The future of the Klamath - Part 5

The dilemma downstream

March 29, 2008

By Michelle Ma

Triplicate staff writer

Robert Ray is at home on the Klamath River .

The Yurok tribal member spends most of the fishing season there as a technician, recording each fisherman's catch and taking scale samples for the tribe.

Ray has lived near the river his entire life.

On a recent trip upstream, Ray steered a small motorboat, pointing to traditional family fishing spots, deep swimming holes and prime places to drop a net along the steep, wooded shore.

As he guided the vessel through the lower Klamath's winding stretches, he savored the fresh air.

"It makes you glad to be alive," Ray said.

But the Klamath River is no longer the haven it once was for fish and wildlife.

The decline of fish on the river didn't happen all at once. High salmon returns one year gave way to dramatically lower numbers the next. Local fishermen can attest to a marked difference in the salmon stock starting in the late 1970s.

Still, fishermen were used to variances. Strong autumn rains that flushed the river system and churned nutrients out to the ocean produced high fish returns three or four years later. Drought years would have the opposite effect.

To government regulators, however, it was no longer business as usual when fish runs started faltering steadily.

Fishing restrictions were minor at first. By the early 1990s, drought years had produced such low salmon runs that massive restrictions were instated. A decade of roller-coaster years culminated in the 2002 Klamath fish die-off, which mandated a fishing closure four years later, followed by a disaster declaration.

This year, probable ocean fishing closures loom coast-wide after the Sacramento River fall chinook stock experienced extremely low returns last fall.

The Klamath River actually ushered in high numbers of fall chinook last year, which has raised some hopes for a decent fall fishing season downriver. But Sacramento fish are the most prevalent run for all of California , which could prompt complete ocean closures this summer.

Some people blame warmer river water, parasites and ocean conditions for the decline on the Klamath. Others believe PacifiCorp's dams are the overarching problem.

Fishermen, guides and tribal members have tried to maintain livelihoods, but signs of despair are evident in empty boat docks and strict catch limits.

No one wants to see another Klamath fishery disaster, or low runs protracted much longer. One possible solution is adding fish ladders to PacifiCorp's hydroelectric dams to allow salmon to swim and spawn farther upstream. Another is to take the dams out, freeing the 250-mile-long river for the first time in nearly a century.

That is the option favored by stakeholders who crafted an agreement that seeks to calm years of fighting over water and fish issues in the Klamath River Basin . The settlement hinges on removal of four dams, a promise the power company has not made. Confidential talks among stakeholders and PacifiCorp are ongoing to try to reach a deal that would remove the dams and make business sense to the power company.

In today's conclusion of a five-part series, The Daily Triplicate looks at the people who have depended on the river's salmon, their memories of better days, and what it could take to restore abundant fisheries on the Klamath.

Ocean anglers look elsewhere

There was nothing quite like fishing season in Crescent City Harbor a few decades ago. More than 500 boats would dock in the harbor and stay until the end of summer. A waiting list sometimes formed just to get dock space, said local fisherman Ken Graves.

As a youngster, Graves remembers the line of boats that would stretch from Citizen's Dock all the way to U.S. Highway 101 as eager fishermen waited to load their boats into the water. Fishermen caught salmon, shrimp, ling cod and other fish.

About 100 local boats fished commercially out of Crescent City , and if the catch was good, up to 200 more would find their way to the local port, Graves said.

"When fish were around, people would congregate here," Graves said.

But fishing restrictions to protect the Klamath stock started to force local fishermen to leave their homes and families in the summer to fish down south near Fort Bragg , Bodega Bay and Half Moon Bay, where the ocean catch was more plentiful.

"Most of the guys would not have gone farther south if they could have fished in front of their town," Graves said. "But in order to survive in the fishery and go forward, they had to travel."

When problems on the Klamath started to bring restrictions, Crescent City and its harbor took a major hit, said Harbormaster Richard Young.

" Crescent City is ground zero for ocean impacts from the Klamath River ," Young said. "A lot of the problems in this port stem from the problems that exist on the Klamath River ."

Crescent City fishermen were forced to take their boats elsewhere for salmon seasons. Ocean fishermen chose to fish off of San Francisco because they would encounter fewer Klamath fish and not overstep the allotment, said Young.

The local harbor set up 600 recreational docks each summer three decades ago. In recent years, staff have set up only 60-100 docks.

"People have forgotten how important the salmon fishery used to be to this community," Young said. RV parks were full the entire summer, and gear shops and guiding businesses thrived.

In the late-1970s, almost 5,000 commercial fishing vessels moved up and down the California coast. Nearly 30 years later, that number has dwindled to less than 1,000. Many of these boats were operated as small, family-owned businesses, much like a mom-and-pop farm, Young said. It was tragic when a family would lose a business in which it had deeply invested, he added.

Graves , who now relies on dungeness crab fishing with his boat the Jeannie Marie, said taking out the dams is the best long-term solution for fish on the Klamath. But that won't happen overnight, Graves said, making short-term fixes important.

Still, Graves wonders if all of the Klamath Basin 's needs will be addressed if the dams are removed. Folks depend on the dams' power generation, much like fishermen need salmon and farmers rely on Klamath water.

"At some point, we all have a statement of blame," Graves said. "The resources that river provides . . . (as consumers) we're all part of the problem."

Discouraging tourists

Guides who lead fishing on the Klamath are now used to yearly fluctuations in catch quotas depending on each run's viability. In past years, guides didn't have to deal with regulations that change year to year, said Mick Thomas, who owns Lunker Fish Trips Bait & Tackle in Hiouchi.

Many of Thomas's clients travel from southern parts of the state to fish for a few days on the Klamath. Visitors are in awe of the natural beauty, he said, and their stay fuels the local economy. Strict regulations can discourage some from spending money to travel for a few days of poor fishing, he added.

"Do we want people to come to our county and help the economy, or do we want them to stay away?" he said.

Thomas has seen the Klamath's health worsen over the years. The river is too shallow, spawning habitat has decreased and water flow is slow. Salmon that used to have the run of the river are stopped at the first dam.

"When you start restricting the flow of these rivers, it just slows down the process of everything that's natural," Thomas said.

Former fishing guide Chuck Blackburn remembers years when tourists would flock to Del Norte County to fish on the Klamath. RV parks and resorts filled up with visitors eager to catch salmon on late-summer weekends. Blackburn fondly recalls pulling the oars for eight hours a day and mingling with other guides who crowded in droves on the river.

"It was a real togetherness of people," said Blackburn , also a former Del Norte County supervisor. "It was a party every summer. It's not like the old days—the numbers, the camaraderie, the hype."

Blackburn , who guided for 30 years, said he hopes that river restoration and better ocean conditions will strengthen the Klamath's fisheries.

"I'm hoping we get some better years," Blackburn said. "I've got too much time in that river and know that river has the potential for coming back."

A Yurok way of life

From his home overlooking the Klamath's estuary, Yurok tribal member Merk Oliver has watched the river change. Now almost 80 years old, Oliver has spent nearly his whole life on the river as a fisherman and guide.

As a young guide, Oliver would spend all day in his boat with tourists eager to catch salmon. His aunt ran a floating restaurant near the mouth of the river that served hamburgers, beans and beer, Oliver recalled with a smile. The same tourists would return year to year, requesting their favorite guides.

Oliver has noticed the decline of Klamath fish over time. He fishes for whatever run is in season, so lower numbers of salmon, sturgeon and eel are evident to him. Framed photos of salmon feasts and successful catches line the walls of his home, and out back sits a smokehouse.

Salmon and sturgeon make good jerky, Oliver said, and eel is best smoked for two days, then baked.

Oliver points to the dams as one reason for the decline of anadromous fish on the Klamath.

"I know it will be better with the dams out for fish," said Oliver as he turned his carved, wooden eel hook over and over in his hands. "There's no doubt."

The Yurok Tribal Council would like to see the current settlement proposal go forward, said Maria Tripp, council chairwoman. The tribe's constitution has mandated that Yurok people protect resources, especially fisheries, she said. All tribal members were given a CD that explains the settlement proposal and what it seeks to do for the Klamath.

