Native Fish Society Speaks Out For Wild Salmonids

By Bill Bakke

The Native Fish Society has an important mission that others believe in and support. We are making progress. I have worked in native fish conservation for more than 40 years and have spent time with legislators in my constant effort to strengthen and fund conservation. Senator Jan Wyers responded in the 1980s by funding five native fish conservation positions at ODFW. It was though that program that key people were hired and important work for Oregon’s wild salmonids was accomplished. In 2012 the legislature is again concerned about the future of wild salmonids as more and more populations are protected under the ESA and others are lost forever. The NFS Hatchery Accountability Project clearly states that there needs to be better accountability for biological and cost impacts of hatchery programs. There have been two hearings this session and in the next session our goal is to hold the agency accountable.

At one time it was possible to expect administrative solutions to problems affecting native fish management by government agencies, but that has changed, so legal action is necessary to force the government to follow its own rules and comply with state and federal law. This is why we have put ODFW on notice to clean-up its Sandy Hatchery program so that wild winter steelhead, coho, fall chinook and spring chinook are protected and a path is opened up for their recovery under the ESA. A 76% stray rate of hatchery spring chinook into the wild chinook spawning grounds is not acceptable under state or federal rules and it needs to be corrected.

We are in Stevenson Washington tonight defending the management program for recovery of wild summer steelhead in Wind River. This run has been protected as a wild steelhead management river since 1982, but there is local pressure for a stock and kill fishery. We are involved in these public meetings to make sure that the Wind River wild summer steelhead continue to rebuild and eventually recover.

The NFS is working for wild salmon, steelhead and trout throughout the Northwest through direct action and by supporting the good work of other groups. Our volunteer river stewards are working in their communities for healthy watersheds and native fish. It is a big job and for a small organization and it can seem wild and wooly, but we are undaunted in our efforts and we have a record of success when we take time to look in the rear-view mirror. 

I am committed to the future of the Native Fish Society because it is an effective advocate for native wild fish in the Northwest. We base our advocacy on the best available science and there is a lot of it being published that has direct bearing on our conservation work. We have a history of success but we could do better with more funding and more folks to push our advocacy program forward. The point is that as we grow our funding base we do so without sacrificing our mission for native wild fish. The organization and its leadership have made that commitment and with the support of our members and friends we can be successful in solving complex and difficult problems for wild native fish in the region.

As Winter Wanes

So here I sit with just a few weeks left of winter. And what kind of winter has it been?  Well it has certainly been a better winter than last year that is for sure!
All of that aside though, I am ready for spring. All the signs are there too! Baseball's spring training has begun. I can uncover my outside faucets because the chance of freezing them to the point of bursting is minimal. I am also beginning my six month long sneeze fest which means there is pollen floating around in the air that irritates my sinuses.
I dusted off my old drift fishing gear to hopefully put a few hatchery steelhead in the freezer this winter.....no luck as the rain this year has been nearly relentless. I complain about the hatchery influence so much on this blog that I figure instead of sitting around all winter waiting for the rivers to drop into some sort of reasonable fly fishing levels I could kill a few of these hatchery fish thereby doing my part to take as many out of the river as possible.No luck with that but I did manage a nice wild buck while swinging a fly with my Spey rod.
I have been lazy too. You may have noticed that I have re posted a few earlier entries from this blog. Kind of a "Best of the Quiet Pool" sort of thing. Well it's really not laziness, it's more like not having much to write about. God knows I have covered the "Winter, ODFW and Hatcheries all Suck" topics ad nauseum on this blog. I also write about the Deschutes river a lot as well. I think the Deschutes is a subject that I could never run out of things to write about it and my love for it.
I mean could you ever find too many words to describe something beautiful like Van Gogh's "Starry Night" or the feeling you get the first time you see your new born child? Beauty and wonder are beyond my weak human abilities to do justice to in words.
So as the first trip over the Cascades to central Oregon in pursuit of rainbow trout nears I anticipate the reunion with my "Mother River"
Like a child anticipates Christmas or as someone who has not seen a loved one for a long time anticipates.
It is just that isn't it? You have to look at a river as more than just a place to catch fish. I love the trip over to the Deschutes almost as much as the actual fishing. I love to look for things I have never seen before as I travel east. Maybe it will be a species of bird that I have never seen before or spotting a bald eagle, which is always something I would never get tired of. As I have evolved as an angler and as a person I try to be satisfied with what is around me at the moment. It doesn't always work out that way but I will say the beauty of the outdoors never disappoints me...it's is the human factor that disappoints and spoils the moment.
I don't care what Punxsutawney Phil might or might not have seen on February 2nd! I am looking forward to the renewal of spring. Winter be damned and as British poet Anne Bradstreet wrote.
“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.”

The Hatchery Influence

 

The following is an opinion by my good friend John Bracke of the Nestucca river. John has long been an important advocate for wild salmon and steelhead for many years along the north coast of Oregon.


