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Steelhead run soon to be on the hook
Mid-Columbia anglers should be catching steelhead above the blue bridge by early November.
"Plans to open the season for the excellent run of steelhead returning to Ringold are being worked out even as we speak," said John Easterbrooks, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife's regional fish program manager in Yakima.
Easterbrooks said he'd hoped to open the season Oct. 15, but negotiations between the state and the National Marine Fisheries Services have taken longer than expected because the steelhead - both wild and hatchery - in question are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
However, Easterbrooks is confident the state and the federal government are close to hammering out the details of a season that would allow anglers to harvest two fin-clipped steelhead a day, most likely through March 31.
"The biggest hurdle we've faced this year is determining a date to open the season that would allow the largest portion of the wild run to safely pass Priest Rapids Dam," he said. "NMFS wants to be very careful that only Ringold hatchery fish will be caught, not the endangered upriver wild stock."
Easterbrooks said that waiting until at least Oct. 15 allows about 98 percent of the wild run to pass Priest Rapids.
"But it makes sense to open the season on the lower section of the Hanford Reach as soon as possible because of the exceptional run of hatchery steelhead returning to Ringold," he added.
Biologists have predicted that 6,000 to 11,000 steelhead will return to Ringold, providing a bounty for anglers. Last year, 3,000 to 4,000 fish returned to the state-operated hatchery.
Ringold steelhead, which are Wells Dam hatchery broodstock, are reared and released at Ringold and provide a backup population of eggs for the Wells hatchery.
"But we only need about 250 adult female fish to provide that safety net and we obviously are well over that figure this year," he added.
Ringold steelhead should be easy for anglers to identify as the fish have had their adipose and right ventral fin clipped at the hatchery, Easterbrooks added.
When the season opens, any steelhead caught above the blue bridge to the old Hanford townsite wooden power lines will be legal if either the adipose or ventral fin is missing.
"There may be instances where both fins were not clipped before the smolts were released," Easterbrooks added.
The fishery would be open to both boat and bank anglers, although many anglers fishing for salmon above Richland have been catching and releasing steelhead on a regular basis.
Easterbrooks said discussions between the state and NMFS also have included debate on establishing a yearly season, probably Oct. 15 through March 31, and a possible delisting of the hatchery component, a move that would give state fish managers more leeway.
However, if you can't wait until the season opens, you might want to head to the Snake River where anglers are experiencing some of the best steelheading in years, said state biologist Glen Mendel of Dayton.
Steelheaders from both boat and shore are averaging from two to six hours for every fish caught.
"Anytime we have less than 10 hours of effort per steelhead, we've got great fishing. This run of steelhead is a record one because all the contributing factors aligned - good ocean conditions, good stream conditions and good hatchery production," he said.
Moreover, because of the record run, the daily catch limit is three hatchery steelhead.
The only catch is that anglers must use barbless hooks, a problem for anglers who troll double, treble-hooked lures such as the Magnum Wiggle Wart at other locations, including above McNary Dam, where barbed hooks are permitted. Also, as the water turns colder, many anglers then fish with bobbers and shrimp on single, leadhead Rock Dancer jigs, which can be debarbed in a jiffy.
Mendel said the first-rate fishing on the Snake should continue and perhaps even improve through November and into December.
* * *
Not only is steelhead fishing gangbusters on the Snake, but now there's also a chance for anglers to reel in more than $10,000 in cash and prizes.
The Lewiston Chamber of Commerce is presenting its annual Great Snake Lake Steelhead Roundup from Nov. 17-24.
The entry fee is $20 for adults and $10 for children 12 and under.
Each $20 participant has a chance to win the grand prize of $1,000 for heaviest weeklong total, as well as free admission to the kick-off fishing seminar at 7 p.m. Nov. 16 at RiverView Marina and free admission to the concluding chili feed at 4 p.m. Nov. 24 at the Red Lion Hotel, 621 21st St., Lewiston.
Cash prizes also will be awared on a daily basis for the heaviest steelhead entered in the roundup, with $175 for the top fish. Fish must be weighed in each day before 6 p.m. to qualify for the daily award.
Tri-City anglers can register for the derby on the Internet at lewistonchamber.org.
For more information, call 208-743-3531 or 800-473-3543.
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