Brazda's Fly Fishing

WDFW NEWS RELEASE
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
600 Capitol Way North, Olympia, WA 98501-1091
http://wdfw.wa.gov/

September 3, 2010

Contact: For Hanford Reach fishery: John Easterbrooks, (509) 457-9330
For other fisheries: Jeff Korth, (509) 754-4624 

Steelhead fishing begins tomorrow (Sept. 4)
on Hanford Reach; more fisheries opening soon upriver

OLYMPIA – The first of several hatchery steelhead fisheries in the Columbia River Basin gets under way tomorrow (Sept. 4) with the opening of the Hanford Reach section of the Columbia River, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced today.

Hatchery steelhead fisheries also are scheduled to open Sept. 8 on the upper Columbia, Wenatchee, Entiat and Methow rivers. In addition, the Okanogan River will open to hatchery steelhead retention beginning Oct. 1, and the Similkameen River will open for hatchery steelhead fishing Nov. 1.   

Anglers fishing the Hanford Reach section of the Columbia River – from the Highway 395 Bridge at Pasco to Priest Rapids Dam – will have a daily limit of two adipose fin-clipped hatchery steelhead.

Anglers fishing the upper Columbia, Wenatchee, Entiat, Methow, Okanogan and Similkameen rivers will have a daily limit of four adipose fin-clipped hatchery steelhead.

On all rivers, anglers may keep only hatchery steelhead measuring at least 20 inches in length. Steelhead with an intact adipose fin must be immediately released unharmed and must not be removed from the water. Steelhead anglers must have a valid fishing license and possess a Columbia River Salmon and Steelhead Endorsement. 

Anglers will be required to retain any legal hatchery steelhead they catch until the daily limit is reached. After they have reached their daily limit, anglers must stop fishing for steelhead.

A strong run of wild and hatchery-produced steelhead returning to the upper Columbia River allowed WDFW to open the fisheries.  As of Aug. 31, about 16,600 steelhead had been counted above Priest Rapids Dam, nearly double the overall return’s 10-year average of 8,600.

The selective fisheries, which target returning hatchery fish that exceed the number needed for spawning, were approved by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Services (NOAA Fisheries). The fisheries will not impede recovery of the region’s wild steelhead, which are listed for protection under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Steelhead fisheries are carefully managed to assure that natural-origin steelhead returning to the upper Columbia River Basin survive to spawn. WDFW will closely monitor the fisheries and enforce fishing rules to ensure protection of wild steelhead.

Fishing for hatchery steelhead opens Sept. 4 at:

• Hanford Reach -From the Highway 395 Bridge at Pasco to Priest Rapids Dam. The section of the river from the Highway 395 Bridge at Pasco to the old Hanford town site wooden powerlines is scheduled to remain open through March 31. The section of the river from the old Hanford town site wooden powerlines to Priest Rapids Dam is scheduled to remain open through Oct. 22.

Areas that will be open from Sept. 8 until further notice include:

• Mainstem Columbia River -From Priest Rapids Dam to 400 feet below Chief Joseph Dam. Night closure and selective gear rules apply, except bait is allowed. Floy tagged rainbow trout may be retained.  There is no limit or minimum size on floy tagged rainbow trout.
• Wenatchee River - From the mouth to the Icicle River Road Bridge.  Night closure and selective gear rules apply.
• Entiat River -Upstream from the Alternate Highway 97 Bridge near the mouth of the Entiat River to 800 feet downstream of the Entiat National Fish Hatchery outfall. Night closure and selective gear rules apply.
• Methow River -From the mouth to the confluence with the Chewuch River in Winthrop.  Fishing from a floating device is prohibited from the second powerline crossing to the first Highway 153 Bridge. Night closure and selective gear rules apply.

Beginning Oct. 1, the Okanogan River, from the mouth upstream to the Highway 97 Bridge in Oroville, will open for hatchery steelhead. The Similkameen River, from the mouth to 400 below Enloe Dam, will open Nov. 1 for hatchery steelhead. A night closure and selective gear rules will be in effect on both rivers, which will be open until further notice.

For more information on the hatchery steelhead fisheries, check the fishing rule changes on WDFW’s website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/ .  

Awesome steelhead season is opening early as predicted this year,but with an interesting addition.

Methow River Closed to fishing from a floating device the lowers four miles! Not so much of a problem for most anglers but anglers with wading issues can’t do it even with a guide. This will effect us only occasionally but I can not help to wonder there concern with floating devices since boater etiquette was outstanding. It makes those of us who have always operated in an ethical manor wonder why, was it caused form a few bad eggs or from unknowing observers assuming things. Like a punch in the dick while being an ethical angler stuart.

