Mid-Columbia spring chinook fishing to close

Washington and Oregon announced Tuesday they will not extend spring chinook salmon fishing in the Columbia River between Bonneville Dam and the state boundary line east of Umatilla, Ore.

Friday is the final day of salmon angling in that stretch of the river, yet due to the slow movement of chinook up the Columbia catch has been minimal. A hearing to extend the season was anticipated.

The Washington and Oregon departments of Fish and Wildlife released an announcement stating: “Although few fish have been caught in this area to date, passage of spring chinook at Bonneville Dam remains very low. The joint staff will be closely monitoring the status of the upriver spring chinook run and will recommend a hearing to consider the recreational spring chinook fishery upstream of Bonneville Dam as soon as possible.’’

Through Monday, the count for the season at Bonneville Dam was 3,816 adult spring chinook. The 10-year average cumulative count through May 1 is 63,327.

The upper Columbia-Snake spring chinook forecast is 160,400. Anglers in the lower Columbia caught 6,482 upper Columbia-Snake spring chinook in sport seasons that ended April 23.

The allocation for the stretch of the river from Bonneville Dam to the state line is 850 spring chinook.

High streamflow in the Columbia River since early March is thought to be the reason for the slow movement of salmon up the river.