Robust Steelhead Run Promising Bonneville Count Above Norm; Warm Water May Slow Migration

Sun., Sept. 14, 1997

Associated Press

The steelhead count at Bonneville Dam was almost 175,000 steelhead through Aug. 25, 30 percent ahead of last year and well above the 10-year average.

The Idaho Fish and Game Department said that’s good news for Idaho anglers because a large number of the fish are hatchery A-run steelhead bound for the Snake River Basin.

Sampling at Bonneville Dam indicates there may be an additional bonus. A higher percentage than normal of the fish are hatchery A-run steelhead that spent two years in the ocean.

Typically A-run steelhead spend just one year in the Pacific Ocean before returning to Idaho lakes and rivers to spawn and are 24 to 26 inches long.

The two-year fish run more to 27 to 29 inches.

But temperatures in the lower Columbia River have been high.

“Water temperatures ranging from 70 to 72 degrees is not conducive to adult steelhead movement up the lower Columbia and into the Snake River,” said Sharon Kiefer, salmon and steelhead coordinator for Idaho Fish and Game.

“Steelhead will likely seek refuge at the mouths of tributaries where the water may be cooler, which will delay their migration upstream into the Snake River.”

The steelhead count at McNary Dam, the last dam on the Columbia River before the mouth of the Snake River, is currently only about 70 percent of last year’s count.

The projection for the Snake River steelhead run is slightly higher than last year’s run size of 86,700. Last year’s run was the highest in four years, so even a repeat would provide plenty of angling opportunity.

The harvest season for hatchery steelhead started Sept. 1 in the Snake and Salmon rivers. A catch-and-release season extends until Oct. 15 on the Clearwater River, from Memorial Bridge upstream.

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