Recreational Halibut Fishery to Reopen Briefly

Olympia, WA - The recreational halibut fishery off the north coast of Washington will reopen Thursday, May 31, and Saturday, June 2, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced today.

Anglers have a daily limit of one halibut a day.

Heather Reed, a WDFW fish biologist, said there is sufficient poundage remaining under the north coast halibut quota to allow a fishery in marine areas 3 (LaPush) and 4 (Neah Bay) those days.

"Once we tally the catch during those two days of fishing, we'll see if we can provide another opening," she said.

During four days of fishing earlier this month, anglers caught 68,399 pounds of halibut, Reed said. That leaves 39,631 additional pounds available for harvest under the 108,030-pound quota for the north coast.