Good job WDFW on mandatory hatchery steelhead retention on the ronde!

[huntnnw]

So now people by law will have to keep hatchery steelhead !  looks like all my fish will be wild! What a joke! Unless limits are limitless

[huntnnw]

I'm there to catch and release! Not there to eat the other white meat and be done fishing in a hour! So they are forcing people to waste game fish ? Isn't that illegal ?

[huntingcl]

Just be happy they're still planting hatchery fish...(for now)

[huntnnw]

There has been for a long time ! This whole fishery is based on hatchery returns ! There would be no fishery if it wasn't for the hatcheries ! Absolutely stupid ! Been fishing that river every year for 26 years ! I fish with people who have fished it longer than every year. All have said good luck enforcing it. I don't drive 3 hrs and set up camp to fish 1 hr a day. Better be retain all hatchery fish then

[CementFinisher]

tag

[Skillet]

Just be happy they're still planting hatchery fish...(for now)

there are many folks, some on here even, that would prefer you don't even get to fish steelhats there at all.   
Catch and release to your hearts content, IMO. "What? No, you must be mistaken. That fish looked like it had an adipose fin to me."
I hope the new director can corral some of the anti-hatchery efforts that seem to have gained traction in this state.  The anti-hatchery movement is more damaging to the average sportsman than the anti-baiting movement by far.  No baiting = you can still hunt, but a method has been taken from you. No hatcheries = No more fishing. Can't afford to risk hooking one of the inevitably failing native stocks...
Maybe take up sea lion watching instead.

[Ridgeratt]

So whats the chance the hatchery has already got more than enough steelhead eggs.

I'm just saying!!!

[Mfowl]

So now people by law will have to keep hatchery steelhead !  looks like all my fish will be wild! What a joke! Unless limits are limitless

I hope I see you on Rugged Justice explaining why you released a hatchery fish! 

Really though, I doubt LE is gonna be crackin down on this one. Fish on! 

[Skillet]

So now people by law will have to keep hatchery steelhead !  looks like all my fish will be wild! What a joke! Unless limits are limitless

I hope I see you on Rugged Justice explaining why you released a hatchery fish! 

Really though, I doubt LE is gonna be crackin down on this one. Fish on! 

  I can just see it now -Cenci and the swat team taking down Huntnw on the bank for releasing a fish while in the background you see some dudes using their truck's hood for a rest to poach a couple of does to sell.  But since nobody cares about deer and elk anyway...

[huntnnw]

 

[huntnnw]

What about the guides? Its gotta hurt them there are people that pay to fish not to go hook 2 or 3 hatchery steelhead and be done.

[BigGoonTuna]

i really hate these type of regs.  if it's so important to get rid of these fish, then remove the limit on them.  no sense in making people keep fish they don't want.

i fish because i enjoy fishing.  i also like to eat fish, but i hate being told i have to keep them regardless if i want to bring something home or not.

[NWBrute]

Hey Hunt

I see this is the case for the Tucannon, but I can not find anything regarding the Ronde. Did I miss an update or do you have inside info??

Brute

[ELKBURGER]

So now people by law will have to keep hatchery steelhead !  looks like all my fish will be wild! What a joke! Unless limits are limitless

I hope I see you on Rugged Justice explaining why you released a hatchery fish! 

Really though, I doubt LE is gonna be crackin down on this one. Fish on! 

  I can just see it now -Cenci and the swat team taking down Huntnw on the bank for releasing a fish while in the background you see some dudes using their truck's hood for a rest to poach a couple of does to sell.  But since nobody cares about deer and elk anyway...

And if you zoom in on that truck, it most likely is from an Idaho Rez.....

[pd]

HuntNNW: I honestly have no idea why you are so upset.  (I haven't fished for steelhead in decades, and I have zero knowledge of this issue.)  If you are just ranting, then carry on, but if you have a moment, please explain the problem, and why you think there is a better way.   

[JimmyHoffa]

HuntNNW: I honestly have no idea why you are so upset.  (I haven't fished for steelhead in decades, and I have zero knowledge of this issue.)  If you are just ranting, then carry on, but if you have a moment, please explain the problem, and why you think there is a better way.   

After he catches his limit he is done for the day.  So if he gets there at butt crack of dawn and catches a limit of little steelhead on the first few casts--it's a day.  Has to keep them and stop fishing.  If cnr was allowed, he could fish all day long until he got tired of cnring.

[buglebuster]

Reminds me of when I used to fish the methow and they had that rule. What a joke! We always released them anyways. Had one local come to our truck and freak out on us saying he watched us in his spotting scope release hatchery fish. We politely told him to F off and tried to leave. He stood in front of the truck and said he was calling the wdfw. We laughed at him and said go for it, how can the make me keep a fish lol. Asked him one more time to step away from the truck and he didn't so my buddy started driving forward and forced/pushed him out of the way. Some people haha.

