Fisheries managers have added more fishing days to the 2025 spring chinook salmon fishing on the Columbia River.
This year’s early season ended after April 6 on the lower river (downstream from Bonneville Dam), but Oregon and Washington officials decided to extend the fishery with six more days.
The newly added days you can keep a chinook salmon are April 11-13 (a Friday-Sunday) and also April 15-17 (a Wednesday-Thursday.
The earlier open period was marked by lots of smelt and sea lions as well as some poor water conditions, depending on the location. Overall, the early bite was far slower than all of us would have liked..
The daily bag limit remains two hatchery salmon or steelhead, one of those can be a fin-clipped chinook salmon.
Boats may fish from Buoy 10 up below Beacon Rock, about four miles below Bonneville Dam. Bank anglers can fish farther up to the deadlines below the dam.
Above Bonneville Dam, early spring salmon fishing was set for April 1 through April 26 with similar regulations.
It’s worth noting that fisheries managers will continue to keep track of actual fish numbers and catches as the season goes along. If the run looks strong enough, additional salmon fishing opportunities might open up later in the spring.
I also fish for spring chinook in the lower Willamette River, which isn’t subject to the same mid-season closures as the Columbia.
Read the April 9 Columbia River Fishery Notice setting the latest rules for all of the official details, including full descriptions of the closed areas.
Book a 2025 spring chinook salmon fishing guide or charter here
This client caught a spring chinook salmon today while fishing the Columbia River with Marvin’s Guide Service.
Last Updated on by Marv
