| |||
Colum Coyne of Ettersburg is preparing again to head up the trapping effort with support from Ray Lingel from the South Fork of Bear Creek and Rob Yosha of Petrolia. Meanwhile, project biologist Gary "Fish" Peterson and crew have wrapped up the fifth consecutive season of low-water work in the upper mainstem and Thompson Creek. Scores of large woody debris structures have been placed in selected pools along the key spawning reaches.
Gary will climb out of the river only long enough to climb back to organize and lead the annual spawning surveys that MSG conducts in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Last year's surveys indicated that about one thousand Chinook and Coho salmon spawned in the Mattole, as compared to about 10,000 as recently as the 1960s and two hundred in 1990.
Marking the completion of its second decade, MSG opened a new office on Lighthouse Road near Petrolia. Thanks to BLM's generosity, MSG was able to move its storage structure upriver, away from the threat of flooding. A small attractive office was developed and an attached shop space will follow next summer. Meanwhile, the mouth of the Mattole opened on October 27 and salmon have begun entering the river, starting the annual cycle anew. Our new phone number is (707) 629-3433; our email address is salmon@humboldt.net.