The Pacific Fisheries Management Council (PFMC) will start the debate tomorrow (Monday) as to the Ocean Abundance of Chinook salmon for the 2013 Fall Chinook salmon season. After review of all the testimony from the public hearings there will be debates as t how many Chinook salmon will be harvestable and then a division of the harvestable surplus. As it looks right now the Klamath River Basin is to have a good return that could leave the In-River Sports Fishermen a reasonable harvest of Fall Chinook salmon for 2013. I am sorry but I could not be at the meeting this year to speak up for the In-River fisheries but the Trinity River Guides Association is preparing an email to be sent to the PFMC for what we believe to be a fair harvest quota. If you remember I recommended that the In-River Alternative II was the best option for the Klamath River Basin that includes the Trinity River.

Our next option is to send emails to the Fish and Game Commission for a recommendation of four Chinook salmon per day with three adults and one jack and twelve Chinook per week with no more than nine adults in possession. It is running late for recommendations but if we send emails we just might get a favorable vote. This is our time to speak up. The CDFC meets April 16 – 17^th so we don’t have much time.
There seems to have been an extra release of water in the Trinity that caused some high water in the upper sections and now the rain has caused it to stay higher than normal for this time of the year. Next will be the spring releases that should start next week but form the meetings I attended it looks like it will be a Dry Water Year for 2013 which means that more than likely the peak flows will be somewhere around 4,500 – 4,800cfs for a 3 to 5day period. I will try to publish them when I get them.

NOTE: Last week I mistakenly stated the Trinity River from the South Fork down was catch and release only. I apologize for the bad report. April 1^{st the} Trinity River from the South Fork down to the confluence with the Klamath closes to the take of Chinook salmon for sports fishing but you may fish for steelhead and keep 2 hatchery trout or steelhead per day. You may NOT retain any native steelhead or trout!   
 

Fishing:

Old Lewiston Bridge Area: Cemetery Hole, Bucktail Hole and Poker Bar. The river is a little on the high side but one can catch some of the Germen brown trout if they work hard at it and try to stay to the slack water.
Indian Creek Lodge Area: (Kurt at 530-623-6294): Steel Bridge, Indian Creek Hole, And Douglas City Bridge. I was unable to reach my contacts for this area because they were fishing the Sacramento. 
Trinity Canyon Lodge: Richard Starr (530-623-6318) again no one was fishing so I have not report.
Hawkins Bar to Willow Creek Area: “D” Fishing Guide, 530-629-3554. This area of the river blew out last night and will be unfishable for at least a couple of days.
The Mid-Klamath:  Weitchpec / Orleans was blown out from high releases and the rain.

Trinity River Flows and conditions: Trinity Lake is 21ft. (41ft decrease) below the overflow and 85.2% of capacity (2.4 increases) at 3:00PM today.
Inflow to the lake was 4,375cfs and dam releases are 653cfs to Lewiston Lake with 351cfs going to Whiskeytown Lake and then on to the Sacramento River at Keswick.    
Trinity River: Lewiston Dam releases are 302cfs water temps 52, air is 58 degrees. Limekiln Gulch is 4.5ft at 436cfs. Douglas City is 6.5ft at 638cfs, water temps 51.7 air is 60, Junction City is 2.3ft at 765cfs.  Helena is 10.6ft at 1,170cfs with water at 51.2. Cedar Flat is 6.1ft at 2,250cfs. Willow Creek is estimated at 3,520cfs, air 56, and water 52. Hoopa is 16.3ft at 5,720cfs, water temps 52.2 degrees. Mouth of the Trinity at the Klamath is 22.5K  cfs.

Klamath: Iron Gate Dam releases are 1,570cfs. Seiad Valley is 5.5ft at 4,660cfs. Happy Camp estimated at 5,840cfs. Somes Bar estimated at 12.2K cfs. Orleans is 10.4ft at 16.8K cfs. Klamath at 101 is 16ft at 28.6K cfs & water temps of 50.6 degrees. Smith River is 13.8.7ft at 13.4K cfs.

Temperatures in the Valley last week were 76/53 degrees with 1.4 inches of rain, total to date 51.9 inches. The Weather in the valley next week is expected to be 70/34 degrees. Mon, partly cloudy; Tue, mostly sunny; Wed – Thu – Fri, partly cloudy; Sat, mostly cloudy; Sun – Mon, sunny.