Yakamas reintroduce salmon in Yakima River Basin headwaters

TUCQUALA LAKE, Wash. —
As staff members of the Yakama Nation Fisheries Program emptied nets full of young coho salmon into Tucquala Lake, they undid effects of over a century of dams barring migratory fish from the Yakima River Basin's headwaters.

The tribal-sponsored experiment is returning around 300,000 coho salmon this week in an effort to re-establish self-sustaining fish runs in the basin's upper reaches, starting in the waters above Lake Cle Elum in the central Cascades.

Dams have kept fish from the headwaters for over 100 years, beginning with crude crib dams built for irrigation and later with five dams on lakes feeding the Yakima River. None of the five dams have fish passages.

Fish returning to spawn will be captured below Cle Elum Dam and trucked around it.

"This is both culturally and spiritually important to the nation," said Dave Fast, senior
Continued@URL.... http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008017130_apwacohoreturn.html?syndication=rss

It will be interesting to see how this works out...the thousands of hatchery Chinook released in the upper reaches (below the dams) has really taken a bite out of the wild trout populaton up there...I wonder how 300,000 more salmon smolts will effect them? I read that they also want to eventually put in another quarter million sockeye smolts.

No mention on where the coho smolts are coming from in the article, but a little research turned up the source...a mishmash of Cascade River hatchery coho, Lewis River hatchery coho, Little White Salmon hatchery coho, and a remnant from the lower Yakima itself.

The paperwork also says that the program's purpose is "every purpose"..."conservation, recovery, education, harvest, research, and mitigation for dams, and will be an "integrated" program, meaning those fish will hopefully spawn in the wild.

Haven't we been shown...repeatedly...that out of basin hatchery fish used to implement every conceivable purpose and being allowed to spawn in the wild doesn't really work? There are wild rainbows, wild cutthroat, and wild steelhead up there...I wonder how they will react? Their own documentation shows four upper Yakima wild steelhead stocks, all listed under the ESA, all at "low" levels, and all of "high biological significance", and that "Ecological interactions through predation and competition may occur between the hatchery population and other populations, and natural populations may be incidentally harvested in fisheries targeting a more abundant hatchery stock."

These fish won't be clipped, since they'll be intended to spawn in the wild, and are eventually intended for commercial harvest in the Yakima River itself.

While I can see why the Yakamas might like this program, I can't see why anyone else would...for the rest of us and the wild populations there this is all risk, and no benefit.

Fish on...

Todd

APRE Summary

I had the same thoughts Todd.

Why repeat what history tells us doesn't work? Even if their is no native broodstock to work with, one would think that they would at least attempt recovery with a strain of E. Washington origin. Perhaps there are no E. Washington coho that can be spared for this experiment???? Only answer I can dream up.

On a side note, I was in the Yakima headwaters last weekend.....specifically the Little Naches area. Beautifual area and I was immediately drawn to the wild salmon signs found at various campgrounds, trailheads etc...apparently, it's quite a spring chinook breeding ground. Still amazes me how, in the middle of the cascades, hundreds of miles removed from the ocean.....there are salmon. Amazing critters!

One sign pointed out for a every salmon a person views today there were 50 a hundred years ago in this tributary.....would have been cool to see

One more total horse$hit move on the Yakima's part.

The wild trout population(s) Todd speaks of are/were (mostly) non-native to the basin's past, so the fact that their numbers temporarily tumble each time a crappy salmon substitute is "re-introduced"... can be lived with to a certain extent. What can't and shouldn't be lived with is a further decline in the few hundred remaining ESA listed native steelhead that swim/spawn in the same shared reaches as the now present, and future implemented "lemon-lime" salmon tards.

This will compliment nicely Red's (or whomever the hell's it is), new "Lodge in the Canyon"... chuck'n duckin for supposed fall trout, as the great "new oppurtunity" salmon happen to be convienently present. Marshall Warden Law can then hand out mountains of citations for targeting tribal recovery efforts.

