Now Back To Our Regularly Scheduled Rant

Oh yes friends I have got plenty to rant about too!
I was reading in the latest edition of Northwest Fly Fishing about how the state of Washington is cutting back on hatchery winter steelhead releases in the Cowlitz river and they have raised the bag limit from two fish to six fin clipped steelhead.
Why are they doing this? Why all of the sudden has Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife decided maybe just maybe wild fish are important enough to try to restore in this major Columbia tributary? It's not just hatchery steelhead that are being cut back either. WDFW is also taking steps to restore wild salmon and coastal cutthroat trout.
Now admittedly it may be too late to save SW Washington wild salmonids. The damage has been both severe and long lasting. I recall a day some thirty two years ago standing above the Cowlitz river and seeing the thousands of hatchery winter steelhead stacked up below Barrier Dam. Of course the fishermen were also "stacked up" trying to hook them! It was not exactly what I would call a defining moment of pristine Pacific Northwest angling if you know what I mean. The state of Washington had turned the Cowlitz into just another hatchery fish super highway and the damage may be irreversible but we can hope.
The point of this rant, however, is why can't we get the same enlightenment here in Oregon ? Heck why can't we get the same enlightenment on the northern coast of Oregon for that matter?

I went to an ODFW budget meeting the other night and had the pleasure of meeting Todd Alsbury, a fish biologist for ODFW. Todd is in charge of the winter steelhead broodstock programs on both the Clackamas and Sandy rivers. He told me that they do not use 100% wild stock for the source of eggs for this program like is done on the Wilson, Siletz and Nestucca rivers. They use only 30% and they see to it that the returning generation broodstock off springs do not stray into the upper river to mix with wild fish. Hey I call that pretty progressive don't you? We know that the hatchery spectre is here to stay and we have become addicted to it and therefore it would be impossible to totally end hatcheries. While it is not realistic to think we can end all hatchery plants we can expect and even demand responsible hatchery practices and procedures. We are not getting this on the northwest coastal river of Oregon and you just have to wonder why?
Why is our neighboring state trying to undo years of hatchery fish damage to great rivers like the Cowlitz.Taking it a step further even in regions of our own state progressive thinking fish biologists are trying, within the constraints and agendas put forth by ODFW mind you, to take into consideration the plight of wild salmonids?
This is what you get with no basin management plan and district biologists are given pretty much free reign as far as this program goes.So who is running the show in Tillamook? Why is there such a vast difference between Oregon and Washington and even within different regions around the state? I cannot get information from district biologists as to how much time they actually spend on wild cutthroat populations in the Tillamook basin much less answers to the way the wild fish are managed or should I say mismanaged.
I was,however, able to find a picture of who is in charge in Tillamook and it's posted above.....nyuck, nyuck, nuyck.

Wild Fish are Important

I rant a lot on this blog about wild fish and how important they are but being just a layman I am not eloquent enough to put it layman's terms as to the importance of wild fish . As a matter of fact I don't even try because there are scores of people who know this stuff better than me so the practical thing to do is let them explain it.

I gleaned the following from The Wild Steelhead Coalition website. Whose website is linked in "Friends of the Quiet Pool" column.

All species live in constantly changing environments. To overcome environmental
fluctuations, it is essential for species to exploit all available habitat. The long-term existence of a species is maximized through the adaptation of numerous populations and sub-populations to specific environmental conditions. These adaptations have evolved over hundreds and thousands of generations in concert with a natural, fluctuating environment. As the environment changes so does the composition of individuals within a population.
While the environment acts as a changing variable to individuals within a population, the one constant is that individuals pass their genetic makeup, which includes chromosomes, genes, and non-coding regions of the genome, to their offspring. This inherited genetic material is passed from one generation to the next as the foundation upon which individual uniqueness and population differences are maintained and is known as genetic diversity.The genetic diversity maintained within a species is a genetic reservoir upon which natural selection acts.Populations with unnaturally altered or low levels of genetic diversity can be stripped of their evolutionary future because their ability to respond to changing environments has been reduced. Loss of genetic diversity can lead to reductions in fitness and decrease an individuals ability to adapt to environmental changes. Fitness is a measure of an individuals potential to produce viable offspring. Fitness reductions can be caused by either inbreeding or genetic drift. Inbreeding is often observed in populations with low numbers of mating individuals, and occurs when closely related individuals mate as opposed to unrelated 26 individuals. Inbreeding often increases the frequency of deleterious genes within a population.
A classic example of inbreeding and its effect is the lethal genetic disease hemophilia within the European monarchies, most notably Queen Victoria of England and her descendants.

Food For Thought

I know at least a few of you that read this blog are persons of faith. I would hope the following entry will not offend but perhaps make those of you that beleive in a creator open to opposing ideas/


