Steelhead Limits Raised

Meeting by conference call August 27, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission voted unanimously to raise the limits on hatchery steelhead for the fall, 2001, season. The action came at the recommendation of Fish and Game biologists, who are expecting the largest run of steelhead since counts at dams have been done. The new limits will be three per day, nine in possession and 40 for the season, if the angler buys a second steelhead permit. Oregon has already raised its daily limit, and Washington is expected to do so. Only hatchery steelhead, those missing the adipose fin, may be kept. Steelhead seasons open on Sept. 1 in the Snake and Salmon rivers and Oct. 15 in the Clearwater. With the increased limit, a person can have nine steelhead in possession while in the field or transporting them from a fishing area. Since the daily limit is three, no one can legally possess more than six steelhead on the second day of a trip. One would have to fish three days to legally take home nine steelhead after a fishing trip. The number of steelhead to pass Lower Granite Dam and enter Idaho passed 18,000 on August 27, compared to the 10-year average of 4,100. The forecast is for a total run size of about 200,000 steelhead, compared to the 1975-2000 average of 74,000. The same favorable runoff and ocean conditions that contributed Idaho's outstanding chinook fishing this year also allowed enough juvenile steelhead to migrate through the Snake and Columbia rivers to survive well in the ocean before returning in strong numbers. Idaho's fisheries biologists are encouraging anglers to enjoy this huge bump in numbers but remind Idahoans that this is a rare thing and does not constitute recovery of steelhead.