Snag/terminal fishery iminent for the mouth of the Cle Elum in a couple of years, with the new single most desired lure for the river in October... a 3/8 th's oz. silver spoon rigged with a 3/0 siwash... Bull$hit !

cmon joe, how do you really feel?

sometimes todd you amaze me at what you step up and spew out ... sometimes i wonder were you get off stepping up on the pulpit and preach the the gospel of todd? who gives a rats fury @ss about the native trout in the yak? spawning salmon in any system is a must for a thriving eco-system. anybody who knows jack squat about alaska knows this. the huge trout in alaska are a result of millions of spawning dying, and dead salmon.

people just love to rip indians for everything, heres' a group that is stepping up and seeding the yak system. creating a fishery when our own goverment won't and can't.

i will step up and say the indians are doing the right thing on the yakima. i grew up in yakima. and was never able to fish the yakima for salmon or steelhead. had to drive to cowlitz to fish. my 15 yearold nephew now can fish for spring chinook in the yakima. something i certainly could not have done in the 80s.

rarely do i ever get pissed on these fishing boards but good god! any group that seeds any river system in todays bogged down system is a great direction.

cut the yakamas some slack!

NO LADDERS?

Anyone know the status of the license renewal and if ladders will be required to re-license?????????

In response to Brewer's comment to Todd's pulpit spewing... understood and sympathized with, no one likes a full time expert. Also I will say I typically find your posts and ramblings pretty funny... Your "thrown in" stance this time however (especially since you should know better growing up in Yakima) is straight BS !

This is why "we as sportsmen take it in the shorts all the way around, every time". Because it's about "you" not being able to fish salmon and steelhead growing up in the 80's... but now your 15 year old nephew gets to fish spring chinook... so all is better. Plus now the system is going to thrive and have pristine valleys in it's headwaters due to an increased nutrient load from hatchery fling backs ? Welfare accepted and continued.

Us, earth's temporary citizens, have not rights while squatting here, just a playground in which to demonstrate our foolishness. Me posting a second time in this thread illustrates the point nicely...

Not an Indian bash in sight... but same as it ever was... Bull$hit.

I've flyfished for trout on the Yakima since the early 80's. In that time, I've caught two steelhead on the river. I remember when the new hatchery was put on line at Cle Elum. My ex father in law and I decided to stop by the hatchery to see what was going on. The gate was closed, so we parked the truck and walked around. After a few minutes, a fellow who identified himself as a member of the Yakama tribe asked us what we were doing. We replied we were checking out the new hatchery. We were asked in a not so kind manor to leave the premises immediately.

After a few years of operation, people where singing the praises of the wonderful run of "wild" chinook that had showed up in the upper river. I believe 20K + returned that year. How these "wild" fish somehow made it from the into the rearing ponds near Easton must have been an act of god.

Hatchery Chinook, coho now, sockeye soon, steelhead no doubt in the future. Yakima
River fish factory, not a bright outlook.

Interesting thought to raise fish in the river. regardless of what they are doing.

Ive wondered several times about dedicating a creek and hatchery to fish raise for commercial harvest. Maybe then, bycatch will bother them.

Tribe in Marysville has there own hatchery and creek on the reservation.

Who would've ever thought that some day the Yakima river would be called a "fish factory." LOl, I love it!

Also interesting that no one here from the eastside, has jumped on the wet side bandwagon. Probably because they're still bonking Springer's. So far >6,000 have returned to date, and my buddies son and his friends have put a serious hurting on em.

The Indians should be congratulated for their efforts for RE-turning Salmon river to the Yak.

Mf

Reading that sentance gave me a headache.

Did anyone note that the "coho re-introduction program" is so that the Yakamas can have a net fishery IN THE Yakima River?

Brewer, yer missin' the boat on this one...big time. I hope that your nephew and his friends can catch all those SOB hatchery springers before they get up to the headwaters and further foul up the wild steelhead there.

Carry on.

Fish on...

Todd

rvr fisher what exactly is your point? your reply is worthless and well, pointless. besides backing todd, ?????, huh?

my point was that the yakima river used to be a great producer of salmon and steelhead. i know plenty about the reasons why those runs were ruined. maybe you two know it alls can pipe up and explain the history of where things went wrong with the yakima river. todd sure seems to enjoy being the great educator of any and every topic of salmon. the yakama tribe is doing the right and modern things to get the salmon returning.


i give the yakamas total praise in thier great efforts to return salmon when no other group is.

