The lower Columbia River will stay closed to steelhead fishing until further notice to protect upriver spring chinook salmon, fishery managers from Washington and Oregon announced this afternoon. Managers are keeping the fishery closed to avoid incidental catches of spring chinook.

The announcement delays the hatchery steelhead fishery, scheduled to open Saturday. from the Interstate 5 Bridge downriver to the Rocky Point/Tongue Point line a few miles east of Astoria.

The steelhead closure could extend as late as June 16, unless returns of upriver spring chinook begin to pick up, said Cindy LeFleur, state Columbia River policy coordinator, in a news release. The closure will not affect the shad fishery, which will open downstream from Bonneville Dam on Saturday.

Here is the rest of the release:

"For the second straight year, returns of upriver spring chinook have fallen short of expectations," LeFleur said. "It’s disappointing that we have to delay the steelhead fishery, but we need to do everything we can to conserve wild chinook salmon still in the river."

LeFleur said the delay in the steelhead fishery was triggered by an updated run forecast for upriver spring chinook, which indicates that only about half as many fish will return this year as originally expected. While the pre-season forecast predicted a run of nearly 300,000 chinook, the current estimate anticipates a return of 120,000 to 150,000 fish.

The spring chinook fishery in the lower Columbia River has been closed since mid-April, under a new agreement between Washington and Oregon that delays a larger portion of the season in case the run falls short of expectations. Columbia River anglers have also been required to release any spring chinook they catch above Bonneville Dam since May 1.

"This year’s spring chinook fishery was designed to be conservative, due in large part to the unpredictability of the run in recent years," LeFleur said. "Last year, we counted a high number of immature jack salmon, which suggested a strong return of adult fish this year. But the adult chinook just haven’t materialized in the numbers expected."

LeFleur said the action to delay the steelhead fishery is specifically designed to protect wild upriver spring chinook, which are listed for protection under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). Although all anglers are required to release any wild chinook salmon they intercept in the Columbia River, some of those fish die from the encounter.

"We conduct these fisheries under strict federal limits on incidental mortality rates," LeFleur said. "When the run size is lower than expected, there is very little margin for error."

While the opening date for the steelhead fishery remains uncertain, LeFleur said the season will not get started later than June 16, when most spring chinook salmon have returned to hatcheries or spawning areas.

"At that point, the focus switches to summer chinook," she said. "We really hope those runs are more encouraging than this year’s spring chinook returns."

For updates on the lower Columbia River steelhead season, LeFleur recommends that steelhead anglers check WDFW’s Web site -- click here -- or call the Fishing Hotline (360-902-2500).

Two quick items for you guys:

- First, off Whistler's Mountain Bike park opens Saturday. Don't forget your skis because you can still ski this time of year too.

- Second, something went haywire last night putting together The News Tribune's SoundLife section. If you started reading my story on tips for keeping you smoothies healthy, you may have noticed that most of the story is missing from the paper. Not sure what happened, but if you want some tips for choosing smoothies that won't sabotage your diet check out the FULL STORY here.

Click below to read the announcement from Whistler Blackcomb.

=> Read more!

Recreational shrimp fishers get one more day on Saturday to fish on Hood Canal, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has announced.

Here is the rest of the news release:

Marine Area 12 will be open for shrimp fishing May 16 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The four-day Hood Canal season was originally scheduled to be open May 2-13, on Saturdays and Wednesdays only.

"Enough quota remains in Hood Canal to offer shrimpers some more time on the water," said Mark O’Toole, state fish biologist.Since the opener, shrimpers have pulled in 57,500 pounds of prawns from Hood Canal. The 2009 quota for the area is 85,000 pounds.

Other areas of Puget Sound also opened for recreational shrimp fishing May 2, but most quickly reached their quota, causing early closures, O’Toole said.

Areas closed to spot shrimp fishing include marine areas 8-1 (Deception Pass, Hope Island, Skagit Bay), 8-2 (Port Susan and Port Gardner), 9 (Admiralty Inlet), 10 (Seattle/Bremerton) and 11 (Vashon Island/Tacoma). The Discovery Bay Shrimp District in Marine Area 6 near Port Townsend remains closed to both spot and non-spot shrimp fishing.

The northern and central portions of Marine Area 7 (San Juan Islands) will close at 9 p.m. Friday. The southern portion of Marine Area 7 will close at 9 p.m. Saturday.

Marine areas 7, 8, 9 and 11 will remain closed until June 1 when the non-spot shrimp season opens.

Waters still open to spot shrimp fishing include marine areas 4 (Neah Bay), 5 (Sekiu), 6 (eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca) and 13 (south Puget Sound).

Click here for more information on shrimp seasons and rules or call the WDFW shellfish hotline at 1-866-880-5431.

I just got this note from WSDOT via the folks at Mount Rainier National Park:

"I know you have heard this before, so here we go. Once again unless Mother Nature disagrees, we will attempt opening Highway 123 Cayuse Pass at noon Friday," wrote Vernon L Riley, assistant superintendent for Area 4 in Kent.

The pass was supposed to open last Friday, but 2 feet of snow delayed those plans. Another 6 inches of the white stuff delayed Tuesday's planned opening.