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[CohoJake]

the 2017 post season release summary was 100,000 fed fry released into various tributaries. (peach Salwein etc)

Smolt release was 980,000 from the hatchery, if I read the table correctly

http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/sep-pmvs/data-donnees/2019/SC&NC-IFMP-2019-PSR-eng.htm

Hmm, the 100,000 is in the "goal" column, but nothing on hand and nothing actually released - maybe they didn't release any unfed fry in the c/v in 2017?

I used to be able to find the other years reports pretty easy - I don't know where they went.

[milo]

While I am very grateful for hatchery enhanced fishing opportunities, it saddens me.

Those little warriors should be digging redds in the gravel beneath the canopy of temperate rainforest cedars, not laying in tubes awaiting to be gutted and fertilized in a plastic bucket.

It’s a stark reminder of how much we’ve screwed up their habitat.

I fixed it for you Clarki.

Sadly, I've come to accept the reality: humans and wild animals cannot coexist without this coexistence being at the expense of the animals. Our greed is indomitable.

[Rodney]

A slightly more romantic setting for these coho! Dave, Buck and I toured some of the spawning channels in the upper river watershed today.

[milo]

A slightly more romantic setting for these coho! Dave, Buck and I toured some of the spawning channels in the upper river watershed today.

You voyeurs! 

[RalphH]

As nature intended!

Hope those channels last at least several seasons!

[wildmanyeah]

beautiful

[Dave]

As nature intended!

Hope those channels last at least several seasons!

Well, Centennial has been operating at least 20 years now, Yukalup and Angelwing a few less.  All are controlled water intakes in areas of relatively stable flow so they should last a while yet.

[Rodney]

FYI, the hatchery clips all of the coho salmon being released.

Re: numbers. I have a video overview on that coming out very soon, hopefully next week.

[clarki]

That second set of pictures does not sadden me 

[Stratocaster]

I don't know if it is 'true' but I think many anglers including myself feel hatchery fish on average are smaller and don't fight as well as wild fish. Sometimes they seem less inclined to bite. I recall back in the late 80s saltwater anglers on the East Coast of Vanilse late Sept and Oct (even November) complained despite their high numbers didn't bite as readily as wild fish and that they tended to stay quite deep compared to wild fish that were more surface oriented. Could that had to due with changes in the Strait at the time. I seldom hear talk of that fishery anymore. Maybe it is a thing of the past.

Many experts on salmon seem to agree that salmon overall have been getting smaller in the last several years. I didn't catch a hatchery coho bigger than 4lbs this year and the does I caught were like 3lbs...tiny compared to the past. A couple of the fish Rod and Nina (hope I got your wife's name right Rod) were a good size.

The biggest wild fish I caught this year was about 8lbs. Most were 4 to 6.

Best I know the Chilliwack still has a strong population of wild fish. I think most years it's about equal to what returns to the hatchery. I don't know if there are any studies that specifically indicate hatchery coho are genetically inferior. The big issue with that is relying on hatchery fish as brood stock for coming generations.

I don't know if there is any truth to that based on what I've observed in my years of fishing FV river systems.

In my opinion, the size of coho, hatchery or wild is more dependent on conditions in the Ocean.  I remember 2010 where most stocks benefitted from ideal conditions in the salt.  That year, I caught some of the biggest coho ive seen on the Vedder, both Wild and hatchery. 

As for the fight, I don't really notice much of a difference, wild or hatchery.  I've caught 5 to 6 pounders fresh from the canal late sept. on the vedder that were full of piss and vinegar and caught big wild brutes from the slough that came in like wet noodles.

[bigsnag]

I share similar observations with Stratocaster. Ocean conditions and where the fish were caught seems to make the difference in terms of size and strength of the fish in my books.

