This year’s Cowlitz River recreational smelt dip-fishing season kicked off Wednesday almost totally without its two most important elements: smelt and people dipping for them.

"After careful consideration of this year's smelt run size, we're excited to offer multiple dipping opportunities in the Cowlitz River," said Laura Heironimus, WDFW's Columbia River smelt lead.

So fishing prospects today were not high to start with,” he said. At the top of WDFW’s Cowlitz River smelt webpage, it notes the fishery is open. Thirty-nine lines of text below that ...

Anglers from across the Pacific Northwest took to the banks of the Cowlitz River on Wednesday, March 12, for the opening of the state's brief smelt dipping season. All it took was a few empty nets for ...

For my first time this spring, I was excited to take part in one of the oldest fishing traditions of the Columbia River Basin ... recreational smelt dipper in Cowlitz County during the 2025 ...

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) did approve dips on the final two days of ... I keep on my desk and predict success for those choosing to dip the Lower Cowlitz on Saturday, March ...

For more information on the project see the WDFW news release ... rusty-colored coyote, and a river otter who’s jogging path between water bodies happened to be only a few feet behind Wickhem while ...

Thousands of northwesterners were disappointed when they failed to meet up with some hooligans in March. These hooligans ...

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is asking for public input to inform a 15-year management plan for the ...