The use of hatchery fish is nothing new. What has happened is the removal of the hatchery product from stretches of river that had been planted. While the removal of the hatchery product is good for the wild fish it is also bad for the wild fish. Many of today's remaining wild populations are being influenced with a percentage of successful hatchery spawn. With the removal of the hatchery product the obvious then comes out. A percentage of the wild run is made up of hatchery strays that have spawned successfully.
This fact is obvious on all of Oregon's hatchery polluted fisheries dealing with ocean migrating runs. The agency in charge realizing that the hatchery product is somewhat successful in the wild then removes the bad hatchery product and then begins to use the wild return for their hatchery use. This is justifiable because the fish is of wild origin and if they due spawn in the wild the agency feels the impacts are not as bad. Not quite so fast the agency has been put on notice not to exceed a 10% stray rate into the wild spawning population. Their new reason for failing to meet these guidelines are that they do not have the money nor the willingness too look into this problem. They are going to take this issue up during the new native fish policy.
Not so fast, a large part of the problem with the new broodstock fiasco is the run timing. We now have the hatchery return coinciding with the wild return in run timing and in spawning. The pressure is then twice as bad. Before you had a group just fishing on wild fish with little impact. Move a hatchery product on top of this run and you have a mess.
With the removal of the hatchery run you will see a decline in the wild population. Within 4-5 years depending on the hatchery influence in the drainage the true population of the wild return will become obvious.
How due we solve this problem. The hatchery fish are not cheap with the cost of the product being what it is let's put the expense of the product on those who would prefer to purse such prey and make it mandatory that they kill every hatchery fish they catch and not play catch and release on such fish. This form of fishing has had a much more negative affect on the wild population and creates even more problems.
Then we have those of us who would prefer to fish on wild runs instead of hatchery crap. We also need to pay for our fishery as well. A user fee for each drainage would benefit not only the drainage but also the surrounding area. What it boils down to is who is willing to pay for the expense associated with a wild fishery or a hatchery fishery. At this point in time the only people willing are anyone?
Then the idea of shifting towards a consumptive wild fishery on steelhead and everything else. Sorry folks, the ocean migrating runs that this state has left are not healthy enough for a total take on the wild population. Yes, they will open up certain fisheries to boost tag sales and optimism that the run is better than it really is.
What the problem really revolves around is public involvement. If the agency only hears from the kill crowd who do you think gets what they want. Those of us involved in the health and welfare of the wild fish can only due so much. The fisheries are in trouble due to the lack of involvement, from the new angler. When I say new I mean within the last 2 decades.
Those that have dropped out thanks for getting out of the way, you only created more problems than they were worth.

To All You Fishing Superstars Out There

When I started this blog over 5 years ago my intention was to write down my thoughts and opinions based on my life of fly fishing. With the exception of a few politically charged offerings I've kept pretty much to what I set out to do.
If you've come here to get instructions or advice then I can tell you that there are many out there who know a hell of a lot more than me. I try to be a good steward of the rivers and the fish that live in the rivers that I love. I do not want notoriety beyond doing what I can for wild salmonids. I know many people who feel the same as I do.
What I have seen the last few years is the emergence of the fishing "superstar". They are in both the fly fishing community and the conventional gear crowds. The internet is their playground and you cannot escape their plethora of hero pictures. These young and some times even middle age fishing studs have a little success and all of the sudden they know it all and are even writing articles in national magazines. They are giving "sage" advice on hooking big numbers of fish worldwide.
Most of these stars are in their 20's  or 30's and have had very little time to experience shaving their damn face much less learning all the ins and outs of fishing.
I find these instant experts funny in a pathetic sort of way. They rig up their indicators and bobbers and brag of big numbers and fishing in exotic locales. They have their images plastered all over the internet with holding wild steelhead out of the water out. Their "posse" of wannabes are there to sing their praises and tell them " You da man!"
They even have a series of DVDs out their to exhibit their exploits to those that can only dream of fishing in such far away places.
You can call me a cynic and maybe I am but these rock stars are hurting our sport and most of the time that actions and attitudes are the only impression the general public gets of fishing. This "in your face look at me" brashness wears pretty thin to most everyone but their peers,camp followers and ass kissers. Another thing they do to hurt the sport is the way they come across to those who might be interested in taking up fishing. They care little about conservation or anything that might limit them from putting up the big numbers and plastering their face all over the internet.
You won't see them at an important public hearings when the well being of wild trout and salmon is being discussed. They are too busy having pictures holding wild trout or steelhead out of the water. They are too busy treating salmon and steelhead fishing like some sort of angling extreme sport to be play along with snow boarding and skateboarding.
Oh they will exploit the resource and talk about what a darn shame it is that all the wild salmonids are disappearing but to get them to take action? They love the bloated hatchery runs in small coastal rivers and you can see them holding court with the morons who don't know any better.
So young man, I say young because most of you are younger than my kids, I will acknowledge that you are a better fisherman than me. You catch more and bigger fish than me but I am not impressed and in fact I am worried that after the old guys are gone the traditions of fishing in the Pacific Northwest and more importantly conservation are going to be left in your hands
I doubt you are up to the task and so all the things that are wonderful about casting a dry fly to a rising trout or drift fishing for winter steelhead will be gone and that scares the hell out of me.
So young dudes if you have time to actually do something more than being a steelhead fishing superstar and popping zits in the mirror then maybe you can help us old guys out as we try to save a few wild trout. You don't respect the river, the resource or anything but your own over-inflated ego!
If you think I am writing about you then yes I more than likely am.....deal; with it!