I fish a high elevation lake where it has its very own natural population of rainbows, probably offsprings of the T steelheads.  It was planted with hatchery fish in the early 70's because of a few poor spawning seasons and heavy fishing pressure and the augmentation continues to this day.  At the beginning of the planting the old-timers were pissed because they think these hatchery fish were inferior to the native fish and once these fish started spawning with the natives the characteristics of the natives, namely size and strong, hard fighting quality
would be gone forever.  I was not there to catch the "natives" so I cannot compare, but pound for pound the rainbows there still give me the best fights, especially the maiden ones in comparison with other lakes.  As to the size of fish, it varies depending on whether if the lake is over populated(good spawning season)and the amount of feed available. In the last 30 odd years, there had been quite a few spectacular seasons and a few poor ones(small fish but plenty).
Perhaps I shouldn't compare lakes and oceans, but here we are talking about genetic distinction and the lost of it.  I am not a fish biologist so what I say mean little.  The way I see it, with this "genetic distinction" on the back of everyones' mind,  no biologist will dare to try anything radical to save the ECVI streams, or the T for that matter.
As I am typing this, I see my fig tree outside in my garden.  This season it had given me more and bigger fruits than ever, the fruits came earlier and the season lasted longer.  All I did was to mend the soil, water it and watch out for bugs. The rest is up to, dare I say, God.

[RalphH]

Well I don't know how 2 fish from the same section of a river, often within a few yards,  returning in the same year could have been exposed to ocean conditions so different that one is 25% to 35% bigger, better conditioned for it's length and when hooked, pulls harder, jumps more often and higher and take longer to land than another and the only other observable difference is the presence or lack of an adipose fin.

I'd also add that studies such as those done by Dr Dick Beamish and others have found that hatchery smolts once released from the hatchery have survival rates from 50% to 10% of their wild counter parts in current ocean conditions

Some old timers such as (IIRC) Eric Carlisle long said that Vedder Chilliwack coho were relatively tame compared coho from other rivers of their experience.

Some one else may say it's possible that V-C wild fish with that river's huge hatchery input have been genetically contaminated by domesticated hatchery genes.

I'd say I have observed the same for steelhead and cutthroat. Cutthroat in particular show marked differences in body condition and length to weight plus fight when hooked. The advantage going to the wild over hatchery origin. That may be because hatchery cutthroat are usually raised to a larger size relative to salmon and steelhead.

But as I said I don't know if these observations prove hatchery fish are weaker, smaller, poor genetically than wild fish...just that I have observed so. Other anglers have disagreed with my observations before and I have certainly encountered exceptions to my general observations.

[bigsnag]

I cannot argue with you Ralph because I am sure you fish more than I do and must have caught more wild fish than me.
Those are my own observations and I know is very limited.

[Rodney]

I forgot to include this photo last week, from the hatchery fishway.

[TNAngler]

Is it true hatch fish are weaker, smaller, poor genetically than wild fish...... ?

At what point does habitat restoration and  temporary closed upper river need to be a stronger emphasis ?

Weaker and smaller has a whole lot to do with conditions along with survival rates later in life.  My family raised coho in WA for a number of years.  If done right, there is little to no difference between what is raised and what is natural.  However, doing it right is tough and is usually not the easy way and so very few hatcheries actually do it.

One instance is coho for example live usually up to a year in a pond/creek before heading down to the ocean.  During this time they learn how to catch food, how to avoid predators, etc.  At least in the wild they do that.  Many hatcheries spend this time in big holding containers with nets over them.  There is no prey and few predators.  When they get released in the wild they have a much tougher time learning how to live and survive.

When we raised coho, we raised them up through the egg sack being gone and then dumped them in a number of ponds around the area that all fed into the creek.  We would feed them in the pond with the pellets for a little bit while they got acclimated but we didn't have to do it long.  And let me tell you, our mosquito population around the pond went from a lot down to nothing because those fish cleared them out.  When we had spawners come back, they were large and strong.  10-15 pounds, big hook noses.

I could go on and on but hope that is enough of a flavor.