For FishingMagician.com, I'm Eric Granstrom. There has been speculation for some time about a closure of the Hanford Reach for fishing, and that word has come. The Department of Fish and Wildlife announced yesterday that the Columbia River from the Highway 395 Bridge at Pasco to the old Hanford Townsite wooden powerlines will close October 16th, next Tuesday. According to the release, "the updated return estimate for natural origin Hanford Reach fall chinook, all adult chinook in excess of escapement will be harvested by Oct. 15." In addition, "Anglers are reminded that the remaining sections of the Hanford Reach (the area from the old Hanford townsite wooden powerline towers upstream to Priest Rapids Dam) also closes to salmon fishing Oct. 16 as listed in the 2018-19 Washington Sport Fishing Rules. For those who got out on 'em, it looked like a pretty good haul, even though the limit was reduced to a fish, per angler, per day. So now it's time to turn our attention to, dare I utter the word, steelhead. The early word is not promising for a fishery on the Upper Columbia or its tributaries, but as always, stay tuned. In the meantime, I'm going hunting. Until next time, Good Fishing!