Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington set spring Chinook salmon seasons for the Columbia River on Wednesday during a joint state hearing.
The lower Columbia River recreational spring Chinook season will take place from Thursday, March 1 through Saturday, April 7 from Buoy 10 upstream to Beacon Rock, plus bank angling from Beacon Rock upstream to the Bonneville Dam deadline.
Above Bonneville Dam, the recreational Chinook season was set for Friday, March 16 through Monday, May 7, with the open area extending from Bonneville Dam upstream to the Oregon-Washington border above McNary Dam. Only bank angling is allowed from Bonneville Dam upstream to the Tower Island powerlines.
The daily bag limit is two adult salmonids (Chinook, coho, or steelhead), of which only one may be a Chinook. Only adipose fin-clipped (hatchery) fish may be retained.
The 2018 seasons are based on a forecast of 248,500 spring Chinook returning to the mouth of the Columbia River. That forecast includes an expected 166,700 spring Chinook bound for areas upstream of Bonneville Dam. This year’s run prediction is slightly larger than last year’s actual return of 208,800 spring Chinook.
Columbia River spring Chinook seasons are driven by guidelines on the number of upriver-origin Chinook that can be killed; therefore, season dates can change during the season if/when guidelines are met. The lower Columbia recreational season will start with an upriver Chinook guideline of 7,157 fish. For the area from Bonneville Dam upstream to the OR/WA border, the recreational guideline is 954 Chinook. The area of the Snake River downstream of the WA/ID border has a guideline of 920 Chinook; seasons will be set by Washington at a later date.
