Steelhead Country – Episode 6: A New Future from Wild Steelhead Coalition on Vimeo.
Episode 6: A New Future
The Skagit. It’s a place that evokes as much heritage, history and reverence as anywhere else in Steelhead Country. Puget Sound’s mightiest watershed is also a beacon of hope for a new future. Closed to angling for wild winter steelhead since 2009 and benefiting from high-quality habitat and reduced, then halted hatchery plants, the Skagit’s wild steelhead are staging a comeback. Today, the Skagit watershed hosts half of Puget Sound’s wild steelhead, and it’s a candidate for designation as a Wild Steelhead Gene Bank where hatchery production is discontinued but sustainable fishing is allowed.
Pending approval from fisheries managers, the Skagit and its major tributary the Sauk may reopen for catch and release angling for wild steelhead in 2018. This is a chance for a paradigm shift. Decades of mismanagement have caused the precipitous decline of steelhead across Washington State. But it’s not too late for a more sustainable, conservation-oriented management model for wild steelhead – a model that preserves angling opportunity while also helping restore and sustain wild runs for future generations. As much as any river in Steelhead Country, the Skagit proves it’s not too late to bring them back.
This final installment is worth a look for those with Steelhead still on their active fishing or bucket list. If you’ve not signed the petition yet at Steelhead Country, consider adding your voice to the list today.
