Medford, OR – Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington have announced the sturgeon retention seasons for the Columbia River upstream of Bonneville Dam for 2025. During a hearing today, it was confirmed that the sturgeon retention fisheries in The Dalles Pool and Bonneville Pool will open for two days per week, Wednesdays and Saturdays, from January 1 to January 29. The season will remain open until the pool-specific quotas are reached.
Anglers are advised that, in recent years, fisheries in both pools have closed earlier than expected due to high angler effort and catch rates, which led to the harvest guidelines being met before the scheduled season end date. To better manage the catch and extend the fishery into the year, fishery managers implemented a days-per-week season structure several years ago. However, high interest from anglers, coupled with favorable weather and on-the-water conditions, continues to cause the harvest guidelines to be reached quickly.
The traditional January 1 opener also contributes to the shorter retention season, as fishing effort and catch rates are typically higher on the opening day. During today’s hearing, some discussion took place about potentially moving away from a January 1 start date in the future to allow for more fishing days.
“It’s difficult to move away from Jan. 1 without a more thorough public process, as we know how important it is to a lot of people up there,” said Tucker Jones, ODFW’s Ocean Salmon and Columbia River Program Manager. “But considering the performance of these fisheries, I am skeptical that we will be able to offer a meaningful number of retention days without reconsidering a Jan. 1 opener in the future.”
The John Day Pool fishery will remain open seven days per week in 2025, as per the permanent regulations, until the harvest guideline is met. This fishery has historically been slower to reach its catch guideline, providing more opportunities for anglers compared to the Bonneville and The Dalles pools.
Current recreational harvest guidelines are set at 675, 275, and 105 white sturgeon for the Bonneville, The Dalles, and John Day pools, respectively. However, the Bonneville Pool guideline will be reassessed by fishery managers in late January 2025 once all stock assessment data is finalized.