Fishing for Salmon was fantastic all through October and November! Now with the Winter Chinook coming to an end it is time to start concentrating on the up coming Winter Steelhead fishery! At this time there are a few Winter Steelhead around on the Lewis and Cowlitz Rivers, but things will not really heat up until Christmas time and all through the month of January. On the Cowlitz River there are Steelhead in decent numbers through December, but steelhead smolt plants have been redesigned for a later arrival of steelhead in March and April. There will be three times the amount of steelhead in March and April then in December and January for the Cowlitz River beginning this year and continuing into the future. Come March it’s full-fledged chrome steelhead slaying on the Cowlitz! There is another exciting fishery to discuss that is right around the corner. Beginning on Jan 1st sturgeon retention becomes available above Bonneville Dam. Sturgeon is on a major decline below the dam and WDFW officials have made a yearly limit of five sturgeons to one sturgeon per person below the dam. Close management from state officials above the dam ensures that there is plenty of sturgeon to catch in that area. This fishery is action packed with 30 to 70 fish days and full boats of keeper sturgeon is the norm. Don’t miss out on this one if you like to catch sturgeon because it doesn’t take long for anglers to reach the quota set by WDFW officials. Sadly, sturgeon have been on the decline for nearly two decades in the lower Columbia River due to many factors, but without these factors present above the dam, there are still great numbers of sturgeon in the Columbia River Gorge. Christmas is right around the corner and if you don’t know what to get your loved ones, a fishing trip is a fantastic gift idea. I would like to thank all my customers that joined me for a great year of fishing! It was fantastic to meet a lot of new people and catch up with past customers as well! Your business means the world to me and I will strive to make every fishing adventure your best ever! I would also like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Please be safe over the Holidays. See you on the river soon!
