Everyone is so worried on here about the bears LOL, I am worried about all the cougars out there! You never know you have one stalking you until it is on top of you 95% of the time. This system used to be able to handle the angling pressure like already mentioned however since the river changed course it can no longer do that.
As for everyone knowing of the system I say that is untrue. Sure people may have actually looked at the regs and seen the name, visited the hatchery or seen it on a map. However I am sure very few of those individuals actually thought of fishing it until they see a good report about it and then the gong show starts. 90% of the time when I am out fishing I am on this system, I know the regulars and I know all the hatchery staff. This system is where the anglers that want to avoid the BS of the chedder go to have some relaxing time. They are the anglers that have put in hundreds of hours exploring and hiking around to find spots.
For those hiking into the canyon, if someone else is at a spot and fishing it before you DO NOT HIKE INTO IT AND JOIN THEM!!! It is a courtesy that has gone on for MANY years there and on other canyon systems.
I heard a rumor they completely closed the river below the hatchery channel. I mean the part of the river that is only fed by the water flowing out of the channel. I know they put up boundary markers quite a ways down but had heard they closed it completely to stop all the snagging that was being witnessed
any truth to that rumor ?
Been closed for a few years now. What blows my mind is the people who still park at the hatchery and hike to the river by following the channel. Yeah right they're hiking that far LMFAO! That channel hits the chehalis basically at the confluence with the Harrison. It is closed from the hatchery outlet to the confluence with the chehalis.