Class of 2024 Moved to Winchester Bay

June 5th. 2024 Pre-Smolt have reached enough maturity to be moved to Winchester Bay for acclimation. The fish are hand netted from rearing ponds and placed in a water filled trailer mounted tank. The tank has a water circulation pump and adds Oxygen to lessen stress.

Once at the acclimation site, a 6-inch pipe leading down an access ramp is connected to the trailer tank. A valve is opened and the pre-smolt get a free water slide ride to the acclimation net pens.

Once in the net pens, the fish will be fed and held for 2 – 3 weeks growing and acclimating to stream flow from Winchester Creek. They will then be released to begin their Pacific Ocean journeys.

A huge THANK YOU to Umpqua Bait for letting us use their docks.