Inside scoop

[Gringo31]

Interesting.....

Heard today from someone who would know......but all the water going over Grand Coulee Dam (and I've heard of this before) is creating too much nitrogen in the water and killing off lots of steelhead.  A guy that works at the land fill told me that they are netting up the dead ones......the first day was today and 6 semi loads of steelhead came in to be landfilled.

[vandeman17]

I heard the same thing a few days ago but not about the netting up of the dead steelies. That really sucks!

[winshooter88]

Are they actually steelhead or are they fish out of the net pens. The news story said that most of the fish that were dieing were in the net pens. 

[sebek556]

  thats a lot of fish, bears will be all over that landfill...

[huntnnw]

what I dont get is WHY?? dont tell me theres too much water..have u seen northport?? desolate..dunno if I have ever seen it that low

[Ridgeratt]

what I dont get is WHY?? dont tell me theres too much water..have u seen northport?? desolate..dunno if I have ever seen it that low

LOL should make an interesting Governor's cup this month.
Along with trying to launch around the 4th

[huntnnw]

tell u the truth I dunno if there is anywhere to launch..maybe kettle falls..couldnt imagine up river tho

[huntnnw]

Northport area..

[bobcat]

They're making room for all the water they expect to come when the snow starts melting....


http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43257643/ns/weather/

[Malottguy]

I don't think they are steelhead as I have been there and most look like Triploid rainbows like the tribe raises and release. Also in my opinion one problem is they over stock those pens and there is a lack of oxygen as it is. Then add high nitrogen levels and you get a lot of dead fish.

I find it funny though is I know people who are catching lots of fish 3 pounds and up. The only pens really being affected are Pacific Seafoods (upper and middle pens) as I haven't heard if the tribes pens(lower) have been effected to the same extent. The fish that are freely swimming are moving downriver and away from Grand Coulee Dam it seems.

All that being said it is a heavy snow year, but I have never seen them lower Roosevelt to that level even on super heavy snow years, so makes one wonder when they will start filling it again.

[Ridgeratt]

is 1239 today. Heres the mins at the launches!!


 
L.Snook NPS

Evans boat launch.
MINIMUM BOAT LAUNCH ELEVATIONS


Crescent Bay  1265' 
Spring Canyon  1222' 
Keller Ferry  1229' 
Hansen Harbor  1253' 
Jones Bay 1266'
Lincoln Mill 1245'
Hawk Creek  1281'
Seven Bays 1227'
Fort Spokane 1247'
Porcupine Bay 1243'
Hunters Camp 1230'
Gifford  1249'
Daisy  1265'
Bradbury Beach 1251'
Kettle Falls 1234'
Marcus Island 1281'
Evans 1280' 
North Gorge 1280'
Snag Cove  1277'
French Rocks 1265'
Napoleon Bridge   1280'
China Bend 1277'
       

Not sure I want to run the boat up the river from Kettle! A ton of playing hazards not counting everything floating.

[huntnnw]

CHINA bend is out of the water

[wastickslinger]

what I dont get is WHY?? dont tell me theres too much water..have u seen northport?? desolate..dunno if I have ever seen it that low

It is the net pen fish dying. Reason is due to the water pouring over and affecting notrogen levels. The pen fish are shallow and like said before nearly not enough oxygen to begin with.

The owners of the pens are going to try a lawsuit. I think the dam might have been there first. 

[Ridgeratt]

only 38 feet that's darn near wet!! On the plus side it should make for some good fishing when it gets up to launch.

[woodywsu]

These fish are not steelhead. There are no steelhead found above Cheif Joseph due to the lackign fish ladder. The fish are triploids dying from raised total dissolved gas (tdg) levels causing Gas Bubble Trauma (GBT). Higher  tdg levels occur when there is an excess of water spilled over the spillway. Gas levels lower as they work downstream toward the next dam where they rise once again.

