Submitted by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PRMC) finalized their recommendations for ocean salmon seasons on Tuesday, April 10. Draft copies of the adopted seasons will be available at the PMFC’s website in the near future, and graphics of the recreational and commercial troll seasons will also be available on the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife website by Thursday, April 12. Seasons are not official until being given final approval by the Secretary of Commerce, and adopted by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission for waters within 3 nautical miles of shore.
The adopted regulations reflect the continuing relatively low abundances for numerous ocean salmon populations. The Rogue River fall Chinook and Klamath River fall Chinook populations both have shown improvements in the last year, and are expected to provide for improved Chinook salmon fishing this year off the Oregon Coast.
Recreational Season Summary
Ocean waters off the Columbia River from Leadbetter Pt., Washington to Cape Falcon, Oregon will be open for recreational salmon fishing from June 23 through the earlier of September 3 or quota with a hatchery mark selective coho quota of 21,000 and a Chinook guideline of 8,000. The daily bag limit will be two salmon, but no more than one Chinook and all coho must have an adipose fin clip.
Recreational seasons on the central Oregon Coast (Cape Falcon to Humbug Mt.) opened for Chinook on March 15 and will continue through October 31 without interruption. Coho seasons will have quotas of 35,000 adipose fin-clipped coho in the hatchery mark selective season from June 30 through September 3, and an additional 3,500 coho quota in the September non-selective coho season that will be open each Friday and Saturday beginning on September 7 and continue through the earlier of September 29 or quota. In October, the recreational season will be restricted to salmon fishing only inside of the 40 fathom management line.
The area from Humbug Mt. to the OR/CA border will be open for recreational Chinook from May 19 through August 26. A limited state waters fishery off the Chetco River in October will be considered by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission in Astoria on April 20.
Commercial Troll Season Summary
The commercial troll salmon seasons North of Cape Falcon will have a very limited coho salmon season again this year. The fishery will be managed by quotas, season length, and landing week (Thursday-Wednesday) limits. The early Chinook only season will start on May 1 and continue through the earlier of June 30 or the overall quota of 16,500 Chinook or the Leadbetter Pt. to Cape Falcon subarea cap of 4,600 Chinook. The summer fishery from July 1 through the earlier of the overall Chinook quota of 11,000, the overall quota of 5,600 coho, or the Leadbetter Point to Cape Falcon subarea cap of 1,300 Chinook. Landing week limits of 50 Chinook and 10 adipose fin-clipped coho will be in effect. Mandatory call-in requirements within an hour of landing are in place for all quota managed seasons.
From Cape Falcon to Humbug Mt. the Chinook seasons will have a number of open periods throughout the season starting on May 4 (May 4-14, May 19-31, June 4-12, June 16-30, July 5-12, July 16-31, August 3-7, August 13-17, August 25-29, and September 1 through October 31). Beginning September 1, a 50 Chinook weekly limit (Thursday through Wednesday) will be in place, and the fishery will be limited to fishing only shoreward of the 40 fathom curve during the month of October.
From Humbug Mt. to the OR/CA, the commercial troll fishery will be open for the same dates as listed for the Cape Falcon to Humbug Mt. area from May through August (May 4-14, May 19-31, June 4-12, June 16-30, July 5-12, July 16-31, August 3-7, August 13-17, and August 25-29). However, monthly quotas of 1,500 in June, 2,000 in July, and 500 in August may result in seasons closing earlier in each month. Unused quota may be transferred forward to the next open quota period on an impact neutral basis. From June through August, landing week (Thursday-Wednesday) limits of 50 Chinook will be in effect. Mandatory call-in requirements within an hour of landing are in place for all quota managed seasons.
State waters fall Chinook terminal area fisheries are anticipated to be considered for waters adjacent to the Elk River and the Chetco River by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission at their meeting in Astoria on April 20.
Other Information
Both commercial troll salmon fishermen and recreational anglers should review the full regulations prior to participating in the ocean salmon fisheries. Commercial reporting requirements via phone or email remain in effect for all quota managed salmon seasons.
Questions should be directed to Eric Schindler at 541-867-0300 x252 or Justine Kenyon-Benson at 541-867-0300 x271.
