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Columbia River Steelhead Run Forecast Downgraded Again by Michael Wright Spokesman-Review, September 30, 2026

A-run steelhead - 17,400 are expected to be wild fish
B-run steelhead - 1,500 are expected to be wild fish

The bad news for Columbia River steelhead numbers just keeps coming.

State, federal and tribal officials downgraded their steelhead return forecast once again on Monday, estimating this year's count of summer steelhead at Bonneville Dam on the Columbia would top out at 56,900.

The count would be the worst since steelhead counts began in 1939 after the construction of Bonneville, the first dam the sea-run rainbows encounter on their trip from the ocean to their natal streams.

Most of the fish that will return to tributaries of the Columbia like the Snake, Clearwater and Grande Ronde rivers have already crossed Bonneville. From July 1 through Tuesday, 55,184 steelhead have been counted at the dam, which sits about 40 miles east of Portland.

"There will be no miracle blip of fish here," said Chris Donley, the eastern region fish program manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The new estimate, detailed in a fact sheet from the Technical Advisory Committee released Wednesday, arrives just a week after the previous downgrade. This week's announcement dropped the expected total run by about 2,300 fish.

The new prediction includes 50,400 A-run steelhead, which arrive earlier. Of those, 17,400 are expected to be wild fish while the rest are hatchery origin.

Fisheries officials expect 6,500 B-run steelhead, which arrive later and are typically larger. Of those, 1,500 are expected to be wild.

The previous low-water mark for steelhead counts was 2021. Between July 1 and Sept. 29 of that year, close to 63,000 fish crossed Bonneville Dam.

Washington, Oregon and Idaho have all taken steps to reduce recreational steelhead harvest in response to the small run.

Most recently, bag limits were reduced on the Snake, Tucannon and Clearwater rivers. Donley said Tuesday that he doesn't expect any additional changes to Washington's rules.

The disappointing run comes after the preseason forecast called for more than 133,000 summer steelhead.

Related Pages:
Rotten Run: Snake River Steelhead Return Stacking Up to be the Lowest on Record by Eric Barker, Lewiston Tribune, 9/16/26
A-run Steelhead Trending Below Average Return by Eric Barker, Moscow-Pullman Daily News, 8/6/26
A-run Steelhead Surpass Expectations by Eric Barker, Lewiston Tribune, 8/21/25