Science Must Destroy Religion
By Sam Harris
Most people believe that the Creator of the universe wrote (or dictated) one of their books. Unfortunately, there are many books that pretend to divine authorship, and each makes incompatible claims about how we all must live. Despite the ecumenical efforts of many well-intentioned people, these irreconcilable religious commitments still inspire an appalling amount of human conflict.
In response to this situation, most sensible people advocate something called "religious tolerance." While religious tolerance is surely better than religious war, tolerance is not without its liabilities. Our fear of provoking religious hatred has rendered us incapable of criticizing ideas that are now patently absurd and increasingly maladaptive. It has also obliged us to lie to ourselves — repeatedly and at the highest levels — about the compatibility between religious faith and scientific rationality.
The conflict between religion and science is inherent and (very nearly) zero-sum. The success of science often comes at the expense of religious dogma; the maintenance of religious dogma always comes at the expense of science. It is time we conceded a basic fact of human discourse: either a person has good reasons for what he believes, or he does not. When a person has good reasons, his beliefs contribute to our growing understanding of the world. We need not distinguish between "hard" and "soft" science here, or between science and other evidence-based disciplines like history. There happen to be very good reasons to believe that the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. Consequently, the idea that the Egyptians actually did it lacks credibility. Every sane human being recognizes that to rely merely upon "faith" to decide specific questions of historical fact would be both idiotic and grotesque — that is, until the conversation turns to the origin of books like the bible and the Koran, to the resurrection of Jesus, to Muhammad's conversation with the angel Gabriel, or to any of the other hallowed travesties that still crowd the altar of human ignorance.
Science, in the broadest sense, includes all reasonable claims to knowledge about ourselves and the world. If there were good reasons to believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, or that Muhammad flew to heaven on a winged horse, these beliefs would necessarily form part of our rational description of the universe. Faith is nothing more than the license that religious people give one another to believe such propositions when reasons fail. The difference between science and religion is the difference between a willingness to dispassionately consider new evidence and new arguments, and a passionate unwillingness to do so. The distinction could not be more obvious, or more consequential, and yet it is everywhere elided, even in the ivory tower.
Religion is fast growing incompatible with the emergence of a global, civil society. Religious faith — faith that there is a God who cares what name he is called, that one of our books is infallible, that Jesus is coming back to earth to judge the living and the dead, that Muslim martyrs go straight to Paradise, etc. — is on the wrong side of an escalating war of ideas. The difference between science and religion is the difference between a genuine openness to fruits of human inquiry in the 21st century, and a premature closure to such inquiry as a matter of principle. I believe that the antagonism between reason and faith will only grow more pervasive and intractable in the coming years. Iron Age beliefs — about God, the soul, sin, free will, etc. — continue to impede medical research and distort public policy. The possibility that we could elect a U.S. President who takes biblical prophesy seriously is real and terrifying; the likelihood that we will one day confront Islamists armed with nuclear or biological weapons is also terrifying, and it is increasing by the day. We are doing very little, at the level of our intellectual discourse, to prevent such possibilities. 

In the spirit of religious tolerance, most scientists are keeping silent when they should be blasting the hideous fantasies of a prior age with all the facts at their disposal.
To win this war of ideas, scientists and other rational people will need to find new ways of talking about ethics and spiritual experience. The distinction between science and religion is not a matter of excluding our ethical intuitions and non-ordinary states of consciousness from our conversation about the world; it is a matter of our being rigorous about what is reasonable to conclude on their basis. We must find ways of meeting our emotional needs that do not require the abject embrace of the preposterous. We must learn to invoke the power of ritual and to mark those transitions in every human life that demand profundity — birth, marriage, death, etc. — without lying to ourselves about the nature of reality.
I am hopeful that the necessary transformation in our thinking will come about as our scientific understanding of ourselves matures. When we find reliable ways to make human beings more loving, less fearful, and genuinely enraptured by the fact of our appearance in the cosmos, we will have no need for divisive religious myths. Only then will the practice of raising our children to believe that they are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or Hindu be broadly recognized as the ludicrous obscenity that it is. And only then will we stand a chance of healing the deepest and most dangerous fractures in our world.

The Great Shute

The Great Shute (Chute) was a name that the Lewis and Clark expedition called the Columbia River Gorge on their voyage west back in 1804.Looking past their spelling mistakes I think they described what they saw appropriately.
What a grand sight it must have been too. The huge river was teaming with migrating salmon, the abundant waterfowl nested along the shore and the deer and elk grazed the meadows along this mightiest of American rivers. Is it any wonder that Chief Joseph fought so hard for his land, this land of the Nez Perce?

Celilo Falls was just one of the major obstacle that the Corps of Discovery encountered on their journey to the Pacific ocean so long ago.
The sheer raw beauty of the river and it's gorge must have taken their breath away as they went from desert to lush Pacific rain forest.
Think about the many legendary rivers that drain into the Columbia. Names likes the Snake, Deschutes, Willamette,Clearwater and Wind just to name a few.Is it any wonder that this river was truly the river of dreams.
Those of us today cannot fathom what the Columbia once was as we travel east along I-84. We encounter man's intrusion upon river almost from the beginning. Hydro-electric dams that have forever taken away Celilo Falls and created one slack water reservoir after another.Water that in the summer time reaches the fish killing mid-seventies in temperature and pollution that makes the windsurfers near Hood River sick. These dams have become fish killing barriers with so many awful consequences that one cannot begin to list them here.
Then there are the ghosts of the huge salmon and steelhead runs of the past. Countless hundreds of thousands of all the salmon species along with steelhead,cutthroat trout and smelt are just memories anymore. Take your pick of reasons for their decline because there are many but at the bottom of it all is, of course, greed. Greed that began when in 1792 Captain Robert Gray first encountered the river which he would name after his ship. Greed when the legendary Lewis and Clark paddled down it and surely greed today.
On this Earth Day 2008 I think it is only appropriate to pay homage to the once mighty Columbia river.

Cutthroat in the Crosshairs

I heard from Rhine Messmer of ODFW that the agency will promote a coastal cutthroat trout harvest starting in 2009.
I will have petitions in River City Fly Shop and Kaufmann's by next week and I will try to get them to other shops if I am able too.
If you cannot get to those shops to sign the petitions then please by all means write ODFW and let them know that you oppose any harvest of these wild trout.
Here are some addresses to send your letter of opposition to
Keith Braun - Keith.E.Braun@state.or.us
Ed Bowles (Fisheries Director) - Ed.Bowles@state.or.us
Rick Klumph - Rick.L.Klumph@state.or.us
Rhine Messmer - Rhine.T.Messmer@state.or.us
You can also contact any or all of the commissioners
at the ODFW website. ODFW LINK
There will be public meetings on 5/22 in Newport and 5/23 in Tillamook. We could use as many people there as possible.
If you believe that these fish are worth saving then please make your feelings known.
With the state of Oregon planting hundreds of thousands of hatchery rainbow trout in lakes and reservoirs throughout the state there is absolutely no reason to kill wild trout!
ODFW is dealing with a revenue shortfall from declining license and tag sales so it appears they think they way to sell more licenses is to allow the killing of these wild trout.
Here is the first paragraph from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's mission statement.
The mission of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is to protect and enhance Oregon’s fish and wildlife and their habitats for use and enjoyment by present and future generations.
You make up your own mind if killing wild cutthroat trout fits into this strategy.

