John Day Pool Sturgeon Retention Closing After Thursday

THE FOLLOWING IS A PRESS RELEASE FROM THE OREGON DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE

Thursday, March 13 will be the last day to retain sturgeon in the John Day Pool (mainstem Columbia River from John Day Dam upstream to McNary Dam and adjacent tributaries).

Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington made the decision today after determining that the harvest guideline in this reach will be met soon. The projected kept catch expectation in the John Day Pool fishery through March 13 is 95 fish (90 percent of the guideline).

As a reminder to anglers, recreational sturgeon retention fisheries in Bonneville and The Dalles pools closed earlier this year.

Sturgeon anglers should also be aware that a sturgeon retention fishery is not planned this year in the lower river downstream of Bonneville Dam, as population monitoring continues to find low numbers of legal-size fish.

Catch-and-release sturgeon fishing remains open in the mainstem, except all angling for sturgeon is prohibited May 1-Aug. 31 within sanctuary areas below each of the dam tailraces. See the permanent regulations for details, https://www.eregulations.com/oregon/fishing/columbia-river-zone