There will be a Coho salmon fishing season this fall on the Grande Ronde River in Northeast Oregon.
The opener marks the 3rd fishing season for Grande Ronde Coho since the species was reintroduced in 2017. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife opens the season on Saturday. Fish managers are expecting this year’s run of silvers to be similar in size to last year’s record run. Coho salmon went extinct in the Snake River tributary in the early 1900’s due to overfishing.
ODFW officials don’t expect the silvers to start showing up in the Grande Ronde River in Oregon for another week or two. The fish are only just now starting to cross Lower Granite Dam downriver on the Snake near Colfax. Anglers have only caught a few Coho on the Grande Ronde during the first two seasons. Officials believe that’s because anglers have been targeting steelhead and have been catching silvers by accident.
The Coho season on the Grande Ronde in Oregon runs through November. Up to two adults and 5 jacks can be kept every day.