Snow in April???? The Year of Endless Winter

Above photo taken 4/20/2008 in Salem, Oregon

I should have taken a picture of the snow on my truck yesterday morning because I would not have believed it myself.
Isn't April that time of year when I take a trip east of the mountains to the Deschutes? Isn't it time to mow my lawn? Isn't it time to put away the winter steelhead gear for a few months?
I know I complain about winter a lot on this blog but who wouldn't complain after an April 20th snow shower in western Oregon. This isn't Alaska after all! Heck this isn't even Lake Tahoe where my brother tells me they got snow on the fourth of July one year.
Eventually spring and summer will get here...won't they?
Last Saturday it was eighty friggin' degrees and I was wearing shorts for crying out loud! I had to open a few windows in my home because it was so warm. I drove around with the windows on my truck down! The very next day the temperature dropped something like thirty degrees!!!! It's like what the the DJ in the movie "Ground Hog Day" radio DJ would say "Rise and shine campers! Don't forget your booties because it's cold out there. It's COLD out there everyday!What is this, Miami Beach? Not hardly!".
Have I been mysteriously transported into the cold version of that old surfer movie "The Endless Summer"? All I can say is "Cowabunga"
The way I figure it the eighty degree day was just some kind of cosmic tease and I think it may have been directed at me. Call it a conspiracy theory if you will but sorry folks I feel like I am the reason we got an eighty degree day followed by a fifty degree day. I was being punished because of all my winter whining and I dragged all my Pacific northwest neighbors down with me. Have faith though folks because I'm sure winter will not last too much longer. In fact it will arrive by fourth of July...won't it?

Still Relevant

Fill 'em Full of Lead

Yes friends, those dastardly and conspiratorial pinnipeds days are numbered. We're gonna round 'em up and fill them full of lead at long last. I mean after all how dare they have the audacity to eat OUR salmon! Those fish are ours and it's just not right that sea lions are eating them. Never mind the fact that we over harvested the Columbia River smelt that the sea lions used to feed on in the Columbia causing them to seek other food sources for survival. It also doesn't matter that it was us that pretty much set the dinner table for them to feast on salmon by putting man made fish barriers like hydro-electric dams.

The prevalent thinking is to vilify sea lions as selfish gluttons who take more than their fair share of salmon but wait! We say the same thing about the commercial fleet who take more than their share of salmon don't we? Maybe when we talk about selfish gluttons we should look in the mirror!
You see what I'm getting at?
I have no doubt that sea lions eat a large amount of migratory spring chinook as they make their way up the Columbia River. I also have no doubt that something needs to be done about the situation. What I am wondering is when the sea lion problem is taken care of and the commercial gill netters are kicked off of the river and the commercial trollers are kicked off the ocean and then the runs still crash who do we point the finger at then? Who will be the scapegoat?
Oh heaven forbid that we should look at the proverbial man in the mirror because after all we are owed salmon aren't we? To hell with every other user groups, it's us in our $30,000 jet boats back bouncing eggs who are entitled to it all.
You know as sarcastic as this blog entry may seem it is the way that far too many people think.
They don't really give a damn about wild fish because after all you cannot smash them on the head to get freezer burned. Sure they may say it's all about the fish but it really is only about those fish that they can harvest. We cannot be inconvenienced by caring for the wild salmon that used to range far into the Snake River system and beyond in Idaho.
The sea lions are just the most convenient thing to blame right now and what could be better than having the Columbia River run red with pinniped blood because like some spoiled rotten child we sports anglers refuse to be told "You can't have it" so we will throw ourselves on the supermarket floor and have our little tantrum.

The Road Less Travelled

Shane on the Metolius

I've expounded on the joys of fly fishing a few times on this blog so please bear with me on this latest.When I think about why I pursue trout and steelhead in this method I seemingly cannot begin to run out of flowery adjectives on why I fish this way. For many years I have pursued what many consider the greatest freshwater game fish that swims and even with conventional casting and spinning gear they were still a worthy adversary.

Shane with Cutthroat Trout - 2007

I learned to drift fish, which is no small feat considering the fact that you are trying to detect the most subtle of takes from a winter steelhead. Consider also that winter steelhead are lethargic at best in the cold water of winter so they would not move very far to take ones offering. I feel that after about a decade of this style of fishing that I had achieved every thing that I could achieve fishing this way so I felt it was on to the next challenge and that is the stalking this magnificent trout with a fly.
To say that I have not accomplished or ever will accomplish everything that there is to accomplish in steelhead fly fishing is a huge understatement. I have had limited success in this endeavour due mostly to the fact that I am, for the most part, self taught and so it's apparent to me that my teacher is a buffoon and woefully inadequate.
In spite of poor training and a myriad of mistakes I push on ward though while some of my friends fill their freezers with hatchery steelhead and tales of legendary trips. Well I've had a few of those trips with casting or spinning gear filled with a plethora of fish and so I'm not all that impressed anymore.
Ah but when it comes to fly fishing then that is different. Fly fishing for steelhead is the big mystery that I've yet to solve. It's the Rubik's cube of all angling pursuits and just when you think you have the whole thing figured out that one red cube shows up amid a field of green and so you must dismantle the whole puzzle to start again.
I've been fortunate of late in that I've become friends with one of the great ones in steelhead fly fishing. I've written about him before and his name is Mike McCune. Mike patiently helps me with my Skagit casting and I know he must get frustrated in my amateurish efforts.

Mike McCune on Coastal River - Winter 2008

So I push forward along this road less travelled and I know as even the legends of this sport know that the end of the road is never in sight. There are too many wonderful and magical side trips to take along the way. The joy of fly fishing is just that...pure joy. I cannot ever recall being unhappy while on the river casting a fly well except for when it is time to go home. I cannot say the same thing about other angling methods I have pursued.
I do not want to come off as elitist either but for me this is the best path and only path for me and it's the path that I will follow until the end of my days.

