The picture window rolled wet with beads of kitchen condensation from the teapot that still whistled on the stovetop. Outside the scene was altogether familiar and, to be honest, forgettable, but something surprising made her turn around for a second look.
We live in a place, in a specific time and space, that is particularly enchanting thanks in large part to its vast stretches of wild and majestic places.
The great out of doors is sprawling and magnificent all around us. It’s the first step at the start of a trailhead and the final pose at the top of a mountain. It’s frozen toes in a round rock creek in the evergreen shrouded hills, and it’s footsteps around a forest of whale whip kelp washed up along a salt spray seashore.
So much of what makes these spectacles a sight to behold in reverence is the relative effort that it takes to get there. In those cloistered naturescapes the wild world seems more keen to open up and reveal itself in a more intimate way.
Birds spread word of a stranger’s arrival through their network in the timber tops. Quiet eyes peer back eerily from behind a jagged tree line. Spawning salmon wiggle walk with indifference over shallow wet stones. A deer wanders by a midnight campfire and a black bob of seals applaud the odd out of place bipides on the bare rock beach.
Her memories were not like photographs because they had never faded over time. Even though it’d been years since her rust belt body had allowed her to reach her favorite hideaways the rhythm of those unforgettable places still vibrated like a drumline within her ribcage.
She could recall the vanilla scent of sticky alder buds in the spring. She could feel the prick of blackberry thorns and their sweet reward in the summer. She knew the enveloping rush of a secret waterfall crashing over her naked back.
These days she watches the weeds grow in the backyard. Those blackberry brambles are a menace. The same walls that once provided shelter for her family have slowly become her prison. A cell of solitary confinement. Life without parole.
As she tended her mid-morning tea on that day like all the rest she slowly turned back to look out of that warped country cabin window. A bright flutter had caught her eye. A flash. A blur. It reminded her of something.
When she looked there was nothing and she feared she’d only imagined it, like some dream of an old confidant who’s never coming back. But then it darted back into frame and her eyes quickly came into focus on the metallic gray breast and speckled jade wings of her favorite hummingbird.
She often wondered where it went in between visits and all the things it saw. She remembered way back when her handicraft husband had stubbornly hung the feeder outside the window. She recalled how she’d wondered aloud why anyone would waste their time watering the birds in the backyard when there was a great wide open to explore.
As the shimmering flutter bird lingered with a furious leisure at the window she was awash in memories of her lost lover. She was simultaneously steeped in gratitude to share a fleeting moment with an old friend. She’d never been so happy to have been so wrong. After all, not everyone is lucky enough to have fine feathered friends who still come knocking.
FISHIN’
Lowland lake fishing season will have its traditional start on Saturday, April 27 and some 14 million hatchery fish will be floating by ready to jump on a hook.
The “opener” is a bit of a misnomer since many lakes remain open all year round but the WDFW makes a concerted effort to stock some of the most popular waters in advance of the fourth Saturday in April.
"Although many lakes are open year-round, the fourth Saturday in April marks the traditional start of the lowland lakes fishing season, when hundreds of thousands of anglers are expected to turn out to fish," said Steve Caromile, WDFW fish biologist, in a press release.
The lowland lake opener also signals the beginning of the WDFW’s annual fishing derby. This year there will be 1,000 fish with a blue tag attached. Those tags can then be returned to the WDFW for associated prizes. That derby will run through Oct. 31 with rewards totaling nearly $40,000 and individual prizes ranging from $25 to $1,000 in value.
Nearby waters set to be stocked with prize winning fish include Fort Borst Park Pond, Carlisle Lake (Ol’ Mill Pond), South County Park Pond, Mineral Lake, and Silver Lake. A complete list of lakes, ponds and reservoirs with tagged fish can be found online at fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/Home/FishingDerby.
In total, the WDFW stocking effort will include 2.1 million “catchable-size” trout, almost 120,000 trout tipping the scales at more than one pound each, and another 11 million, or so, trout that were deposited as fingerlings over the past year. All told there are 7,000 lakes, ponds, and reservoirs in Washington that are open to public fishing.
One week before that sweeping opener Grays Harbor’s Failor Lake will open up for three hours for a youth fishing derby. That derby will run from 8 a.m. until 11 a.m. on April 20. The derby will be open to all anglers age 14 and under and will be hosted by the Grays Harbor Poggie Club. Following the youth derby the lake will close again until sun up on the following Saturday.
