RIDGEFIELD — The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has announced a new tentative schedule approach for the Cowlitz River recreational smelt fishery.

LONGVIEW — This year’s Cowlitz River recreational smelt dip-fishing season kicked off Wednesday almost totally without its two most important ... WDFW approved dipping on March 19 and 22, ...

Feb. 12—Smelt-dipping will return to the banks of the Cowlitz River as the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has approved a one-day recreational fishery on Thursday, Feb. 15.

Feb. 16—Crowds flocked to the Cowlitz River on Thursday morning as smelt-dipping returned after the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) approved a one-day recreational fishery. A ...

At the top of WDFW’s Cowlitz River smelt webpage, it notes the fishery is open. Thirty-nine lines of text below that, within a larger quote, a WDFW biologist notes, “ ...

The Cowlitz run is well known, and so are occasional runs in the North Fork Lewis River. However, when the fish appeared in other streams, they were thought to be strays from the mainstem Columbia.

Of the roughly 625,900 steelhead and 90,600 cutthroat smolt reared by the Cowlitz Trout Hatchery for release in 2016, roughly 514,000, or about 70 percent of the stock, went missing prior to release.

Jun. 1—The Washington state Department of Fish and WIldlife (WDFW) has opened the retention of spring Chinook salmon on the lower Cowlitz River. Salmon retention on the Cowlitz River was closed ...

LONGVIEW, Wash. — Dalton Fry cast a finely meshed net into the murky Cowlitz River. He waited a few minutes, then hauled it in and poured the contents into a glass jar. There swam dozens of ...

CENTRALIA, Wash. (AP) - After months of rampant rumors and speculation coming off of the Cowlitz River, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has finally confirmed what many area anglers ...

The Cowlitz run is well known, and so are occasional runs in the North Fork Lewis River. However, when the fish appeared in other streams, they were thought to be strays from the mainstem Columbia.

Think smelt dipping on the Cowlitz River doesn’t draw a whole lot of participants these days? Check out a report from state Fish and Wildlife Department biologist Joe Hymer about Saturday’s ...