Smelt dippers gather along the Cowlitz River banks to try to net the small, silvery, fat-rich smelt. These fisheries draw large crowds, including families. (Photos by Terry Otto/for the Columbian) The ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. A line of dipnetters search for smelt at Gerhart Gardens Park on Feb. 18 in Longview. (Photo by Henry Brannan/The Columbian) ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Feb. 20—The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has approved an additional one-day recreational smelt fishery on the ...

There are far too few smelt returning to the Cowlitz River, and for the first time in five years there will be no dipping, state fish and wildlife biologists announced Friday.