The Wild Salmon Odyssey, RELEASED!

It takes a long time to bring a book from idea to a real copy. Seasons of the Grizzly took one year from start to end result with the help of a local designer and printing company. I thought that was a long time.

The Wild Salmon Odyssey has taken almost two years. The actual writing took a few months and the artist, Ted Rechlin, spent a few more months compiling his work. This was the easy part. I spent a year looking for and waiting for replies from Canadian publishers. I finally stumbled upon AEG Publishing and Strategic Book Marketing who took on this project. All correspondence has been via email, so I have run the full emotions from excitement at finding a publisher, to exasperation with my computer and my own lack of computing skills. Whatever happened to good old snail mail? Some parts of the whole process went very well and some seemed to take forever, especially when I had an artist who was getting impatient and I had deadlines I wanted to make. It has been a very steep learning curve, but I am happy to have finally completed the first steps. Now comes marketing, a very simple word with huge possible consequences. Marketing is something not all of us are comfortable with, including me. Self-promotion is not my long suit, so I will once again be depending upon the anonymity of the computer and the Internet. I hope my computer survives without any major dents. I am looking forward to working with Strategic Book Marketing in the next and most important step to the success of our hard work.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Ecological tale is a powerful eye-opener for all ages

The Wild Salmon Odyssey follows the life-cycle story of two salmon, Humphrey and Sally, as they migrate their way through danger, swimming thousands of miles to reproduce.

Their epic journey faces man-made and natural threats, while the fish search for food. Join Humphrey and Sally as they grow into strong adult salmon. To spawn, they struggle valiantly over waterfalls, past hungry seals and grizzly bears, so they can return to the river of their birth.

A glorious depiction of wilderness and the battle for survival by its inhabitants, The Wild Salmon Odyssey describes in unique terms how these creatures heed nature's plan.

THE WILD SALMON ODYSSEY (ISBN: 978-1-60911-883-9) will be available on November 22, 2010 for $18.50 USD and can be ordered through the publisher's website:

http://www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/TheWildSalmonOdyssey.html or at www.amazon.com or http://search.barnesandnoble.com

Wholesalers please email BookOrder@AEG-Online-Store.com

About the Author: Robert Scriba, a wildlife guide living in Campbell River, British Columbia, finally has the time to appreciate Mother Nature's gifts. "Age and life experiences tend to make me reflect on the damage we have created ourselves and how can we give something back in compensation. I have learned how important salmon are to the environment and have witnessed what happens when they do not return as expected. Every day we are bombarded with bad news about the plight of the wild salmon and how slowly regulators are responding."

A Walk in the Snow

Tuesday I made my weekly trip to the Oyster River hatchery on a chilly Nov. morning. There was no snow on the ground in Campbell River but there was about 3 inches on the ground along the Oyster River. It was too cold to do anything with the fish, so I walked along some of the less used trails around the hatchery site. Icicles hung from some of the overlying branches, built up by the splashing river rapid below. It was a cool, calm, grey morning so I could hear the birds twittering in the underbrush whenever I stopped my crunching feet. On the trail in front of me suddenly appeared a trio of Spotted Towhees, hopping along the old track looking for any seeds that may have dropped overnight. At first I thought they were robins, but they did not have that distinct robin hop, pause for a listen, then hop again. Red breast and grey bodies show similar color patterns, but the Towhee is a bit smaller and has a longer tail. I did not have my binoculars and had only the short lens on my camera, so it took a bit to be sure of what I was seeing.

All along the trail I was using were black bear tracks and side paths. The bears have been regular visitors to the area all summer and fall and have been seen many times by all of us. There is a young bear, quite brave, who scours the side channels for any spawned out and dead salmon. Same with a mother bear with two cubs, not quite so brash, but unafraid of the conservation minded humans. All four of the bears will be hibernating under a tree or a stump somewhere in the nearby area. They are all looking for the final calories that will be stored in fat reserves that will be badly needed through, what promises to be, a cold and long winter. I followed some of the bear trails to see if I could find a den site to no avail. They did use fallen trees as bridges to cross some of the water channels. I am not as agile on these snow covered trees, so did not try to balance my way over the ice covered waters. It reminded me of a time I crossed a dead tree bridge with my own kids when Trina slipped and was left hanging upside down over a water puddle. To her chagrin and embarrassment she has been the brunt of many remarks since then.

