Commentary: Intern Sizes Up Summer(Editor’s Note: The author, Rhett Turner, 21, has been a summer intern at the Sitka Conservation Society. He will study in Rome this fall, and return to Colorado College, in Colorado Springs, in the spring to continue work on a degree in environmental studies.)
By Rhett Turner
It’s a 3:45 a.m. wakeup call – we’ve got to catch the right tide. It’s time to go salmon fishing and if we’re there too late, the salmon will have already run up the falls.
One of my housemates, Michael, had invited me along, though as a non-resident I couldn’t participate in the fishing. Also joining the expedition was Brendan, the owner of my housing.
When the alarm went off, I wasn’t excited right then to hit the water. But I’d made the commitment and needed to follow through. Soon, I realized the right decision had been made.
As we made our way to the boat, it was clear Michael and Brendan were prepared – not a single hiccup. We made our way toward Redoubt Bay, seeing the trees turn from a green blanket covering the mountains into individual characters. The slight fog and gentle breeze carried the smell of the forest ... I could not have imagined sleeping another minute.
Redoubt Bay is a primary bottleneck for sockeye salmon returning to their birth place. At Redoubt there were dip netters and snaggers. While Brenden was dip netting, I spotted Andrew,
my boss, holding himself in the strong current below the falls. He skilfully maneuvered his dip net through the current, plucking one sockeye after another.
By the end of our fishing session Brendan and Michealhad landed seven sockeye each. Success.
After fishing for sockeye we went to the king salmon fishing spot; it’s my turn to catch something now. We headed to Biorka approximately an hour away from Redoubt Bay. On our way we spotted sea otters and sea lions. As the boat thumped against the waves I was drifting in and out of sleep.
Soon the trolling lines were set and the GPS coordinates aligned, and we were ready to catch a king salmon. A handful of rockfish beat the salmon to the bait. With an excited buzz the clicker of my reel indicated a king found my hook. Now it was my turn to experience the salmon of the Tongass.
My face lit up like a toddler being handed a whole bowl of Jelly Beans as I played the fish to the boat. Into the net, harvest complete. Back to Sitka.
On our way back to the island, Micheal let me drive his boat. Soon we spotted a humpback whale. Micheal and Brenden remained focused on Sitka; I on the other hand saw another bowl of Jelly Beans and immediately turned the boat to go view the whale. The sight of whales is common for Micheal and Brenden, who reminded me to stay a respectful distance as I leaned
against the throttle to get there quickly.
In not even a full day I had witnessed an incredible array that the ocean and the Tongass have to offer – plentiful salmon fishing, an otter, a humpback whale, and sea lions. In addition I was also given a rare glimpse of what it is like to be a local.
Not only were local humans stocking up protein for the cold dark months ahead, brown bears were seen storing salmon as thick layers of fat which will sustain them through the winter. In the surrounding trees bald eagles awaited stunned salmon which didn’t pass the gauntlet of the falls or wind up prey to the bear or the human. Right now at Redoubt Bay, sockeye salmon seem like everything; a bit farther back they are just one species playing a crucial role in the complex ecosystem which makes up the Tongass.
Days like these are why we need to protect the Tongass: each animal, plant, the rain, the occasional sun plays a crucial role in this web of life. It would be unfortunate if people did not have the opportunities I was able to experience moving into the future.
There is trouble in the forest. Everyday more people want the resources the Tongass can provide… in a limited supply. Take too much of any one thing and this fragile ecosystem ceases to produce. Through interviewing the participants in this ecosystem – the fish, the eagle, the human and fortunately not the bear – I have come to understand the one species who most needs to know conservation and act accordingly. It is not the eagle, nor the fish, nor the bear, it is us.
Although I have not quite figured out how to speak with salmon and the eagle, I would imagine they agree.
