Elwha river after 6 years of no dams - exciting video

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9t_m1myVBBQ


The wild summer Steelhead is the most magical freshwater fish.

I personally believe that hundreds of rivers from California, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia had summer Steelhead before the dams.

Rivers come back naturally with no dams, no hatcheries, no development, no AG, no logging, no mining, and no commercial fishing.


Supposedly the summer Steelhead come into the rivers in the high water of Spring, go up to the deep shady spring feed holes and spend the summers

up there and then spawn in the Fall and then most return to the ocean.


The Middle Fork of the Eel river near Covelo had the largest size and amount of summer Steelhead in California.

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[Mr T]

That is soo cool.

[stonefish]

They blew it on the Elwha by putting in the new hatchery.
There was a great opportunity to see what Mother Nature could do on her own. The hatchery was sold as helping seed the river.
The reality of it is to start getting more fish back as soon as possible so harvest can begin.
SF

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

They will never learn...............so sad.

stonefish, I did not know that about the hatchery. Thanks.


Was that a deal they made with the Native Americans?


Native Americans are using giant jetboats and huge modern nets to harvest the salmon that they sell for money.

I heard that a Non- Native American man can marry a woman who is 1/4 Native American and they can start an unregulated modern

commercial salmon harvesting business with big jet boats and big modern nets.



Protected wild rivers will take care of themselves forever.


Our only undammed river, the Smith, has a salmon hatchery on it. ????


If we had any sport fisheries like there were about 100 years ago the dollars from traveling anglers would be staggering.

Hotels, restaurants, boats, RVs, big trucks, and fishing tackle would support the communities.

[stonefish]

Bill,
There was an old hatchery on the river which was updated with the new one.
The tribes have great political influence here.
I understand their rights to fish and the want for more fish. I just wish they’d given the river a chance to see what it could do without the hatchery.
SF

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Oh well
....I guess it was too good to be true.