Originally Posted By: Salmo g.
Ah yes, if only we don't fish on Stillaguamish Chinook, surely they will recover, right? NO. The environmental conditions Smalma alludes to with respect to Stillaguamish River flooding means that the Stilly Chinook population has a near zero chance of recovering to a self-sustaining abundance level in the next 100 years. (Self-sustaining meaning that spawners at least replace themselves, with recruits per spawner equaling or exceeding 1.0.)

I expect that the Stillaguamish River will continue to be closed to recreational fishing from Feb. 1 through Sept. 15 for the next 100 years, or longer. And the associated Marine fishing areas 7 & 9 will have very few days open to recreational fishing for the next 100 years, or longer. WDFW knows this too; they just don't want to admit that they have no plan to increase recreational fishing opportunity. WDFW is reactionary. If other Chinook populations become as imperiled as the Stilly stock, we can expect similar reductions in fishing opportunity in other Marine and River fishing areas. This is the default future of salmon (and steelhead) angling that WDFW has planned for us.


Coastal rivers are in the same boat...native steelhead will be a long time in any kind of recovery mode.

Every one is at fault, IMO. What seemed like a unlimited number of wild/native steelhead before the Bolt decision, really wasn't. WDFW, slow to react, sports, numbers of fishers increased, more boats on all areas of rivers, guides, tribal netting, later into seasons.

You can have all the committees you want, spend 100's of hours on planning, bottom line it will just take many "cycles" of no one fishing to reverse the trend.
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