KLAMATH RIVER

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November 13, 2009 Headlines

Upper River Steelies Turns On

Wally Johnson is back home after spending two weeks back in the Colorado high country chasing mule deer and elk. He was fly fishing this past Wednesday 11-11 to Friday 11-13 and reports consistent action working from the put in at his backyard to the take out about five miles down river. They are averaging 3 to 7 adult wild steelies and 10 to 15 half pounders per day. They have been working their flies in the riffles and over the active spawning salmon redds with most of the adults running 3 to 5 and up to 7 pounds. Wally expects better counts this weekend as they switch over to convention roe and side drifting tactics. Most of the salmon in the Hornbrook section are dark and spawning and counts are winding down very quickly. The steelie counts will hold up so long as the river stays in shape. Wally if offering trips through Christmas on the upper Klamath and will move to the coastal rivers on the Smith and Chetco after January 1st.
The "upper river" is still scenic and remote. You won't find crowds, in fact you will probably see just a few others working the same ten mile section as you. October and November are prime time for upper Klamath steelies which concentrate in the riffles and tail-outs below spawning salmon.

Deal to raze 4 Klamath dams
SF Chronicle

In what is being touted as the world's biggest dam-removal project, an agreement was reached Tuesday to remove four dams on the Klamath River and restore a 300-mile migratory route for California's beleaguered salmon.

The tentative agreement was reached after a decade of negotiations among 28 parties, including American Indian tribes, farmers, fishermen and the hydroelectric company that operates the dams and distributes the water. The plan would set in motion one of the most ambitious efforts in U.S. history to restore the habitat of a federally protected species if it receives final approval by the parties in December, as expected. Read more:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgibin/article.cgif=/c/a/2009/09/30/MNMM19UDKH.DTL#ixzz0SdYDhfBN

Editorial
(This is great news and an important step in restoring the Klamath salmon runs. Many issues must be resolved and studied before the dams are breached. Sedimentation behind the dams and how the lower river (bridges, roads, housing development ect) would be effected by the resulting sedimentation and flow changes. It is estimated that it could take as long as 12 to 20 years for all the sediment to be washed out of the river.
Water diversion and minimal flows on the Scott and Shasta must be established to these two important salmon spawning tributaries as well.
One other component that must be addressed is the effects of tribal gillnetting. Tribal nets are in the Klamath and Trinity rivers practically year round. These nets take 10,000s of wild steelhead and endangered coho salmon annually plus 10ks of fall run salmon. With little oversight many long time sport anglers and guides believe that the tribal nets on the lower take well in excess of their Fall run salmon quota.
As I have said before.... breaching the dams will not increase the numbers of salmon if the tribal gillnetters continue to take the majority of returning fish. The fishery simply cannot recover with 100s of gillnets in the river. This fishery was wiped out in the 1920s due to gillnetting by (white) commercial cannery operations and tribal gillnetting is wiping out this fishery today.
Until dam sedimentation, water diversion and gillnetting is addressed I am skeptical that spending $10s of millions to breach dams will result in restoring our ever dwindling salmon runs.
Mike Aughney

Guides:
Wally Johnson Guide Service steelheadguides.com 530 496-3291 Evenings 707 482-0390
Kenny Armstrong norcalriverfishing.com 707 489-4087
Steve Huber stevehuberguideservice.com530 623-1918

Kamp Klamath
Our favorite campground Kamp Klamath "on the quite side of the river" is adding a bunch of amenities. These include a fisherman's breakfast starting at 6AM, box lunches and a boat shuttle from the campground to the mouth. They also offer discounts for those anglers looking to park their RV for a month or more and enjoy a few weeks of this incredible fishery. They have full hookups and the entire campground has free wireless internet. Don't miss the Saturday night salmon and chicken B-Q with live music!
Kamp Klamath is a secure, quiet, forested campground surrounded by Redwood National Park and where we have set up our fish camp for over 20 years. Great people and a great place to stay. 707 482-0227

Quotas, Sea Lions and Hope
The past few weeks just show what a farce the whole "blow the dams" "we are stewards of the river" tribal argument is. The commercial nets this past Friday (September 4th) were so concentrated that it was nearly impossible for boats to navigate through them. It's a wonder that any salmon could either. The Yurok's have done a good job in backing the commercial nets away from the mouth and not fishing two days per week or at night (in the estuary) but... From my observation the number of nets has increased and the spacing between them is so small few fish can make it through. While the commercial season is now closed there are still scores of subsistence nets in the water today from the estuary to Blue Creek.

