I almost pulled the Smoker Craft home last week, so I could get it ready for the first trip of the season. That is until I saw the forecast calling for ten days of snow and rain in Leavenworth. Looks like I will be fishing from shore and begging for rides for a while longer. Looking ahead, there is very good news for our salmon seasons in the coming year. Check it out. I know these seasons are a ways off, but with this long winter, it gives us something to look forward to!

About 84,800 Upper Columbia River summer Chinook are forecasted to return in 2023, representing about 120 percent of the 10-year average return and higher than last year’s 78,500 fish. The total return of fall Chinook to the Columbia River is expected to be similar to the recent 3-year returns. That includes about 272,400 “upriver bright” fall Chinook that are expected to return to areas of the Columbia River above Bonneville Dam, an increase from the 254,880 that returned in 2022. “We’re considering several options to improve the predictability of fall Chinook fisheries and limit the in-season closures we’ve seen in the past several years,” said Ryan Lothrop, Columbia River fisheries manager. “We’ll be leaning heavily on public input to help determine what anglers would like to see in 2023.” The public is invited to join WDFW at online public meetings throughout March and into April to discuss coastal and regional fishery issues and preferences for Puget Sound and Columbia River. Meetings offer opportunities for public comment, which fisheries managers use to help form non-tribal fishing seasons.

Forecasts for Columbia River coho prior to fisheries occurring for the ocean and Columbia River are expected to see a slight improvement compared to the past two years’ returns, with just over 886,000 early and late coho predicted to return in 2023. The 2023 forecast would be nearly double the 10-year average and an increase from the 2022 abundance of 685,000 coho.

Meanwhile, 234,500 sockeye are predicted to return to the Columbia in 2023, higher than last year’s forecast but well below the actual return of nearly 665,000 fish. The endangered Snake River sockeye run is forecast to increase slightly to 2,600, compared to last year’s return of 2,329 fish. The forecast estimates that there will be 187,400 sockeye returning to the Okanogan and the popular fishery in the Brewster Pool and below Wells Dam. Last year, the fishing in these areas was fantastic, with a four-fish daily limit. Many of the guides were running two trips a day and limiting for their clients in the Brewster Pool. The forecast calls for a return of 44,300 sockeye to Lake Wenatchee. The needed escapement is 23,500 sockeye to have a season on the lake, so it looks like there will be a fishery this year. These sockeye returns often surprise us. Last year the forecast was for 198,700 sockeye to return to the Columbia River. Remember, the actual return was 664,935!

As many of you know, I did a six-year term as a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Commissioner. I was glad to hear that two new appointments have been made and both are from Eastern Washington. Governor Jay Inslee has appointed three members to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission. The Commission is a nine-person citizen panel appointed by the governor to set policy for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). The Commission is comprised of three members from western Washington, three from eastern Washington, and three “at-large” members who may reside anywhere in the state. No two Commission members can reside in the same county.

Steve Parker is appointed to an eastern Washington position. He is a retired fisheries biologist who spent much of his 45-year career with the Yakama Nation and lives in Yakima County. Woodrow “Woody” Myers, Jr. is appointed to an at-large Washington position. He lives in Spokane County and retired from WDFW as an ungulate research biologist where he worked for 40 years. In addition, Barbara Baker was re-appointed to the Commission to a western Washington position. Baker was first appointed to an at-large position on the Commission in January 2017. She is an attorney who lives in Thurston County who retired from a long career in the state Legislature to devote time and energy to fulfill the requirements of this important appointment. She served as Vice Chair of the Commission from January 2019 to March 2022 and Chair since 2022.

“Our Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission shoulders many complex and sometimes controversial issues, and as the climate changes, their responsibilities only increase,” Gov. Jay Inslee said. “I am proud to welcome these three commissioners who will work hard to help our state protect and sustain its unique and cherished fish and wildlife.” Commissioners are appointed to six-year terms; appointees are subject to confirmation by the state Senate, which is currently in session. However, members are official upon appointment and serve as voting members on the Commission while awaiting Senate confirmation.

I wanted to share something that I am really excited about. A few weeks ago, I met with Brent Rhodes at KKRV, the big country station in Wenatchee. We worked together at the station before I went out on my own. He had a great idea about how we could get my reports on the air on both KKRV in Wenatchee and KWIQ in Moses Lake. “How about we start a Podcast,” he said. Well, we worked out the details and now you can get my audio reports without being in signal range of these stations. Just go to kkrv.com/graybillreport/ or kwiq.com/graybillreport/ and you can play the report on your computer or cell phone. Anytime, anywhere. Even better, if you miss a report you can play previous reports. Pretty cool. I am very pleased to have a new way to get current information on fishing out to my followers!

I heard the ice had cleared off Potholes Reservoir and I wanted to see if anyone was fishing for walleye. I got a couple of reports. One was from Shelby Ross, a long-time guide on Potholes for many years. He said he got a couple of walleye last Saturday, but with water temperatures in the mid-30s, fishing is slow.