Ocean sport anglers now allowed up to two chinook in their daily limit

NEWS RELEASE
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

July 31, 2009

Contact: Doug Milward, (360) 902-2739

Ocean sport anglers now allowed up to two chinook in their daily limit

OLYMPIA – Sport anglers fishing for salmon off the coast of Washington will be able to increase their daily limit to two chinook, effective Aug. 1.

Since the season began, anglers were limited to one chinook per day, but after a month of fishing, 75 percent of the chinook quota remains, which is enough to ease the one-chinook limit, said Doug Milward, ocean salmon fisheries manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW).

“When we set the catch limits this year we wanted to make sure anglers were able to continue fishing for the more abundant coho without closing the fishery to meet conservation goals for chinook,” he said.

Pre-season forecasts showed that more than one million Columbia River coho were expected to return this summer, allowing fishery managers to set the recreational harvest quota at 176,400 coho. The recreational chinook harvest quota was set at 20,500 fish.

Current regulations for coastal marine areas:

§ Marine Areas 1 (Ilwaco) is open seven days a week with a daily limit of two salmon, all wild coho must be released.

§ Marine Area 2 (Westport) is open seven days a week with a daily limit of two salmon, plus one additional pink salmon, all wild coho must be released.

§ Marine Area 3 (La Push) open seven days a week with a daily limit of two salmon plus two additional pink salmon, all wild coho must be released.

§ Marine Area 4 (Neah Bay) open seven days a week, daily limit two salmon, plus two additional pink salmon, all wild coho must be released. Beginning Aug. 1, all chum must be released and chinook east of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line.

Additional fishing regulations, including minimum size limits and area catch guidelines are described in WDFW’s Fishing in Washington rules pamphlet, available online at