Fishing for a Reason

56: How Washington Salmon Seasons Get Set (And How to Fight Back)

• Jamie Propst • Season 1 • Episode 56

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0:00 | 27:35

If you've ever wondered why you can only fish for Chinook a handful of days a year while anglers in Canada are limiting out on fish from your own backyard — this episode is for you. Jamie breaks down the North of Falcon salmon season process from the ground up: where it came from, why it works the way it does, and most importantly, what you can do right now to get involved before the 2026 seasons are locked in. 

Timestamped Sections

00:00 — Introduction: Why Jamie rush-recorded this episode 
01:45 — What's at stake: Chinook seasons, Marine Area 7, and fishing for the next generation 04:20 — Big picture overview: halibut seasons expanding vs. Chinook contracting 
05:45 — A brief history of Washington salmon fishing in the 1950s–70s 
07:30 — Tribal fishing rights, treaty negotiations, and the Fish Wars 
09:50 — The Boldt Decision (1974): what Judge George Boldt ruled and why it still governs everything 
12:15 — Co-management: tribes as equal partners in science, decision-making, and enforcement 
14:00 — What "North of Falcon" actually means and where the name comes from 
15:45 — How the annual North of Falcon process works (February through June timeline) 
18:00 — The ESA listing of Puget Sound Chinook (1999) and NOAA's annual biological opinion 19:30 — Common Q&A: Why only 5–6 days? Why can Canadians fish our fish? Hatcheries? Seals? 
23:45 — Four action items to take right now before seasons are locked in

Key Takeaways

  • The Boldt Decision split the harvestable salmon 50/50 between tribes and non-tribal fishers — and that split is federal law, not something WDFW chose.
  • Tribes aren't just participants in the North of Falcon process — they're co-managers with equal say in the science and decision-making.
  • Marine Area 7's season shrunk from 92 days to 3–6 because constraining Chinook stocks that migrate through it are ESA-listed
  • Salmon don't respect borders. Washington hatchery Chinook migrate to Canadian waters, and the Pacific Salmon Treaty governs how those fish are harvested.
  • Hatchery production of Chinook in Puget Sound has roughly doubled since the ESA listing — without hatcheries, there would be very few fish left to target.

Resources Mentioned