Sunday, November 12, 2006

Wet Weather

IT'S NOT OBSESSION
it's joy and hope

.....(12,Nov. 2006) from the wet side of Gig Harbor.
.. Well the weather won't cooperate. A report here would only be redundant - check the notes and reports from Moldy Chum Link #1, Link #2.
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.. Just noticed a post by the Mad Fishicist about Grayling. It set us to dreams and remembrances. Every year, in the spring, we set out to capture one of these iridescent beauties. It allows us to find the clearest and most pristine waters in the park.
.. The fish, Thymallus arcticus, is a tough and scrappy fish that found itself stranded in Montana, and Yellowstone by the caprice of moving continents - glacial recession - upthrust - and happenstance. Truly a gift - an artifact of Edens past.
.. There may be distinct speciation between the lacustriane and fluvial forms. The debate hinges on evidence that is not clear, or missing. (Read the current report from the American Fisheries Society.) The report is a frightening reminder that what we don't know leads to what we don't have!
.. It would be a tragedy to lose these little gems. They require only the most pure of waters, and serve as the aquatic "canary" for many environments.
.. Early in the spring of this year we caught our annual grayling. It was a large fish - as grayling go - and it renewed our energy for the year.
.. The clean & pure water that the fish thrives on is disappearing. The places to find it are few. The fly fishing culture has ignored this fish, as it has disparaged the Mountain Whitefish. Without friends they will probably disappear, and it's our loss.
.. We appreciate the sentiments expressed in the post by the Mad Fishicist. Hearts of more fly fishers should ". . . skip like an old 45."
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