Crawl Before You Walk

When I purchased my first fly rod, some thirty three years ago, it was a gaudy creation by Johnny Hooker, a local Portland rod maker. Johnny bought all the factory seconds fiberglass blanks that he could get his hands on from Lamiglas up in Woodland, Washington. These blanks, while structurally sound, usually were linearly challenged meaning they were not close to being straight. I had really no idea what it was I was after but I knew I wanted to catch steelhead on a fly rod so old Johnny set me up an eight foot seven weight with a severe left turn permanently built in the tip.
Now mind you I had never even caught a trout on a fly much less a steelhead but I wanted to skip elementary school arithmetic and dive right into college trigonometry.
Needless to say things did not go as planned. I should have started out pursuing trout and going on from there. Could have saved myself more than a little frustration I think.
I see a lot of people doing the same thing these days and after a season of frustration, which usually includes a windy day on the Deschutes, these folks discard the notion that they too can be the second coming of Paul Maclean. Their enthusiasm for fly fishing is shattered and their gear ends up on ebay or craigslist.
Not all of them are stubborn like me and doggedly pursued this addiction called fly fishing.
It's really too bad that this happens because they are depriving themselves of the joy of angling that, in my opinion at least, cannot be matched.
The legend and lore of fly fishing has filled countless books that inspire the imagination of each generation that reads them. Where else will you find names that will be recognized by those of us that love this sports. What serious fly fisherman is not familiar with names such as Wulff or Kreh or Haig-Brown.
While it's true that the movie "A River Runs Through it" brought droves to the river when it came out in 1992 you have to wonder how many got fed up with tailing loops and wind knots so they gave it up.
When I am asked by newcomers about steelhead I always try to counsel them to experience the joys of trout first before becoming the hopeless masochist that is the steelhead fly angler.
I also think those that get past the clumsiness of those first years become, not only better anglers, but also learn to appreciate the fact that fly fishing encompasses many things beyond catching fish. The learn to care deeply for the fish, the river and the environment.
So the next time you encounter a neglected fly rod or reel at a garage sale think about the hope that rod once provided and take comfort in knowing you crawled before you could walk and became the angler you are today.

ODFW Gets it Right? When Hell Freezes Over Maybe!

Has hell froze over? Are the Chicago Cubs a sure bet to win a World Series? Apparently that is what it's going to take to get ODFW to change course and go all the way with responsible wild fish management. They took a baby step but it's not enough....by a long shot it's not enough.

After several years of a misguided and dogmatic strategy of upriver plants of hatchery steelhead on the Nestucca river they have re-evaluated the program and decided to move the large majority of these plants into the lower portion of the river.
Realize of course that their are still some 40,000 hatchery and broodstock steelhead smolt being released in the old release area so obviously this is not even close to a perfect scenario...yet.
Plainly speaking the much touted steelhead broodstock program is not doing what it was intended to do! On top of that, and most troubling of all, is the over all effect on main stem spawning native steelhead. This is an ill conceived program that boils down to a state sponsored welfare program for gear and bait guides. Having the hatchery steelhead planted in one up river location and given their propensity for straying, provided north coast gear guides the opportunity to fish during a time of year (late winter) when in the past was reserved for wild steelhead only. The out of basin hatchery stock, which comprised the bulk of hatchery plants in the past, was done by the time the native steelhead showed up. The native steelhead were pretty much not interfered with as far as intermingling hatchery fish being present.
The broodstock program changed all of that and what we have today is a late arriving hatchery stock that is intentionally timed to arrive during the same time endangered native steelhead arrive.
Folks it was like a mass hypnosis among the north coast fishing scene. This program, with the nearby Wilson river and the further south Siletz river also having similar programs along with the Nestucca was supposed to make everyone happy with a phasing out of the out of basin stock from the Alsea river being replaced by the so called superior broodstock plants.
As most of you surely know it just does not work that way and what we have today is a declining native winter steelhead population in those rivers that was making a comeback prior to the implementation of these broodstock programs.
So here is hoping that ODFW does not stop there and takes into consideration the big picture and that is the welfare of wild native steelhead and not the welfare of a handful of bait guides....keep your fingers crossed.

Looking For That Silver Lining

Photo Courtesy of Artic Explorers

Being the Internets angry fly fisherman is not an easy job folks. The threats to wild fish and their habitat are never far from my thoughts.
It's not all angst and worry though and the many things that attracted me to fly fishing in the first place are the very things that sustain me.
It's like that perfect cast that I stumble into every once in awhile. The stars and planets all seem to align and I do my best Lefty Kreh imitation. The line rolls out in a perfect arc and my fly graces the surface in such gentleness that it seems like it was dropped out of the sky by heavenly hands.
A well executed cast is truly a thing of beauty and at least for me since it does not happen nearly enough but when it does then it will always bring a smile to my face.
The quietness of a late summer day on any coastal river while in pursuit of coastal cutthroat trout is another quality of this sport that defies description. I sometimes even find the quiet intimidating because maybe I'm afraid of doing something to disrupt it. I would compare it to the stillness of a church in silent prayer and so maybe it is my church so should I say "Amen" under my breath?
I am fortunate to live just over an hour away from some blue ribbon coastal cutthroat trout fly fishing and very seldom is there anyone else encountered along the stream, a stark contrast to what takes place during the time that the fall salmon are present. In these days of petroleum insanity the relatively short run to the upper Wilson is my refuge. I pine away for my cutts during the seven months of closure and treat the opener as some sort of holiday. So is it any wonder why one would fight so fervently to protect these fish?
Then there are those very special and very magical treks east ward to the rivers of such beauty that one could easily get emotional at the very first sight of them. Of course I'm talking about the Metolius and the Deschutes and
these are truly the rivers of my dreams.
I have tried to paint a picture on this blog as to the way I feel when I'm on these rivers.
The Deschutes in it's brawling, wild ruggedness and the Metolius in it perfection of beauty. As I've written before these rivers do not give up their trout with the same generosity as a coastal cutthroat stream and some have even asked why bother then?
Many of you know why I take the all too seldom trips to these rivers and I think it's something that only a fly fisherman can understand.
So while I fight what I consider is the good fight for wild fish I hope you readers understand why this way of life and the resource involved are so worthy of the fight. It's certainly not so I can have a pleasant place to reflect and cast my fly in my old age...well at least that is not the only reason. It's because there are some places and things in these tumultuous days that need to be reflected and written about for nothing other than to appreciate how lucky we are to have such escapes.
I know you have them and they may well be your escape and the elixir for your soul to help you cope.
They are silver linings even in the darkest times aren't they?

