Current and upcoming opportunities
The Columbia River from Buoy 10 to the I-5 bridge, open to the retention of hatchery steelhead and hatchery Chinook. From the I-5 Bridge to Bonneville Dam, open for hatchery steelhead.
White sturgeon retention is closed from Buoy 10 at the mouth of the Columbia upstream to Bonneville Dam, but remains an option for catch and release.
Fishing for white sturgeon is open above Bonneville Dam.
A few winter steelhead are entering the Columbia River tributaries.
Lowland lakes have been well-stocked with catchable and some large brood trout, and are fishing very well.
A few crappie are being caught at Silver Lake. Fishing for all other warm water species is slow.
Salmon/steelhead
Columbia mainstem
The salmonid creel program on the lower Columbia has ended for the year and will resume February of 2020.
Salmon/Steelhead:
Columbia River Tributaries
Grays River – Three bank anglers kept one steelhead.
Elochoman River – 82 bank anglers kept eleven steelhead and released one coho. Six boats/14 rods kept three steelhead and released two steelhead.
Klickitat River below Fisher Hill Bridge – Five bank anglers kept two coho.
Sturgeon: no report
Walleye: no report
Trout
Fishing has been good in local lowland trout lakes. Stockings of catchable sized trout have been augmented by stockings of brood rainbows from five to ten pounds. There are still plenty of nice-sized Black Friday rainbow trout left in Klineline Pond, Battle Ground Lake, and Rowland Lake.
Recent trout stockings
Lake Sacajawea, (Cowlitz): Planted with 2,500 rainbow trout at 2.4 per pound on December 23. Planted with 1,000 rainbows at 0.8 per pound on December 19. Planted with 25 rainbows at 0.1 per pound, and 50 rainbows at 0.2 per pound on December 17.
Kokanee
Fishing for kokanee on Lake Merwin has been fair.
