The 2017 winter steelhead fishing season is in full swing on the rainforest rivers of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula (OP). It is the first year under new sport fishing rules adopted by Washington State that prohibit harvest of wild steelhead, require use of barbless hooks and prohibit fishing with bait. Wild Steelheaders United and Trout Unlimited led the …
We Are Wild Steelheaders
Wild Steelheaders United is announcing our “We are Wild Steelheaders Month,” a celebration of wild steelhead across their native range in the Western U.S. For the next month we will be posting videos of anglers up and down the West Coast, discussing why wild steelhead matter to them. Anglers of all persuasions support better management of wild steelhead stocks. But to reach …
Re-opening the Skagit River: More Work to be Done
For years, the story of the Skagit River steelhead fishery has been one of decline and loss. But that story is on its way to becoming one of renewal. The submission of a Resource Management Plan by WDFW has breathed new life into the concept of an open catch and release season on the Skagit. While this is a …
Angler Science opportunities in Washington
It is that time of year again where we all get the opportunity to become citizen scientists on the weekend (basically, we get to have fun playing in streams). I am happy to inform you all that – like last year – TU and Wild Steelheaders United will be conducting steelhead redd surveys in Washington’s Hoh River and sharing …
How many steelhead can you fit into a school?
It depends on how old and big they are. Over the past year we have talked extensively about the value of life history diversity in steelhead, and in particular, that a broader range in spawn timing – which results in a broader range of emergence for juveniles – can help ameliorate density-related impacts by spreading steelhead of various ages …
Important salmon-producing areas protected in final Tongass National Forest Plan Amendment
December 9, 2016 Contact: Mark Hieronymus, Trout Unlimited – Alaska, mark.hieronymus@tu.org, 907-209-9770 Arne Johnson, Bear Creek Outfitters, arne@juneauflyfishing.com, 907-723-3914 PRESS KIT AVAILABLE: including b-roll footage, photos and interview footage at this link. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Important salmon-producing areas protected in final Tongass National Forest Plan Amendment Sportsmen and businesses applaud new direction for country’s largest National Forest. JUNEAU, AK – …
A solid first step
Wild Steelheaders United praises submission of new steelhead management plan, process of reopening Skagit River for catch-and-release wild steelhead angling As we head into the Thanksgiving holiday, recent developments in Washington State give wild steelhead anglers and advocates extra reason for being thankful. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has prepared a new plan for managing winter/spring …
Steelhead biology for anglers
One thing you will notice about anglers who have spent a lot of time on the water, and I mean a potentially unhealthy amount of time on the water, is they catch fish. This can be frustrating to new anglers who are just learning to steelhead fish and spend many fishless days casting. There is no substitute for time …
Time to rethink what you thought you knew about steelhead
John McMillan I bet we all think we know what a steelhead is: a rainbow trout that goes to the ocean and returns to spawn in freshwater. I agree. But, new research indicates that the definition may not be so simple. Jason Hall, a researcher with NOAA in Seattle at the Montlake Lab (Northwest Fisheries Science …
Asotin Creek – WDFW update
By Ethan Crawford, Fisheries Biologist – WDFW Asotin Creek Project An earlier blog post described the great resiliency of wild steelhead in Asotin Creek and noted that this resiliency is in part due to a combination of a variety factors: improved habitat quality, increased spill at hydroelectric facilities, good ocean conditions, and a great reduction in hatchery origin steelhead spawners, …