It's Not Logical

Will someone please explain to me the logic in taking wild steelhead and turning their off springs into hatchery fish! Also please show me the logic in providing a harvest fishery that was created almost exclusively for professional bait guides.
Well folks that is what we have going on right now on many of our river. These are rivers that have fragile populations of wild winter steelhead .The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, out of their infinite wisdom and wise stewardship of the resource, created the steelhead broodstock program. These broodstock programs amount to little more than a guide welfare program.
Why on earth is it better to make wild spawning winter steelhead into nothing more than hatchery stock? Where is the logic in releasing these bastardized off springs of wild parents on top of emerging true wild off springs?
Why does ODFW ignore the studies that show the total unfitness of these first generation returnees? and finally why would one well know north coast gear fishing guide actually applaud the concept of wild steelhead spawning with returning uncaught first generation broodstock steelhead? The logical outcome of such stupidity and greed spells disaster for wild steelhead.
The evidence is there!

You Need to Ask Yourself

What is really important to you as a fly fisherman? Is it having nice gear? I know I really enjoy my bamboo rods so I guess that is important to me. Really though, all the nice equipment in the world does not matter one iota if there are no wild fish left. We can have all the exotic destinations and fly in to remote locations but when that last fish is caught then what good is it all?
It's been said time and time again by people a lot smarter than me that we have to, as sportsmen and women, become involved in protecting what we have too long taken for granted.

It works to! The Steamboaters lead by Frank Moore decided that their love for the North Umpqua needed to be more than just lip service and they have dedicated their lives to that river and it's fish. Yes, it's great to be around a bunch of friends who enjoy fishing as much as you but after the rods and reels are put away what do you do then? What do you do when your favorite river, your beloved river has no fish left or is getting pollution dumped into it? Do you fight like crazy to do all you can to attack the problem or do you just move onto other waters? I'm betting you would fight like crazy.
When you see trash and vandalism along the banks of your favorite river do you get mad? Do you take along a trash bag and clean it up? Or do you just shrug and shake your head and say what a shame it all is?
It's not enough anymore to just be a good citizen and leave the river the way you found it! We have to be involved if we ever expect our children and grandchildren to enjoy what we have enjoyed. We have to become proactive!
Lord knows there are so many forces working against wild fish or clean water. We have had nearly eight years of attacks on our natural resources by an administration that has no soul. An administration who only sees things in the profit and loss column.
It's the individual conservationist/angler that will win the day if everyone does his part.
I need to remind myself of this same thinking. Just because I might write an impassioned blog entry about wild fish or conservation does no let me off the hook as far as doing my part. I need to be more involved and I intend to do just that!
I doubt that any true conservationist is really ever satisfied at the amount of work he or she is doing. I would bet that they think they can do more because it's just that important!
It's our responsibility.

Save The Metolius....Again

Here is the scenario folks. Let's take a pristine wilderness area with the most wonderful trout river in all of Oregon and do what with it???? Make a couple of destination resorts!!! Hell yeah! We need a few more damn golf courses so rich fat cats can chase a little white ball all over what used to be Ponderosa pine forests.
All in the name of money. Thing is most common middle class Oregonians will not be able to afford to even stay at places like what they are planning to build.
I have to wonder is anything sacred anymore? Must we spoil the truly magical and beautiful places we have left?
They say minimal impact huh? We'll see but the point remains that these resorts bring hordes of people to an area where the human footprint has been minimal.
For those of you not familiar with the Metolius river and the area surrounding it just picture a trout stream bubbling up from deep volcanic caverns. Crystal clear water and so breathtaking in it's beauty that one can literally shed tears over this place.
It's a damn shame!

Article from "The NuggetNews" Sisters, Oregon

The decision rendered last week by the state Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) appears to be little more than a speed bump in the road to building two destination resorts within a few miles of Sisters. One of the developers is pleased with the results of the decision, and the other is cautiously optimistic about the ruling, which will require further work by Jefferson County on identifying wildlife habitat and descriptions of forest zones.
Nothing in the remand ruling would appear likely to derail resort plans.
The two "Final Orders and Opinions" were issued on February 11. One document consisted of 48 pages and the other was 49 pages in length. The various parties are still studying the documents to determine the finer points of the decisions, and in some cases it may be a few weeks before each of the parties has determined the full implications.
Ponderosa Land and Cattle Company, with a 2,500-acre development in the Green Ridge area has expressed cautious optimism but is waiting until their legal representatives have had the opportunity to examine the decisions in detail.
"We haven't yet gotten together to really go over it as our lead council is on vacation. We expected it to come back and are pleasantly surprised that it is a manageable short list, but it will take some time to unravel all of what needs to be done," said Rick Allen of Ponderosa Land and Cattle Company.
Oregon Landwatch is both pleased and disappointed by the final order and is considering whether to appeal the decisions which must be filed by March 3.
"We haven't yet completely digested the decisions or talked yet with our clients. Obviously, we were pleased with the remand that we got, but the significant decision that we are not happy with is that Code 5 doesn't protect the water," said Paul Dewey of Oregon Landwatch.
Friends of the Metolius are in much the same situation. They still haven't had the time to fully digest the information.
"We will be getting together to discuss the decision and see where we will go from here," said Gregory McClarren, the president of Friends of the Metolius.
Sisters-based Dutch Pacific Resources has already examined the two opinions in some detail and is pleased with the decisions on several fronts.
"We were very pleased with the decisions, especially that most of the complaints were dismissed by the Land Use Board of Appeals and the one that was remanded was really more of just a request for more data," said Jim Kean, co-manager of Dutch Pacific Resources.
Kean also believes that the decision was an important one for Jefferson County that created the furor through its development of a new comprehensive plan for the county that included destination resorts.
"Jefferson County went overboard in their process to comply with state law when they adopted the mapping amendment. The main contention was that Jefferson County ignored everyone and didn't do a good job and it was incomplete. I think that Jefferson County has been vindicated. They (Jefferson County) knew that it was going to come to this and went the extra mile with their process. For a small and under-resourced county, it was no small achievement to develop such a comprehensive plan," Kean said.
During the time of appeals and while waiting for LUBA's rulings, Dutch Pacific has not let the grass grow under its feet.
"We have been quietly working on the project, and there have been tons of people who have come out of the woodwork wanting to be involved. We have a really top-flight team working on our project, and we have received tons of invitations to come to charrettes (meetings) about sustainability and water use. I think we are in an exciting time," said Kean.
The Dutch Pacific destination resort development is called "The Metolian" and is unusual in that it is designed to have minimum impact on the land and the environment. Sustainable principles and green building practices are at the heart of the development, and it is believed by the owners that this kind of development may serve as a model for future resorts in the growing eco-tourism market.

