A Lake Washington sockeye fishing season looks doubtful for this summer, and it may be a while before anglers get another chance at this popular urban fishery.

The state Fish and Wildlife preseason forecast calls for 105,575 sockeye to return this summer, which is well below the 350,000 spawning-escapement goal needed before any type of fishery is considered.

"Low ocean marine survival, which hurt us with the 2007 return, could be a factor again this year, based on the low sockeye jack counts last year," said Frank Urabeck, a sport-fishing advocate and member of the Cedar River Council.

The spawning escapement in the Cedar River last year was about 45,000 sockeye, and fewer than 2,000 sockeye were used as hatchery broodstock to produce the 3 million hatchery fry to be released into the lake.

"Even if things turn back to a normal survival rate in the ocean, we won't have any fisheries until we can.. Continued@URL...
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin...4&date=20080224

I read the article this morning and I have to just shake my head in disgust for our state fisheries management. I can remember the fishery in 1988 and the big media talk of implementing a hatchery on the Cedar to keep the fishery consistent.............that was 20 YEARS AGO! Nothing done, politics and bureaucracy at it's best.

Baker lake and lake Wenatchee will probably be open this year. It's just a little further to drive.

If I remember right, someone here on the board said they got the inside scoop and told everyone here that this was going to be a good sockeye season...

Who knows. The last time we had as sockeye season they didn't predict a big return but then it was open for a few weeks

I was also told some months back that Roz had one more weak appeal left, then we'd have the hatchery. It seems no one really knows anything.