2025: A Fantastic Pink Year?

Jacob Watrous

Jacob Watrous

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Looked for an existing thread, couldn't find one, and I waited a while to see if one emerged, but accept my apologies if there is one and I missed it.

This year looks like a great year for pink salmon for a lot of the areas.

First, bad news. North Sound forecast is down about 400,000 from 2023. The Nooksak is looking to quadruple its run, but most North Sound rivers are expected to be down.

Mid and South Sound, however...oh boy! 2023 saw just over 1.2 million returning to Mid Sound, while almost double that (2.5 million) are forecast for Mid Sound this year. I thought the Green was good two years ago, but this year they're calling for an additional million fish (a million!), and the Puyallup is expected to double its 2023 return. The Nisqually is looking to quadruple its 2023 return as well.

My favorite prediction, though? Hood Canal. 2023 saw a paltry 500,000 return, while this year they're expecting 2,400,000--almost 5x 2023 numbers. Fingers crossed they don't close the pink fishery to protect the struggling coho return (though if they do I understand completely).

Sources: WDFW meetings and https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/management/north-falcon/forecasts.
 
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IMHO some of the predicted pink numbers look low. Specifically I’m looking at Skagit, Snohomish and S Sound misc. I’d wager the fry counts were low and the returns will be higher.
 
I really do want to come back up to experience it again like old times. Just so hard with it being at the exact same time as peak chinook season literally down the street from me :(
 
The Hood Canal wild coho will likely have a say in MA 12 pink opportunities, but those fish will also be available in MA 9 as they move through.
Though still not great, there was a slight increase in the Hood Canal wild coho forecast, + 3,900.
SF
 
Matt B said:
IMHO some of the predicted pink numbers look low. Specifically I’m looking at Skagit, Snohomish and S Sound misc. I’d wager the fry counts were low and the returns will be higher.
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They are. Forecasted about 90k less for the Skagit, -50% for the Snohomish and the Stilly. Always hoping those numbers are far too low.
 
Wadin' Boot said:
One time $5 prize if you get a snap of a smiling Stones clearly having a blast as he lands an obvious pink.....
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Boot,
If you can turn that pink into a big coho, I’ll definitely be smiling. 😂
SF
 
Putting pink runs into some sort of historic context illustrate how extra-ordinary this years south Sound and Hood Canal forecasts are.

The long time (1961 to 1999) escapement goal for the Puyallup is 19,000. In the 10 runs prior to 2000 that goal was met only 3 times. This year's forecast 709,000

The escapement goa for the Nisqually is 6,000. The 10 brood years prior 2000 that goal was met only twice. This year the forecast is 1,503,000!

The Green prior to 1999 had only the occasional pink (typically less than 100). This year's forecast is 1,831,000!

Prior to the 2000s North Sound was the core of the PS pink populations with the Snohomish have an escapement goal of 115,000, the Stillaguamish 155,000 and the Skagit 330,000. This year the forecast for the Snohomish is 315,000, the Stillaguamish 117,000 (below goal) and the Skagit 468,000.

The South Sound and Hood Canal this summer could be epic even if the returns are below forecast!

Curt
 
Stonedfish said:
The Hood Canal wild coho will likely have a say in MA 12 pink opportunities, but those fish will also be available in MA 9 as they move through.
Though still not great, there was a slight increase in the Hood Canal wild coho forecast, + 3,900.
SF
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Which Hood Canal rivers have pink runs?
 
Maybe a dumb question about ocean ecology for pinks, but does anyone know why PS pink runs have such high forecasts this year while last year's Alaskan pinks had record-low numbers? Is there a correlation there or just a weird blip? I've heard we tend to have inverse coho and chinook returns with Alaska but I was under the impression that pinks forage in similar places in the North Pacific regardless of stock so shouldn't have that same effect. Or given that we know high pink numbers can contribute to excess mortality for other species like migratory seabirds do even and odd-year pinks compete with each other in the ocean to the extent that high numbers for one can cause low numbers for another?
 
I think North Sound pinks could still be pretty good. The 2023 run got hit hard by flooding in Nov. 2021 if I remember correctly, but it seemed like the 2023 run was a bit larger than 2021 in the S-rivers.

A big question I have is if the possible low return of Hood Canal coho will impact opportunity in MA 9/10.
 
Bonefish Jack said:
Which Hood Canal rivers have pink runs?
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They don’t break it out per the river systems in the forecasts that I’ve seen, but west side rivers like the Dose, Duckabush and Hamma Hamma are the major source of pinks. I’m not sure if the Skok gets a run of pinks but some could stray or colonize there.
The Hoodsport hatchery also plants pinks.
It’s the only hatchery facility that I know of that produces pinks. They got 9,500 fish back in 2023.
SF
 
Most of the canal rivers themselves are typically closed to salmon fishing during Pink season under the usual regs. Typical river salmon regs have the Duck and Dose open for salmon only during fall Chum season, November to mid December.
I can't remember if they opened last time Pinks were in, but seems like some tickets get written every year down that way...
 
ThatGuyRyRy said:
I'm excited to introduce some newbies to salmon fishing this year with all the pinks around.

Last pink year we had the closure of boat fishing during the majority of MA11 run and it was a sad season.
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I'm hoping we get a chance to fish commencement bay from the boat again this season. That is a lot of fun.
 
justme2024 said:
Maybe a dumb question about ocean ecology for pinks, but does anyone know why PS pink runs have such high forecasts this year while last year's Alaskan pinks had record-low numbers? Is there a correlation there or just a weird blip? I've heard we tend to have inverse coho and chinook returns with Alaska but I was under the impression that pinks forage in similar places in the North Pacific regardless of stock so shouldn't have that same effect. Or given that we know high pink numbers can contribute to excess mortality for other species like migratory seabirds do even and odd-year pinks compete with each other in the ocean to the extent that high numbers for one can cause low numbers for another?
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I'd say it's to do with global climate change, but anymore that's unnecessarily political and strangely inflammatory, so I'll say it's in large part because pink salmon tend to eat zooplankton and small crustaceans whose populations are booming, especially in nursery areas, thanks in part to global clima reasons no one knows. They also have a two-year lifecycle, which can help them adapt to environmental and climate conditions that are changing rapidl somehow warmer because of global clim err anthropogenic cli reasons no one knows. There are, of course, many other contributing factors.
 
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