Haunted by Water

I recently re-read "A River Runs Through It" by Norman Maclean. This is a wonderful story of two brother growing up and flyfishing in Montana during the early 1900's with their Presbyterian minister father. It is also a deep and tragic telling of the loss of a loved one and the helplessness the author felt when he could not save his brother.
Maclean paints a picture in words of the waters and trout of the Montana of his youth. I could easily fill an entire entry with the lofty prose he treats the reader to.
I think the one thing that attracts me to this story is the deep understanding that Maclean had with his surroundings and how the great Montana trout rivers spoke to him in the timeless manner. I can only try to relate to my own angling life.
Maclean does not rely on a bunch flowery adjectives to tell his story like so many erstwhile writers do today. He puts into words the very sadness he never got over at the loss of someone that he could not help.
Don't we all have someone in our lives like Norman Maclean's brother Paul. Someone so gifted yet so fatally flawed that you know that your precarious grip on them and your love for them is not enough. Paul Maclean was a shooting star that shone bright but so quickly and prematurely extinguished.
Maclean wrote " All good things come by grace and grace comes by art, and art does not come easy" So I would ask simply what does that say to you? I know that Maclean was writing about the art of casting a fly but I think it says more...at least to me it does.
To me it says simply that the things we work hard for are things we cannot take for granted once we get them. We strive to make the best casts or tie the most perfect fly but how about the journey?
Is fly fishing a means to an end? I suppose it is for me because it is only through the simple but beautiful "four count movement" That perfect peace in an angling life can be achieved or at least striven for.
I had a friend who wanted to proudly display a picture of a steelhead he had recently caught. He acted like I would be angry that he got a fish and I had not ? I was happy for him! I was happy for him in a way that can only come through the satisfaction of knowing I need not compete anymore.

 

Please Kill Hatchery Fish

When I say kill hatchery fish I mean just that! If you buy an angling license you are helping to pay for the rearing of hatchery fish. That cost has an astronomical price per fish so since you and I are paying for them we should utilize them by killing them and therefore removing them from the river.
Sound wasteful? Not at all! You are just utilizing a resource that was put in place for you to harvest fish. You say you just like to catch and release all fish and cannot bring yourself to kill any. Well that is fine and good for wild fish as they should almost always be released to propagate the species so good on you for being a good steward of the wild resource. On the same line of thinking, you are also being a good steward of the resource when you remove hatchery salmon, trout and steelhead from rivers with a wild fish population.Remember that hatchery salmon, trout and steelhead should never ever be allowed to co-mingle with wild salmon,trout and steelhead...got that? The effect on the wild population is devastating!
So here is my advice. Want to eat some fish? Kill your limit of hatchery fish! Did you catch a trophy sized hatchery fish? Congratulations! Kill it and then have it mounted or better yet take measurements and pictures for a replica mount then kill the hatchery fish to eat or give away or use as fertilizer for your wife's rose bed. The important thing is to harvest that hatchery fish.
How about if the fish is unfit for consumption from spawning? I kill it, tag it and release it back into the river for nutrients. I do that but you might not want to do it because it is considered wasting a game fish so do not do anything illegal! If you've caught your daily limit of hatchery fish then go home and come back the next day and kill your hatchery fish limit again.
You may get the warm fuzzies by letting a hatchery fish go and thinking you've done the fish a big favor, well you may have done that fish a big favor but you sure as hell didn't do the resource any favors! That fish could stray into wild salmonid spawning grounds and spawn with a wild fish thus diluting the wild salomnid genes. You've done a huge disservice to the wild fish by releasing a hatchery fish that you should have kept.
Remember this much. That hatchery fish is yours to utilize in whatever way you see fit. Give it away or plant it in your flower bed or use for crab bait or put it on the BBQ grill and have uncle Vern over for dinner.The important thing is to KILL ALL HATCHERY SALMON, TROUT AND STEELHEAD!!!!

"Rasslin" with Salmon

In this corner, weighing in at 25 to 30 lbs. fresh from the Pacific ocean...the champion of anadromous salmonids...Oncorhynchus tshawytscha AKA King Salmon!!!!!
and in this corner, weighing in at TOO DAMN MUCH,the stumbling angler....AKA Dumb Ass!!!!!
As Michael Buffer would say "LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE"
Yes that is what it seemed like as I struggled to help my friend land his very first fall Chinook salmon on an Oregon coastal river a few weeks ago.
The river was running pretty high when John hooked this brute on what amounted to steelhead tackle. John fought the strong flow as much as the fish and with the river being so high there was little if any room on the bank for him beach this big fish.
I coached him along as he played give and take with the fish ever fearful that his light tackle would fail him.
After what seemed like an hour (more like 10 minutes) the fish was ready to come in. With no bank to slide the salmon up on, it was up to me to land John's fish so he could stay on his girlfriend's good side and play hunter/gatherer bringing home some fresh meat. All of John's future fishing trips rested on my shoulders as I positioned myself to "pin" this fish. Well what happened next would have been an excellent submission to the funniest home videos show but thank God no one was filming. I pounced on this salmon and he was not quite ready to surrender! With his broad tail he scooped up a big finful of sand and mud and threw it right into my face.Pissed off now, I grabbed this slimy bastard with both hands as he and I "rassled" in the shallow water with me taking on water in my waders from the thrashing about. Since John did not have a salmon club to beat the fish senseless I directed him to take a thick piece of shoreline drift wood and bonk the big fighter. Fortunately that worked and his prize was harvested.
I was very happy for John as I brushed sand and grit off of my face and out of my mouth. He had gotten his first fall Chinook and peace would reign in his home.
But wait!!! A few minutes later I hooked a very acrobatic winter steelhead that actually did kick my ass! As I was thinking about how I would be cooking this 10 lb. or so hatchery fish he jumped one more time, spitting the gear which smacked me right in the mouth......it was a knock out and all I went home with was a fat lip and a gritty taste in my mouth.

