Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington added 11 additional fishing days – June 1 to June 11 – for recreational spring Chinook downstream of Bonneville Dam during a joint state hearing on Wednesday.
The spring Chinook fishery will now be open from June 1-15 downstream of Bonneville Dam, followed by the summer season beginning June 16 both above and below Bonneville Dam.
Fishery biologists with the U.S. v. Oregon Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) decreased the expected return of upriver-origin adult Chinook to 114,100 from their prior in-season projection of 118,900. Despite the decreased run size, enough harvestable fish remain within the recreational fishery allocation downstream of Bonneville to allow for more spring fishing days, given the observed May catch rates.
As of May 27, a total of 88,347 adult spring Chinook have passed Bonneville Dam, which is 81 percent of the 10-year average and 107 percent of the recent 5-year average total for this date.
Season dates, bag limits, areas for the remaining spring Chinook season follow.
Downstream of Bonneville Dam
Season: Saturday, June 1 through Saturday, June 15
Area: Tongue Point/Rocky Point line upstream to Beacon Rock (boat and bank) plus bank angling only from Beacon Rock upstream to the Bonneville Dam deadline. Go online for exact boundaries.
Daily Bag Limit: Two adult hatchery salmonids (Chinook or steelhead) per day, but only one may be a Chinook. Shad may also be retained per permanent regulations.
All other permanent regulations remain in effect, including the permanent hatchery steelhead and hatchery jack Chinook fishery downstream of the I-5 Bridge.
Anglers are reminded that from March 1 through June 15 on days when the mainstem Columbia River recreational fishery below Bonneville Dam is open to retention of Chinook, the daily salmonid bag limit in Oregon and Washington Select Areas will be the same as mainstem Columbia River bag limits.