As I continued my stroll through the tall trees, I could see signs of other animals that use the area also. Mink tracks, ravens and gulls were scouring the river banks for dead fish as well. Squirrel tracks had pounded a skinny trail between a few coniferous trees and cone caches buried in the ground. Deer, wander aimlessly, snitching the tops off some of the course browse they need to keep up their energy reserves. Deer, I think, also chewed off some of the sweet bark from the base of a maple tree. A tiny, brown winter wren rustled through the lower shrubs and salmon berry bushes with it's identifying tail pointing to the sky. Look, up in the skeleton of the big leaf maple is a pair of eagles, watching over the snow blanketed landscape.

There is a sense of peace in the forest after the first snowfall of the year. The tracks in the snow show that the critters have to make a living outside too. Some of them seem to be making last minute arrangements before their long sleep. As I write this story today, a fresh snow fall is burying old sign but promising a whole new crop of tracks to investigate soon.

(let me know if you think something other than a deer could have chewed this bark off this maple tree.)

Season 4 Highlights

My fourth season as a wildlife guide at Knight Inlet Lodge has just wrapped up for another year. This season was eventful in a lot of different ways. Once we think we have things figured out, Mother Nature throws us another curve or reveals more of her inner secrets. Thankfully, due in part to a mild winter and a huge pink salmon run in 2009, we were presented with a set of triplet bear cubs by a bear we call Bella. Their antics and drama were the highlight of many of our guests trips and the cause for more than one set of tears. We witnessed a wolf attempting to steal one of the cubs from Mom, but due to good training and obedience, the cubs all hustled up a tree when told to and Bella was then free to deal with this potential predator. We think that the wolf was more successful later in the season, as one of the cubs went missing in early September. There were plenty of oohs and aaahs as we were allowed into the estuary nursery to witness the three cubs contentedly suckling Mothers rich milk. Once full, the family curled up in a heap of bears to have their afternoon siesta. Lenore and Peanut also spent the season around the cove and we marvelled at how quickly Peanut grew and matured in his second year. These bear families stayed around the estuary all season as guests and guides alike enjoyed the curiosity of the cubs as they explored their home, constantly on the lookout for danger and food.

A pair of eagles added onto their nest in the corner of the cove and began setting early this spring. We watched patiently, waiting for the first sign of an eaglet sitting on the nest, however, it did not come to pass. After a month or more, the parents abandoned their duties and went on with their own lives. We wish them more success next year.

Mating season was exciting with Bruno, Pretty boy and two other male bears hanging around to create some excitement and choice for the girls. There seemed to be more boys than girls to us this year.

We had time to spend with the little creatures of the cove and the river this year. As the moms and cubs explored the shoreline we noticed many of the struggles that the local birds have daily. I was watching a merganser mother with two babies when suddenly an eagle settled into its predatory glide path to pick up one of those chicks. One of my guests suddenly and unexpectedly leaped to her feet and began waving her arms and yelling at the eagle. The eagle slammed on the brakes, hovered for a couple moments about ten feet above it's prey, trying to figure out this crazy human, then left to ponder the situation from the safety of a nearby spruce tree. It decided to try again and the woman once more did her dance and song in the skiff to the benefit of the merganser family. I and the rest of the guests did not know whether to laugh or chastise the woman for disrupting Mother Nature's greatest bird predator. She spoke only broken English, but her French was well understood by the marauding eagle who left to find less protected prey. The lady exclaimed in her best English, "Not babies, you can have fish, not babies!!"

As the tide begins to flood the estuary, sand lance begin to emerge from their muddy lair. Alert gulls, crows, ravens and eagles await this event daily, and we spent some time one morning observing this drama. We got the skiff maneuvered into the tiny channel in the mudflat amongst the screaming and diving gulls. The water was clear and shallow enough that we could see the fish squiggle out of the mud but lie or float helplessly for about a minute before finally coming back to their senses. In this minute was when the scores of birds were having their feast of fresh, stunned, sand lance. What drama happening in front of our eyes when from afar it seems as if the estuary is empty and boring.

Butterflies on foxglove, sapsuckers in crab apple trees, spider webs spun over huge distances are all topics for observation, discussion and wonder. A pair of Transient Orca cruised quietly into the cove one misty morning to the surprise and delight of us but to the chagrin of the dolphins and seals. Rain, fog, wind and sun all provided the everyday beauty and challenges due to too much or not enough, depending on your point of view.