Many thanks go to "Al Baker" for encouraging me to capture this epic moment of angling technique for all of posterity....Merry Christmas to all

Steelhead

They can bring you to your knees after an encounter, leaving you a slobbering, jelly-legged, quivering mess! These sea going rainbow trout will bring a seemingly sane person out into near blizzard conditions in pursuit of them.
To the non-angler this behavior surely must seem like masochism or insanity at the very least. In my years of pursuing these fish I've hiked 5 miles up the Deschutes canyon in blazing heat August after summer steelhead. I have fished in weather so cold that the water not only froze in the guides of my rod but also froze my reel thus rendering it useless. It's hard to explain to someone who has never caught a steelhead why those of us who have will do almost anything to hook one.

Steelhead trout (oncorhynchus mykiss) are the fish of legend from the coastal rivers of British Columbia, Oregon, Washington and California to the mighty Columbia and it's tributaries like the Deschutes, Sandy, Snake and it's tributary the Clearwater. Steelhead have also been introduced into the Great Lakes of Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota to name a few. They are the premier coldwater game fish in North America and are second only to Atlantic Salmon (Salmo Salar) as the greatest freshwater game fish worldwide but some would argue that steelhead fight better.
Steelhead trout have captured the imagination of generations of anglers. Celebrities like Jack Hemingway and Zane Grey sought them on the banks of the famous North Umpqua and Rogue rivers in Oregon. The rivers of British Columbia like the Kispiox, Skeena, Bulkley, Thompson and Dean are truly the rivers of dreams because of their large strain of wild steelhead.
So why do I love them so much? They are the truly fish of MY dreams! Their wild abandon when hooked is unforgettable and gut wrenching in it's fierceness. I can remember many of the steelhead I have hooked in the 38 years of fishing for them and I think it would be safe to assume that other steelhead anglers can do the same. They connect us to those fabled steelhead anglers of long ago like Roderick Haig-Brown and Mike Kennedy and the modern contemporaries like Bill McMillan and Lani Waller.Many celebrity steelheaders were made famous by the fish and not vice versa!
Wild steelhead numbers are in an alarming decline throughout the northwest and it is truly enough to bring hardened steelhead anglers to tears. We will never again see them in large numbers and to those that really care about this fish it breaks our hearts.
I remember my first steelhead from Oregon's Sandy river from back in 1974 just like it was yesterday. Each steelhead I have caught over the years was a unique encounter that will be with me through the rest of my days and honestly what other outdoor pursuit can do that?
There is no such thing as a casual encounter with a steelhead and even in their inferior hatchery version they still battle better than anything swimming in fresh water in this part of the world.

I have an affection for cutthroat trout not unlike a doting father would have for his fragile newborn. With steelhead it's more like a torrid love affair! You obsess over these fish like nothing else. Dec Hogan calls it "A Passion for Steelhead" and that explains it best.
People might wonder why some of us take our passion to a visceral level when our beloved steelhead are threatened by those that have no soul. We mourn the death of any wild steelhead because of the love we have for them.
So if you have not had the chance to fish for one of these magnificent trout in their wild form then do so and at all haste because we are nearing a day when they might be just a fond memory of a loved one lost.

A Most Sacred Place

On our 2009 vacation to Hawaii I was fortunate enough to be able to visit the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor on Oahu.
As I looked down into the rusting gun turret of this battleship I could not help thinking of the more than 1000 Sailors and Marines entombed in the ship.



What would have these brave men accomplished in their life if they had not died on that December morning 70 years ago? Could one of them found a cure for cancer or maybe one of them might have been elected president. Perhaps their offsprings would have done great things and made the world a better place.



I'm sure this has all been pondered before over the years.
To go to the Arizona memorial has been something that I have wanted to do all of my life and to actually go there was a surreal experience.
The diesel oil from the wrecked battleship still seeps to the surface.



I knew it would be an emotional time for me and it indeed was.
To all who read this and have a sense of history you owe it to yourself to visit this most sacred place.

A River in Winter

Highway 6 ribbons through the dark Pacific Northwest rain forest on this late fall day but in reality it is winter despite what the calendar says. It is something that all of us that call this part of the country home know all too well. The alders and maples have long since forfeited their summer garb, and in the low light of a winter sun, look stark against the gray sky.
Recent rains have swollen the river to a busy flow that is mostly the constant in wintertime. No longer do the leaves swirl in the dark tannin colored pools as now the river turns an almost slate color as if to define the coldness of it's water and winter itself.
The summer and fall river of just a few short weeks ago is now foreboding as if to warn of the dangers in it's water. The wildlife that make their living along shoreline go about their business as gulls wheel over head worrying about dead and decaying salmon that are just out of their hungry reach.
Man might be able to channel, dam and divert the river but if given the chance the river will always reclaim what it lost due to man's interference. The river in winter will reluctantly submit seemingly waiting for the right opportunity to rebel.
I have to take this winter river seriously on these cold days. The river that I waded on a carefree summer or fall day is now intimidating in it's winter power.
The river in winter is a cold and dangerous beauty that demands respect and reluctantly gives up it bounty. I spent almost all of last winter dealing with someone who needed help but refused to take it and my fishing along with my over all well being suffered. In the darkest days of that time I could have used the river for solace and renewal and this year I will do just that.
While winter is not my favorite time of year this year I will embrace it as the journey we need to get through to reach the promise of spring. It is much like our own lives.
I liken the river in winter as more of a time of cleansing and a refreshing of the stagnation of summer. It's a necessary thing that occurs but it is not always pleasant much like my own experiences.