Friday 9-4 was the last day of the tribal commercial season I can understand why everyone was trying to get their last little piece of the pie. The problem is that with that many nets on the river VERY FEW SALMON escape. While tribal gillnetters will take their full quota (and then some) sport anglers will likely harvest less than 20% of their quota again this year.
More importantly not enough fish are escaping this gauntlet and making back to the spawning grounds. The Yurok tribe keeps pressing to blow up the dams on the upper river but "blowing up the dams to give back old spawning grounds will do nothing IF ALL THE RETURNING SALMON ARE CAUGHT IN THE GILL NETS.
Pictured above right: gillnetting in the 1920s by white cannery operators nearly wiped out the salmon runs 9 decades ago. Over netting today has changed little other than faces and the and impacts it has on the runs.

Sport anglers in 2008 took fewer than 2000 adult fish or less than 10% of their quota while commercial tribal netters took their full allotment of 25,000. This number does not include the subsistence catch for which there is a quota but with no reporting of subsistence catches, the overall harvest likely exceeded 10,000 to 20,000 (plus) additional fish. This is far beyond their subsistence quota. The nets stay in the river well into the winter months not only catching king salmon but endangered coho and steelhead.

What I found most disturbing this past weekend was the complete lack of respect for wildlife by Yurok tribal members or oversight by Yurok law enforcement when it came to the indiscriminate shooting of sealions and seals. We witnessed not one or two shootings but dozens of marine mammal shootings in the estuary over the Labor Day weekend. Being a past commercial fisherman I'm no fan of sea lions but many of these were shot when not anywhere near any nets. That's just WRONG and goes against everything that the tribe says as far as being stewards of the river. This was witnessed by dozens, even 100s of sport anglers. I do wonder what tribal biologists think about the senseless shooting of sealions and harbor seals? At least the condors will have plenty to eat, see www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/08

(I did call both the Yurok tribal police and the Humboldt sheriff to report these shootings and got nowhere with the Yurok police). If any of you readers were there I would appreciate an email fishsite@aol.com and any pictures as we wish to pass these along to Cal F&G, NOAA and the PFMC. State clearly what you saw, photographed or video recorded and please include your contact information. (All names will be kept confidential).

The number of subsistence nets in the estuary and upriver has increased again this year and with no official reporting method the subsistence quota will likely again be 2, 3 maybe even more than 5 X allowed. This effects not only future returns here but can shut down wide areas of the California and Oregon coast to sport and commercial fishing as happened three years ago.

Bottom line: The Yurok leaders must do more to enforce fishery quotas, regulations and abide by federal laws like the marine mammal protection act.

A few ideas that need to be examined next spring by the PFMC:
1: The Klamath quota system needs to end. It's a WAG (wild ass guess) number at best and with 100s of nets in the lower river the run is too easily over-fished in low return years.
Sonar fish counters need to be installed above Terwer hole or the 101 bridge and in-river commercial and sport quotas increased or decreased depending on escapement. This system is very successful in Alaska. Split the quota up so impacts on endangered runs are not over harvested and stop allowing unlimited commercial netting early in the season until enough fish escape to seed future returns.
2: All sport, commercial and subsistence fish must be logged and reported. While there is a quota for subsistence catches the "quota" has never been met. The subsistence nets need to be pulled when the true quota is met (like last week). Stop all night fishing up river and all drift netting.
3: Increase enforcement for sport and tribal alike. Net spacing needs to be increased to allow escapement, shooting of marine mammals prosecuted unless tribal anglers are endangered and sport anglers fined for retention of snagged fish or over limits.
4: Increase the Klamath salmon report card to $5 (or more) to support hatcheries and subsistence tribal anglers when returns are low.
5: All parties, sport and tribal anglers along with the PFMC and Cal F&G need to work together to change past practices and work to return this fishery to health. The Sacramento Valley salmon fisheries are doomed by water diversion but maybe we can save this last surviving California king salmon run. By working together we can save this incredible fishery otherwise it will be lost.

Several guides have reported that the Yurok leaders did not accepted an invitation to an informal meeting about salmon at Klamath Glen with a group of guides, sport anglers, commercial fisherman and NOAA this coming Sunday. My understanding is that they would only attend a meeting if they moderated it. That's unfortunate as we all need to work together towards a future. I'm hopeful that they would reconsider but not surprised if they don't change their mind.