Once again, the end of the Wild Salmon Odyssey of pink salmon run failed to materialize in the Glendale, unlike the record sockeye run in the Fraser River system.. We were not expecting a huge run, but we did expect more than the approximately 20,000 adults that did slowly arrive and disperse throughout the river and the spawning channel. It made for slim pickings for the salmon predators that depend on their healthy numbers for their own health and well being. The bears continuously paced the river shorelines looking for shallow water salmon or dead and weakened carcasses to eat. Some of the bears such as Lenore and Peanut adapted to eating barnacles and mussels on the inter-tidal shoreline. They along with Bella and her two remaining cubs spent hours digging rice root and other bulbs and roots from the sedge flats. All five bears looked to be in fine shape the last time I saw them near the middle of October, so they should be OK. The other bears appeared to be fat, but not overly obese, so I trust that they will continue to find fish until they finally go into hibernation sometime in November.

Our season opened and ended this year with The Vital Ground conservation group. They left us with their message: "Where the earth is healthy and whole, the grizzly can roam!" We wish the bears a good sleep and hope to see you next spring.

Predator Conundrums

The last few weeks of the season at the lodge demonstrated to me how we as humans can let our emotions and meddling get in the way of Mother Nature's grand plans. As a demonstration project at the lodge, we have a fish hatchery. In this hatchery we raise coho salmon. Last fall we went out and caught a female and a male coho salmon from the river, stripped her eggs and fertilized them with his milt. All winter long they were incubated in the plastic incubator, safe from the ravages of predators and flooding rivers. This spring, once they were all "buttoned up" we placed them into the trough in the Interpretive Center where we fed them a large healthy diet of commercial fish food. By September they had grown to an average size of 4.5 grams, maybe 3 or 4 times the size of wild coho raised in their natural riverine environment.

Once we deemed the river had enough water after the dry season and the water temperature cooled down to be comfortable for the salmon, we began releasing them into a quiet pool in the Glendale river. 3200 coho fry were released with our best intentions and wishes for a safe journey to the Pacific Ocean and back in three years from now. This is our first instant of meddling with Mother Nature. Many people believe that hatchery raised fish should not be allowed as they have a very unfair advantage over naturally reared wild salmon fry due to their much larger size. The larger fry may have a bit of a setback until they learn where to find food in the river rather than having it dropped to them daily from above. They may also need to learn to watch for wild natural predators who are looking for a meal, especially large dumb fry. Once they become accustomed to their wild habitat, the large fry will begin to eat natural food such as insects, bugs and smaller salmon fry. That's right, they will be eating their smaller wild cousins who did not have the advantages that the large, human fed, fry have had. Humans first mistake even though we mean well. We believe that we are trying to help the river out by raising a few more fish who will grow up to be large coho, fun fish to catch on a rod and reel for our benefit. These fully grown coho also bring back nutrients from the ocean that will eventually feed the bears and the forest around the river. These are all valid, positive justifications for our interference, however we do not really know the true cost to the river. Are these behemoths eating more wild fry than we released, thereby resulting in a net loss of coho in the long run? We have no way of knowing for sure.

The next potential interference we noted was the predators of the wild coho fry. We watched as a Great Blue Heron sat in it's favorite fishing hole daily, snatching coho fry from their hiding spot in the shallows. Now I know that herons are having a rough time of surviving along the coast and are protected by law, but this murderous fish poacher was starting to bring my own style of western justice out of the self imposed mothballs. Henry would sit in front of we humans and brazenly catch wild coho salmon fry day after day, hour after hour.
He would only abandon his fishing hole if a grizzly approached too close for comfort, then he would croak his complaints about the injustices in his life, as he flew to safety in the alder trees above. Don't think I didn't wish I had a sling shot or a twelve gauge handy to protect the salmon fry. What was the use of all of our hard work raising fry only to be eaten by a fish poacher like Henry the Heron?
We got lots of discussion mileage out of this demonstration of the salmon's role in life. They are themselves predators put on earth to "eat and be eaten." It is their role in Nature's grand scheme: eat all they can and feed over 150 different species of predators during their short life. Along their epic odyssey, they will transfer their body weight of nutrients gathered from the open ocean back to their natal river where, they will procreate their species, then die, leaving their large rotting carcasses to feed the river, the bears and eagles and fertilize the forest.