Thanksgiving 2011

I had the opportunity to be among the homeless,poor and as Simon and Garfunkel called them, "ragged people" today. Doing that makes me appreciate all that much more what Llemonte does on a daily basis. Some call this segment of our society freeloaders. I just saw them as people who wanted a hot meal and a dry place to eat it on Thanksgiving. I learned a few of their stories as I chatted with them today and who knows maybe that could have been me. A bad break here or there in the past and it might have been me getting a free Thanksgiving dinner. What I took away from today is something that some already knows and that is these people are of value and should never be cast aside because it is inconvenient to deal with them. I know that there is no other place I had rather have been today.
Realistically my serving the homeless one day a year is not a big deal. The folks that do this every day are heroes in my book and I think they are wonderful are are true servants.
Happy Holidays Everyone

Don't Hurt Your Arms Boys

So here I go on another rant about the fishing superstars that currently plague our northwest rivers. If you don't want to read it then log in over on Facebook and count all the "friends" you have, most of whom you never met.
A truly great fisherman never has to trumpet his own success or posts a bunch of pictures on the internet fishing forums to show what a fishing stud he is. Sorry boys but I am not impressed in the least! Yeah you can catch a bunch of salmon by back bouncing eggs or pulling plugs from a boat but so can thousands of other guys. You have no original ideas and have pretty much ripped off your fishing techniques from someone else.
The truly great anglers does not seek attention or notoriety and in most cases shy away from that egotistical childishness. I have a close friend who is that way and I will not even mention his name because he would not want me to. He is the best at what he does and that is steelhead fly fishing with a spey rod. He is almost without peer when it comes to casting a two-handed rod. He revolutionized spey casting with his innovative ideas but do hear him pound his chest and talk about how great he is? Never, even though he easily could.
In conventional gear steelhead and salmon angling there was none better than the late Rich Pierzynski was the best there was. Did you see him with his face plastered all over Salmon, Trout and Steelheader magazine? Not at all! He didn't need to. He was the best and did not feel the need to constantly pat himself on the back like these "adolescents" today.
Not even all the younger guys are arrogant jerks. I know one young fly fishing guide that is paying his dues and has become very successful at what he does. He doesn't shit in his own back yard by taking pictures of his success on recognizable rivers. My hat is off to him and he is not the only young fishing guide that is that way.
So I guess what it is I am trying to say is simply this. Most anglers are put off by braggarts like we see on the world wide web. They usually do nothing as far as conservation goes and are arrogant assholes.

Egg Whores...The Final Chapter

Who Gets the Eggs?


There is really not much I can add to the thread linked above from Ifish.net. It offers an insight into the greed, pettiness and over all stupidity that often comes with the use of salmon eggs. Read it and come to your own conclusion.

I used roe for bait at one time and I know how the lure of an easy catch made me feel. I would love to see the use of salmon eggs for bait restricted especially in streams with wild salmon and steelhead populations.
You have to admit it though. These bait guys are an entertaining lot aren't they? When I catch a hatchery winter steelhead and gut it on the stream bank to (legally?) toss the offal back into the water for stream nutrients the eggs go back in the river too!

Desperately Seeking.....Water?

So here we sit with only two weeks and two days before Thanksgiving. At this time of year we should be seeing storm after storm rolling in from the Pacific like a bowling ball rolling down the lane but not this year. I am wading the coastal rivers with impunity these days because there has been little rain.
You see we Pacific North westerners are a jaded bunch. We know that the rains are coming but still we complain, for some strange reason, when they don't come when expected. Then we bitch like the whiners we are when it rains too much.
Lack of water has put a serious crimp in salmon fishing this season. Low, summer-like flows have caused the Chinook salmon to be trapped in a series of deeper holes on their way upstream to their home spawning gravel and all the while their flesh literally deteriorates from their skeletons.
I don't fish for salmon much anymore because the un-washed  bait chucking masses who call themselves fishermen cramp my style. I've gone on about this crowd many times on this blog so I will spare you the explanation of why I detest this group.
I do like to get out and stretch my "spey" legs so to speak and get some casting in for preparation of the upcoming winter steelhead season. Yeah yeah I'm a fly fishing snob so just deal with it.
Anyway it would be nice to have some moving water with which to swing my fly and there isn't much moving water to be had down in Tillamook county.
This is supposed to be a "La Nina" winter meaning it is supposed to be very wet. Well last year was that type of year and we had rain until May. Wonderful!!!

La Nina huh? What damn meteorologist came up with naming colder than normal ocean current after some poor little Hispanic baby girl? I think "It's going to be another shitty winter" current would be more appropriate name don't you? 
Ah well such is life in the Pacific Northwest. We complain about the weather but no one does any thing about it right?

