Tag Archives: Fall chinook run

Promising forecast for fall chinook run on Columbia River

After record-high temperatures and drought decimated summer fisheries, Ervin Leslie only hopes that fish biologists are on the mark in forecasting the fall chinook run now under way as the fifth-largest in recent history. More than 925,000 fall chinook are expected to return to the Columbia River. The largest run number of 1,175,700 was in 1941. But that’s not the only bounty in the forecast. Other healthy runs anticipated include about 200,000 coho and a summer steelhead run estimated to reach about 300,000 by the time it ends later this month. Read the rest here 16:51

Fall chinook run shaping up to be third largest in modern era

Fishery managers with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife are predicting an estimated return of 900,200 adult fall chinook. It would be the third largest return on record dating back to 1938. Returns in 2013 — a total of 1.2 million adults — remain the highest on record. Last year, the second highest return, came out to 1.1 million adults. Commercial and recreational fishermen alike reported an amazing season last year and Pacific County, Wash., ports were clogged with boats coming and going. Read the rest here 11:54

Fall chinook run breaking all records heading up the Columbia River

“Fish have been counted at Bonneville Dam since it began operating in 1938, but we have never seen numbers like the 68,000 chinook that passed the dam Sept. 9,” said Ben Hausmann, senior fish biologist at Bonneville. “The highest number we have in our records was just more than 47,000 on Sept. 11, 2003.” Read the rest here  See them migrating through the ladder at Bonneville Dam’s counting stations here  09:43