For Shelly

I lost a friend today. I wrote about her back in 2006 although I never revealed her name.

"One person stands out to me as one of the most real and sincere people I know. She suffers from a very serious health problem but you would never know it by reading her posts or her blog. She does not complain at all! She also will rip you a "new one" if you cross her but those who do cross her have it coming. She does not mince words and I find that very refreshing. She knows I'm talking about her and she is what I consider a good "net" buddy and besides she has some really cool tattoos"

She lost her long battle with lung disease but she fought a courageous fight until the end. Shelly had classiness about her that we all could learn from and I know I did.As I wrote previously she didn't seek sympathy or pity! She was tough as nails and never minced words but if she liked you she would do anything for you.
It's a lonelier world tonight as I mourn the passing of Shelly Talent. Too many times we tend to over glorify a person after their passing but it's not the case as far as Shelly is concerned. To borrow a cliche she was the real deal in every sense of the word.

Perhaps William Shakespeare says it best

Fear no more the heat o' the sun
Nor the furious winter's rages;
Thou thy worldly task hast done,
Home art gone and ta'en thy wages:
Golden lads and girls all must,
As chimney-sweepers, come to dust
Fear no more the frown o' the great,
Thou art past the tyrant's stroke;
Care no more to clothe and eat;
To thee the reed is as the oak:
The sceptre, learning, physic, must
All follow this, and come to dust.
Fear no mote the lightning-flash
Nor the all-dreaded thunder-stone;
Fear not slander, censure rash
Thou hast finished joy and moan:
All lovers young, all lovers must
Consign to thee, and come to dust.

Goodbye Shelly I will miss you

So Much For Tradition

Sad news!
Hardy of Alnwick England, the maker of legendary fly reels and the major caretaker of fly fishing tradition has fallen to the riches of a global economy.
So hold on to those old Perfects, Bougles and St.Georges because they are now relics of a bygone day when tradition meant something in our sport.
Certainly the Hardy Brothers must be rolling over in their graves at this.
Here are the details from nebusiness.co.uk
World famous fishing tackle manufacturer Hardy & Greys aims to double in size within the next five years.
The plans come after dramatic restructuring saw the Alnwick-based company make 16 redundancies at the end of 2005 after moving reel production from its headquarters to Peterlee.
It has farmed out manufacturing abroad, upped its exports and moved out of solely producing its celebrated fly-fishing gear into coarse angling equipment and even making aerials for military vehicles.
And as the changes began to take effect, 2006 saw the 128-year-old company generate £9.1m worth of sales, 10% up on the previous year and £4.6m higher than 2003. In three years, Hardy's has reduced costs by moving 80% of its manufacturing to the Far East and by looking beyond its traditional fly-fishing market into sea, carp and coarse fishing.
As part of this strategy, Hardy & Greys took over European distribution for the US company Fishpond in 2006 and in 2005 bought Chub, an Essex-based carp fishing equipment firm.
It now employs 87 people, most of whom are located at its headquarters, with seven employed at a new 50,000sq ft warehouse in Cramlington. Hardy's managing director Richard Sanderson said: "Three years ago, 66% of our staff were employed in manufacturing our products. Now that figure is less than 20% [about 20 people], with a far greater emphasis placed on sales and marketing and research and development."
Now after driving through the changes and seeing the business double in size since his arrival in 2003, Mr Sanderson is bullish about the future. He said: "We are confident of achieving our objectives by continuing to incorporate three main thrusts to our strategy.
"The first is that our products are now largely manufactured in the Far East and, as a result, they have become price competitive in foreign markets like the US [because the pound is much stronger than the dollar]. Secondly, during the course of 2007 we anticipate producing around 350 new products with in excess of 500 anticipated for 2008, which will give us a tremendous sales boost.
"Thirdly, we are aiming to expand in all markets where we are currently under- performing. Despite enjoying a significant share of the fly-fishing market, we have now also entered the carp and course fishing business and they are the biggest parts of the UK market."

A Master at Work

I was fortunate enough to take a trip down a coastal stream today with guide Mike McCune of Spey Water Guide Service and although I did not hook any steelhead I had a great time! Mike is an expert of the Skagit line for two-handed rods so the learning experience itself was worth it. Mike is also an expert oarsman as he floated my over fed carcass down some very tricky white water and I also got to see him hook,land and release this beautiful wild coastal winter steelhead.

I don't usually promote a business on this blog but I will make the exception for Mike as he is a true gentleman and a fine angler.
Thanks again for the great day Mike!
Actually I was doubly lucky to share the front seat with another expert spey angler and good friend John Bracke. John has a passion for wild fish and so it is no surprise that he and I get along so well.

John has helped me focus on what is truly important as a responsible fly fisherman and conservationist. He has long fought the battle for our wild coastal steelhead and anyone who share a concern for wild fish owes a concerned conservationist like John a debt of gratitude.

Dr. Lenox Dick 1916-2008

From The Fly Fishing Shop in Welches Weekly Newletter 2/17/08

A treasured friend, Lenox Dick passed away peacefully and apparently at his own wish after a short hospital stay several weeks ago. Len's notable list of accomplishments included being a founding member of the Fly Fishers Club of Oregon, author of many fly fishing articles & the book The art & Science of Fly Fishing. He was perhaps the oldest person to row his drift boat through White Horse Rapids when he was 86 years old. At 91,he was still scrambling up and down the steep banks of the Deschutes on his stretch above Maupin. The fly fishing community will miss him.

