From the Sandy River Bridge, thick schools of smelt stretched bank to bank, their movement visible across the entire river. (Photo edited to make fish more visible) Mark Graves/The Oregonian.

Thousands of people lined the Sandy River in Troutdale, Ore., on March 27, 2025, to take part in the seven-hour eulachon smelt dipnet fishery. Kristian Foden-Vencil / OPB.

The fish were seized during the one-day smelt dipping season along the Sandy River on Thursday, an event that saw thousands of people crowd the riverbanks. July 10, 2025. contribute now.

Whether the Columbia River’s eulachon smelt run will make its way into the Sandy River is always a crap shoot, but this year’s run appears to have waited for spring break. A pulse of the tasty ...