Salmon didn't make the big fall comeback in Central Valley rivers that anglers and nature lovers yearned for, raising the likelihood of a third year of fishing restrictions.
Some areas saw more fall-run chinook return from the ocean to the Sacramento River and its tributaries. This includes the American River, where the state's Nimbus Hatchery spawned about 40 percent more salmon in 2009.
But the run as a whole seems likely to turn out the same or slightly smaller than in 2008, which was the smallest year ever recorded.
Read the full story at sacbee.com.