The spring return of steelhead to the Blue Creek Hatchery complex northeast of Toledo brought an influx of people to the area fishing around the clock — and with them an increase in fishing violations and poaching incidents.
Officer Scott Schroeder with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s enforcement division has been working late nights keeping watch over the “tube” — a narrow channel that connects the hatchery to the fishing grounds but is blocked by a fine mesh to guide the fish away from the hatchery — where the fish stack up in shallow water and pose a great temptation to poachers or frustrated anglers looking for an easy catch.
“Temptation just gets the better of folks” said Sgt. Pat Anderson of poaching in the tube.
Schroeder caught three men attempting to poach from the tube with a dip net around 11:30 p.m. on March 28, according to Anderson. Schroeder was watching the area when he observed three men approach the tube area with a dip net.
“Officer Schroeder could see they had entered the water near the tube with one man posted as a lookout. He did not do his job very well, as Officer Schroeder approached the man, who was not looking but instead watching the fishing action,” stated WDFW in a Facebook post this week.
The three men have been referred to the prosecutor’s office for criminal charges, according to WDFW.
Illegal activity is a seasonal problem at the Blue Creek Hatchery complex, according to Anderson.
