Spring Chinook Fishery Update (5/27/2026)

Clearwater River Fisheries

Harvest remained moderate in the Clearwater fisheries last week, with a total of 233 adult Chinook harvested basin wide. With the lower Clearwater River closed, most of last week's harvest occurred in the mid-Clearwater section (Cherrylane Bridge to Orofino Bridge), which accounted for 113 fish, and North Fork Clearwater, which accounted for 98 fish.

Catch rates varied considerably depending on location. The best fishing occurred in the Clearwater below Orofino Bridge and in the North Fork Clearwater, where anglers averaged roughly 34 hours per fish. For comparison, the North Fork averaged 6-9 hours per fish during this time last season, while the Clearwater "pass-through" fishery averaged around 20 hours per fish. Overall, this season has been noticeably more difficult than what anglers have become accustomed to over the past few years.

In total, 582 adult Chinook have been harvested in the Clearwater Basin, leaving 388 fish remaining before the current harvest share is reached. The remaining harvest allocation for the Clearwater Basin is shown below. The dark blue bars indicate the number of fish already harvested, while the light blue bars represent the remaining fish available for harvest. Percentages at the top of each column represent the portion of the overall Clearwater Basin harvest share allocated to each fishery section.

Given that 388 fish remain in the basin allocation, and anglers harvested 233 fish last week, Clearwater fisheries will remain open under the current season structure this week. That said, this is very likely shaping up to be the final week of fishing opportunity in much of the Clearwater Basin, as harvest shares continue to decline alongside diminishing returns of fish passing Bonneville Dam.