounting).

Cowlitz River - Flow is typical for this time of year. Tributary water temperatures have warmed to the mid-40º range.

Sport: No reports of smelt dipped on Saturday, March 4th.
Commercial: No landings reported to date.

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