Out and About: Columbia Springs kids fishing festival set for May 12

The Columbia Trout Unlimited/Columbia Springs Kids Fishing Festival is set for May 12th from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Each child is allotted an hour time slot where they are able to fish trout stocked from Columbia Springs’ on-site hatchery with an experienced fishing mentor.

The kids are able to keep up to two fish and can join our fish dissectors to learn how to properly clean and prepare a fresh fish.

Each kid also gets sent home with a free fishing pole and trout recipe card. The event also includes a variety of educational activities and a barbecue lunch.

Columbia Springs is at 12208 SE Evergreen Hwy. in Vancouver.

Contact Kayla Dansereau (360-882-0936 ext. 230) to reserve a spot.

2018 halibut seasons to open in May

Anglers fishing for halibut in Washington waters will see a similar season structure as compared to 2017 when fishing gets underway in May.

Marine Area 1 (Columbia River) opens Thursday, May 3, and runs three days per week (Thursday, Friday and Sunday) until the subarea quota is taken or Sept. 30, whichever occurs first.

Marine Area 2 (Westport): The all-depth fishery opens May 11, 13, 25 and 27 as long as there is sufficient quota. Depending on available quota, additional fishing days may be scheduled for June 7, 9, 16, 21, 23, 28 and 30. The northern nearshore area will open on the Saturday after the all-depth fishery closes and will continue seven days per week until Sept. 30, or until the nearshore quota is reached. The all-depth fishery will be managed to 44,341 pounds; the quota for the northern nearshore fishery is 2,000 pounds.

May 23 deadline for special hunt permits

Hunters have through May 23 to apply for special hunting permits for fall deer, elk, mountain goat, moose, bighorn sheep, and turkey seasons in Washington.

Permit winners will be selected through a random drawing conducted by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) in June. Special permits qualify hunters to hunt at times and places beyond those authorized by a general hunting license.

Most special hunt permit applications cost $7.10 for residents, $110.50 for non-residents, and $3.80 for youth under 16 years of age.

The exception is the cost for residents purchasing applications for mountain goats, any bighorn sheep ram, any moose, and “quality” categories for deer and elk. Those applications cost $13.70.

Pikeminnow bounty program underway

Tuesday marks the beginning of this year’s Northern Pikeminnow Sport Reward Fishery in the Columbia and Snake rivers.

State fish and wildlife biologists have specially tagged and released up to 1,000 or more northern pikeminnow into the Columbia and Snake rivers, each worth $500. The program also pays registered anglers $5 to $8 per fish, nine inches or longer. The more fish an angler catches, the more each pikeminnow is worth. Last year the top fisherman in the program earned more than $83,000 in just five-months of fishing.