2009 Dworshak NFH Complex Event Calendar
January
- The
hatchery fish ladder opens for late-run steelhead trout. Adult fish
are kept in outside holding ponds. Steelhead smolts are in outside Burrows
ponds, on heated recycled water.
- Steelhead
spawning begins the Tuesday, January 20th, then starts on Tuesday, February 17th again, and only goes until April 21st this year. Spawning starts at approximately 9a.m. and may continue to early afternoon. Visitors
may watch the process from the viewing balcony in the main hatchery
building. Visitors may drop by and view the spawning process or take
a self-guided tour of the hatchery grounds. Volunteers are on hand to
answer questions. You may want to call ahead to confirm dates
and times.
- Volunteer "Hatchery
Host" recruitment and training begins prior to spawning season.
Contact the Information and Education
Office @ (208) 476-4591 for information.
- Recruitment
begins for student interns and volunteers for the spring and summer
field seasons. Contact the hatchery Administration Office @ (208) 476-4591
for more information.
- School
and group tours are at their peak in the spring due to weekly steelhead
trout spawning. Reservations should be made at least 2 weeks ahead of
time. Please contact the Information
and Education Office @ (208)476-4591.
- Hatchery
offices will be closed New Years Day and Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
- Young
rainbow trout for the Kids' Fishing Day event are received at Dworshak
NFH to be raised for next June's Kids Fishing Day
- Tribal Coho incubation is completed and fry are moved to nursery .
February
- Early
return steelhead spawning began on January 29th. We expect spawning
to continue until April 21th from approximately 9a.m. to
early afternoon. Visitors may watch the process from the viewing balcony
in the main hatchery building or take a self-guided tour of the hatchery
grounds. You may want to call ahead to confirm dates and times. Volunteers are on hand to answer questions.
- School
and group tours are at their peak in the spring due to weekly steelhead
trout spawning. Reservations should be made at least 2 weeks ahead of
time. Please contact the Information
and Education Office @ (208) 476-4591.
- The
hatchery office is closed on President's Day.
- Tribal Coho fry move from nursery to raceways.
March
- In March Steelhead
spawning will take place each Tuesday (March 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th and 31st) from approximately
9a.m. to early afternoon. Visitors may watch the process from the viewing
balcony in the main hatchery building or take a self-guided tour of
the hatchery grounds. You may want to call ahead to confirm
dates and times. Volunteers are on hand to answer questions.
- Eggs
from February spawning dates are beginning to hatch in the nursery.
- Year-old
steelhead and salmon are PIT-tagged prior to their release in April. Idaho Fishery Resource office
conducts river surveys and off-site PIT tag operations on chinook salmon
smolts.
- Tribal Coho smolts are moved to Kooskia National Fish Hatchery for acclimation and conditioning.
- Staff
from the Information and Education Office bring hatchery exhibits to
area school career fairs and natural resource events.
- School
and group tours are at their peak in the spring due to weekly teelhead
trout spawning. Reservations should be made at least 2 weeks ahead of
time. Please contact the Information
and Education Office @ (208) 476-4591.
April
- Steelhead
spawning will take place Tuesday April 14th and 21st only from approximately
9a.m. to early afternoon. Visitors may watch the process from the viewing
balcony in the main hatchery building or take a self-guided tour of
the hatchery grounds. You may want to call ahead to confirm
dates and times. Volunteers are on hand to answer questions.
- Steelhead
fry are hatching and feeding in the nursery.
- Staff
from the Idaho Fish Health
Center begin pre-release health surveys on the steelhead smolt population
at Dworshak NFH.
- Peak
steelhead spawning occurs during the first two Tuesdays of the month.
Nearly 2.2 million steelhead smolts and up to 1,000,000 spring chinook
salmon are released into the Clearwater River from the hatchery and
at off-site release locations to begin their 500 mile journey to the
Pacific Ocean.
- Earth
Day activities are conducted by several state and Federal agencies.
These events are held at Orofino City Park.
- Steelhead
trout sportfishing season closes this month; check
regulations.
- The
Orofino Kiwanis holds their annual Kid's Fair the second Saturday of
April. This event is open to the public and is free! Call (208) 476-4487
for more information.
- School
and group tours are at their peak in the spring due to weekly steelhead
trout spawning. Reservations should be made at least 2 weeks ahead of
time. Please contact the Information
and Education Office @ (208) 476-4591.
- Release of Tribal Coho at Kooskia National Fish Hatchery.
May
- The
hatchery fish ladder is closed and cleaned out at the completion of
spawning, and all outside ponds are cleaned and disinfected following
smolt releases.
- Steelhead
fry are hatching and feeding in the nursery.
- Guided
hatchery tours are given each Saturday at 10:00a.m. and 2:00p.m. starting
Memorial Day weekend. Saturday tours are open to the public and are
free.
