Tag Archives: sport reward program

Headlines

191,000-plus Pikeminnow Removed From Columbia, Snake As Reward Fishery Closes

Leave a comment

A larger Columbia Basin snowpack and bigger flows looked like they might impact this year’s northern pikeminnow sport reward fishery, but anglers did well during the just-concluded season, though brought in fewer than last year.

“So that means the 2017 season was a good, solid, above-average season, especially given the high water early in the year, which typically puts a damper on overall harvest,” notes manager Eric Winther.

THE PIKEMINNOW SPORT REWARD PROGRAM OFFERS INCENTIVES TO CATCH THE SPECIES FROM THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA UP TO TRI-CITIES, AND IN THE SNAKE FROM TRI-CITIES UP TO CLARKSTON. (PIKEMINNOW.ORG)

From May 1 through Sept. 30, 191,218 qualifying pikeminnow were brought in to check stations up and down the Columbia between Cathlamet and Tri-Cities, as well as the Snake below Clarkston.

That’s the third most over the past decade, but a drop off from 2016’s 225,350, which is the fifth most since the program’s inception in 1991 to tamp down predation by the native species on salmon and steelhead smolts migrating through the hydropower system.

The average over that period is 176,000, according to Winther. High mark is 2004’s 267,414, while the lowest was 1994’s 104,536.

Anglers are paid $5 apiece for their first 25 qualifying fish, $6 for their next 175 and $8 each for numbers 200 and beyond. The program resumes May 1, 2018.

Winther says it’ll take awhile to compile all of this year’s data, and the deadline for anglers to turn vouchers in isn’t until mid-November.

But he says it looks like last year’s top fisherman didn’t come close to matching their record haul of $119,341 from 14,019 fish.

The Dalles was the most productive station, with 44,667 qualifying pikeminnows, followed by Boyer Park at 24,037, Columbia Point at 16,227, Cathlamet at 13,386 and Washougal at 12,445.

Average catch on the season was 7.4, with a range from 11.0 at Ridgefield to 1.6 at Umatilla.

A total of 265 tagged fish worth $500 each were turned in.

Effort was 25,959 on the season.

For more details, including fishing maps, check out pikeminnow.org.

 

Headlines

Snake’s Boyer Park Tops Again For Pikeminnow Removers

Leave a comment

Boyer Park on the Snake below Lower Granite Dam maintained its grip as the most productive midsummer spot for pikeminnow for the fourth week in a row with a haul of 1,345 qualifying fish last week.

Though the July 24-30 catch is also down from the previous week, it’s still nearly 575 more than the second best station, Greenbelt, also on the Snake, where 774 were brought in for the sport reward program.

A MAP ON PIKEMINNOW.ORG SHOWS HOT SPOTS AROUND BOYER PARK, WHICH IS BELOW LOWER GRANITE DAM ON THE SNAKE RIVER. (PIKEMINNOW.ORG)

Coming in third and fourth were two Lower Columbia stations: Cathlamet, with 701, and Kalama, with 510, according to the latest figures from program manager Eric Winther.

Winther also reported that this year’s fishery will now run all the way through Sept. 30. There had been some question whether funding would be available after Aug. 31.

The week’s overall catch was 6,468, down from 7,148.

Lyons Ferry had the highest catch per angler, with 20.2 for the six participants, followed by 17.3 at Giles French and 14.2 at Beacon Rock.

The overall average per angler was 6.3 pikeminnows for 1,024 participants, up about half a fish a fisherman over the previous week.

Six specially tagged pikeminnow were turned in last week, with two at Cathlamet, and one each at Gleason, Chinook Landing, Giles French and Greenbelt.

All totaled, 127,482 qualifying pikeminnow have been removed from the Columbia and Snake since the start of season May 1.

The Dalles has been most productive, with 43,847, followed by Boyer Park at 15,399 and Columbia Point at 14,933.

Average catch is 6.9, with a range from 10.7 at The Dalles to 1.5 at Umatilla.

Just under 210 tagged fish have been turned in.

Effort is 18,548 on the season.

