There is very good news for fans of fishing for sturgeon. The season that has been in place this summer on the upper Columbia for catch and keep sturgeon fishing is being extended. Beginning on October 1st anglers will be able to keep white sturgeon between 38 and 72 inches long at the fork. The area on the Columbia River that will be open is from Priest Rapids Dam to Wanapum Dam and Wanapum Dam to Rock Island Dam. Three legal sized sturgeon may be kept per day. Only one single point barbless hooks is allowed per pole and two poles may be used with the purchase of a two pole endorsement. Any sturgeon not to be harvested must be released immediately and oversized fish cannot be removed completely or in part from the water. Night fishing is not allowed and anglers must retain eggs with the intact carcass of fish from which they came. Please read the complete WDFW news release for all the details on this fishery. It can be found on the department’s web site at
www.dfw.wa.gov. The season was extended as there are still available hatchery origin sturgeon for harvest.