Hatchery winter steelhead showed up in the catch last week in the Washougal River, plus some have returned already to Skamania Hatchery. Lewis River Salmon Hatchery has gotten its first winter steelhead of the season back.
Several angling rules change with the arrival of December on Sunday.
Grays River from the Highway 4 Bridge to the South Fork and the West Fork of the Grays from the mouth to 300 yards downstream of the hatchery road bridge open for hatchery steelhead, hatchery coho and hatchery chinook.
Mill Creek, a Cowlitz tributary, opens for hatchery steelhead from the mouth to the salmon hatchery road crossing culvert with night closures and anti-snagging rules in effect for the month-long season.
The Toutle, North Toutle and Green rivers close for hatchery steelhead and hatchery salmon. The South Fork of the Toutle closes Monday from the 4100 Bridge upstream for hatchery steelhead. The section from 4700 Bridge to 4100 Bridge remains open with selective gear rules.
The Klickitat River, except for salmon fishing downstream from Fisher Hill Bridge, closes Monday for hatchery steelhead and salmon.
Swift Reservoir is closed starting Monday. There was some decent catches at Swift last weekend.
Angler checks from the Washington (WDFW) and Oregon (ODFW) departments of Fish and Wildlife:
Mid-Columbia — Bonneville pool, two boaters with no catch. (WDFW)
John Day River arm, 46 boats with 10 steelhead kept plus 28 wild steelhead released; eight bank rods with one steelhead kept. (ODFW)
Cowlitz — Twenty-eight boaters with three adult coho kept; 96 bank rods with 25 adult coho and one jack coho kept plus four adult coho and 10 jack coho released. (WDFW)
Kalama — Three boaters with no catch; 45 bank rods with one adult coho, 17 jack coho and three steelhead released. (WDFW)
Lewis — Thirteen bank rods with no catch. (WDW)
North Fork Lewis — Forty-nine boaters with 11 adult chinook, one jack chinook, 20 adult coho and one jack coho kept plus five adult chinook and seven adult coho released; 106 bank rods with one adult chinook, four adult coho, one jack coho and one steelhead kept plus one adult chinook, three adult coho and one trout released. (WDFW)
Washougal — Thirty-one bank rods with two steelhead and two adult coho kept; 10 boaters with one adult chinook released and two steelhead kept. (WDFW)
Klickitat — Eight boaters with five adult coho kept; 10 bank rods with one adult chinook and 14 adult coho kept plus one adult chinook released. (WDFW)
