Let me add a little more on the river closures because of temperatures. Section 8.01 Emergency Closures Fish & Game Code: The water temperature has to be over 70 degrees for 8 hours for 3 consecutive days before the closure will be initiated. The water has to be less than 70 degrees for 7 consecutive days before the closure will be lifted.

This should clear up the water closure because of high water temperatures. This is going to be very hard to not be initiated from the water I have been seeing on the Trinity and Klamath Rivers. I think this could very well be the end of salmon fishing on the Klamath and Trinity Rivers as well as the Eel River and tributaries.

The fish need protection but I don’t believe that there will be a river in Northern Californa that will not be affected by this closure. What about all of the fishermen that have made their plans months ago how will this affect their vacations and the places they stay? What about all of the small businesses that rely on fishermen for their livelihood. I think we are looking at another Salmon emergency like we had several years ago when the state and federal governments had to provide assistance to the salmon fleet and the businesses associated.

Fishing: I am sorry to report the sad news that the Trinity and Klamath Rivers are running very warm and I am finding it very hard to see or locate salmon. Thursday I was over at a friend’s house that faces the river and we watched for several hours and only saw about six small pods of two to four salmon go by early in the morning and nothing after the sun hit the water. This is sad fishing news but with air temps pushing 100 degrees I don’t see much movement in the lower section of the Trinity. It looks like for the time being fishing action is going to be in the upper sections of the river where the water temperatures are in the high 50s.

Mid-Klamath: Temperatures at the mouth of the Klamath (Terwer gauge) this past week has been running 70 – 72 degrees. This has been causing the salmon to hold up in the lower waters trying to stay cool in the brackish water of the mouth until the early hours of the mornings when the water is the coolest before they head up river to locate the cool inflowing stream to cool down and rest up before they continue their journey up river. There are some salmon being netted up around Weitchpec but not in any big numbers.

Junction City Weir report: Week of July 15, 2015; Chinook, adults 5, jacks 1, total 64, season to date 194; Coho 0; Steelhead, adults 0; total 3, season total 28; Brown trout, over 16 inches 01, under 16in 14, season total 63.

Trinity River Flows and Conditions: Lewiston Dam releases are 476cfs, water temps are 58.2 and air is 91 degrees. Limekiln Gulch is 4.9ft at 463cfs, water temps are 59.2 and air is 91; Douglas City is 6.3ft at 439cfs, water temps of 58 and air is 95. Junction City is 2.4ft at 481cfs. Helena is 8.6ft at 451cfs with water temps of 69. Cedar Flat is 2.7ft at 454cfs. Willow Creek is estimated at 506cfs, air is 96, and water 74, Hoopa is 11.7ft at 627cfs, water temps 77.7. Flows at the mouth of the Trinity at Klamath are estimated at 2,187cfs and water temps are 79 degrees; water temperatures at the Weitchpec Bridge on the Klamath are 77 and water temps at the Tully Creek gauge is 78.6

Klamath: Iron Gate Dam releases are 907cfs. Seiad Valley is 1.9ft at 976cfs. Happy Camp estimated at 1,018cfs. Somes Bar is estimated at 1,286cfs. Orleans is 2.5ft. at 1,560cfs. Klamath at Terwer Creek is 8.3ft at 2,440 cfs and water temps of 77.6 degrees.
Temperatures in the Valley last week were 101/57 degrees with 0.00 inches of rain with a season total of 49.45 inches of rain and 0.0in of snow.