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

[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?