I, too, spent a lot of time on the river in my youth- Clear Lake area. I can viviidly recall the Kings and Silvers spawning right in front of our place... I never knew how they made it past the falls..

My understanding is the same as Eric's. Capitol Lake has a lot to do with it. Same as Percival Cove.. Pollution and algae bloom.
Looking at prior release numbers of Chinook from Percival and McAllister (25% of the total for the Puget Sound)) seems our BM program is going to go awash quickly in the next couple years. Especially down south.

Salmo... I am curious to know why the hatchery on McAllister closed- budget? This was my impression. Also, I further understand that major stream restoration was conducted in the immediate vincinity of the hatchery in hopes of producing a wild run of Kings (???). Any help would be greatly appreciated.