net pen

Port Gamble S’Klallam: Net Pens Still Going Strong After Three Decades

A February warm spell aided the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe in its annual net pen transfer operation that began nearly 30 years ago.

Hatchery technician Ben Ives Sr. adjusts the net on the net pen in Port Gamble Bay.

Tribal hatchery manager Tim Seachord and natural resources staff worked with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) to bring 425,000 coho salmon smolts from the state’s George Adams Hatchery in Hoodsport to Port Gamble Bay.

Over the course of four days, the young fish were hauled from the hatchery to a tribal barge, then floated out to the tribe’s 63,000-cubic-foot net pens near Point Julia. The fish will remain in the pens until June before being released and will return to the area as adults. The tribe has been putting this operation into place since 1981. (more…)

Continue ReadingPort Gamble S’Klallam: Net Pens Still Going Strong After Three Decades