In recent hatchery trout stocking news Kress Lake in Cowlitz County received 4,490 rainbows weighing more than a third of a pound each on April 3. Between March 27-30 the Vance Creek Ponds were loaded up with rainbows as well. Bowers Lake (Pond 1) was planted with 300 rainbow trout weighing more than three pounds each on March 30 and then another 100 rainbows weighing two pounds each were planted on March 27. The next day 500 trout weighing just under a half pound each were deposited. Inez Lake (Pond 2) was planted with 200 rainbows weighing more than three pounds each on March 30 and the day before 100 rainbows weighing about two pounds each were plopped into their new home.
In East Lewis County the reservoir of Mayfield Lake received 5,600 rainbows weighing just over a third of a pound each on April 4. Swofford Pond received similar deposits on March 14, 21, and 28.
On April 3 Black Lake in Thurston County received 6,000 rainbows weighing less than a half pound each. That deposit buffered another 23,000 fish, give or take, of a similar size that have been planted over the past month. Additionally, on March 29 Black Lake received 100 rainbows weighing a full pound each.
On the Cowlitz River last week the steelhead bite continued to keep anglers reeling. Downstream of the I-5 Bridge the WDFW sampled 37 bank rods with two keeper steelhead. Between the freeway bridge and the barrier dam the WDFW found another 58 bank rods with 13 keeper steelhead along with 110 rods on 38 boats with 42 steelies in the box and four steelhead already tossed back. River flow below Mayfield Dam was reported at 2,970 cubic feet per second on Monday with visibility of nine feet and a water temperature of 45.7 degrees.
Last week at the Cowlitz Hatchery salmon separator crews retrieved 272 winter steelhead adults, one jack, and four cutthroat trout. Crews then released 40 winter steelhead, one jack, and two cutthroat trout into the Tilton River at Gust Backstrom Park in Morton while 17 steelhead adults and two cutties were dropped into Lake Scanewa in Randle. Another 109 of those returned steelhead were tagged and recycled back down river to provide anglers with another shot to hook ‘em.
Additional creel sampling was conducted on the Kalama and Lewis rivers, which are both tributaries to the lower Columbia River. Three bank anglers on the Lewis released one steelhead while 14 bank anglers on the Kalama were skunked.
Salmon fishing has been closed on the lower Columbia River below Vancouver. However, last week the WDFW tallied 516 salmonid boats and 118 bank anglers on the Washington side between Warrior Rock and the deadline at Bonneville Dam. According to WDFW creel sampling there were 489 boats in the Vancouver area alone. High water and a weak bite conspired to hold those anglers to 123 keeper kings, with two dozen more released.
Some anglers are still targeting sturgeon in the Bonneville Pool as well. Last week 14 bank anglers kept one sturgeon and released five that were too small. Another nine boats with 23 rods kept 14 sturgeon while releasing 77 for being too small and two for being too big. Bass angling is also picking up in the dammed Columbia pools. Last week six rods on three boats had two bass in the boat with another 71 tossed back.
According to state scientists the future looks bright for fishing on the Chehalis River.
“It looks like it’s going to be an October-through-December kind of recreational fishery,” WDFW biologist Mike Scharpf reported. “It’s getting back to kind of what it used to be. We’ll probably go with a standard September-through-November season out in the bay; the lower part of the main stem may open a couple weeks earlier in September, which was pretty much the standard when we weren’t critically low on coho.”
Scharpf added that there have been discussions about bumping the daily limit up to two fish per day but note that nothing has been finalized as of yet. He also noted that while a Chinook fishery is not likely for the Chehalis this year there is a good chance the Humptulips River will host a king season.
Trout fishing will open up on the Chehalis River on May 25 with a minimum length of 14 inches enforced. However, cutthroat and wild rainbow trout may not be retained.
According to Scharpf return runs of fish have been improving since the turn of the century. He says that anglers shouldn’t be put off by low returns and lower catch quotas in recent years and insists that WDFW data indicates a big wave of ocean going fish is all but imminent.
“We did have some really poor ocean conditions from 2015 through 2017 and our stocks decreased in recent years, but we had a larger return than we expected last year and our forecast is a little higher than the previous three-year average,” Scharpf reasoned. “Chinook populations were higher than forecast in 2018, and we do have a fairly robust forecast for this year, but they still haven’t been performing as well as the coho.”
Out beyond the mouth of the Chehalis River and the gaping maw of Grays Harbor halibut fishing is set to begin on May 2. Halibut fisheries will open that day in all Marine Areas other than 11, 12 and 13. Those three areas will remain closed in order to protect endangered populations of rockfish.
