New salmon, steelhead and crab fisheries await anglers once the storm clouds clear

Rough weather and high water put a damper on fishing in a number of areas during the first week of June, but anglers are expected to be out in force once conditions improve.

For one thing, catch rates for hatchery-reared salmon and steelhead - not to mention sturgeon and shad - have been picking up in a number of areas around the state. For another, popular fisheries for crab in Puget Sound and summer chinook in the Columbia River are set to kick off this month.

"I think a lot of anglers are just waiting on the weather," said Joe Hymer, a fish biologist for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) in Vancouver, Wash. "There are a lot of great fishing opportunities available here and throughout the state this June, and all signs indicate this is the time to go."

Salmon fishing off the Washington coast started out slow, but sprung to life on the first Sunday in June when the waves flattened out, said Wendy Beeghley, another WDFW fish biologist. On that day, 65 anglers checked at the Westport dock took home 42 chinook salmon. "That's pretty good fishing," she said.

Meanwhile, salmon fishing has been good on the Yakima River and shad are finally showing up en masse on the lower Columbia River, where anglers have also been averaging a legal-size sturgeon for every three rods.

Anglers planning a fishing trip may also want to note the following dates, when a number of new fisheries will open around the state.

• June 14 - Sockeye salmon on the Baker and Skagit rivers.
• June 15 - Chinook salmon in Tulalip Bay "bubble."
• June 16 - Hatchery steelhead (Rocky Point/Tongue Point to Highway 395 Bridge in Pasco) and summer chinook (Bonneville Dam to Priest Rapids Dam).
• June 18 - Crab in marine areas 4, 5, 13.
• June 21-28 - Adult summer chinook (below Bonneville Dam).
• July 2 - Puget Sound crab fishery (marine areas 6, 7-South, 8-1, 8-2, 9, 10, 11, 12).

For more information on these and other fishing opportunities around the state, see the regional reports below. Anglers should also check the Fishing in Washington fishing rule pamphlet (http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/regs/fishregs.htm) for specific regulations affecting each fishery.