Heres a link explainign more:

http://fishbio.com/fisheries-news/regional-fisheries-news/mid-columbia-net-pen-trout-rearing-operation-taking-losses-from-gas-bubble-disease

[DoubleJ]

Why landfill them when they could sell them to somewhere like Cedar Grove Composting or Alaska Fish Fertilizer and recoup some of the losses?  Dead fish are GREAT fertilizer

[Elkrunner]

Why landfill them when they could sell them to somewhere like Cedar Grove Composting or Alaska Fish Fertilizer and recoup some of the losses?  Dead fish are GREAT fertilizer

good idea but here is your answer...this state love to waste money..not make money

[wastickslinger]

These fish are not steelhead. There are no steelhead found above Cheif Joseph due to the lackign fish ladder. The fish are triploids dying from raised total dissolved gas (tdg) levels causing Gas Bubble Trauma (GBT). Higher  tdg levels occur when there is an excess of water spilled over the spillway. Gas levels lower as they work downstream toward the next dam where they rise once again.

Heres a link explainign more:

http://fishbio.com/fisheries-news/regional-fisheries-news/mid-columbia-net-pen-trout-rearing-operation-taking-losses-from-gas-bubble-disease

I was going to ask if has flying steelhead. 

[wastickslinger]

Why landfill them when they could sell them to somewhere like Cedar Grove Composting or Alaska Fish Fertilizer and recoup some of the losses?  Dead fish are GREAT fertilizer

good idea but here is your answer...this state love to waste money..not make money

They are not owned by the state, private operation.

[MtnMuley]

They sell them commercially to restaurants as "steelhead". That's why they're being referred to as steelhead. How that's legal I don't know.

[Ripper]

I was on the phone today with the guy from Hooked on Toy's in Wennatchee and he said all the pens have released all the fish still alive. I guess fishing is crazy there right now.

[wastickslinger]

They sell them commercially to restaurants as "steelhead". That's why they're being referred to as steelhead. How that's legal I don't know.

Wow I was not aware of that. I would think maybe to Alpo for dog food or to Scotts for turf builder. 

[MtnMuley]

I was on the phone today with the guy from Hooked on Toy's in Wennatchee and he said all the pens have released all the fish still alive. I guess fishing is crazy there right now.

I don't believe that for a minute.  They must have done it all this morning then.

[wastickslinger]

 

[Malottguy]

I was on the phone today with the guy from Hooked on Toy's in Wennatchee and he said all the pens have released all the fish still alive. I guess fishing is crazy there right now.

I don't believe that for a minute.  They must have done it all this morning then.

Yes they released all the fish from the lower pens, this after one of the pens broke. Reason the released is so they too would not die. Even some that work for the tribe don't understand why they released them when a couple pens were almost ready to harvest. This all happened about a week ago give or take.

YES the fishing has been damn good, though today it backed way off and took most of the day to get 3 fish for my daughter and I. So it seems to be going back to the normal fishing it has been over the last year.

[MtnMuley]

I've been fishing it since the first fish showed up 2 weeks ago. Nobody has a firm answer on where the fish came from. I can assure you that the lower pens have not been emptied, as the fishing there hasn't been nearly as good as other areas. Something happened at the middle pens for sure. As for is slowing down, that's what happens when the fish poachers are taking way more than their limit on a consistent basis during odd hours.

[Malottguy]

Info I got was from the fish checker whom I personally know and trust. He knew one pen for sure had broke but he didn't know how and other were released. Fishing at the pens is a weird thing as you would think the fishing would be hot with released fish but they are I think being flushed down with the increased current. The current by the dam is moving a lot. Last time they had the dam opened for an extended period a lot of fish also went down river. Steelheaders and salmon fisherman were picking them up often last fall.

The middle set had a lot of fish doe off like the upper set had and one person said maybe Lake Roosevelt fish which I laughed at because as far as I know they don't raise trips up there and they Roosevelt fish are fin clipped.

I do agree with the poaching as I saw so much of it yesterday, but does no good to turn them in anymore. Game Dept could care less it seems. It wasn't just odd hours, it was mid day with one rod and 5 fish, but they said they were others fish umm sure