I was on the river today. Certainly some fish in the river. Personally, I have no problem releasing big kings, especially in the Nooksack. I do agree that there is a disconnect when commercial fisherman are in Bellingham Bay and the Lummi tribe is netting in the bay and the river. After spending weeks in the Nooksack last August and September I know that there are far more kings (wild and hatchery) than the state is aware of. I saw a man doing a "spawn count" as he briskly walked along the bank of the North Fork last year. I am certain that he saw very few, if any, fish. That very day, however, while doing field work in the river, I saw dozens of fins and tails of big kings. The visibilty was less than a foot and there were certainly far more fish in the river than I was able to see. Anyway... my point is NOT that sportsmen should be keeping kings, but rather that 1) the numbers are not acurate (due to visibility and unreliable counting techniques) and 2) many kings are getting VERY close to spawning but are taken out near the mouth and within the lower mile of the river.

p.s. chumsalmon=mark?
Kaiser D. =AP