Sportsmen and women stand behind protections for North Umpqua Washington D.C. — The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee marked up a bill that would protect more than 100,000 acres of habitat important to North Umpqua steelhead in Oregon. The Frank and Jeanne Moore Wild Steelhead Bill, S. 513, honors World War II Veteran, Frank Moore and …
Steelhead 101: Using snorkel surveys to estimate adult steelhead escapement
Another week, another post on how scientists and fisheries managers measure steelhead escapement. Last week, we described redd counts and why they are an important tool. This week, we review snorkel surveys. Snorkel surveys entail divers swimming in the river and visually counting adult steelhead. Like redd counts, snorkel surveys do not cover an entire river, but rather break …
“Four is enough.”
A new battle cry for a grassroots movement to improve steelhead management without new regulations. By Bill Herzog Last fall on Oregon’s upper Deschutes, some of the most influential minds on wild steelhead gathered in Maupin for a “Steelhead Summit.” Maupin, center-punched into the heart of Oregon, is a tiny desert town famous for two things: trout and …
Steelhead 101: Using redd counts to estimate escapement of steelhead
Last week we defined the terms run size and escapement. If you didn’t see the post, check it out. This week we will discuss how fisheries managers actually measure escapement for wild steelhead using redd counts, and some of the challenges they face in doing so. We begin with escapement because it is usually measured first, and …
Steelhead 101: Escapement
One thing is certain — science is loaded with jargon. You almost need a PhD just to understand some of the technical language. While technical language is valuable to those that study and manage steelhead, it can also detract from sharing and explaining key messages – particularly in situations where various terms are bandied about without definition. For example, I …
Wild Rivers, Wild Steelhead
What are the keys to successful wild steelhead conservation? What can you do to help this cause? How do steelhead differ from other salmonids in their sexual behavior? For answers to these and many other questions about wild steelhead, as well as some of the best steelhead stories ever told, please join Wild Steelheaders United for an evening of science, …
Seafood Watch Sends Wrong Message to Consumers about Olympic Peninsula Wild Steelhead
The 2017 winter steelhead fishing season is in full swing on the rainforest rivers of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula (OP). It is the first year under new sport fishing rules adopted by Washington State that prohibit harvest of wild steelhead, require use of barbless hooks and prohibit fishing with bait. Wild Steelheaders United and Trout Unlimited led the …
Bill honoring Frank and Jeanne Moore reintroduced
Senator’s Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley reintroduced legislation today that would protect one of the country’s best remaining populations of wild steelhead. The “Frank and Jeanne Moore Wild Steelhead Special Management Area” bill will safeguard more than 100,000 acres of habitat on the famed North Umpqua. “Trout Unlimited applauds the determined leadership of Oregon Senators’ Ron Wyden and …
We Are Wild Steelheaders
Wild Steelheaders United is announcing our “We are Wild Steelheaders Month,” a celebration of wild steelhead across their native range in the Western U.S. For the next month we will be posting videos of anglers up and down the West Coast, discussing why wild steelhead matter to them. Anglers of all persuasions support better management of wild steelhead stocks. But to reach …
Steelheaders should stand up for small streams
By John McMillan When we steelhead anglers think of steelhead water, we think of big, muscular rivers like the Skagit, Umpqua and Eel. We don’t usually think of small streams we can step across or even streams that go dry in the summer. We should. [Write your legislator today and tell them to protect clean …