Get paid to fish on the Snake and Columbia. Last year’s best earned $53,000
You can go fishing and get paid for it as the annual pikeminnow reward program on the Snake and Columbia rivers starts Monday.
Or you can enjoy the outdoors while hunting mushrooms or cutting firewood for free in the Blue Mountains.
It could be a particularly good season for mushroom hunters, since no commercial harvest is allowed this year.
The opening day for the pikeminnow reward program was delayed to May 11 after Washington and Oregon governors issued orders limiting activities in March because of the new coronavirus pandemic.
Washington recently reopened many outdoor recreational activities on a limited basis, including opening most fishing seasons and allowing day-use of state parks and many boat ramps.
In the pikeminnow reward program, anglers can turn in northern pikeminnow that are at least nine inches long.
They can earn $5 to $8 for each fish. Some pikeminnow have been tagged, with the tags worth $500.
Anglers must register for the program each day at one of 18 pikeminnow stations, including ones at Columbia Point Park in Richland, Lyons Ferry, the Umatilla Boat ramp and the Vernita Bridge rest area. Fishing licenses also are required.
Last year the top fisherman in the program caught 6,482 northern pikeminnow and earned about $53,000.
The program helps control the population of northern pikeminnow, which consume millions of young salmon and steelhead each year. It is estimated to reduce the predation of pikeminnow on young salmon and steehead by 40 percent a year.
Money for the program comes from the Bonneville Power Administration.
For more information and tips on catching pikeminnow, go to pikeminnow.org or call 800-858-9015.
Mushroom hunting
Picking mushrooms for personal use in the National Forests of the Blue Mountains is free, and there may be more for private pickers to find this year.
Pickers can harvest less than a gallon of mushrooms in Oregon and less than five gallons in Washington for their personal consumption. They cannot be sold or given away.
Larger quantities require a commercial permit, which are not being issued this year because of the risk of COVID-19.
Many commercial operations use large crews that travel and camp together, posing a risk of infection from the new coronavirus, according to the Forest Service.
Proper identification and determination of whether a mushroom is edible is the responsibility of the picker. Many forest mushroom varieties are poisonous.
Forest Service officials recommend using a guidebook or getting help from a county extension office, and always throw out a mushroom if there is any doubt about its identity.
The Forest Service says some forest roads have reopened after the Feb. 6 flood, but many roads remain inaccessible due to mud and snow. Contact the Umatilla National Forest at 541-278-3716 with questions about roads.
Free firewood
Umatilla National Forest officials are letting people cut firewood for personal use for free this month, a change in policy prompted by the new coronavirus pandemic.
In normal years people are required to buy a permit with a minimum cost of $20.
Firewood cutters headed to the Blue Mountains still will need to pick up an authorization, which is valid for up to four cords of firewood. A cord is the amount of tightly piled wood in a stack 4 feet high by 4 feet wide by 8 feet long.
Authorizations are available electronically by sending an email to r6_umatilla_public_inquiries@fs.fed.us.
Or they can be picked up at Umatilla National Forest Service offices at self-service tables near the front entrances during business hours.
They also are available at Ace Hardware at 1845 N. First, Hermiston; Southgate Mini Market, 775 Southgate, Pendleton; D&B Supply, 850 Southgate, Pendleton; and J&D’s Food Mart, 111 S.S. Birch, Pilot Rock, Ore.
The Forest Service will re-evaluate the status of the new coronavirus pandemic in June and decide whether to start requiring and charging for permits then.
This story was originally published May 10, 2020 at 10:40 AM.