Radio signals show whereabouts of salmon released above dams
August 1st, 2012 by Don Ratliff
PGE fish scientists are tracking the whereabouts of the first adult salmon released into Lake Billy Chinook. The fish are implanted with tags that send out an identifying radio signal. A map shows the locations of the fish released this summer in the upper Deschutes, Crooked and Metolius rivers.
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Posted in Chinook salmon, Crooked River & tributaries, Deschutes River & tributaries, Fish, Metolius River & tributaries, Portland General Electric br>
First sockeye salmon passed upstream of Pelton-Round Butte
July 20th, 2012 by Don Ratliff
On July 11, the first sockeye returning to the Pelton Fish Trap was radio tagged, and passed upstream into Lake Billy Chinook. This was the first wild sockeye returning from the Pacific passed into the reservoir in about 45 years. This week, three more returned and were passed, and one of them was radio tagged. All four of these fish bore the right maxillary mark placed on them by the PGE fish passage crew as they emigrated from Lake Billy Chinook through the new fish facility in spring 2010.
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Posted in Chinook salmon, Fish br>
Hot weather warms the lower Deschutes River
July 13th, 2012 by Don Ratliff

I have received several inquiries this week about why the lower Deschutes River near where it enters the Columbia River is so warm this early in the summer. Many anglers know that temperatures on the Deschutes below the Pelton Round Butte Project are now being managed to reflect what they would be if the dams were not here. That is still the case.
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Posted in Deschutes River & tributaries br>
2012 Downstream fish passage; sockeye numbers very low
June 26th, 2012 by Don Ratliff

I have been waiting to post an update on our 2012 downstream juvenile migration counts, hoping that sockeye (yearling kokanee) numbers would increase substantially. It’s now looking as though those numbers will remain low.
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Posted in Fish, Portland General Electric br>
Adult salmon and steelhead to be passed above Deschutes River dams in 2012
March 2nd, 2012 by Don Ratliff

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation recently announced a one-year strategy for upstream passage of up to 50 percent of the returning adult salmon and steelhead that were naturally-reared in historic habitats above Round Butte Dam and passed downstream through the new fish facility.
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Posted in Deschutes River & tributaries, Fish, Portland General Electric br>
2011 a historic year for Deschutes fish passage
November 23rd, 2011 by Don Ratliff

There are just a few weeks left in 2011, so here’s a year-end wrap up on downstream fish passage.
We had some exciting and historic milestones this year when fry planted upstream of Pelton Round Butte returned as adults. Read more on that topic below. But the big story of 2011 is yearling sockeye salmon.
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Posted in Deschutes River & tributaries, Fish br>
Water temperature management update: Colder mix added
August 26th, 2011 by Don Ratliff

In our Q&A on water temperature posted July 29, I noted that “We fine-tuned the system to make it more responsive, and this year expect to be able to make changes as needed — remembering that Natural Thermal Potential remains the target.”
What’s Natural Thermal Potential? It refers to what the water temperature below the dams would have been without the reservoirs and dams in place.
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Posted in Portland General Electric br>
Questions and answers on Deschutes water temperatures
July 29th, 2011 by Don Ratliff

The selective water withdrawal facility is now in its second year of operation, and we’re getting questions about how we’re managing water temperatures in the Lower Deschutes.
What’s PGE’s role in managing water temperatures in the lower Deschutes?
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Posted in Deschutes River & tributaries br>
Personal reflections on the first salmon
June 10th, 2011 by Don Ratliff

There he was, a Chinook salmon with a history that involved me, a 30-year dream and 16 years of hard work by a host of people. The fish looked much like the others swimming in the shaded concrete pond below Round Butte Dam, but this one was special. Like the others caught in the Pelton Fish Trap this May, it was beautiful, about 12 pounds, bright and shiny, strong and thick from two years gorging itself in the rich Pacific. The difference was that this one was missing part of the small bone along the right side of its mouth.
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Posted in Chinook salmon, Deschutes River & tributaries, Fish br>
Flow levels on Deschutes breaking records; what can be done?
June 10th, 2011 by Don Ratliff

With the salmon fly hatch on the Lower Deschutes River in full swing and many anglers pursuing trout that rise to the big bugs, I am getting frequent calls about the high flows. Anglers are somewhat used to flows higher than normal during wet years, but this year is exceptional.
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Posted in Deschutes River & tributaries, Fish, Portland General Electric br>