I hate to rub salt in a wound, but there are two main reasons the recreational fishing for Skagit kings was so good in the 1950s and 1960s was because there was more high quality freshwater habitat and the state severely prosecuted Indians who tried to exercise their treaty fishing right. The treaty catch of salmon in those days was about 2 to 3% of the total salmon harvest, so of course, there were a lot more fish available to the sport fishery. Some of you may want it like it was, but the courts have decided that the tribes are entitle to their treaty share, and society in general gives far more lip service than functional action to habitat protection and restoration.

Sometimes when something seems real good, it's because it's coming at someone else's expense.

BTW, most of the hatchery kings in the Skagit are produced as part of research and salmon recovery experiments, excepting the Clark Creek springs.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.