Snake River hatchery Chinook only, steelhead bag cut to two starting today

Oregon cut the Snake River salmon and steelhead bags starting today. An ODFW regulation update out of Enterprise on Sept. 22, 2026, covers the river from the Oregon–Washington border upstream to the boundary 400 feet below Hells Canyon Dam.

Chinook retention from Sept. 23 through Oct. 31 is hatchery fish only. The bag is three adult hatchery Chinook, with no limit on jacks. When the season opened Aug. 18, anglers could keep one wild Chinook. Managers closed that wild retention for the rest of the season, citing a wild fall return that is still running below average.

The hatchery steelhead bag drops from three fish in the permanent rules to two, in effect Sept. 23 through Dec. 31. ODFW tied the cut to the lowest returns on record for the combined A/B-index and unclipped steelhead count at Bonneville Dam. Steelhead fishing is already closed in other Columbia tributaries, including the Deschutes and John Day. The agency said Snake River abundance should still meet the thresholds that allow some hatchery steelhead to be kept, and that Oregon’s change matches rules Idaho has already put in place. District fish biologist Kyle Bratcher said the shared cut protects wild Chinook and keeps a steelhead season available. Other permanent Oregon sport rules stay in effect.

Questions: Kyle Bratcher, 541-263-0781, or Yvonne Shaw, 503-383-6859. Check the 2026 Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations and in-season updates before you fish.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: ODFW — Salmon and steelhead bag limits adjusted for Snake River starting Sept. 23 (Sept. 22, 2026).