The End of the Season

I wasn't even going to fish the last day of the coastal trout season when I got up this morning. I concluded that it had been a good late season for me and my fly rod and the last day wouldn't matter.
I ended up going anyway, leaving two hours later than I usually leave. As I made my way down Highway 6 all the signs of fall were there. The garishly colored fall maple leaves pirouetted down on the road as they fell from the trees like a sad ballet dancer. The fir and hemlock trees stood tall, like giant sentinels standing vigilant above the lush Pacific Northwest rain forest.Yes indeed fall has fell!
I visited my usual haunts with little success now that the bait anglers had descended upon nearly every one of my favorite trout runs. With an array of salmon eggs, sand shrimp and God know what other bait concoctions polluting the water of my trout hangouts there was little chnace that a willing trout could be dissuaded into anything artificial.
The earliest arriving Chinook and coho salmon rolled in the slower water of the Wilson river as they neared their destiny of procreation and then death. Their once chrome bright vestiges had given way mottled browns, greys and even the white of a leprous like fungus.
This was Halloween and the sidewalks of Tillamook was filled with pint-sized ninjas, princesses, goblins and ghouls plying for the sugary handouts the local merchants were supplying. It slowed my progress to one last trout hole on the upper Trask but I didn't mind watching the children do what I had done some fifty years prior and that was to score some candy.
Dusk was quickly drawing closed the curtain of the 2011 season as I made it to the upper Trask to fish one final hole. I made my way through the ever damp ferns and moss to the river and was rewarded with one last bright coastal cutthroat trout on the very first cast.Further attempts to catch one last bit of magic of the dying season proved fruitless and so I decided it was time to go home.
As I traveled eastward along the lumbering evergreens along Highway 6 toward my home I was kind of sad that the season was done. Seven months seems like a very long way off and who knows what

in my life during those seven months. A long,wet and cold winter lay ahead of me and winters are getting to be more of a struggle the older I get. Yes I will take out my Spey rods and pursue the ever fleeting winter steelhead on a swung fly but the lazy days of summer and fall are gone like the baseball season that had just ended. I will revel in my triumphs of the season just past and second guess myself at the failure of poor knots and too many lost fish.  Oh there will be a time in the dark of winter when I take my bamboo fly rod out and give it another coat of wax as I dream of the warm days of spring yet to come.
Have a good winter everyone

Egg Whores Part II

Just about the time I think the whole salmon roe frenzy in Tillamook county cannot possibly get more ridiculous I read stuff like this post below that appeared on a popular internet website.

"I was able to get into a few hens on a coastal river to up my egg supply. They ended up being more on the dusky side and are not table fair. Anybody need them for crab bait or fertilizer?"

Is this guy for real? Sadly yes he is and unfortunately typical of the mind set of many salmon anglers. This practice is called "hen hunting" and is a contributing factor to the dwindling populations of wild Chinook salmon in the Tillamook watershed and has long been practiced by salmon fishermen and also professional bait guides throughout the region.
I find it more than disgusting and not only for the practice itself but the fact that others think what this asshole is doing is okay.
Fishing the upper stretches of these coastal rivers for salmon, especially in low water conditions like we have now, you are guaranteed dark fish that should be left to spawn.Like I've said this "hen hunters" are no better than gill netters.
I hope that an effort can be mounted to prevent crap like this from happening,

It Just Doesn't Get Any Better

My affection for coastal cutthroat trout is well documented on this blog and they are my favorite fish to pursue on a fly rod.I unabashedly declare my love for these mysterious coastal trout. To say the last three weeks of this season have been nothing short of phenomenal would be a lie. Big trout and lots of them! I fish almost entirely alone on my coastal rivers because the low water has keep the fall salmon in tidewater. Not many fly fishers actually pursue them thinking that they are not worth the effort for some reason. Hey keep thinking that and stay over on the other side of the Cascades if you cannot appreciate a fish so unique and enjoyable as the cutthroat trout. Yes they are an aggressive salmonid who will take a fly with gusto. The coastal rivers do not have the abundance of food for trout that rivers like the Deschutes does. Cutthroat trout are predators in a way the is unlike rainbows and anything that looks like food they will strike and strike hard. I have had strikes so savage from cutthroat trout at times that my rod is almost jerked from my hand.
The last couple of years I have been discouraged at the lack of trout on the north coast. Could some of it be over harvest? I think in certain areas like the lower Kilchis that is absolutely the reason for their dwindling numbers. Easy access and bait has spelled the doom of those fish. Any area that has easy access is going to be over fished and the important age class of those trout are killed off. Simple really. Kill the bigger spawning adults in a certain area and viola! No more fish. Areas where the bait slinging public cannot easily access the trout there fare much better. I,fortunately, have access to one of those areas.
With the end of the season looming I will be spending some quality time with oncorhynchus clarki.....you guys that have not experienced the joy of these trout are poorer for it.

What Goes Around Comes Around?

I am not a religious person. I am cautiously skeptical about all religion buth ave to admit that Jesus had some pretty cool things to say.
I might believe in Karma but only in it's simplest form. I do or do not have success while fly fishing because of a good deed I did in the past or get skunked because I stole a pack of baseball cards from WT Grants in 1962? I don't know about all of that but I do think there is something to the old saying "What goes around comes around"
I did a couple of good deeds this week and the very next day was rewarded with an epic day of cutthroat trout fishing. Coincidence? Maybe or maybe not.
So if any of you wants to buy me a new Bob Clay bamboo Spey rod with a Bogdan reel then consider the rewards you will reap while fly fishing! If you don't then I hope all the eyes on your fly hooks are filled with glue.

