June Club Dinner Meeting – Featuring John McMillan

John McMillan grew up on the banks of the Washougal River and has angled for steelhead and salmon for as long as he can remember. His passion for anadromous fish led him to study fisheries biology, and he has worked professionally as a fish biologist and research scientist since 1998. In 2008, he was the recipient of the Flyfishers’ Foundation’s graduate student scholarship at Oregon State University, which helped him better understand the reasons why one fish goes to sea to become a steelhead while another remains in freshwater to become a rainbow trout.

        The basis for McMillan’s presentation is grounded in his master’s degree research, followed by over 25 years of research and conservation on steelhead, salmon, and their habitat.  Currently, the President of The Conservation Angler, John has also studied salmonids and worked on their recovery with the US Forest Service, Hoh River tribes, Wild Salmon Center, NOAA, and Trout Unlimited — including 15 years of work on the Elwha River dam removal project.

        Through his years of effort to recover fish runs, McMillan has published over two dozen peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. He has also written two books, including May the Rivers Never Sleep with his father, Bill McMillan, in addition to numerous articles on fishing for steelhead. Owing to his research and experience, McMillan has developed a keen understanding of what has worked and why, as well as what hasn’t worked and why. That understanding is the basis for his approach to salmonid recovery.