[JimmyHoffa]

Yeah, when you are unhooking them they wiggle and slip out of your hands and back into the river.  Darn!

[Forks]

Why not keep on fishing for "trout" after your limit of steelies?

[jackelope]

What about the guides? Its gotta hurt them there are people that pay to fish not to go hook 2 or 3 hatchery steelhead and be done.

Back in the day not long after I 1st moved here from back east and had little to no knowledge of steelhead fishing out west, I booked a guide trip on the Rhonde for a summer time trout trip. While we were fishing, I learned basically what we were catching were steelhead smolts. 8-14" rainbows....we caught a metric ton of them. Every 3rd or 4th cast we'd hook a fish. Probably caught 60 fish that day. How does that play into this scenario....?? I didn't feel very good about catching all those smolts after the fact  but anyway...what's done is done.
Dumb law.

[timberfaller]

  last known "REAL" wild steelhead/salmon was back in 1992, everything since then, has roots(genes) to hatchery fish!

When the every first hatchery was built, spelled the end of "wild" fish.

What the Feds and state calls "wild" are fish that were not trapped(quota's met)at hatchery's and allowed to continue up stream and do their thing.

And people are so worried about "genetically" altered plant food!!

Also there has NEVER been a 100% clip of the released fish,  the best is like 96% but usually runs around 92%.

[steeleywhopper]

 Don't complain, we wont have ANY hatchery steelhead to retain in the North end rivers here in a year or two. I'm sure the WDFW can gladly stop or screw up your fishing as well. Keep the white meat nasties and bury them in the garden.....

[WSU]

last known "REAL" wild steelhead/salmon was back in 1992, everything since then, has roots(genes) to hatchery fish!

When the every first hatchery was built, spelled the end of "wild" fish.

What the Feds and state calls "wild" are fish that were not trapped(quota's met)at hatchery's and allowed to continue up stream and do their thing.

And people are so worried about "genetically" altered plant food!!

Also there has NEVER been a 100% clip of the released fish,  the best is like 96% but usually runs around 92%.

That's flat wrong.  It varies by river and stock, but there's genetic testing saying that you are wrong.

As for the reg, I can see both sides of the coin.  They want the hatchery fish gone so they don't stray and spawn with wild fish.  Makes sense to require they be kept.  If that truly is the goal, we ought to be able to keep more hatchery fish unless their is a concern that the added time on the water will cause too much release mortality.  Why not make it a 6 fish limit and require they be kept? 

[SteelheadDC]

This is unbelievable I kept one of those fish when I was a poor undergrad at WSU took it back to my apartment and my roomates didn't like it, and they ate tons of duck I shot on the snake.  Me and my old college buddies still go there in the spring for guy time and to catch some skinny steelhead, and wouldn't even think of keeping one.  Give me the ticket

[_TONY_]

The argument of "these fish came from hatchery fish" doesn't matter.... Hatchery fish used were skamania stocks (a Columbia trib stock) and were genetically very similar to most summer steelhead in river.

When most rivers were closed down to rebuild summer steelhead stocks, with the help of hatchery fish,it was enough time for the run to naturally weed out fish that were poor spawners and fish that were genetically inferior etc... Over time only the best spawned and reproduced. Those fish were so successful, that the rivers were opened back up for recreational fishing oppurtunities. Historically, this doesn't happen when a run is functionally extinct.

This rule is to help prevent cement pond, food pellet raised hatchery steelhead from reaching the redds and to further strengthen the run.

This tactic is also set in place to prevent impacts on gravel born steelhead via hook and line. Keeps them from turning into huge pin cushions.

[TheHunt]

To be honest part of me likes it.  As to keep the rotation of people in a hot hole.   When a river has too many fishermen hitting it this is a method to get everyone an opportunity. 

I think if one catching fish after fish and not allowing others a rotation into the hole will result in the people waiting to video them and use that against the non conformist.   

[BigGoonTuna]

honestly, how often have you come across that in a real life situation?  look at places like the skokomish river, mandating anglers keep their first 2 fish and quit has done nothing to cut the pressure down.

[TheHunt]

I know they are considering bait only and your have to keep your fish on the Skok.  I think that would be a great fishery.  Skookumchuck I have never caught a limit in a day of fishing. 

[huntnnw]

Article was in the spokesman review.. Tried copying it but it wouldnt post .

Steelhead is a sport fishery! Versus the salmon fishery where guys almost always retain there fish hell I do. I'm not keeping these nasty white mushy meat fish ! I'm there to have fun and catch fish! If they want fish restained it needs to be limitless! Oh and the lower 2.5 mi is still catch and release! This state is so screwed up they have no idea what they are doing .

You can't trout fish if u have reached a limit on the river.

[WSU]

Do you know why the lower river is closed?

