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Fall Chinook Season Opens September 1 on Snake River by Staff East Oregonian, August 29, 2016

ENTERPRISE -- The Snake River will open to fishing for hatchery fall chinook on Thursday, Sept. 1.

The river will be open from the Oregon-Washington border to the deadline below Hells Canyon Dam and will remain open through Oct. 30, unless a closure is announced earlier. In addition, the reach from Cliff Mountain Rapid upstream to the deadline at Hells Canyon Dam will be open from Nov. 1-17.

Snake River fall chinook migrate more than 800 miles and pass eight mainstream dams to reach Hells Canyon, which is the farthest any salmon will travel in Oregon.

"Fall chinook runs in the Snake River have been impressive for the past several years," said Jeff Yanke, district fish biologist for the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife in Enterprise. "Current run projections indicate a very strong run in 2016 that will provide fantastic opportunity to catch salmon."

The daily bag limit will be six adult hatchery chinook, and anglers can keep an unlimited number of hatchery jacks measuring 15 to 24 inches long. Anglers are not allowed to keep fishing for jacks after they reach the limit for adults.

Wild chinook must be released immediately and unharmed. Only barbless hooks are allowed on this stretch of the Snake River while fishing salmon, steelhead and sturgeon. For a complete list of rules, anglers should check the 2016 Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations.