Ramos Tribe Adventures: Smells Fishy to me!

Last week Keith got to go up to the Gisasa Weir for work. This is the type of "work" that he loves to do. Who wouldn't love to get in a boat and go help count fish all day, then in the evenings go fly fishing and then help pack up the weir for the end of the season. It takes about 4 hours to go down the Yukon, up the Koyukuk river and up the Gisasa river. So it is pretty far out. I wish I could have gone with him, it really looks AWESOME! I will try to explain all the pictures correctly.

"Welcome to the Gisasa Camp"

Roughing it in style ~ This is the kitchen, dining room and gathering place.

Inside. Nice and cozy!

The sleeping tents.

This is the weir. It is a gate that U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service put up across the river to count salmon that swim up river to spawn.

The fish swim under this wall looking thing and swim towards the middle where the gate is located. Then there is a person inside the gate counting the different species of fish swimming through. I asked the counters if they ever get dizzy but they said no.

Hearing about the life of Salmon makes me want to sing the song from Nemo "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming..."All of the salmon "just keep swimming" around the ocean till they "just keep swimming" up river past bears and fishermen, "just keep swimming" till they reach their nesting point ( I am not sure how they know where they lay their eggs but they know) then they lay their eggs and then "just keep swimming" till they die. Sounds like a great life right?. Remind me never to wish to be a salmon.... at least a Pacific swimming salmon. I hear from Keith, Atlantic salmon don't die after they spawn.... Yep If I were to be a fish it would NOT be a Pacific Salmon. Here is a Salmon that has already laid eggs and has died.

This is Jordan on duty counting and measuring and tagging fish. Not sure all the measurements they take of the fish before they release them to continue swimming up the river.

Measuring scales

King Salmon (or Chinook)~ They start in the ocean and then by the time reach the end of their life they turn this BRIGHT red!

Keith with a King salmon

Jordon with Pink(or Humpy) salmon

Keith with a Pink

Keith with a Chum (or Dog) Salmon.

What a peaceful place! Look at the fish swimming in the river in front.

But Keith said it smells like this

Yeah, the river bank was covered with dead and rotting fish! Smells a bit fishy to me. Yuck! Keith kept saying that while they were working he kept going to wash his face and then realized that the water was stinky!

Is that Brad Pitt Fly fishing?........... Nope it is just Keith and Jeremy (It's a tough job but someone has to do it... and just to clarify, this was after their work hours of course. )