It is official, and only 3 days, so get your license, your knotless net, your boat tags and be ready.

WDFW FISHING RULE CHANGE
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
600 Capitol Way North, Olympia, WA 98501-1091
http://wdfw.wa.gov

July 29, 2010

Lake Wenatchee sockeye fishery opens Aug. 1

Action: Lake Wenatchee opens for sockeye salmon fishing.

Effective date: Aug. 1 through Aug. 3, 2010. Opens one hour before official sunrise.

Species affected: Sockeye salmon.

Daily limit: Two sockeye 12 inches in length or greater.

Location: Lake Wenatchee (Chelan Co.).

Reason for action: The 2010 return of sockeye will be sufficient to provide for the Lake Wenatchee spawning escapement goal, and additional sockeye will be present to provide for sport fishing opportunity.

Other information: Selective gear rules and a night closure will be in effect. Bull trout, steelhead, and chinook salmon must be released unharmed without removing the fish from the water. Legal angling hours are one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset.

Release sockeye with one or more holes (round, approximately ¼” in diameter) punched in the tail (caudal fin) of the fish. These fish are part of a study and have been anesthetized; the FDA requires a 21-day ban on consumption of these fish.

After the fishery closes, WDFW fishery managers will assess the catch and determine if additional fishing opportunities for sockeye remain. Any announcement will be posted under Emergency Fishing Rules on the department’s website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations .

Information contact: Chad Jackson, (509) 754-4624.

Lake Wenatchee State Park’s evening program this saturday features the Eclectic Cloggers, a group of dancers whose high-energy performances are rooted in traditional clog dancing. Since 1984, the Eclectic Cloggers have been performing traditional Appalachian clog dancing throughout the Pacific Northwest, accompanied by an old time music band. Our local performances include Folklife, University Dist. Street Fair, Shoreline Arts Festival, and Phinney Holiday Festival. Other regional performances include Olalla Bluegrass Festival, Yakima Folklife, Tumbleweed, and Lake Wenatchee State Park.

Live rock’n’roll music and BBQ benefit for the Beaver Valley Elementary school will be held at the Kahler Glen Athletic Club on Saturday August 14th from 5:30 to 8:30 PM. Silent auction, as well as the live auction sale of two Athletic Club memberships, will benefit the Beaver Valley School. Items on the auction list can be found on http://www.kahlerglenathleticclub.com/summermusicevent.html . Swimming and a piñata for the children will be available. This event is open to the public and the residents of the greater Lake Wenatchee / Plain area are especially invited. For more information or to make contribution contact Bill Miller @ 763.0560.
Sponsored by the Kahler Glen Community Association, Resort and Athletic Club.

Lake Wenatchee State Park’s evening program this saturday features the Baile Glas Irish Dancers celebrating the joyful traditions of Irish dancing. The dancers, children, ages 6 through teens, perform lively jigs, reels, and hornpipes in the step dance style of Ireland. Baile Glas Irish Dancers perform throughout the year at multicultural celebrations including appearances at Irish Week at the Seattle Center, N.W. Folklife Festival, Shoreline Arts Festival, Renton River Days and Lake Wenatchee State Park. Traditional tunes inspire choreography that is both exciting, and authentic. The show starts at 8pm and is free, though a $1 donation is suggested.

The Rotary Club thanks all that purchased 850 buckets of fresh strawberries last month.  We are now in the second and last phase of the sale with the offering of fresh Blueberries and individually Quick Frozen Strawberries or Raspberries.  The Ordering deadline is Friday July 23^th.  To order call (509) 548-8005.

If you live in the Plain, Fish Lake, and Lake Wenatchee area, delivery to your doorstep can be arranged free of charge.  Just order as outlined above and then e-mail garymschuster@yahoo.com  and inform him of your wishes.

 Berry pricing is for 10lb box of blueberries @ $30, and $9.00 each for a 3lb bag of individually frozen raspberries or strawberries.