Let us quit interfering in this perfect plan. Let us make it as easy as possible for the wild salmon to make their already dangerous journey, unimpeded by our meddling.

Guide Exchange to Norman Carr Safaris

After a week visit to London, England which we enjoyed very much, Fay and I boarded a British Airways flight to Lusaka, Zambia. Once we cleared customs and paid $50.00 each for our visa, we boarded a domestic flight to Mfuwe where we were met by our hosts from Norman Carr Safaris. Despite my protests, Aubrey, our guide, lugged all of our luggage to the waiting Toyota Land Cruiser that we rode, Clampett style, to Kapani Lodge. We were greeted by our hosts of this guide exchange, and wisked away to our very comfortable quarters. We freshened up in time for the drums to call us to lunch on the deck overlooking the ox bow lagoon. For the next three weeks we were catered to like kings and queens. We did two safaris per day beginning at dawn and ending with a night drive after dark. All the safaris were within the boundries of South Luangwa National Park, to see the wildlife we only formerly saw in zoos or at the circus. Every safari was an adventure, never knowing what was around the next corner or hiding in the grass beside the track. I now know what some of our guests feel like as I drive the boat up to a grizzly bear. I don't mind telling you that I felt quite nervous when our guides drove up to a leopard, lion or elephant. One elephant flapped it's large ears and trumpeted it's personal space boundry into Fay's heightened senses. She sat right beside me, for all the good that was going to do, but I enjoyed her faith. I did feel my own insecurity when our guides drove us up to within one leap of a leopard and lions. I became more at ease as time went by and the large cats paid us little attention. There is a magical beauty about being so close to the apex predators that we have all read about, no matter which continent we are on.

One of Norman Carrs specialties is the "Walking Safari." This is similar to our "tracking tours" we do at Knight Inlet Lodge, where we walk in the bush with the residents and predators. A guide and an armed scout lead us for a 3 or 4 hour walk through the bush veldt observing the animals, birds, plants and any sign that we come across. Our scout and our guide have had a lifetime experience in this wilderness and are walking encyclopedias of African information, lore and tales. On one of these tours, we came across a leopard kill hanging in a Leadwood tree. These experienced guides had never seen3 kills in one tree before, a puku and 2 impala. We decided we would come back after dark to try and catch the cat with the kill, but the cat had already taken one impala from the tree by the time we came back. We witnessed elephants tusseling, skulls and horns from past kills, and enjoyed the interpretation of our guides as we took in all the sights, sounds and smells. In the background is a steady cacophony of calls from doves, hippos, protective impala and birds. As much as the sounds are a part of the African bush, I never found it unpleasant.

The Luangwa River is the backbone of this ten thousand square kilometer park. The main channel is about 1/4 mile across when contained within it's silty banks, but swells to overflowing during the wet season in January and February. This annual flood is the rejuvenation of all the oxbows, waterholes and drainages of the flat valley. The backcountry is impassible with vehicles so boats are used for safaris. The wildlife are confined to high ground until the waters receed. Before the rains come, these same animals are forced to congregate near the river for the only water available.

I really enjoyed the architecture of the trees in this park. Stately and massive Baobab trees support colonies of bees and birds in it's huge crown. Light colored green Leadwood dies off to leave it's bleached skeleton to be used for nesting and roosting as well as firewood. Flat topped and thorny Acacia provide browse for giraffe and the Mopani trees are prefered by elephant. Giant fig trees, with their massive limbs, provide sweet fruit for baboons, birds and elephant. Elephant will eat anything it seems.

Luangwa park is a spectacular destination for birdwatchers from around the world. Over 400 species live or migrate through here, and I added 120 new species to my list. Stately storks, kingfishers, doves, ducks and geese, as well as ugly vultures and colorful lovebirds are just a few of the bird sights to see daily.

Snakes, lizards and crocodiles lurk in the lagoons and the river, keeping local fishermen alert and awake as they jig for their families meals. We saw python, spitting cobra, water monitors and crocs of all sizes. Just because they may be small, they will still take a finger off.

If ever anyone is interested in joining an African Safari with real bush experiences, blending the traditional and modern comforts of home, join Norman Carr Safaris. They are safe, knowledgeable, courteous and fun. The food is great, accomodation comfortable, drinks are cold, and the staff is accomodating to the highest standards.