- Hatchery
Offices are closed for Memorial Day.
June
- The fish ladder is opened for returning adult chinook
salmon.
- The
17th annual Kooskia
Hatchery Open House and Kids' Fishing Day will be held Thursday, June
18th, 2009 at the Kooskia National Fish Hatchery, Kooskia, Idaho. This event is open to the public and free!
- The 19th annual Kids' Fishing Day will be held Friday, June 12th, 2009 at Tunnel Pond in Orofino. Contact our office at 476-4591 for more information or email us.
- Young
steelhead and salmon fry are moved from the nursery tanks to outside
rearing ponds. When possible, fry are passed through the marking trailers
on their way to the rearing ponds.
- Hatchery
fish have their adipose fins clipped in the marking trailors; visitors
are welcome to tour the marking trailers at either Kooskia NFH or Dworshak
NFH. Displays explaining the various forms of fish marking are available
to view in the Visitor Center upstairs lobby.
- Guided
hatchery tours are given each Saturday at 10:00a.m. and 2:00p.m. starting
Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. Saturday toursare open
to the public and are free.
July
- Adult
chinook salmon continue to return to Dworshak and Kooskia hatcheries.
Kooskia salmon are trucked to Dworshak to await spawning in August.
- Steelhead
fingerlings have adipose fins clipped and are moved to outside Burrows
ponds. They remain here until they are released the following April.
- Dworshak
Reservoir begins drawdown of water to aid salmon migration to the ocean.Idaho
Fishery Resource Office conducts field surveys of salmon smolt migration
in tributaries of the Clearwater River.
- Guided
hatchery tours are given each Saturday at 10:00a.m. and 2:00p.m. starting
Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. Saturday tours are open
to the public and are free.
- Hatchery
offices are closed for Independence Day.
August
- Steelhead
fingerlings have adipose fins clipped and are moved to outside Burrows
ponds. They remain here until they are released the following April.Spring
chinook salmon, nearly one year old, begin having adipose fins clipped.
These fish are moved from raceways, through the clipping trailer and
back into raceways.
- Spring
chinook salmon spawning begins approximately August 19th and continues
each Tuesday. Please call ahead, (208) 476-4591, to check actual dates
and times. Spawning for chinook lasts only a few short weeks.
- Guided
hatchery tours are given each Saturday at 10:00a.m. and 2:00p.m. starting
Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. Saturday toursare open
to the public and are free
September
- Chinook
salmon spawning take place each Tuesday until about the second week
of September. The fish ladders are closed and cleaned following spawning
in preparation for receiving early-return steelhead trout.
- The
Idaho Salmon and Steelhead Days is held second week in Boise.
- The
Clearwater County Lumberjack Days and Fair in Orofino is held the 3rd
weekend.
- Salmonfest is held in Leavenworth, Washington September 18th-21st.
- All
year-old spring chinook salmon smolts are adipose fin-clipped; visitors
welcome!
- The
final guided hatchery tours of the season will be Saturday, September
2nd at 10:00a.m. and 2:00p.m. Tours are open to the public and are free.
- Hatchery
Offices are closed for Labor Day
October
- Coho broodstock collection begins at Dworshak and Kooskia National Fish Hatcheries.
- The
fish ladder is open for early-return adult steelhead trout. The ladder
will be closed following the collection of 500 adult fish. This may
occur any time between late October and mid December, depending on the
return.
- Eyed
eggs from adult spring chinook salmon trapped at Kooskia NFH are transported
back to Kooskia for hatching, rearing and release in the next 18 months.
- The
Nez Perce Tribe will begin collecting and spawning adult coho salmon
each Tuesday until November. Visitors may view spawning in the main
hatchery building. Call (208) 476-4591 to confirm dates and times.
- Steelhead
fishing season in the Clearwater River opens mid-month; check regulations
at Idaho
Fish & Game's website.
- Hatchery
offices are closed for Columbus Day
November
- Eyed eggs continue
to be transported to Kooskia NFH.
- Early-return adult
steelhead are periodically checked and sorted by biologists at Dworshak
NFH.
- The Nez Perce Tribe
will collect and spawn adult coho salmon each Tuesday until late November.
Visitors may view spawning in the main hatchery building. Call (208)
476-4591 to confirm dates and times.
- Hatchery offices
are closed for Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving Day.
December
- Coho incubation begins to see "eyeup".
- The fish ladder is closed by mid-December, after about 500 early-return adult steelhead trout have returned to the hatchery. The ladder will re-open in January for the late-run steelhead.
- Chinook salmon fry (young fish) are hatching and are moved to tanks in the nursery to continue growing and begin feeding.
- Hatchery offices are closed Christmas day.
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