https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/...-update-2025-11
Yay! We get to fish!

Don't see Skagit Sauk late steelhead fisheries?

WDFW announces 2025-26 coastal steelhead regulations


OLYMPIA, WA – Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) fishery managers today announced regulations for the state’s 2025-26 coastal steelhead season.

Most major steelhead fishing areas are scheduled to be open from

Dec. 1 through March 31. Notable exceptions include:
• The Humptulips River and its tributaries will close Feb. 2.
• The Chehalis River and its tributaries will close Feb. 16.
Find a complete list of season regulations and closing dates by area on WDFW’s emergency fishing rule changes webpage and the Fish Washington® mobile app. Areas not listed in the emergency fishing rule changes will remain as described in the 2025-26 Washington Sport Fishing Rules pamphlet.

The daily bag limit for all rivers and streams is two hatchery steelhead. Anglers must release wild steelhead and rainbow trout, and may not fully remove wild steelhead from the water.
Additional emergency fishing rule changes may occur during the season.

“Balancing wild steelhead conservation with providing meaningful fishing opportunities is no easy task, and we appreciate the public’s engagement throughout this comprehensive process,” said Kelly Cunningham, WDFW Fish Program director. “Implementing our new permanent coastal steelhead regulations shows our commitment to achieving conservation objectives while offering sustainable fisheries.”

WDFW is modifying permanent regulations for coastal steelhead, game fish, and trout seasons, following multiple presentations to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission and an extensive public input process, including virtual town halls and a comment period. The Commission on Nov. 14 approved these permanent regulations, which WDFW aims to enact by January 2026.

Steelhead survival rates have declined in rivers flowing into Washington’s Pacific Coast, Grays Harbor, and Willapa Bay over the past five decades, with many populations returning below escapement goals in recent years.

Because of low coastal steelhead returns, state and tribal fishery managers have frequently made significant changes to fisheries, resulting in emergency regulations that differ from the annual Washington Sport Fishing Rules. Preliminary information from 2024-25 steelhead returns indicates most areas are below escapement goals.

WDFW continues to operate under its Statewide Steelhead Management Plan, which requires the Department to prioritize the sustainability of wild coastal steelhead runs by focusing on healthy levels of abundance, productivity, diversity, and distribution.
Steelhead, a sea-going rainbow trout that can exceed 30 pounds, is the state fish and a Pacific Northwest icon that has been culturally and economically important throughout the region’s history, including in popular recreational fisheries.

For more information about coastal steelhead management, visit WDFW’s webpage.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife works to preserve, protect and perpetuate fish, wildlife and ecosystems while providing sustainable fish and wildlife recreational and commercial opportunities.

I was hoping that in the Chehalis system and tribs we would at least be open to Feb.28 like last year. Not much opportunity to catch a hatchery steelhead in the Satsop, Nooch and Skookumchuck since they have late returning steelhead. Disappointing for the Harbor anglers. Pretty much the first two weeks of February will be the season.

The Nooch mitigation steelhead are a cross between the old early time chambers creek and nooch early fish that are wild. They call it Van Winkle as now it is its own genetics. Kinda a mix thing but not a true late returning fish like the rest of the basin.

The short season gives the recs an opportunity to wet a line and that is about it. Very small window to catch a fish. Hump has earlier timed fish and it closes even earlier on Feb. 2. This season will drive more anglers to go to other areas (Forks for example)) that are open thru March. R


























































The short season in the Chehalis system offers a small window to wet a line and catch a fish. The Hump has earlier timed fish and it closes on Feb.2 . The short season will drive more recs to go to the rivers (Forks for example ) that are open thru March. There will be even more pressure on those rivers. The Skookumchuck and Lake Aberdeen hatcheries will once again have plenty of surplus hatchery steelies to plant in the lakes and/or give to the food banks.

R&G asked about the Skagit/Sauk late C&R steelhead fishery. It is not open this year because WDFW said it did not have the money to hire personnel to monitor the fishery.













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Well, at least now the regulations are heading in the same direction as they did here in the Green. Change the run timing of the fish, then close the late season. Then quit the hatchery plants. So, no March, February, or January non tribal Steelhead fishing, - Any More.....

Bingo! The coast, under quinault "(co)management" will go like this. Notice forks rivers are open? How about willapa? How about sw wa? We just seem to have a problem right in the middle? Hmm. But not on the columbia tribs, right? Wdfw management is so all over the board its ridiculous lol

https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/...-update-2025-12


Rule changes way to much to C&P so here is the link to the document on the WDFW website

The QIN rule the Chehalis system. Most of the Chehalis system rivers either close Feb. 16 or are not open at all. The Hump close Feb.2. The Upper Quinault is open for CnR until Mar. 31. Really? That wild steelhead run has been in the tank forever. What is WDFW 's justification for that? The QIN must have told WDFW "If we don't fish, the recs don't fish" on the Chehalis system. And WDFW is worried only about the wild steelhead on the Chehalis? Hmmm.

I'm more glass haf full on this than most posting in this thread. The past few years were absolutely miserable, with right next to zero opportunity to fish for steelhead north of Willapa or south of the Hoh. We at least get January in the Chehalis tribs this year (as long as they don't shut it down early again), and the Queets is scheduled to be open thru March. That sounds a lot better than closed all season to me.

One thing that seems pretty clear is that the QIN is the decider on the systems they "co-manage." The best evidence of that is the aforementioned Middle Quinault fishery. The reason that has stayed open despite the chronically poor wild returns to the upper basin is that the Tribe takes all their hatchery fish (and whatever wild fish they catch in the process) out below Lake Quinault, leaving virtually no "food for the NT fishers to play with" in the water open to us. In other words, they don't care much about the wild run (they say "a fish is a fish"), so they're content to let WDFW do whatever they want in the middle stretch. The recent closures on the Queets/Salmon have been a different deal, probably because the co-manager there is the NPS (not WDFW). The NPS tends to err on the side of caution with regard to managing wild runs, so they have higher thresholds for proposing closures than WDFW. (Really glad to see that open, at least for now, through March.)

As long as nothing changes (definitely uncertain), we'll have a much better opportunity to at least wet a line than what we have had recently. Good luck out there.

Last winter we were "allowed" to fish the Chehalis tribs (Nooch, Satsop , Skookunchuck) until Feg 28. This year they close on Feb. 15. With selective gear rules again I was hoping to fish until Feb. 28 again this year. No soap. Will the rivers close next year even earlier? Will they be open at all? More surplus hatchery steelies for the Nooch, Satsop and Skook again this year.
The QIN must have gave permission to WDFW to give the recs a little token season and opportunity to wet a line.

If I recall correctly Summers count in the numbers game so out the door the Nooch summers count in the NT share. Also the Nooch mitigation fish are crossbred early timed fish. So rec fishers are locked in to very early timing with C&R. Old game used Chambers Cr. about anything to use to direct netting the early part of the run which butched the early wild part of the run. This pretty much wiped out that portion of the wild run which resulted in the numbers returning tended to be later.

I objectd to this and BF who was the WDG bio said they "could not have indians netting NATIVE Steelhead". I then objected because it was butchering late Coho to which BF replied "that's Dept Fisheries problem"

Our seasons are the results of state managers actions over the years. The 70's and 80's set the templet for us now and there is not a thing one can do to undo it.

The two agencies were both pretty good at ignoring the other one's resources. Rather ugly if you were actually a fish or interested in them.