 As a buyer, you’ll not only have some of the best tasting and freshest berries available (right off the farms of Skagit Valley) but you’ll also be helping the non-profit group,  Rotary, raise funds for its benevolent and service projects locally and internationally. 

The pick up points will be in Leavenworth, Wenatchee and Chelan. Berries will arrive for pickup when they are fullripe on Thursday July 29^th.

Payment is due with the order so use your credit card.

The Lake Wenatchee Girl Scout Troop is collecting food for the ”The Pantry”.  Their goal is to collect 1,000 pounds of food. You
can drop off non perishable food and items such as soap, toothpast, toiletpaper,
and other everyday items at Midway Village 14193 Chiwawa loop Rd.  The food drive is currently underway and will continue through August 5th.

Lake Wenatchee State Park’s evening program this saturday features the Alpine and Western Yodeling Master Kerry Christensen. The show starts at 8pm and is free, though a $1 donation is suggested. Kerry is not your typical yodeler. His concerts and events this year take him to 23 US states and three countries internationally. Kerry spent two years in Austria right out of high school. There he became interested in the alpine yodeling art. After mastering this difficult medium he was asked in l983 to move his six member family to Orlando, Florida and use his yodeling skills at Walt Disney World’s Epcot Center. He performed there for almost seven years until 1990.

A red and black O’Brien towing tube has gone missing on the lake sometime after Memorial Day weekend. If you have found it or jhave any information about this tube please contact Tom Shafer at  www.nasontek.com  telephone 206-920-5659

The Fifth Annual Benefit Auction for Camp Fire NCW and Camp Zanika will be held Saturday August 28 from 5:00-8:30pm in Cashmere at the Conservatory Event Center (Behind Apple Annie’s). There will be Wine Tasting by Silvara Vineyards & another local winery. A Silent Auction begins at 5:30pm followed by Live Auction with Hors d’oeuvres by Ravenous Catering.

Call 509-663-1609 for Tickets – $25 per person

I talked to the regional and area fisheries biologist along with one of the Columbia River fisheries managers to get an accurate update on the sockeye returning to the Upper Columbia River.  Here are some interesting facts:
 
1.  The preseason forecast for the Upper Columbia River sockeye, including the Snake River fish was for 125,200 fish.  Although it can fluctuate greatly, the biologists usually use an estimate of 5-15% of fish returning to Lake Wenatchee.  The balance are 500-1000 fish for the Snake River and around 85-95% for the Okanagon run.
 
2.  On June 29th they had the largest one day sockeye count 26,873 at Bonneville dam since 1947 when they started keeping records.  The next day count was 25,128.  The 2008 sockeye run of 214,465 was the biggest since 1980.  The largest run recorded was 318,900 in 1952. 
 
3.  On July 1, 2010 sockeye retention was authorized for above Priest Rapids Dam (With some zone exceptions so be sure to look at the regulations for the main stem Columbia in this area).  The daily limit in this area is 6 salmon.  Up to 3 adult chinook of which only 1 can be a wild adult fish.  Sockeye minimum size is 12 inches.
 
4. Last week the run was again updated to 375,000, which would be the largest run ever recorded.
 
5.  As for the Lake Wenatchee segment of the run,  the determination to open will only occur when the biologists are assured that they will have the 23,000 escapement that is required.  Sockeye in excess of escapement are available for harvest.  Given that last year’s escapement was not met on account of a warm water blockage in the Wenatchee River that returning fish refused to enter, I am certain that the biologist will be much more cautious about opening a fishery on Lake Wenatchee.  Although, there remains a very good chance of a fishery, we just need to be patient.  There are a lot of fish (chinook and a few sockeye) holding in the deeper holes around Leavenworth, waiting for the river to recede so they can start the passage up Tumwater canyon.  I will update the Tumwater count when there are noteworthy fish showing.
 
Rollie Schmitten
WDFWL Commissioner