The Dangers of Hatchery Salmon and Steelhead

Click on the link below for an eye opening article by John Larison about the damage that hatchery salmonids do from Fly Fisherman Magazine.

Why hatchery salmon and steelhead are so dangerous

*Note
Not all wild steelhead used in broodstock programs are killed after they are live spawned

The Quiet Pool Reflection

In reflecting back on five years of doing this blog I am wondering if I have stayed true to what I wanted to accomplish with the Quiet Pool. I've made a few friends here over the years and a few more enemies too unfortunately. As I've grown older I guess I've become something of a cynic when it comes to human nature and have come to the determination that we humans are a failed and selfish species by in large. I have railed against ODFW, apathetic sports anglers, bait chuckers and even other fly fishermen and I firmly believe in the importance of wild fish and clean rivers. Those that have been the target of such wrath by me deserved it in my opinion and I remain unapologetic. Protecting wild salmon and steelhead along with banning bait cures and reforming hatchery practices are two things I believe in and always will.
I do feel, however, that I've gotten away from some of the beauty I've written about. When I wrote "The Soul of Fly Fishing" it was an examination of my own soul as it relates to this endeavour I've chosen to pursue.
I know there are many who know what it was I was trying to say but I fear most of it was lost on many people who read it.
I'm not about catching a mess of fish. If I was I would have stuck with conventional gear and bait! There are many people out there who catch  a lot more fish than me....big deal. Maybe it's silly to romanticize fly fishing the way some of us do but really it comes down to doing what makes you feel good and what you enjoy.Stress should never be a part of fly fishing. Enjoying what you are doing is! That is what it is all about for me and with the joy comes a deep and abiding reverence for the rivers and the wild trout and salmon that inhabit them.
Really that is the only agenda that I have ever had on this blog. The Quiet Pool is about fly fishing, conservation and life and to me that is what I am about in my angling experience. Too many times we tend to trivialize the importance of those things in our angling life that should be taken more serious. To marginalize wild fish is unpardonable if you call yourself a sportsman. We fly fishermen certainly do not have a monopoly on angling ethics but it seems like those groups that do the most good for the resource are mainly fly fishermen? Why is that?
So I am unsure how far I will take this blog but as long as I have something to say then I will say it.

Oh and one more thing.Using pegged trout beads and indicator causes blindness....cheers

In Praise of Lost Fish

Why would I be praising lost fish? Think about it for a minute. If it were not for those legendary and mythical "Ones that got away" where would our sport be? We can take an obscure lost trout of undetermined size (most likely pretty small) and that trout, through the years of retelling the story, can grow to trophy proportion.
Now of course I would never stoop to such fibbing about my fly fishing conquests but I know a few people who would.
Whenever an angler starts a fish story with "This is no shit!" You know you are in store for a a tapestry of lies.

We have to have these lost fish as a way to BS around the fly tying table or fill in the times when the river are our of shape or we are enjoying a cold adult beverage with a few "truth challenged" buddies. I think that over the years these angling tall tales become fact in our own minds and we end up not really knowing if we, ourselves , are telling the truth. There was never anyone to call us on our tales and until that advent of the digital camera there was never photographic proof.
Again you must understand that I would never do that.
It's a pretty harmless vice actually and in truth can turn a thorough skunking into a semi-successful day of fishing with a few well placed exaggerations.
When my wife asks me how my fishing trip had gone I usually reply "hooked a few". Those few may have been smolt or rocks or quite possibly an over hanging branch but she never queries beyond that so I do not have to explain just what it was the  I hooked.
We all have had fish that were hooked and lost that stay with us forever. It might have been that trout that spooled me or a hard fighting steelhead but our fleeting and dramatic encounters with these memorable fish just makes all future embellishments more special and it keeps us coming back.
How many of you think about those lost fish? How much larger has that fish grown over the years?
Stretching the truth is part and parcel with angling and maybe that is just another part of what makes fly fishing so charming.

Just About Says It All Doesn't It?

“We cannot have “wild-only” too many places around the state as they would not be able to support recreational fishing as the existing habitat does not produce enough fish.”

Steve Williams, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Fish Division. July 2011


Pretty much sums up the thinking at Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife doesn't it?
It that short statement by the deputy director, fish division of ODFW shows that agencies true color. Not that this is much of a secret mind you.
ODFW has marginalized wild salmonids since way back in the 30's so this statement is not a new revelation at all.
Just look at what is happening even in the past few years! Dwindling wild steelhead, trout and salmon populations in favor of a better hatchery product and all for "angling opportunity.
Believe me as we get ready to fight the battle of regulation change in 2012 we will shove what Mr. Williams has said right up their asses at commission meeting and hearings.
You cannot play ball with these bureaucrats because in the end all they want to do is save their own sorry asses. They cannot compromise because it's their livelihood at stake and screw wild fish!
Can we let wild salmonids be only a memory, a pleasant experience from the past? Not me.
More later!

Sportsmen? Yeah Right!

