Monday, September 15, 2014

The Salmon Are Running












The dam from the top. The grate at the bottom right is the fish ladder.

They have to swim against this current once they jump up the fish ladder.

Then two more little jumps.

Finally, calm waters.
 
It's that time of year...the salmon are making their way upstream to spawn. Reece and I visit this spot often throughout the year. The trails are fun, the creek has some great spots for rock throwing, there is a pond full of bull frogs, and there are quite a few wild plants, both edible and medicinal. At this time of year though, we stop in regularly to see the salmon as they make their way upstream.

It isn't an easy journey for them, as you can see, a large dam prevents them from getting upstream, and that is where the fish ladder comes in. Off to the left of the dam, a fish ladder was created to allow the salmon to get upstream. They must jump in the fish ladder, yes, through the waterfall, then make their way, against the current, over two more little jumps, and then onto the calm waters of the creek where they will find a spot in the rocks to lay their eggs.

In the mass of fish waiting to get up the ladder there are coho salmon, chinook salmon and some brown trout. No fishing is allowed within this area, but you will see fishermen scattered here and there along other parts of the creek trying to catch a fish or two.

Visiting the creek in the fall to watch the salmon has become a family tradition. It is amazing to sit on the rocks, by the creek, watching this magical journey.

Linking up with Chrisy

36 comments:

  1. This is awesome!!! What beautiful pictures. I've never seen salmon do this. Amazing. Thank you for sharing! I hope you have a good week :-)

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    1. It is pretty awesome! Thank you, you have no idea how many pictures I took :) Happy to share. xo

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  2. Now that would be an amazing sight to see in person. I've seen shows that talk about the running of the salmon, but never in real life. Very cool.

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    1. Very cool indeed. I bet Emerson would love it!

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  3. Oh my word..........how amazing is that?
    I've seen footage of the salmon run on tv, but here in Australia it's something we'd never see in real life. In my naivety l thought this only occurred on the west coast of Canada and in Alaska!
    So wonderful that you can show Reece this iconic event, he'll remember this stuff for the rest of his life.
    You know you're more than welcome to link up this post with our regular 'Reconnect with Nature' series, up to you...no pressure. Just thought people would be really interested in it :)

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    1. Pretty cool, eh? Nope it happens here too.

      I sure hope he remembers this stuff Chrisy. It is the stuff our lives are made up of, and definitely the things we think are important to experience.

      I have already added the link to my post, and will link up tomorrow on your blog. Thanks!

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    2. And with that, you've made my day. Thanks so much Kim. xx

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  4. wonderful...you captured some great jumps !!! I will have to go and see if there is any early action in our streams.

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  5. Wow, they are amazing. How wonderful to be able to see it in person. Thank you for sharing the photos.

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  6. That is amazing! What great moments and what great shots! Very cool...

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    1. Thanks, it is pretty cool. And always so magical to see.

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  7. What an amazing series of photos! So cool! Thank you for sharing.

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    1. Thank you. My pleasure, love sharing stuff like this :)

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  8. This is a great reminder to me! We have a fish ladder here in town too... I should really take the girls to watch the fish run.

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    1. Happy to remind you. And most definitely get to that fish ladder, they would love it!

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  9. How exciting- this looks so very neat Kim- thanks for sharing this.

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  10. Goodness - what incredible pictures - I'd never pictured them being so big when you think of salmon jumping!

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    1. Thank you. They are quite big, and it is amazing how hard they work to get up that ladder.

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  11. Seeing the salmon run really is a magical thing. When I was 13 my grandparents took me to Alaska and we went fishing there during the salmon run. I've never seen so many fish in all my life!

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    1. It truly is KC. So happy you got to experience the magic of it.

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    2. Hi Kim. Nice pictures. Where is it? Bowmanville maybe?
      Erin

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    3. Thanks! Yes, the creek at Bowmanville Valley. Once you park, follow the path and you can't miss it. About 10 minutes, give or take a few depending on little feet :) We were there yesterday, and the fish are not as active as they were last week. I think the run only lasts about a week to 10 days, so it will be finishing up soon.

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  12. Went to Alaska 9 years ago and got to see them, something you never forget. Thanks for sharing your awesome pictures. :))

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    1. I bet that was amazing! No problem, happy to share :)

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    1. We must have been looking at each others blog at the same time :)

      Thank you, it certainly was.

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  14. I'm going to add my echo here - that is amazing to see! How much energy they have to use to get there. They have this innate desire and humans had to go and make it near impossible. Glad at least that the fish ladder was built.

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    1. A ton of energy. I said to a few other people who were there with us, that if I had to work that hard to spawn I would most likely give up :)

      So happy about the fish ladder. This one is new, the one that was here before was much harder for them to use. This one seems to be working much better.

      Thanks for stopping by.

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  15. How amazing to witness their journey!

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  16. That is such a cool thing to watch nature going about its business up close, thanks for sharing

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