As an angler, this is where the problem sinks in. It’s a visible focal point for the issue at hand. On one side, a massive freshwater lake, on the other, a salmon stream that once supported all 5 species of Pacific Salmon sits bone dry.
Editor’s note: This column was originally published in the Washington Post on Sept. 23, 2019 The announcement that the Environmental Protection Agency was scrapping Obama-era rules designed to protect small streams and wetlands made me recall a misty morning this spring on the Potomac River above Georgetown. I brought a striped bass, locally known as…
Washington commonly institutes fishing restrictions to protect vulnerable fish populations, like they did for steelhead in Scotty Creek, but these restrictions, unfathomably, do not extend to a destructive form of recreational gold mining called suction dredge mining.
For nearly 90 years, the abandoned lower Eklutna Dam blocked salmon migration on the Eklutna River, contributing to the downfall of the salmon fishery. In September of 2018, we, along with many others, rejoiced the successful removal of the lower dam. This dam removal marked a first step in reconnecting 22 miles of salmon habitat and securing a free-flowing future for the Eklutna River.
When I picked up a fly rod for the first time my freshman year of school, I could not have imagined that I would have spent the past month on the 2019 TU Costa 5 Rivers Odyssey. The fact that I was able to travel throughout the Pacific Northwest and explore the different struggles that…
When I think back to my first days of fishing, it is hard to believe where the sport has brought me now. Fly fishing has given me the opportunity to travel the world, experience other cultures, make new friends, gain a greater appreciation for the natural world, and taught me values like patience and determination. Although I’ve been able…
Interpretive sign on the Carmel River, spring 2019. It was while walking a seasonally-dry side channel of my local stream, the Carmel River, over the weekend that I started thinking about a guy from Michigan named John Rapanos. You should know this name, because this fellow—unintentionally, no doubt—could really put the hurt on your fishing.…