>6,000 springers, 5,999 hatchery and 1 wild one. That's something to be proud of.

i see that folks are trully lost as to how the system works on the yakama rearing system. the post above is typical.

I guess you didn't read my previous post regarding the rearing ponds at Easton.
I also know about other rearing locations near the Teanaway and Thorp.
I'm also am aware of how the hatchery is operated and who pays for the funding to run it.
So, how am I truly lost regarding this? Are you saying that "supplemental" hatchery fish should be considered as wild fish?

Todd your serious! All this time I thought you were joking...wow

My point is this, instead of blaming the Indians, for what the WHITE man destroyed (Dams with no or shitty fish ladders, irrigation canals, fertilizers, pesticides, and raw sewage dumping) we should be celebrating the Indians achievements. The Indians have always netted Salmon on the Yakama, and always will. Besides back in the 80's new and improved fish ladder's we're built at each Dam not only on the Yak, but the Naches river, because it was only time before the Indians would get their Hatchery.
I don't expect people from the Seattle area to understand what magnitude this has to my area. But everyone down the Columbia river does. More opportunity to whack fish.

Oh, and that's probably 6,000 Springer's that survived out of the 20,000 to start with.

Mf

Wow, this Yakima salmon fantasy is getting truly fukking retarded now.

Have you ever actually seen high fructose corn syrup being manufactured Brewer ?

Didn't think so...

The coho re-introduction program goes much deeper than just the Yakima. Coho are also being released into the Wenatchee and the Methow rivers.

When you gonna have those in stock? A 3/0 sickle siwash should really stick in those ass-biters.

since i'm very certain now if this entire post was that a white man group or organization had 15,000 nooks returning to a inland watershed. everybody would be happy and aplauding the great job they have done.


well, brewer is very certain now i'll never buy anything from RVR FISHER products. if this is the what you two stand for then thats very sad. my respect for the Owners of RVR FISHER products is officially tanked.

Knock yourself out, Brewer...

Maybe you're still having trouble with the topic...this is about a COHO re-introduction program...the damage has already been done with the hatchery springer turds.

No one will be fishing for these coho except the Yakamas, since they will not be clipped.

Fish on...

Todd

You have shown a lot of class with that post Brewer.

Next time try a pm.

Never saw a problem with areeing to disagree.

I will continue to buy their products, even though I may not fully agree with them.

BOT

1. Where was it mentioned in the article that these Coho smolts would NOT be clipped?

2. Who cares if these fish are clipped or not? Not everything is about stocking up the freezer.

3. Over a period of time, when the run has been built up there will be a fishery.

4. These programs are approved and funded by BPA. And because I'm a power user, I'm a supporter.

Mf

They're supposed to be spawning naturally, so they can't be clipped.

These fish are entirely 100% about filling up the freezer...but not yours. With every coho stock in the Columbia Basin either extinct or listed, there won't be much, if any coho fishing by sportsmen over unclipped coho.

I would think that a BPA power user would not like the fact that they are paying an ecologically disastrous hatchery program for fish that we won't be able to fish for.

Fish on...

Todd

By the time MOST of these fish hit the mouth of the Yak, they'll be smoker fare @ best...kinda like their fall chinook cousins, which are NOT clipped. These Kings fish were RE-introduced some years back, and if the #'s are their we'll have season. I don't believe the Indians target the Fall run back here.

It will be interesting how the segregating process will work at Rosa...because non of the clipped chinook are allowed to pass up stream only the wild fish.

I believe Cupo touched on it, these Coho are piss poor biters this high up. I've never seen one Silver caught while fishing for Fall Kings.

Mf

I don't think it matters much if they're good biters or not...I'm guessing the Yakamas won't be fishing for them with rods and reels.

Fish on...

Todd

Down below Parker Dam, I"m sure it'll look similar to tuna fishing.

I should clarify (yes) I'm sure the Indians target all returning fish... regardless of what shape they arrive in.

To what extent they sell, for ceremonial, personnel use...I don't know.