[huntnnw]

Same rules as always on the lower. Makes no sense the whole point to keeping the fish is they don't want them way up river.

There is no real wild steelhead on this river.

[fish vacuum]

Steelhead is a sport fishery!

Incorrect. The upper Columbia steelhead fishery is allowed by the feds. In their eyes, angling is strictly a tool to remove hatchery fish. That's how it works on the upper Columbia tribs I'm familiar with.
If anglers choose to release hatchery fish and claim they were wild, then the managers will believe anglers are no longer needed as a tool and the fishery will close.

[huntnnw]

the whole point of hatcheries is for people to go fish, if people didnt fish that particular river there would be no hatcheries. Fishing isnt all about keeping the fish! The money generated by guys like me and others is huge to the area. Some days down there in March there is near 300 people fishing a 8 mi stretch.

[_TONY_]

the whole point of hatcheries is for people to go fish, if people didnt fish that particular river there would be no hatcheries. Fishing isnt all about keeping the fish! The money generated by guys like me and others is huge to the area. Some days down there in March there is near 300 people fishing a 8 mi stretch.

Technically, hatcheries are there for harvest opportunities. Hatcheries do offer the ability to have a cnr wild steelhead by catch fishery, but that's not what they are designed for.

[WDFW Hates ME!!!]

If they didn't want the hatchery fish on the ronde then they should let me keep unlimited amounts of 3-5 pound steelhead on the lower columbia every summer. Late july we get a 2-3 week fury of 3-5 pound ronde fish. i let them go as i am looking for the big boys.

Same reason i don't keep sockeye on the lower columbia, 2-3 pound sockeye or 8-10 lb steelhead. I will take 2 summer steel thank you.

[splitshot]

  how the hell do you guys catch 2 steel in an hour on the ronde.  either I am a dumb fisher or you are a  liar.  I have fished for 3 days and caught 1 or 2 fish.  I fly fish but still some is wrong.  the guides don't do that good.  I know cuz I hire them.  mike w

[huntnnw]

I have landed somewhere in the range of 2-3k fish on that river...3 years ago I landed over 600 fish. I know guys who lnad more than that and quite a few of them...I have had 30-37 fish days on that river

[ELKBURGER]

Fish stories If you fish as hard as you hunt, then I'm sure its true!

[TheHunt]

For the Grande Rhonde we can get a limit of all day fishing. 

[UBA]

When does the fishing get good down there? lets say you do catch 20 fish a day how many of those fish die from their injuries or miss snags and whatever else?  I don't agree with that rule. To far to drive just to maybe have your day limited to 2 fish. Having an epic 50 fish dream day is what keeps you fishing

[WSU]

  how the hell do you guys catch 2 steel in an hour on the ronde.  either I am a dumb fisher or you are a  liar.  I have fished for 3 days and caught 1 or 2 fish.  I fly fish but still some is wrong.  the guides don't do that good.  I know cuz I hire them.  mike w

Fly fishing is a big part of why you don't catch tons of fish.  2 fish in an hour is very easily doable on the ronde when fish are around.

[huntnnw]

All fall is great all the way up to April.. I only fish late Jan till early april. River conditions factor in when I fish. The river can plug up with ice fast and blow out fast so keeping a eye on the USGS site helps a ton.

I've taking many friends and girlfriend down and had 5-7fish days for them as rookies. All about knowing the river and putting them on fish and explaining how to drift fish and what to feel.

I don't see how any of the fish die that I release.. They never come out of the water barbless single hook and just pull hook and off they go. I can count on 1 hand in 26 years on how many steelhead I've hooked deep in the mouth. Nothing like salmon the seem to take every bait deep.

[TommyH]

Need to get a line wet!!!

[dscubame]

HuntNNW: I honestly have no idea why you are so upset.  (I haven't fished for steelhead in decades, and I have zero knowledge of this issue.)  If you are just ranting, then carry on, but if you have a moment, please explain the problem, and why you think there is a better way.   

Because he wants to fish not just catch fish.  Many fly fisherman do just that, fish all day fishing hence the release.  I completely understand and this mandatory keep what you catch sucks. 

[Jake Dogfish]

They have lifted this unenforceable anti-fishing law on several Snake tribs due to low returns.
Runs are down so fish away!?    

[PolarBear]

As much as I hate to agree with you...   I hate this rule as well. Many of the rivers that I fish have gone the same way.  I fish for fun.  I don't eat salmon or steelhead but like to keep a few prime ones every now and then to smoke for friends and family,  I HATE having to keep some damn 6 pound hatchery brat when I now that I will eventually get into some nice 12-14+ pounders.  On an 9-11 hour float, limiting out in the first couple of miles on brats can make for a wasted day and a lot of rowing.  I don't need to take in the scenery, I've seen it hundreds of times.