News — Education

2017 Goes Down As One Of The Most Challenging Spring Chinook Seasons To Date

Posted April 28, 2017

Let me start this article by saying that the first person this summer that complains about it being too hot, should be tarred, feathered and drug through the streets...... I don't know what we did to tick Mother Nature off but at least all our little baby salmon are making it to the ocean at record pace. If there's food out there for them, we could be in for some great fishing in the coming ye2017ars. This 2017 main stem Columbia Spring Chinook Fishery is going to go down as one of the most challenging, temperamental, and toughest fisheries we've...

$25,000 in Prizes to Fish for Trout!

Posted April 24, 2017

Trout fishing just upped the ante in Washington State. The second Annual Statewide Fishing Derby began April 22. It will finish October 31st 2017. There is over $25,000 in prizes available - 900 tagged prize trout are available which means the more you fish - the bigger chance you have at one of the many prizes. Over 100 Lakes Statewide are involved in this Fishing Derby. View This List of Washington Lakes. (2 County Examples Below) Clark County Battle Ground Lake, Klineline Pond, Lacamas Lake Cowlitz County Horseshoe Lake, Kress Lake, Lake...

WDFW has stocked more than 16 million trout and kokanee in lakes statewide!

Posted April 13, 2017

WDFW NEWS RELEASE Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife 600 Capitol Way North, Olympia, WA 98501-1091 http://wdfw.wa.gov/April 13, 2017Contact: Steve Thiesfeld, 360-902-2662Trout stocking crews active across Washington; Preparations continue for April 22 opening dayOLYMPIA–Trout stocking crews are working to plant fish throughout the state in preparation for April 22, when several hundred lowland lakes open for a six-month fishing season.Although many lakes are open year-round, the fourth Saturday in April marks the traditional start of the lowland lakes fishing season, when hundreds of thousands of anglers are expected to turn out to fish.WDFW fish hatchery crews have been stocking more...

Columbia River Springer Fishing Extension 2017

Posted April 12, 2017

The exciting news has hit the the Pacific Northwest! The Columbia River gets a Spring Chinook Salmon Fishery Extension per the meeting from Washington and Oregon today. The fishery thus far has been hit or miss with some salmon around to be caught but this extension should prove to be the best fishing we have seen yet! Two, separate seasons have been given to us. April 13th to the 17th & April 20th to April 23rd. The water is still set to be pretty high, so make sure you concentrate on great anchor spots or look for seam lines...

Why Salmon & Steelhead Are Disappearing | Part 2 - Dams

Posted March 22, 2017

Hydroelectric DamsPerhaps the most definitive barrier to fish migration and spawning is an actual barrier. Hydroelectric dams are beneficial to human development, but devastating to fish populations. Many dams have been built with zero allowances for fish passage. This completely cuts off all spawning and rearing habitat above the dam and changes the natural flow and substrate distribution of a river.Some dams upstream in the Columbia River did not have fish passage. This destroyed populations such as the famous "June-Hog" Chinook Salmon that migrated to the upper reaches of the Columbia. These fish were genetically built and adapted so that they...

Why Salmon & Steelhead are Disappearing - Part I - Spawning Streams

Posted March 18, 2017

There are so many hurdles facing salmon and steelhead, it's a wonder there are any left. Though they are a resilient species, they are not invincible. History shows us that great abundance was the norm before fish populations started getting decimated, river by river.Photo : Jon Mueller This is Part I in a series that will detail multiple factors.All photos used by permission submitted by members of the Fishing Addicts FB GroupLewis and Clark talked about the great salmon runs they encountered when headed west. There was talk of the fish being so thick that you could walk across the...