Since the announcement last week from the Pacific Fisheries Management Council closing the ocean salmon season before it opened, a good amount of confusion has existed as to what is really going on, and accurate information has been hard to come by. As of yesterday, staff from the California Department of Fish and Game affirmed that salmon season in our area will NOT open as planned on April 5, 2008.

Mark Heidor from the DFG offices confirmed information from that agency's webpage http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/oceansalmon.asp#recreational to be accurate. The announcement states: "Recreational ocean salmon fishing south of Point Arena to the U.S.-Mexico border (San Francisco, Monterey and southern port areas) will not open as scheduled on April 5, 2008. In-season emergency action was taken on March 12, 2008 by the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to close this fishery. Regulations for the May 2008 - April 2009 ocean salmon fishing season will be decided by the PFMC at their April 7-11 meeting in Seattle, Washington."

The PFMC and other agencies will formally adopt their final regulatory measures during these meetings. Of three options to be considered, only one would allow any recreational salmon fishing this year, and apparently that would be only for a one-week period in May.

On the good news front, rockfish season is scheduled to open on May 1 as planned. According to the DFG, all regulations for the Rockfish, Cabezone and Greenling (RCG) Complex continue as last year for our area. Bag limits will continue at 10 fish per day per angler, and maximum depth restrictions remain at 240 feet of water. With the salmon closure, more anglers will pursue rockfish and halibut as alternative prey. Please remember to protect our resource and practice catch and release when possible. Take what you need, not what you can.