The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) will host its second virtual town hall meeting on the 2024-2025 coastal steelhead season at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 13.
WDFW staff will share agreed-to fishery plans with the public during the meeting. In late November, the Department will finalize those plans with tribal co-managers and then announce the 2024-2025 season and regulations.
“We recognize the importance of coastal steelhead for recreational anglers, tribal co-managers, river ecosystems, and local communities and economies,” said WDFW Fish Program Director Kelly Cunningham. “We appreciate the public’s involvement in our coastal steelhead management process, and we look forward to sharing plans that balance conservation with providing fishing opportunities.”
Members of the public can participate in the Nov. 13 meeting through Zoom, either online or by phone. Meeting materials and information on fishery management, including past town halls, are available on WDFW’s coastal steelhead management webpage.
Staff will present finalized plans to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission in a special Fish Committee meeting Nov. 21. More information will soon be available on the Commission’s meeting webpage.
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 fishing on the coast
Braving the winter weather to fish for steelhead is a tradition for many in Washington. The steelhead, a sea-going rainbow trout that can exceed 30 pounds, is the official State Fish and a highly regarded game fish.
“Winter steelhead return to coastal rivers as early as November and December, providing a chance for anglers to celebrate the outdoors during the cold, wet season by going out and engaging in steelhead fishing,” said James Losee, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (WDFW) Coastal Region fish program manager.
Steelhead in the Coastal Region are known for their size and fight, and their range overlaps with temperate rainforest, creating a special recreational experience.
“Winter steelhead come in over a five- or six-month time period, so there’s never huge numbers of them,” said Bob Kratzer, owner of Angler’s Guide Service in Forks. “You spend a lot of time really having to work for them. Their fights are spectacular, so the reward is great when you do hook one. And then the environment that they live in, particularly in the wintertime, is not for everybody.”
The winter steelhead fisheries on the Olympic Peninsula are world-renowned in the fishing community. It’s not uncommon to drive to the banks of the Hoh, Sol Duc, or other iconic coastal steelhead rivers and see license plates from numerous states or meet visitors from around the world.
“Of all the salmonid species, wild steelhead are such a mystery to me: where they’ve been, what they’ve gone through, and one day they decide to pull on my line and our paths cross,” said Rich Simms, a co-founder and board member of the Wild Steelhead Coalition, a grassroots nonprofit based in Western Washington. “The more you learn about them, the more you become engaged and want to see them flourish. Especially on the Olympic Peninsula, steelhead fishing can put you in some of the most beautiful environments we have in the state.”