This year’s combined catch quota for halibut is higher than recent years due to a new approach that sets specific allocations for the three coastal states.
“The Makah Tribe proposed a fixed quota for all recreational and commercial fisheries, not just for tribal fisheries,” explained Heather Hall, WDFW coastal policy coordinator, in a release. “That initiative will help to stabilize fisheries in all three states.”
Proposed 2019 Puget Sound halibut seasons
• Marine areas 5-10 open May 2, 4, 9, 11, 18, 24, 26, June 6, 8, 20, and 22 as long as there is sufficient quota. Puget Sound will be managed to an overall quota of 77,550 pounds.
• Marine Area 1 (Columbia River) opens May 2, 5, 9, 12, 24 and 26 as long as there is sufficient quota. If quota remains after May 26, the Columbia River sub-area would be open two days per week, Thursday and Sunday, until the remaining quota is achieved. The nearshore area opens to fishing May 6 on a Monday-through-Wednesday schedule. The all depth-fishery will be managed to 14,627 pounds; the nearshore quota is 500 pounds.
• Marine Area 2 (Westport): The all-depth fishery opens May 2, 5, 9, 12, and 24 as long as there is sufficient quota. If sufficient quota remains, the northern nearshore area will open on the Saturday after the all-depth fishery closes and will continue seven days per week until the overall quota is taken. This area will be managed to an overall quota of 62,896 pounds.
TALKIN’
State fish officials are seeking input from the public regarding fishing regulations for the Humptulips River. On April 23 the WDFW will host a meeting at Montesano City Hall from 6-8 p.m. in order to discuss the future of fisheries on the river.
Regulations up for discussion include reinstating selective gear rules for all game fish during March. Those rules require anglers to use only unscented artificial flies or lures with a single point barbless hook. All bait would be prohibited for that month. The selective gear regulation was removed in 2018 in an effort to simplify sportfishing rules around the state. According to the WDFW several sportfishing groups have asked that the rule be reinstated in order to protect wild fish.
“They want us to take this step as an extra precaution to protect wild steelhead during a time when the fish are preparing to spawn in the river,” said Annette Hoffmann, regional fish program manager for the WDFW, in a press release. “We want to make sure this change has the support of the wider angling community.”
Currently the WDFW is considering reinstating selective gear rules on the Humptulips as follows:
• From the Highway 101 Bridge to the confluence of the East and West Forks.
• On the West Fork from the mouth to Donkey Creek.
Public comments can be submitted during the meeting or by email at GraysHarbor@dfw.wa.gov.
First though, the WDFW will host a meeting on Thursday, April 11, in order to discuss options for reforms to hatchery operations and fisheries around the state. That meeting will be held in Lacey from 1-3:30 p.m.
Additional information on the policy and review process is available online at wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/management/hatcheries/hatchery-reform-policy-review. The meeting will be held in Room 194 of Lacey Campus Building 1 of South Puget Sound College, at 4220 6th Ave. SE, Lacey.
HUNTIN’
A youth turkey hunt ran its course last weekend and now gobbler blasters are counting down the days until the general spring turkey hunt gets going. That hunt will run from April 15 through May 31 in all areas of Washington.
In the local hills and hollars the best odds for finding a big bird to bag are out in the prairies between Bucoda, Tenino and Yelm. There are other reclusive populations of wild turkeys in the hills south of Cosmopolis. According to a WDFW prospect report turkey hunters found success about 52 percent of the time during the 2016 hunt. However, the bulk of that success was had east of the big mountains.
Cougars are still fair game for hunting in many units but hunters should be sure to check quota numbers that dictate closures before heading out into the field. Those hunts will come to a close on April 30 regardless of the season’s take. However, coyotes are hunting fodder all year round in Washington.
Additionally, roadkill salvage is legal in Washington in most instances. Washington state law allows for the harvest of most deer and elk with the use of an emergency permit provided by the WDFW. However, deer are not legal for salvage in Clark, Cowlitz or Wahkiakum counties in order to protect endangered populations of Columbia white-tailed deer.. Permits are available online and must be obtained within 24-hours of any deer or elk salvage. Permits can be found at wdfw.wa.gov/licensing/game_salvaging/application.html.
In from the field into the boardroom, last week the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission adopted new regulations for the 2019-20 hunting season while also reviewing the state’s annual wolf report.
Key changes approved by the commission for the upcoming season will:
• Expand a requirement across western Washington that has successful hunters leave elk hooves in place to prevent the spread of hoof disease.
