The Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery will open this week for commercial fishing but only for a small window of three hours.
Latest estimates from the Pacific Salmon Commission have more than three million returning sockeye, just enough for area E gillnetters to be allowed to cast their nets into the water.
The fishery will be opened from noon to 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 11 for commercial fishing three hours being the bare minimum for any given opening.
Although it was never likely to match last years incredible 30 million sockeye salmon run, local fishermen are just happy to get out there.
And some, including Area E Gillnetters Association vice president Bob McKamey, are even upbeat about this years estimates.
I would say Im a little surprised and now were hoping for a good summer of fish, said McKamey.
Were constantly checking the estimate reports, as theyre changing all the time. But I would hope there will be more openings very shortly over the next two or three weeks and for more than three hours.
Three hour openings were unheard of until recently.
Fishery managers are requesting that commercial fishermen take around 25,000 sockeye out of the water in the first opening.
Each years sockeye salmon run is based on a four-year cycle, so it doesnt necessarily follow that a bumper year will be followed by a similar run or a lean one.
This years sockeye run is considered to be close to what was being predicted before the season kicked off.
However, McKamey said its possible that estimates will continue to creep up, because the current high levels of the river mean theres likely more room for the salmon to escape the count.
Such high water levels on the river, unseen in recent history, will also make it more difficult for the fishermen to physically catch the salmon, according to McKamey.
