Chinook Run

2014 Spring/Summer Chinook Salmon Run Will Meet or Exceed Preseason Forecast. Fisheries managers are expressing confidence about a strong Chinook salmon season in Idaho after recent increases in the number of fish being counted in the Columbia River. Here’s Idaho Fish and Game spokesman, Steve Liebenthal: “More than 17,000 fish were counted passing Bonneville Dam in one day. Thousands of salmon are passing Bonneville Dam each day, including Wednesday, April 30, when workers counted 17,409 Chinook (the 17th highest single-day count on record). This will be great for anglers not just in Idaho, but also in Oregon.”

 

Although current counts of the upriver 2014 spring Chinook run at Bonneville are only reflective of the front half of the run, those numbers have been robust and fishery managers are now fairly certain the run will come in at, or above the pre-season forecast. That is good news on top of good news for Idaho salmon anglers because the forecast already predicted the 6th highest return in the last 20 years.