• Eliminate minimum arrow weight restrictions.
• Reduce the number of antlerless elk permits available in southeast Washington.
• Eliminate this season’s antlerless white-tailed deer hunts to conserve deer populations in northeast Washington.
• Let turkey hunters forgo hunter orange requirements when hunting outside of modern firearm and elk seasons.
• Add Feb. 1, 2020 as a waterfowl hunting day set aside to honor military and veteran service members. The day aligns with one of two youth waterfowl hunting days.
Additional information on the wolf report can be found in the Rangin’ section.
CLAMMIN’
It will be at least another week before clam hounds head back out to the coast in search of the succulent bivalve.
Last week a three day dig was hosted between Twin Harbors, Copalis and Mocrocks. The next proposed round of razor clam digs are scheduled for April 20-22. Those digs are currently pending approval based on marine toxin testing.
Razor clam digs tentatively scheduled for the month of April include the following dates, tides and beaches:
• April 20, Saturday, 7:58 a.m.; -1.1 feet; Long Beach (during the Long Beach Razor Clam Festival), Twin Harbors, Copalis
• April 21, Sunday, 8:42 a.m.; -1.2 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
• April 22, Monday, 9:25 a.m.; -1.0 feet; Twin Harbors, Mocrocks
The Long Beach Razor Clam Festival will coincide with the Saturday dig if the openings is approved. That annual event will feature clam digging lessons, a clam chowder cook-off, a clam fritter cookout, and other salty favorites regardless of whether the tides are approved or not.
WDFW coastal shellfish manager, Dan Ayres, reminds folks to hit the beach about one or two hour prior to low tide for the best digging results. No digging will be allowed after noon on any beach.
State law allows diggers to harvest up to 15 clams per person, per day. No high-grading is allowed. All diggers age 15 and up are required to possess a fishing license and diggers must both dig and carry their own harvest.
RANGIN’
The state of Washington recently released its annual wolf report and the findings indicate that the population within state boundaries has increased for the tenth year in a row.
Wolves were essentially eliminated from Washington by the 1930s due to hunting and trapping pressures. No wolves have been actively relocated to Washington but state law has been crafted in order to allow the animals to spread freely across the state at their discretion. So far that migration has been most active in northeast Washington but sightings have been reported, but unconfirmed from Mossyrock to Oil City.
The new data shows that there are at least 126 individual wolves in Washington, with 27 packs and 15 successful breeding pairs. Last year those numbers were 122, 22, and 14, respectively.
In 2018 the state documented the first pack west of the Cascade Crest. In 2016 a lone male wolf was captured in Skagit County and outfitted with a radio collar. Observations in the interim indicate that the male has been traveling with a female wolf through the winter which has earned the duo the Diobsud Creek Pack monicker.
“We’re pleased to see our state’s wolf population continue to grow and begin to expand to the west side of the Cascades,” said WDFW Director Kelly Susewind, in a press release. “We will continue to work with the public to chart the future management of this important native species.”
The WDFW believes that increases in breeding pairs and packs over the last year will result in a major population spike in coming years.
“Packs and breeding pairs are the building blocks of population growth,” said Donny Martorello, WDFW wolf policy lead, in a press release. “It’s reassuring to see our wolf population occupying more areas of the landscape.”
Gray wolves have been listed as endangered across the state since 1980. Federally the wolves are listed as endangered in the western two-thirds of the state.
“The state’s wolf management plan lays out a variety of recovery objectives, but the ultimate determination of a species’ listing status is whether it remains at risk of failing or declining,” Martorello added.
Last year there were 12 recorded wolf deaths. That mortality included six that were legally killed by tribal hunters, four that were killed by the WDFW in response to predation complaints, and two deaths that are under investigation for illegal human involvement.
SNOWIN’
The end is near for shredders up in them there hills. White Pass ski area is scheduled to remain open with daily operations only through Sunday before turning into a weekend only operation through April 28.
That doesn’t mean that all of the powder has vanished just yet, though. Early this week dry skies broke out into showers of snow that piled up five inches before sun up on Tuesday. Another inch fell on Wednesday and temperatures have remained at or below freezing to keep the flakes in place. As a result the snowpack is now up above 99 inches up top and 50 inches at the base.
Progression Park is currently open and the Ribeye run is set to reopen on Saturday. The nordic, tubing, and night skiing areas are all closed for the season.
Additionally, until Saturday, White Pass will only be opening its original area for carving with help from the Great White, Far East and Surface lifts.