Season 2010 Begins

The 2010 season began on Feb 22 with a thrilling ride under the fog and just above the water in a helicopter. Knight Inlet Lodge looked sound and secure as the dogs greeted us when we landed safely.

We quickly got the water and the heater turned on in our quarters . Our luggage was safely stowed and we soon had lunch ready. We were here early to begin the annual salmon out migration count. After last falls tremendous migration of pink salmon from the Pacific we are expecting very large numbers of fry. In the next couple days we were busy setting up the fry splitter trap at the Glendale River spawning channel and the rotary screw trap in the river, about a half mile downstream. There had obviously been some major high water events over the winter as there were new log jams and more erosion along the river banks. Hopefully these floods did not do too much damage to the salmon redds as they waited for their precious eggs to hatch.

It was unusual to catch the first fry before the end of February, but we did this year. The winter was warmer than normal so the eggs would have hatched a bit sooner. We had between 50 and 100 pink fry in the 5% box everyday in Feb. 100 fry equals about 2000 fry leaving the spawning channel every day. As the season progresses the numbers get bigg daily. The peak that I saw and counted was on March 26, when there were 64838 grams of fish at 3.79 fry per gram translates to 245,736 fry in the 5% holding box. That is potentially 1,149.845 pinks went over the weir in the past 24 hours. Many days toward the end of March were over 1 million fish or close to it. When I left on April 5 we had counted over 13 million fry which had left the spawning channel. This is quite a sight to see when you open the box and can't see the bottom for fry swimming around. Every scoop of the net holds thousands of fish. You can stand at the end of the weir and watch the fry resting in a holding pool trying to avoid the rushing water that leads them to the trap. They are not hurt as the waters take them gently through this obstacle, one of thousands they will encounter on their long journey. The river will be much more hazardous for them.

Downstream sits the RST, anchored to the river bank. This trap floats on top of the water, trying to monitor the salmon fry run in the river. It is not nearly as accurate as the weir because there are too many other channels that the fish can use. This year there is a new log jam just upstream from this trap, so that effects where the fry go in the channel. The one notable fact we see this year is the total absence of chum salmon. Normally we would have about 15 to 20 percent of the fry caught in the RST be chum. This year it is very rare to see even one chum salmon.

I also monitor the bird life that hang around the estuary for the winter. The highlight for me are the Trumpeter swans. This year there are 19 swans living in the river mouth. That is the same count as the previous two years. Mallards, Canada geese and common mergansers are the largest flocks of birds. 13 different species in the end of Feb. Mar 14 that number increased to 19, but there were only 2 swans left. I even saw one pied bald robin for the first time. By the first of April I noticed the first Common loons and the Barrows Goldeneyes had replaced the common goldeneye.

Pacific White sided dolphins and harbor seals were common visitors. I watched the seals feeding on herring around the quiet waters of the lodge. A sudden splash as the herring ball jumped out of the water trying to avoid becoming a seal meal often stopped us to watch this dramatic action. In the clear water we often witnessed the chase underwater.

We also spend some time getting the lodge ready for the season. Busses and equipment all have to be serviced and started. Supplies have to be checked out and ordered, firewood is cut and chopped, meals are prepared and dishes washed by ourselves. We are all very capable cooks, so it is fun to do.

For the first time, we raised a batch of Coho eggs over the winter. The local coho were caught and eggs stripped and fertilized then installed into the incubator. Over the long winter it was the caretakers job to make sure they survived. April 2 we turned them loose into the cap trough in the interpretive center for the summer. They even began eating within a day or so.

In the evenings, I have been busy editing my latest book. The publisher edited it once, sent it back to me for a bit of rewriting, then I sent it back. Only a couple minor changes the second time around and it is ready for the design stage. The Wild Salmon Odysey should be out this summer. Seasons of the Grizzly continues to sell with the new assistance of a distributor Sandhill Books.

I have also been counting the days to when Fay and I will head out on our first major holiday. We are going to London, then Zambia for a month. We are counting our dollars, cruising the internet, buying cloths and gear in preparation for this event. We are both very excited to be able to have this opportunity. This is a guide exchange with a camp called Norman Carr Safaris, so we get the freedom of their camps and will bring one of their guides back here when we come home. I think Aubrey is as excited as we are.

The lodge will open for the season on May 15, and I am looking forward to my fourth season.