Fishing: The signs of fall are everywhere in the Columbia River Basin, and they aren't confined to falling leaves and chilly mornings. As experienced anglers know, this is the time of year when:
- Catch rates for sturgeon start to eclipse those for salmon on the lower Columbia River.
- Chrome-bright late coho start to take the place of early runs in the mainstem Columbia and its tributaries.
- All or part of several key tributaries are closed to retention of chinook salmon to avoid interfering with spawning fish.
"This is truly a time of transition for area fisheries," said Joe Hymer, a WDFW fish biologist. "The summer season is morphing into fall, with a whole new set of fishing opportunities."
Salmon fishing in the mainstem Columbia River has also been holding up well between the lower end of Bachelor Island near the mouth of the Lewis River upriver to Bonneville Dam. In that area, boat anglers have been averaging one adult chinook for every six rods. Anglers there may retain up to two adult chinook salmon as part of their daily limit.
Anglers fishing the mouths of the Cowlitz and Toutle rivers have been picking up good numbers of hatchery coho, and those fishing the Cowlitz near the trout hatchery have been catching some nice sea-run cutthroat as well. Bank anglers fishing the North Fork Toutle have been averaging an adult hatchery coho for every two rods. The Lewis River has also been productive for hatchery coho, as has the Kalama River. Anglers must release all chinook salmon caught on the Lewis River and all adult chinook on the Kalama. The same is true for unmarked coho, which must be released in all fisheries downriver from the Hood River bridge.
Tacoma Power released 775 coho salmon and 96 jacks into the upper Cowlitz River at the Skate Creek Bridge over the Cowlitz River in Packwood, along with 287 adult coho and 23 jacks into the Cispus River during the week ending Sept. 28. In addition, 257 adult chinook and 138 jacks were released at the Ike Kinswa State Park boat launch at Mayfield Lake.
Trout anglers might want to try the Swift Reservoir on the Lewis River at this time of year, Hymer said. "The lake was planted late and the water temperature is cooling," he said. "This should be a good time to hit it."
Fishing for hatchery coho should pick up in the weeks ahead as more late-run fish move in from the ocean, Hymer said. "Late-run coho are showing up at the mouths of several tributaries to the Columbia River," Hymer said. "Once we get some rain, those fish will start moving and wind up in creels throughout those rivers." The Cowlitz and Lewis rivers are good prospects for late-run hatchery coho, he said. In addition, early run fish should be on the move in the Grays and Elochoman rivers after the next rain.
Above Bonneville Dam, boat anglers have been catching some chinook salmon, with most of the effort concentrated around the mouth of the Klickitat River. The Klickitat, both inside and outside the mouth, should remain good for chinook salmon as well as coho salmon in the weeks to come, Hymer said.
Plenty of salmon anglers have been fishing Grays Harbor (Marine Area 2.2) and the lower Chehalis River since the Sept. 16 opener, but the catch has been low, said Scott Barbour, WDFW fish biologist. "So far there have been one or two good days on the lower Chehalis, which is typical for this time of year," Barbour said. "Hopefully we'll get some rain to bring in more fish and move them upriver." While some adult coho are showing up, most of the fish have been jacks, he said.
Fishing on the upper Chehalis River is now under way, Barbour said. "Through Oct. 15, anglers may retain one wild coho as part of their six-fish daily limit, but all chinook and chum must be released," he said. Starting Oct. 16 only hatchery coho may be retained on the river.
