CHINOOK LANDING, Ore. -- On his first cast of the northern pikeminnow season this year, Jim Walker pitched a black and silver lure resembling a baby salmon into the dark green waters of the Columbia River and -- BAM! -- hooked a 24-inch fish with a $4 bounty on its head.

BILLINGS, Mont. -- The grizzly bear population in and around Glacier National Park is one of the largest in the Lower 48, but for years wildlife officials have only been able to guess at the numbers that support that conclusion. And they can't say whether the population is growing, stable or even in free fall.