T
he closure of major Washington river systems, such as the Skagit/ Sauk watershed during the winter wild steelhead season, has created intense pressure on the remaining quasi-productive rivers. It used to be the biggest challenge was finding and hooking a steelhead. Now it’s locating a stretch of water where you can swing a fly without finding yourself in a crowd reminiscent of Times Square on New Year’s Eve. And the phenomenon isn’t restricted to winter: some banner year Columbia system summer-run returns have made the Deschutes and Grand Ronde in October starting to feel like the California gold fields of 1849.