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Spring Chinook Fishing Extended Again on Lower Columbia River by Bill Monroe The Oregonian, April 24, 2019

Spring chinook anglers will get a third fishing extension on the lower Columbia River.

Oregon and Washington biologists met by telephone Wednesday afternoon and approved more sport fishing for springers Saturday and Sunday.

Fishing will be open to both boat and bank anglers from Warrior Rock on Sauvie Island upriver to Beacon Rock below Bonneville Dam. Fishing from Beacon Rock upriver to deadlines below the dam will be open to bank anglers only. Previous angling rules remain the same.

Biologists said high, turbid water is likely to keep the catch depressed, as was the case in the previous extensions.

There was concern about an apparent lower number of salmon taken in test netting near Astoria this week, but Tucker Jones of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said "it’s premature to believe the sky is falling."

Bill Tweit of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife was skeptical: "One more weekend of poor fishing is just that," he said. "One more weekend of poor fishing."

In the end, the two managers approved the weekend fishery, but said there won’t be any further consideration of fishing extensions. They’ll meet again by phone on May 8, when more is likely to be known about the run’s strength across Bonneville Dam.