WDFW NEWS RELEASE
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
600 Capitol Way North, Olympia, WA 98501-1091
http://wdfw.wa.gov/

August 11, 2010

Contacts: Pat Frazier (WDFW), 360-906-6711
               John North (ODFW), 971-673-6029

Alternative commercial fishing gears
to be tested on lower Columbia River

OLYMPIA – Starting this week, fishery managers from Washington and Oregon will test the feasibility of five types of alternative commercial fishing gears on the lower Columbia River.

Expanding on a pilot project conducted last year, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) will work with commercial salmon fishers to test purse seines, beach seines and trap nets.

In addition, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) will work with a team of commercial fishers to test commercial troll gear and tangle nets during fall chinook and coho salmon runs.

Additional types of fishing gear will be evaluated in the future.

This year’s test fishing, funded primarily by NOAA Fisheries and an Oregon legislative appropriation, will be conducted from mid-August through October at various sites downstream of Bonneville Dam.  Tests will include five purse seines, five beach seines, two trap nets, two trollers and three different types of tangle nets.

“Our shared goal is to identify and develop commercial fishing gear capable of catching large numbers of hatchery salmon, while also allowing for the safe release of wild fish,” said Pat Frazier, regional WDFW fish manager. “These tests are a critical step toward achieving that goal.” 

Gears that achieve that goal could be approved for future use on the lower Columbia River, where gillnets are now the primary gear used in commercial fisheries.  While gillnets are highly effective at catching salmon, alternative gears may increase the ability to release wild fish in good condition, Frazier said. 

“Because many wild salmon and steelhead populations are listed for protection under the federal Endangered Species Act, impact limits on these fish often curtail fisheries even when large numbers of hatchery-reared fish are available for harvest,” said John North, ODFW Columbia River Fisheries manager. 
 
Development of viable fishing gear that can selectively remove hatchery fish would not only benefit commercial fisheries, but may also contribute to the recovery of wild salmon stocks on the Columbia River by reducing interactions with hatchery fish, North said. 

In that regard, the results of last year’s pilot project were promising, said Frazier, who oversaw gear tests conducted by WDFW.  Working with a purse seine, beach seine and trap net, WDFW project members caught and sorted 884 salmon, of which only one died during handling.

“The immediate survival rate was very good, but we need to conduct further tests to determine if these, or other gear types, are viable on a commercial scale,” Frazier said. “We also need to test them in different areas and under different conditions.  That will be a major focus of this year’s tests.”  

This is a great start to having Selective harvest and sustainability in commercial fisheries, a big issue for the survival of Washington steelhead and Salmon runs!

Hello, and we are testing the blog at Jeff Brazda’s Blog.

Hoh River:
A beloved jewel. A must fish when fish-able. As soon as you start the drive through the rain forest, you know you’ve entered a special place. With the ever present Elk herd alongside the road and the long flowing moss canopies, one gets the feeling of a relatively unchanged wilderness. The Hoh has the longest boat able selective fishery section, of all the rivers I fish on the Olympic Peninsula. It even has a small “fly fish only section” in the park region. I cannot say enough about this system, and I suppose it is really the fish that make it great. It is possible to catch chrome bright 20lb steelhead here as early as December and right through the season till closing. There are a good number of bull trout inhabiting the drainage so be very careful when encountering these prehistoric predators.

The glorious thing about the Hoh is its ability to change. It has resisted mans attempt to contain it every time he tries. You can literally catch fish, where a month earlier, there was a gravel bar 4 feet high. Entire log jams move within the system, one can actually recognize logs reappearing from within gravel bars once fished, two decades before. It in itself is a testament to the tenacity within Hoh river steelhead. The Hoh with its relatively short system, 38 miles mouth to glacier, produces massive steelhead. These fish love there log jams, they can be found in the smallest side channel, holding with any sized pieces of lumber, boulder patches and undercuts. These steelhead will move up the system at any time, low water, high water, usually does not matter when they want in they go. Each season will have it’s section that fishes best as each season the holding water moves. The color of the Hoh River with its glacial beauty gives them a confidence to run and best of all to bite !

Montana Fly Fishing Page on my BRAND NEW web site at www.brazdasflyfishing.com.

I’ll be reporting on my blog as often as I can what’s happening here. Join me in Montana for a great Montana Fly Fishing Vacation. Comfortable accomodations will be available at the www.thestoneflyinn.com in Twin Bridges.