LT,
Thanks for the link to that thread from last spring.....answered a lot of my questions.

After reading all of it I still don't understand (or agree with, at least until educated) why the escapement goals are so high for chums (118,000) vs winter steelhead (6000).
It is hard to believe that a run of 100,000 plus can not safely support a catch and release season, but we have allowed a kill fishery on steelhead through Feb. in previous years. This makes no sense.

Rat:
It is ridiculous to call Dickson a poacher. I have been a gear fisherman for 30+ years but took one of his schools a few years ago to learn how to flyfish for steelhead and have been a client several times a year since. His practices are the most conservative of any guide I have seen. Strictly barbless CR, hooks no bigger than 2, no nets or fish removed from the water. Mentioning Chums in his school ad is simply recognizing that they will be caught by accident (as many have reported) while flyfishing for other species. You're attacking the wrong guy!