CLALLAM COUNTY – It’s going to at least another two years before there’ll be any salmon fishing in the Elwha River, according to a statement released today by The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, Olympic National Park, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The announcement extends the existing fishing closure, which has been in place since 2011, to July of 2021 to protect native salmon populations which are gradually returning to habitats at and above the two former dam sites.

Biologists are seeing Chinook, sockeye and coho salmon, as well as winter and summer steelhead and others upstream of the former Glines Canyon Dam site with some adults reaching as high as river mile 40.

The statement says that while salmon and steelhead are expanding into newly opened habitats, more work is needed to reach their target fish populations.

For updated fishing regulations on waters within Olympic National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/fishing.htm.