I'll admit it! I'm discouraged. No it isn't because I'm not catching a bunch of fish and it's not because my Spey casting sucks either. Actually I've never cast better since I first took up the two-handed rod.What I'm discouraged about the state of our cold water fisheries and the apparent indifference that people have towards it.
Our angling heritage is in trouble and it's because people see wild fish as nuisances that they have to put up with since they cannot kill them. It does not matter what kind of shape a population of wild salmon or trout is in there is always someone wanting to kill them even to the risk of extinction.
Apparently our mega-expensive hatchery programs are not enough to sate the greed of some while other hide behind phony so called conservation groups like the CCA, Tillamook Anglers and Association of Northwest Steelheaders and pound their chests like they are actually doing something. These groups are wolves in sheep's clothing whose ultimate goal is more harvest for their greedy membership.
I've seen this attitude in the public meetings that ODFW has to determine how to manage endangered salmon runs. There are people that would gladly kill the last fish!
How did we arrive at this attitude? It's nothing new and all you have to do is look back of old fishing photos. We over harvested to the point that the once teeming runs of Columbia river salmon are just a memory. They are gone and cannot b brought back to anything close to their former numbers.
I'm not just talking about commercial fishing either. Our sports fishing forefathers killed trout and steelhead in huge numbers. Catch and release was decades from it's inception and we killed these fish like there would be an unending supply. That harvest attitude carries into today's anglers. The thought of actually putting a fish back into the water is repulsive to many so called "sportsmen"
Thank goodness for the conservation efforts of today and I would hate to think of the state our cold water fisheries would be if groups like Trout Unlimited and Native Fish Society did not exist.
Admittedly I came to this conservation thinking later in life. I wasn't an outdoor outlaw who killed salmon for little more than their eggs for bait but I paid little heed to the warning signs. I supported the steelhead broodstock programs that I now loathe and I was maybe the most dangerous type of fisherman...I was indifferent. They say the opposite of love is not hate but indifference and that indifference is dangerous.
I decided to get involved and try to make a difference without the lip service and trying to make myself famous by being involved. No trying to make money off of these fish but giving something back.
The way we treat our natural resources is a sign of a people with no soul. A people with little concern about anything beyond themselves. I am not optimistic about the future because it seems like those with the power to actually implement change do not have the courage to do so....what a damn shame!
Are you reading this and getting angry because you feel I insulted you or your fake conservation organization or maybe your personality cult mega fishing website? Well tough shit!

Basic Beliefs - Fundamental Conservation of Our Cold Water Fisheries

I don't know if over the five years of this blog's existence I've actually stated my core beliefs on the conservation of wild salmonids. If I have then you can skip this. If I have not then here is what I believe. I am not a scientist or fish biologist but these fundamentals are sound and common sense.
I came by these fundamentals through research on my part and being taught by people who know a hell of a lot more than me. To me conservation is not a passing fad or a word thrown out there at a whim as is the case with groups like the CCA and Northwest Steelheaders. Conservation is action and these groups fall short on the most basic issues of wild salmonid conservation.They say they are all about wild fish but in reality they are all about more fish to kill and will support wrong headed hatchery programs. 
I believe the key to wild salmonid recovery has to start with competent management of the resource. If the stewards of our wild fish are not totally committed to their preservation and enhancement then the whole thing fails.
I believe that if a population of wild trout or salmon is endangered or not fully recovered then there should absolutely be no harvest or use of bait allowed. If a particular population is at a critical stage and in danger of extinction then no angling whatsoever should be allowed....none! No catch and release at all.
Habitat restoration is another key ingredient to the overall well being of wild salmonids and major efforts should be made to preserve critical spawning and rearing habitat. Removal of woody structure from these spawning areas should not be allowed and in fact placement of new structure should be enhanced.
In no way should hatchery salmon and trout be allowed to commingle with wild populations. The effect of careless hatchery programs such as Oregon's steelhead broodstock program have adversely affect wild fish.
Wild fish and hatchery fish can co-exist in the same watershed if the hatchery plants are keep out of wild salmonids spawning and rearing areas and these hatchery plants are planted at a time of year when they would interfere with wild salmonids.
This is no conjecture or theory on my part but proven fact.

Wild salmon, steelhead and trout should be allowed to have recovered for a period of years before any harvest regulation is even considered.
Angler education should be mandatory for anyone buying a resident fishing license. Too many times the fish and wildlife agencies of any given state fail to properly teach anglers about wild fish. I think even minimal effort and commitment from the state can go a long ways in helping our wild fish resource.
There are so many obstacles in the way of wild salmonid recovery that we cannot begin to scratch the surface of what to do but to do nothing will be fatal.
I think that most people will do the right thing if they are properly informed and armed with the tools to do their part in wild fish recovery.
The ignorant, slob fisherman is the exception rather than the rule. These are the people who are not satisfied unless their freezers are full of dead salmon and salmon eggs.
So there you have it! The wild salmonid gospel according to Shane. I think these steps are doable and with a minimal cost but a maximum commitment from our state fish and wildlife agencies is necessary to bring this about. I do strongly believe, however, recovery begins with each of us that call ourselves anglers.

Using Hatchery Salmonids to Restore Wild Populations Might Not Work? Duh!

Are You Guys on the Metolius and Crooked Rivers Listening?


Council’s Science Review Panel Questions Hatchery Supplementation Effectiveness In Lower Snake