SW WA, Columbia, Hanford Reach Fishing Reports (3-3-21)

THE FOLLOWING FISHING REPORTS WERE FORWARDED BY BRYANT SPELLMAN AND PAUL HOFFARTH, WDFW

Preliminary Washington Columbia River mainstem and tributary sport sampling summary February 22-28, 2021

Fishery Reports: 

Lower Columbia mainstem from Bonneville to Astoria – 31 salmonid boats and 36 Washington bank rods were tallied during Saturday’s (2/27) effort count. 

Mainstem Columbia River 

Salmon/Steelhead: 

Sec 4 (Vancouver) – 2 boats/3 rods had no catch. 

Sec 5 (Woodland) – Six bank anglers had no catch. 1 boat/2 rods had no catch.

The Dalles Pool – 1 boat/3 rods released two steelhead. 

Sturgeon: 

Walleye: 

Bonneville Pool – 1 boat/2 rods had no catch. 

The Dalles Pool – Six bank anglers kept one walleye. 7 boats/12 rods kept 11 walleye and released two  walleye. 

John Day Pool – 22 boats/46 rods kept 18 walleye and released five walleye. 

Columbia River Tributaries 

Salmon/Steelhead: 

Cowlitz River – I-5 Br downstream – 114 bank rods kept eight steelhead. 1 boat/2 rods had no catch.  

Above the I-5 Br – 72 bank rods kept seven steelhead and released one steelhead. 78 boats/265 rods  kept 40 steelhead and released two steelhead.

Columbia River Steelhead Fishery Update (McNary Dam to Hwy 395)

On November 1 several sections of the Columbia River including McNary Dam upstream to the Highway 395 Bridge opened for steelhead fishing. The fishery is scheduled to remain open through March 31. The daily limit is one hatchery steelhead. Night closure remains in effect. Barbless hooks are required when fishing for steelhead in the Columbia River downstream of the WA/OR border. Spring chinook fisheries have been announced for the Columbia River and many tributaries. Check the WDFW website for full details (current regulation attached).

There was very little effort in February; likely the result of snowfall and high winds. Catch and harvest was very slow. Boat anglers averaged 8 hours per steelhead in February but took 127 hours per hatchery steelhead. No catch or harvest was observed from the bank anglers.

WDFW staff interviewed 27 boat anglers (12 boats) and 19 bank anglers in February to estimate catch and harvest. WDFW estimates there were 169 angler trips in February (99 bank, 71 boat) with 3 hatchery steelhead harvested. In addition to hatchery steelhead harvested, 3 hatchery steelhead and 34 wild steelhead were caught and released.  Steelhead were roughly a 50:50 mixture of A-run and B-run.

For the fishery there have been 4,368 angler trips for steelhead with 217 steelhead harvested and 804 steelhead caught and released.