Fall chinook salmon returns to the Columbia River are big this year, but appear tracking short of the forecasted record-high.
Ron Roler of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife told the Columbia River Compact on Wednesday that a committee of state, federal and tribal biologists “expects the bright chinook run at Bonneville Dam to be less than forecast but the run still appears to be very large, similar to 2013.”
A year ago, the fall chinook run was 1.26 million. The forecast for this year was 1.51 million predicted to enter the Columbia, with the overwhelming majority anticipated to be the desirable bright stock headed for upstream of Bonneville Dam.
Stuart Ellis of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, chairman of the biologist committee, said the group will make a specific estimate of the chinook run on Monday.
About 200,000 fall chinook have passed Bonneville Dam in the past four days as the run is at or near its peak.
Passage is volatile enough at this time of year that it is a few days too early to make an estimate, Ellis said.
Sport and commercial fishing seasons are designed to catch chinook from the healthy chinook stocks without exceeding limitations to protect wild-spawning chinook headed for lower Columbia tributaries such as the Washougal River.
Chinook retention is closed for sportsmen at Buoy 10, the lower 16 miles of the Columbia between the mouth of the river and Tongue Point, east of Astoria.
Chinook retention closes beginning Monday between Tongue Point and Woodland.
At Buoy 10, anglers have made 82,700 trips, keeping 26,800 chinook while releasing 11,300. The coho catch at Buoy 10 through Sunday was 46,000.
Between Tongue Point and Bonneville Dam, sportsmen made 82,600 trips between Aug. 1 and Sunday. They kept 13,100 chinook, released 460 chinook, kept 6,600 steelhead, released 5,500 steelhead, kept 4,030 coho and released 2,030 coho.
Washington and Oregon on Wednesday adopted two nights of gillnet fishing. The commercials have about 40,000 chinook remaining on their allocation.
The nets will be in the river from 8 p.m. Sunday to 5 a.m. Monday and 8 p.m. Tuesday to 6 a.m. Wednesday between Woodland and Beacon Rock.
The net fleet is projected to catch 16,000 chinook and 5,000 coho during the two nights, said Jeff Whisler of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The commercials asked to have a four- to five-hour fishing period tonight, but were turned down to allow more time for the wild lower Columbia chinook to enter the tributaries.
An updated forecast and sport catch figures will be available late Tuesday. The states might meet again late Wednesday or Thursday to consider additional fishing.