"In order to start fixing the river, we have to start now," Tripp said.

With the decline of salmon, the Yurok Tribal Council has tried to manage small commercial fishing seasons prudently, Tripp said, but it has been hard to see the population fall from past days, when it was said folks could walk across the backs of fish in the river.

"Everyone, in their minds, knew the runs would always be there," Tripp said. "It was hard when the runs started to dwindle."

Still, Yurok families have maintained traditional fishing spots along the river over the years. Dewey Myers, a technician with the tribe's watershed restoration program, grew up in Pecwan, a village upriver. As a child he started by cleaning fishing nets, then learned to row. His older relatives later taught him how to net fish.

"I grew up fishing and the purpose was to feed your family," Myers said. "It's all a family thing. You learn when you're little."

Myers enjoys hooking eels near the mouth of the river. He will head to the river night and day in-season to catch eels, which he then smokes and usually gives away.

"There's enough in there for everyone," Myers said.

Stakeholders still talking

People throughout the basin have proposed various short- and long-term solutions to try to restore salmon, steelhead and other fish to the river system. Supporters of the current settlement proposal say that dam removal, coupled with extensive habitat restoration and fish reintroduction, will provide the best-possible solution, considering multiple needs for water on the Klamath.

"We feel comfortable the settlement is the best thing for fish," said Troy Fletcher, a Yurok tribal member and negotiator on settlement issues.

Others aren't so sure, saying the agreement doesn't provide adequate in-river flows for fish.

"We are dedicated to a deal that would get the dams out and benefit fish at same time," said Greg King, executive director of Arcata's Northcoast Environmental Center , which has said flows aren't good enough for fish. "If we are handed the same draft, we're rejecting that."

Outside of the settlement process, which brought together 26 stakeholder groups in confidential meetings for more than two years, other options are being explored.

Research is under way to try to determine why large numbers of Klamath River juvenile and adult salmon are being infected by a parasite common in rivers throughout the Pacific Northwest . Research has found that nearly half of the 2004 juvenile fall chinook salmon in the Klamath had severe infections. Infection in juvenile populations in other major Northwest rivers is typically below 10 percent.

Scientists have identified stretches of the Klamath that see the highest infection numbers. Totally eradicating the parasite would be difficult, so instead scientists would like to target the parasite in the part of the Klamath where it is most destructive—below Iron Gate dam between the Shasta and Scott rivers, said Jerri Bartholomew, associate professor in Oregon State University 's Department of Microbiology.

"With the Klamath, we know where the problem is occurring," Bartholomew said. "We have some ideas on how to fix it."

Bartholomew, along with researchers from several other universities, hopes to gain funding to test different management options for dealing with parasite infections. They seem to thrive in warm, still water, so management options could include varying river flows or adding gravel to disrupt the worms, Bartholomew said.

In the wake of the settlement group, another collection of stakeholders ranging from fishermen to farmers and tribes have joined together to try to remedy some of the basin-wide problems. The group, called Common Ground Alliance, recently organized as a non-profit organization. Local fisherman Rick Shepherd serves on the board.

One day a couple of years ago, several fishermen traveled to Klamath Falls , Ore. , to share some beer and crabs with Upper Basin farmers. The outcome was positive, Shepherd said.

"We got together and said, hey, we're not going to win anything by fighting each other," Shepherd said. "We realized we had a lot in common."

Shepherd, along with fishermen from Oregon , toured the farms and ranches near the river's headwaters and learned about farming practices and water use in the Upper Basin . Misconceptions on both sides were cleared up, he said. The group is trying to gain members and receive more political support from state representatives.

Shepherd said the group is supporting efforts such as parasite research to restore more fish to the Klamath River and gain more fishing access.

"I believe every fisherman on the West Coast would stand behind that," Shepherd said. "We hope we can achieve some kind of a goal. I would like to see commercial and sport fishing return to the North Coast of California."

Reach Michelle Ma at mma@triplicate.com.

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