The sport reward program pays anglers from $5 to $8 per pikeminnow, with tagged ones worth $500. The idea is to remove the native species that preys on young salmon and steelhead in the Columbia hydropower system.

For more details, including fishing maps, check out pikeminnow.org.

Headlines

Pikeminnow Catches Dipping On Columbia, Snake

Leave a comment

Pikeminnow catches dropped by more than 1,700 last week over the previous one, with 7,148 brought to stations on the Columbia and Snake Rivers July 17-23.

That figure is also less than half of what it was a month ago but reflective of the typical seasonal lull in the fishery that pays anglers to remove the native species that preys on young salmon and steelhead in the Columbia hydropower system.

THE PIKEMINNOW SPORT REWARD PROGRAM OFFERS INCENTIVES TO CATCH THE SPECIES FROM THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA UP TO TRI-CITIES, AND IN THE SNAKE FROM TRI-CITIES UP TO CLARKSTON. (PIKEMINNOW.ORG)

For the third straight week, Boyer Park on the Snake below Lower Granite Dam retained its spot as most productive, with a haul of 1,771 qualifying fish,

That’s nearly 1,000 more than the second best station, Greenbelt, also on the Snake, where 787 were brought in, according to the latest figures from program manager Eric Winther.

Coming in third was The Dalles, with 675, then Cathlamet, on the Lower Columbia, with 622.

Giles French had the highest catch per angler, with 15.2 for the 38 participants, followed by 9.3 at Cascade Locks and 8.9 at Boyer Park.

The overall average per angler was 5.8 pikeminnow for 1,235 participants, down about a fish a fisherman over the previous week.

Eight specially tagged pikeminnow were turned in last week, up from five the week before, with three at Columbia Point, and one each at Cathlamet, Gleason, Washougal, The Dalles and Greenbelt.

All totaled, 121,014 qualifying pikeminnow have been removed from the Columbia and Snake since the start of season May 1.

The Dalles has been most productive, with 43,613, followed by Columbia Point at 14,681 and Boyer Park 14,054.

Average catch is 6.9, with a range from 11.0 at The Dalles to 1.5 at Willow Grove and Umatilla.

Just over 200 tagged fish have been turned in.

Effort is 17,524 on the season.

The sport reward program pays anglers from $5 to $8 per pikeminnow, with tagged ones worth $500.

For more details, including fishing maps, check out pikeminnow.org.

Headlines

Pikeminnow Catch Tops 100,000 For The Season So Far

Leave a comment

Pikeminnow catches have topped the 100,000-fish mark for the season as the sport reward program yielded 10,082 last week, as well as a new top station.

Anglers turned in the most fish at Boyer Park, on the Snake, taking over from The Dalles station on the Columbia, which had otherwise been most productive every week since the May 1 start of the fishery.

THE PIKEMINNOW SPORT REWARD PROGRAM OFFERS INCENTIVES TO CATCH THE SPECIES FROM THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA UP TO TRI-CITIES, AND IN THE SNAKE FROM TRI-CITIES UP TO CLARKSTON. (PIKEMINNOW.ORG)

According to the latest figures from program manager Eric Winther, 3,065 qualifying pikeminnows came in to Boyer Park from July 3-9, 1,798 to The Dalles and 1,099 to Columbia Point, near the confluence of the two rivers.

Boyer Park also had the highest catch per angler, with 16.0 for the 191 participants, followed by 11.3 at Giles French and 8.9 for The Dalles.

But The Dalles can still account for 41,851 of the 104,999 qualifying pikeminnow that have been removed from the Columbia and Snake since the start of season.

And that’s the most there since the 2006 season concluded.

Fifteen specially tagged pikeminnow were caught last week, with six of those turned in at The Dalles, three at Columbia Point, two at Cascade Locks, and one each at Kalama, Gleason, Boyer Park and Greenbelt.

The sport reward program pays anglers from $5 to $8 per pikeminnow, with tagged ones worth $500. The idea is to reduce the numbers of the native species that prey on young salmon and steelhead in the Columbia hydropower system.