Guess What? Hatchery Steelhead Do Spawn!

Flyfishing for hatchery steelhead on Oregon's Umpqua River


The following article by Bill Bakke of Native Fish Society generates more questions than answers for me.
If hatchery steelhead are allowed into upper areas of a river with a wild steelhead population and can spawn then why would fish and wildlife department release hatchery smolt at the upper reaches of a river?(This happens in Oregon) They had to know that this could be disastrous for rivers with a population of main stem spawning wild steelhead.
This goes to show that we cannot take what our fish and wildlife officials say at face value.I would also exhort anyone fishing for hatchery steelhead to harvest the maximum the law allows...please. You may get a warm fuzzy feeling releasing a hatchery fish but in truth you are doing the wild steelhead population of that river no favors by doing so


I’m sure it’s a surprise to most of you reading this to find out hatchery fish do spawn naturally in rivers. At one time Oregon declared that they shouldn’t do that, but it has now been confirmed that they do anyway.
The Skykomish River is a tributary to Puget Sound. In a recent genetics study of Skykomish summer steelhead by Todd W. Kassler and others said, “Hatchery salmonids can naturally reproduce.”
Since 1962 from zero to over 200,000 hatchery steelhead smolts were released in the river per year. Because many of these were released above Sunset Falls, (an impassable barrier to steelhead on the NF Skykomish River), the fish are transported over the falls.
Since 1998, the authors note, “the number of non-ad clipped adult steelhead has been between 26-73% of the number of steelhead counted at the falls.” Since there was no wild production above the falls, these fish are naturally produced by hatchery fish above the falls. They also found there are three distinct groups of summer steelhead in the river, but Sunset Falls steelhead are more similar to hatchery fish than to NF Skykomish river steelhead.
This research came to the startling conclusion “that there has been mixing between hatchery-origin and wild-origin steelhead in the Skykomish River basin.”
Since the hatchery summer steelhead came from Skamania Hatchery on the Washougal River (a Columbia River tributary) the scientists have also proved that it is possible to transplant fish successfully from one ecosystem to another. It is a great success story that confirms the theory behind WDFW’s long-standing “one size fits all” steelhead management policy. All one has to do is set up a structure where steelhead are reared at a hatchery then transported around the state for release. Oregon has long followed this same policy. Borrowed from industry, it is an economically efficient model that is more concerned with supplying hatchery fish to the sport and commercial fisheries than protection of wild runs.
The Skykomish steelhead study has uncovered an additional benefit of this industrial hatchery approach: hatchery fish create their own naturalized run, adding to the benefits of stocking.
Over forty years ago, I asked Cliff Millenbach, Washington Game Department, about the wisdom of stocking non-native hatchery steelhead in Washington Rivers. With firm conviction he told me that all the steelhead raised in Washington hatcheries are native to Washington. That was not only the agency’s version of sound science but a summary of their genetic policy. We know better now, and probably knew better back then, but both WDFW and ODFW continue to release non-native steelhead and salmon into far-flung rivers, even those with ESA-listed fish.
Wild steelhead in Puget Sound rivers are now listed as a threatened species, so it was with relief that the researchers concluded that: “…hatchery steelhead have reproduced naturally for multiple generations, but does not provide any evidence that they would be sustaining if the hatchery program quit supplementing the run.”
The WDFW leadership may take that statement to mean the hatchery program must continue so the sportsmen can have a kill fishery. 
It would be entirely progressive and welcome if they stopped the hatchery releases and invested their time and money in recovering the Skykomish River wild summer steelhead as required by the ESA.

                    Do you wear this badge RJ?

The Angry Angler

Yep, that's me apparently. I make no excuses or apologies for my scorched earth attitude concerning wild salmon and steelhead.
The way I see it is there can be no fence sitting as we watch the steady decline of the abundant wild fish we once took for granted.
I think, as I've written on this blog, that those who are in the spotlight of the fishing scene have a responsibility to the fish and to all who put these people on some sort of pedestal.
They can claim that they never sought the notoriety they now have but since they accept it and in some cases profit from it then it's time to step up and set the example but many do not.
I get angry when they don't and their undeserved influence causes their followers to take the path of least resistance when it comes to conservation.They need to be called out publically and I'm not the only one who does it.
Apathy will defeat us if we let it and we just cannot afford to let that happen besides apathy got us here in the first place didn't it?
Perhaps my methods are crude and annoying to some but how else do we motivate and educate those who do not realize the peril our wild fish are in.
My good friend says "Shane, you are too confrontational" and maybe I am but since the whole future of wild salmonids has been politicized and marginalized what other tactic is there?
Could I say "Please help wild fish...pretty please" ? Would that work or would the in your face, get involved or get the hell out of the way technique be more effective?
I've no doubt made some enemies along the way but I suppose that is inevitable and while I never wanted to make enemies I accept it as the consequence of my fervor.
I'm not in the mood to make nice as the Dixie Chicks would say because making nice does not work when the harvest mentality is being dealt with.
So as Popeye would say "I yam what I yam" and I'm not involved in helping wild salmon, trout and steelhead to make a name for myself and I'm not about to spare the spare feelings of those who are the stumbling blocks to wild salmonid recovery.
The use of the word "recovery" might be too euphemistic though. It may be more of a case of trying to staunch the hemorrhaging as much as possible but it has to be done.
So if I've offended some then really all I can say is deal with it because it's the way I am and the way I will be.
Thanks

Ain't it Glorious?

What are some of the most wonderful words one can ever hear? Certainly "I love you" would be at the top and especially today. "Congratulations,it's a boy or it's a girl" would rate right up there as would "Would you care to come up for a drink?" at the end of a date a with a beautiful woman.
For this old man though, I would have to put "PITCHERS and CATCHERS REPORT TODAY" right up there as wonderful,glorious and invigorating a statement I would like to hear this time of year and at this time of my life
There is plenty of time as the spring and summer progresses to get disgusted in the plight of my favorite baseball team but right now today, February 14, 2008, those words are music to my ears.
With the beginning of spring training comes a renewal of hope after a tough winter. A rite of passage from the gloom, a moment in the sun...ain't it glorious?