It's going to happen, bank on it. The NEW Cowlitz of the east. lol

Mf

i've witnessed many yakama indians fishing rod/reel todd. i get the idea todd your talking alot of ignorance when it comes to the yakama indian ways. they do not run gillnets on the river. the dipnet practice is what they do. i have watched the dipsters work hard for hours. it's not a easy way to take fish. it really is work. i have zero issues with dip netting it trully is traditional. todd you see i am talking of actual visual knowledge, i have had many conversations with them. they are no different than anyone else who have had thier @sses kicked by the whiteman and thrown on poor reservations. had the natural resources raped for selfish monotary gain. they are doing what they can to regain what was taken or stolen.


if what the yakamas are doing is so wrong todd and rvr, educate me on how you two would fix 50 years of whiteman total disregard for the yakima river and it's salmon?

I think what I said...actually, I know what I said...is that it doesn't matter if they are good biters or not, because the Yakamas won't likely be using rods and reels for them. I've seen the Yakamas use rods/reels, actually, and the ones who were actually fishing rather than snagging were catching more than the snaggers...this was on the Icicle.

Brewer, justifying an ecologically harmful hatchery program by pointing out that others have done equally or worse ecologically harmful things to the river and its fish doesn't make any sense to me whatsoever...and piling yet another obstacle in the way of fish recovery there isn't helping anything, whether you are white, red, purple, or orange colored, or if you fish with kitchen spoons or machine guns.

Fish on...

Todd

pastor todd, how is the cle elum, a ecological harmful hatchery program?

you failed to explain how you would fix the problem, unless doing nothing is your solution..... hmmmm

Wait Todd,
Are you saying that you believe that these fish will be able to establish themselves naturally? I believe you did. ***"They're supposed to be spawning naturally, so they can't be clipped." **** But how is this possible. I am sure you have stated over and over it isn't. I can vaguely see you worrying about dumping a ton of smolt in a river and competing with the very few wild steelhead there, but... Do you really think that the few steelhead that are there are all the system can support. Is it really that sterile. And if it is, couldn't the dumping of carcasses and natural carcasses help with this?
But lets go further into your logic. Under the premises you presented the fish will establish themselves and then will be so sucessfull they will overwhelm few the wild steelhead that are there.
Since originally there were salmon here, wouldn't returning the salmon and eradicating the non-native trout be make more sense under your line of thinking? I am a firm believer that natural straying occurs and is benefical to the overall health of a run. Since there appears to be no native stock to use, using the lower river stocks may not be as bad of an idea as you represent it to be.
The only arguements I can see that you may have is that they will continue to supplement this run only with hatchery smolts or that they will then gill net these fish and take listed steelhead as by-catch. To this I have no answer and am not versed well enough on run timing and future harvest plans to comment, ...but,... under the same line of thinking, isn't it possible that the fishery on the non-native trout in the upper river has as much or more of an effect then the tribal fishery would.
I have a hard time being against the attempt to return a naturally occuring run. Especially if the hope is that the run could be self sustaining.

I'm not understanding a couple things in this thread. What's the remark about non-native trout? Both cutthroat and rainbow trout are native to the Yakima, as are bull trout (a char). A major factor limiting trout recruitment is the unnaturally high flows for irrigation during the early summer just as juvenile trout are emerging from the gravel. That seems to be why trout spawning is limited mostly to tributary spawning habitat. Otherwise the river could apparently support more juvenile trout. The Yak won't be very suitable to juvenile coho either.

The coho broodstock mix is strange to say the least. I thought Klickitat were the brood of choice for east side restorations. I don't think restoring coho to the Yakima is wrong headed. I do think the Yakima Tribe's preference for integrated hatchery and "wild" stocks is. That's a policy decision since the science doesn't support it.

An integrated program permits higher harvest rates and doesn't really develop a wild run. In the case of coho it increases the likelihood of over-harvesting Yakima wild steelhead. And I'm uncertain of the ESA status of Yakima steelhead at the moment; too many to keep up with any more.