For more details, including fishing maps, check out pikeminnow.org.

Headlines

Columbia-Snake Pikeminnow Program Catch Nears 70,000

Leave a comment

Pikeminnow catches ticked up over the previous week on the Columbia and Snake Rivers, with 10,950 qualifying fish brought in for the sport reward program June 12-18.

Once again The Dalles station recorded the highest number overall, with 3,915 checked, a dropoff of about 900 fish over June 5-11, but this year’s catch to date of 31,563 there has already surpassed nine of the last 10 complete seasons.

A SCREEN SHOT OF A MAP PUT TOGETHER BY THE NORTHERN PIKEMINNOW SPORT-REWARD PROGRAM SHOWS BOAT LAUNCHES AND HOT SPOTS AROUND CATHLAMET, WHERE THE LOWEST CATCH STATION ON THE COLUMBIA IS. DOZENS MORE STRETCH UPSTREAM TO PRIEST RAPIDS DAM, AND UP THE SNAKE TO CLARKSTON. (PIKEMINNOW.ORG)

Action heated up on the Snake, where Boyer Park took in 1,102 pikeminnow, while on the Lower Columbia, 899 were recorded at Kalama.

Speaking of Kalama, it saw the highest catch per registered angler of the week, with 45 fishermen accounting for those 899 pikeminnow, an average of 20.0 fish each.

Other stations seeing relatively high catch per angler include Washougal (13.7), The Dalles (12.1) and Cascade Locks (11.1).

Thirty-one specially tagged pikeminnow were caught last week, with seven of those turned in at Bingen, six each at The Dalles and Columbia Point, five at Washougal, and one each at Cathlamet, Rainier, Kalama, Gleason, Giles French, Umatilla and Boyer Park.

Since the 2017 season started May 1, 69,195 qualifying pikeminnow have been removed from the Columbia and Snake, 69,340 overall.

The sport reward program pays anglers from $5 to $8 per pikeminnow, with tagged ones worth $500. The idea is to reduce the numbers of the native species that prey on young salmon and steelhead in the Columbia hydropower system.

For more details, including fishing maps, check out pikeminnow.org, and if you’re interested in putting your angling skills to work, check out the June 22 seminar coming to Longview and put on by program leader Eric Winther.

Headlines

Pikeminnow Program Catch Nears 60,000 Since May 1; How-to Seminar Coming Up

Leave a comment

Pikeminnow catches dipped slightly last week from 2017’s top period so far on the Columbia and Snake Rivers, with 10,804 qualifying fish brought in for the sport reward program.

The Dalles station recorded the highest number overall, with 4,818 checked, a bit down from the previous week, but this year’s catch to date of 27,674 there has already surpassed three of the last six complete seasons.

THE PIKEMINNOW SPORT REWARD PROGRAM OFFERS INCENTIVES TO CATCH THE SPECIES FROM THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA UP TO TRI-CITIES, AND IN THE SNAKE FROM TRI-CITIES UP TO CLARKSTON. (PIKEMINNOW.ORG)

Columbia Point Park in Tri-Cities took in 1,191 pikeminnow and Bingen 858.

Highest catch per registered angler was at Bingen, where 56 fishermen brought in 858 pikeminnow, an average of 15.3 fish each.

Other stations seeing relatively high catch per angler include The Dalles (11.9), Washougal (9.9) and Cascade Locks (9.1).

Seventeen specially tagged pikeminnow were caught last week, with six of those turned in at Columbia Point Park, four at The Dalles, two at Cathlamet and one each at Washougal, Beacon Rock and Bingen.

Since the 2017 season started May 1, 58,245 qualifying pikeminnow have been removed from the Columbia and Snake, 58,359 overall.

The sport reward program pays anglers from $5 to $8 per pikeminnow, with tagged ones worth $500. The idea is to reduce the numbers of the native species that prey on young salmon and steelhead in the Columbia hydropower system.

For more details, including fishing maps, check out pikeminnow.org, and if you’re interested in putting your angling skills to work, check out the June 22 seminar coming to Longview and put on by program leader Eric Winther.