John Fogarty knew the feeling

and so did Kirk Gibson

Are Wild Fish Just a Commodity?

Websters defines a commodity as one that is subject to ready exchange or exploitation within a market. The key word here is exploitation! With this in mind have our wild salmon, steelhead and trout become just another means to make money?
I certainly think they have. The state of Oregon will take a run of wild steelhead and turn their offspring into harvestable hatchery fish with the claim that these broodstock fish are a better hatchery product. In truth what they have done is use these wild steelhead as a means to sell licenses and provide area fishing guides with a way to capitalize on this diminishing resource. My friend describes this as guide welfare.
How about allowing a harvest of wild coastal cutthroat trout? Again the state claims that by doing this it will get young people excited about fishing and since they are the future license buyers it will be a win/win situation? See the big picture here?
It's really not a new concept at all unfortunately. The country has been exploiting nearly every natural resource this tired old planet has to offer without putting anything back. We have pushed our environment to the brink!
It's not a very encouraging scenario and one could easily get discouraged but there does seem to be an awareness emerging among concerned people who want to take whatever steps necessary to turn this alarming trend around.
In the past I've witnessed the state of Oregon take steps to return our runs of wild salmonids back into some semblance of recovery. The north coast wild steelhead were making a come back due largely to angler education like catch and release for wild steelhead. The Nestucca river was turning the corner and we were seeing good runs of these wild fish returning and successfully spawning proving that it can be done with some intelligent fishery management. Well you probably can guess the rest of the story and the sad saga of the steelhead broodstock programs on the coastal rivers. We are now seeing these recovering runs slipping back into critical condition and for what? To sell more licenses and give the fishing guides a money making opportunity on a run of fish that should have been left alone or at least not exploited for profit.
It's all about money and keeping antiquated programs afloat and maybe a little cronyism thrown in just for good measure.
It is time to get a grip with reality and that reality is easy to understand. We cannot allow our last few remaining wild salmonids to be bartered about like a sack of corn.
The Quiet Pool has been likened to some radical Eco-terrorist group like ALF (Animal Liberation Front) because of my outspoken defense of wild salmon and steelhead. First of all I really doubt that I have that much influence, if any, on ODFW policy through my writings here. This is just my thoughts and opinions and while I strive to back what I say with facts I make no claim to be an expert.
I am simply a concerned angler trying to make a difference in whatever humble way I can.
Thanks for reading

Save the Coastal Cutthroat Trout

It's a pretty sure bet that the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will advance a public proposal to allow a harvest of coastal cutthroat trout in all rivers above the Salmon river near Lincoln City. Although the fish biologists have no real clues as too actual populations of these trout their desire to make up for a shortfall in fishing license sales will make them focus their attention on the last remaining wild cutthroat trout populations in order to boost sales and public interest.
This is a battle we fight every four years and this year will be no different. The harvest drunk "sportsmen" of Tillamook county are already salivating over the prospect of two a day, with an eight inch minimum, harvest.

You find a few of these knuckle draggers on the internet in the usual places talking about how great it would be to kill a few of these fish. After all how are we going to keep our kids interested in fishing without letting them kill their catch?
So friends I am asking you to make your voices heard and let the ODFW know how foolish this notion is. I am not claiming to be a biologist but I do know a bit about the cutthroat trout populations in this region and the huge numbers that locals claim are just not there. Anyone who gives a damn about wild fish and is familiar with these trout will tell you the exact same thing.
They can be reached at the Tillamook Regional office of the ODFW 503-842-2741 and you can talk directly to the individuals that will be involved with any cutthroat harvest.
Ask for either Rick Klumph, Robert Bradley or Keith Braun at the Tillamook ODFW office. Ask them where they are getting their evidence that these trout can sustain a harvest and be sure and ask them where in the watershed they are collecting this information and by what means.
I'm pretty sure you will get a lot of double talk but ask them anyway. I will write more information as to dates for public hearing etc. where this harvest can be addressed in public.
I'm putting everything on the line to save these fish and if you have enjoyed anything I've written over the almost two years the Quiet Pool has existed I am asking you to please help save the wonderful and wild trout.
Another thing you can do is register on the discussion board of the largest fishing forum in the northwest Ifish.net and post your feelings about a potential harvest of these trout.There are many on that website who want to kill cutthroat trout....even the owner thinks it's a good idea after once saying she was against it.

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

We Have Met the Enemy and He is Us!

The much anticipated spring chinook salmon allocation hearing has come and gone. The sports groups have pounded their chests with grandiose promises of vanquishing the hated commercial gill netters into some kind of salmon bizarro world. Yep! The vocal masses of the internet fishing website ifish.net promised to unite sports fisherman of the Columbia and Willamette river and kick ass.They made a lot of bold claims and vowed to finally get their day in the sun.....fat chance!

First of all I was not at the meeting and even if I could have I would not have gone! One lonely voice for wild fish was their from Trout Unlimited but this was not a day to discuss wild and endangered spring chinook. This was the day of fighting over the scraps of hatchery fish that the upper Columbia river native American tribes were not entitled too and what a spectacle it must have been. I followed the play by play from Oregonian outdoor columnist Bill Monroe who was present at the meeting as he gave the cyber world an outline as to what was being said before the ODFW commission.
In the end the sports groups still got the lion's share (57% to 43% for the commercials) but it was not the lion's share they anticipated. They still get six out of seven days to fish with the commercials getting only one day and still they bellow like a spoiled fat kid who didn't get the whole candy bar. Oh yes and they also started to do what they do best! Fighting amongst themselves and finger pointing. The out numbered commercial gill netters, putting their individual differences aside, still outflanked them and both user groups will have to vie for the available salmon between the I-5 Bridge and Bonneville dam.
So we once again see greed win out and sports fishermen still come out of this looking as ridiculous, greedy and fragmented as they always have.
Hope these people will be as motivated when addressing issues that affect wild fish but I will not be holding my breath. Sports groups have always been conspicuously absent when it comes to conservation issues.
The one winner of the day is, as it always is when it comes to dividing the hatchery pie, greed.