For the record: I know and respect several individual Yurok members (including a couple of heroes) and I am in no way blaming individuals for what is happening here. It's the lack of any tribal enforcement and their leaders who govern and enforce the tribal fisheries and laws. I would love nothing better than to see a time when a million fish are returning to the Klamath and the tribe has a sustainable commercial fishery of a 100,000 fish. But until the Yurok's improve their netting and reporting methods this fishery will not return to it's potential and will collapse again due to the current netting practices.

Maybe tribal members like Keith Parker (who has sent threats of violence to me and my two children) will see that this rant is about saving this fishery before it's goes the way of the Sac Valley fisheries. Keith, it's not racism, it's about what's right and over-harvest by nets has had the biggest impact to spawning success for the past century by both white cannery operations in the 1920s and tribal netters today. I can only ask Keith why, as a senior Yurok tribal member is it common for, and as you claim a retired SWAT team member and licensed financial advisor to threaten children? Or are you just trying to silence someone with a valid point of view?
I just want salmon here to thrive for your kids and mine. That's NOT racism..... it's HOPE.

River's West Lodge

Imagine a remote lodge... accessible only by jet boat where anglers can target steelhead and salmon laying in the riffles below. This is NOT Alaska, this is the River's West Lodge on the Klamath river in Northern California.
Rivers West Lodge is located 12 river miles up from Klamath Glen and they offer both lodging (includes river front cabins with private baths and three meals per day) and fishing packages through our sponsors.
You can choose from a variety of packages that can include being picked up on the first morning by your guide, fished hard all day and dropped off at RWL or catch the afternoon jet boat shuttle up, have dinner, enjoy the evening bite, and meet your guide lodge-side in the morning. Klamath Glen motels sold out? Not a problem. RWL welcomes sport anglers coming up on their own boat to stay and have dinner (breakfast the following morning and lunch is included) and also offers packages for larger groups of up to 20.
This is a great option for anglers looking to find their "own water", corporate groups or just some friends and family to get off the beaten path and enjoy some incredible fishing in a very incredible setting. For more information and reservations please call 707 482-7775 or contact our guide sponsors for full packages.

Wally Johnson, Steve Huber and Kenny Armstrong are taking reservations of the 2009 salmon and steelhead seasons. Please use the links below for more information and reservations.

Guides:
Wally Johnson Guide Service steelheadguides.com 530 496-3291
Kenny Armstrong norcalriverfishing.com
Steve Huber stevehuberguideservice.com

Panther Creek Vacation Home
For those of you booking a trip with one of our guides and not interested in camping and looking for something more than a hotel room check out this river front house. This vacation rental is located on the lower river at Panther Creek and sleeps up to 10. It's perfect for a family weekend getaway or larger groups. We know that a few of our readers have booked the home and have enjoyed its prime location. You can find more info here at Panther Creek vacation rental.

For river status (low flow closure) updates from Fish and Game please call +1.707.442.4502 for the North coast and +1.707.944.5533 for Central coast streams.

Accommodations & Shops:
"Little Ray's Tackle" in Klamath Glen. For all your tackle needs stop by Little Rays. This is a must stop for anglers new to the river. The crew behind the counter will be more than happy to answer all your questions and point you in the right direction. Located just past the Steelhead Lodge. 707 482-7725

Kamp Klamath Located on Klamath Beach road is one of the most beautiful and quiet campgrounds on the lower Klamath river. Kamp Klamath is secure and has a friendly staff and the entire campground has a wireless net connection. They also have reduced rates for weekly and monthly visitors. The crew here at USAFishing has set up a fish camp here for over 15 years. The telephone number is 707-482-0227 or toll-free 866-KLAMATH. Their e-mail address is kampklamath@msn.com

In Seiad Valley sits the K lamath river side park a quiet little RV park right on the banks of the Klamath for anglers looking for a quieter stretch of the river away from the crowds
Friends of the Cal Ore Fish. This organization supports hatcheries in California & Oregon and lobbies on behalf of anglers on many issues. We here at USAFishing want to say thanks to this great organization for all their hard work. To learn more and to contribute to their cause please visit their site. cal-orefish.org

River Levels:

For river status (low flow closure) updates from Fish and Game please call +1.707.442.4502 for the North coast and +1.707.944.5533 for Central coast streams. Be sure to check out the California Fish and Game regulations before you go. Regulations vary on every river and you need to pay attention to bait and hook restrictions. Due to winter closures on HWYs 5, 101 & 299 we recommend you check Caltrans road conditions as well.

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Deal to raze 4 Klamath dams SF Chronicle

Deal to raze 4 Klamath dams
SF Chronicle