LB mentioned relicensing. There are no FERC licensed hydro dams in the Yakima basin. All the irrigation dams (Keecheless, Kachess, Cle Elum, Easton, Bumping, and Rimrock) are Bureau of Reclamation pieces of the Yakima Basin Irrigation Project. Federal dams are not licensed, since they are federal. Wapatox on the Naches was owned and operated by PacifiCorp, but has been decommissioned last I heard. None of the dams in the Yakima basin have fish passage. A smolt slide has just been added to the outlet at Cle Elum for salmon re-introduction. I haven't seen it or the design package, so I don't know if it's a POS contraption or the real thing.

Sg

kri, thanks for piping in on this. finally someone did other MF. you have some very good points. the seeded smolts will not be clipped. at i'm not certain if the YIN will clip any smoltz.

the yakima has always had a native returning strain to the system. not big enough to support a sport fishery. the YIN had thier own set seasons.

as for the steelhead in the yakima i'm clueless to it's strength. i know that guys would catch them while whitefish-ing. but no season for sportfishers in 30 years i believe. i still remember the last steelhead i saw taken. it was by a indian fishing below the toppenish spillway/dam. he was using a "spinning rod and caught it on eggs". this was, say, 80 or 81. it was a very thick bodied 15#er.


before i moved out of yakima in 01 the YIN opened the river to sport fishing. there was plenty of silvers to keep things fun. every year since the cle elum facility was put in, the YIN when certain they would have a surplus the river has been opened to sporties. this i give the YIN a thanks to give us a oppertunity to fish the surplus.

i have talked with several guys who still live in the "palm springs of washington". who while duck hunting have found silvers spawning in creeks that years before were barren of spawning salmon. so the system of seeding the yakima drainage is working.

evidently some folks prefer thier fish raised in whiteman cement troughs...

salmo thanks for your thoughts too.

How does man repeatedly justify "fixing" $hit ?

Here's one where the Yakamas are getting it more right...using in-basin fish for "restoration", and restricting the out of basin stocks to the lower river so that they get in the hatchery and don't spawn in the river or compete with the ESA-listed wild steelhead and wild spring Chinook...

http://www.cbbulletin.com/283153.aspx

Having an "opportunity to target" something does not in any way, shape, or form justify having them there...there are a lot more needs...ecological, biological, social, and cultural...than "I wanna go catch some"...

Fish on...

Todd

well rvr, when its mans mans royal selfish phfuck up!!! then yes it falls under "man to fix his $hit"!!! pull your head out.... on this, or stay off the topic!

listen, this is just stupid. i'm surprised this topic has flared up to full blown fire. i will tone down the my extreme defense of the YIN....while it is quite obvious that brewer's strong stand was to strong to be matched by my two adversaries.

The link below is the actual 2006 anual Cle Elum report, as mentioned with the 2006 smolt plants, in the 1st post. This is cutting edge $hit.

http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/ucao_misc/fishpassage/activities/CleElum-2006report.pdf

I stand corrected in my thinking that these smolts would be clipped. The report say's these Coho are uniquely tagged with Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags. These fish will be tracked through PIT tag detectors that will installed at the Cle Elum, Prosser, McNary, And Bonne Dams.

The scope of the feasibility study is currently limited to the study of passage features at Cle
Elum and Bumping Lake dams. Successful implementation of fish passage at Cle Elum and
Bumping Lake dams could eventually lead to future detailed study of the other three dams
(Kachess, Keechelus, and Tieton).

Who knows what the future holds for re storing runs...but it's encouraging to know somethings being done.

Mf

Yep I agree. Too much important information being discussed here, to have the in your face antics going on...

Way to take the High road Brewer.

Mf

as some point MF we need to meet, put down some Crown. were on the same page... your info was pertinent and timely.

as for the high road, brewer is the highway man!

You've sounded like you have ALREADY been putting down some crown today. (((( ))))

Hey check out the photo's at the bottom of that link. just think Someday that flume could be replaced by a fish ladder. Now multiply that by 5 Dams and we could have 100,000 returning Sockeye, alone.

Just think of all the arse grabs, flossing and other possibilities....

Mf

after thurough review of the site MF things look brite for the Yakima watershed.

ooooooow pastor todd where are't thou?