Bob D pretty much summed up my feelings on this. I personally don't eat these guys anymore I just like to chase em in whatever river I can find them. Silvers are fun but I can get those anywhere and I don't need to drive very far to get them so they make for great after work trips. Chinook especially the big ones on the OP really get my blood burning and I will drive long hours and get very little sleep to catch em kiss em on the lips and let em go. I would also disagree that most of the fish that enter the river are dark. So far most of the fish I have caught and released this year are still bright. Now if you go high in these rivers then yes you will find that the majority of the fish are dark. I have also noticed that in years of lots of low water like the last two you tend to find darker fish lower in the river because they stay out in the salt so long waiting for the right water conditions in which time they get ripe.

90% of the time the fish I catch never leave the water and are released no worse for wear. I rarely take pictures anymore but I do keep it ready should I ever get a 50+ pound fish so far 45 is my best.

I would not mind seeing C&R on the Hoh and Queets or set a limit to 1 fish per year per person. Or maybe even seeing C&R on all hens but retention allowed on Bucks. This may be a best of both worlds scenerio by allowing the Hens to make it up to spawn and the sportsman and guides can still keep the bucks, which always seem to be in the majority of fish caught anyway. One last option is maybe imposing regs that fish over a certain size must be released that way we don't deplete the pool of the trophy fish. Unfortunately nothing will probably be done until it is to late.

Bob is your truck that purple and white ford I see out there with the matching boat?