An Outdoorsman’s Journal By: Mark Walters Young Biologists A great picture of a bull trout taken by a member of the snorkel crew. Hello Friends, For the next two weeks I will be writing to you about Idaho and then Montana. This week’s column will be based out of Stanley, Idaho, a very mountainous area. There I was helping/observing and camping with a team of fish technicians who work for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and are doing research on trout and salmon on tributaries of the Salmon River. Julianne Kirby graduated from the University of Virginia in 2024 with a degree in Environmental Science and is the crew leader. Treygan Bragg is a senior at Brigham Young University and a biology major. My daughter, Selina Walters graduated from UW-Stevens Point in 2023 with degrees in fisheries and water resources. Devin Dockendorf is a senior at Bemidji State, majoring in wildlife biology. This crew works “hitches” that are 8 days on and then have 6 off with a percentage of them living out of their cars when not working. Monday, July 28 High 83, low 47 Treygan, Devin, Julianne, and Selina enjoying a day in the water. This is one of those “how much can you write about as there is a “ton” type of stories. First it was a 1,625 mile drive to get here while pulling a trailer with an ATV in it for my next adventure, and pretty much staying in the GMC Hotel the entire time. Second is arriving at a remote camp nestled in the mountains and meeting the crew I mentioned and about 15 other people doing research. Just as much as anything else would be the learning curve I would be on as I observed, helped, and always waded following this snorkel team. Here is the scoop in as few words as possible. First, each team which can vary from 2 to 4 people, hike into a predetermined site on a steam that can be 2 to 15 feet wide and 2 inches in some places to 4 feet deep. This in itself can be a physical task and is found by using OnX. Once the site is reached, depending on the width of the stream, either one or multiple people suit up and one person takes data and as each survey covers 100 meters of stream with measurements of stream width taken 6 times. Next the snorkelers get into the water, which due to fact that their wet suits are partially shredded, can feel very cold with an average stream water temp of 51 degrees. What the snorkelers are looking for and tell to the data recorder is the number and size of steelhead/rainbow trout, cutthroat, brook trout, bull trout, and presence/absence of non-target native fish such as dace, suckers, pike minnows etc. The crew was extensively trained in early June in fish identification and estimating size, which with the larger fish is completed by knowing the width of their hand. Interestingly, in most cases when spotted, the fish are not scared of the snorkeler. My main job was to record data which is a huge responsibility but quite simple once trained and that enabled us to have two crews. For myself, some of my main challenges were to do the data correctly and just as importantly to not fall in the often very slippery, rock or gravel bottomed streams. Also keeping up to 21-24 year olds in our mountain hikes. In the late afternoon I was with Treygan and Selina. Bull trout are one of the most loved fish in the mountains and a very clear sign of the health of our rivers and streams, unfortunately they are not doing well and are labeled as “Threatened.” Bull trout have two main life histories, one is a “resident” and they are much smaller than “migratory”bull trout that come back to where they were born to spawn. A resident bull trout is large at 12-15 inches and the migratory bull trout which lives most of the year in lakes or larger rivers can reach into the high 30-inch mark. We were on our last site/pass of the day, and I have to tell you that due to the cold water temps, pulling themselves on the stream bottom through countless deadfalls and over hundreds of rocks all day these kids are visibly worn out. They say this snorkeling is a lot like “underwater rock climbing.”Treygan and Selina came across an incredible find; 4 big bull trout ranging from 22 to 33 inches. They were even able to make a really cool video with Selina’s phone. This evening at camp where each crew does it owns cooking and just about everyone sleeps in a tent on the ground, the bull trout experience was the talk of camp. I think that just as interesting is the chinook salmon. They are born in these streams and rivers, live in fresh water for a year or two, migrate roughly 900 miles to the Pacific Ocean to salt water, live there for several years and then migrate in an incredible journey to spawn and then die where they were hatched. As sometimes happens I have used more space than I should. For everyone reading this I hope you can at least partially understand how important this work is and be thankful that there are enough men and women that get the education and are willing to do the research to protect our natural resources. Sunset Challenging would be a good way to describe a snorkel crew’s job. AWARD WINNER CHEVROLET 172584 Klemme Sales Inc. 125-129 Second Ave., Stratford, WI 54484 ph: 715-687-4511 • fax: 715-687-4507 715-223-2777 93304_2 328 www.smithbrosmeats.com Hwy. 13 South • Colby, WI 54421 An Outdoorsman’s Journal By: Mark Walters Young Biologists A great picture of a bull trout taken by a member of the snorkel crew. Hello Friends, For the next two weeks I will be writing to you about Idaho and then Montana. This week’s column will be based out of Stanley, Idaho, a very mountainous area. There I was helping/observing and camping with a team of fish technicians who work for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and are doing research on trout and salmon on tributaries of the Salmon River. Julianne Kirby graduated from the University of Virginia in 2024 with a degree in Environmental Science and is the crew leader. Treygan Bragg is a senior at Brigham Young University and a biology major. My daughter, Selina Walters graduated from UW-Stevens Point in 2023 with degrees in fisheries and water resources. Devin Dockendorf is a senior at Bemidji State, majoring in wildlife biology. This crew works “hitches” that are 8 days on and then have 6 off with a percentage of them living out of their cars when not working. Monday, July 28 High 83, low 47 Treygan, Devin, Julianne, and Selina enjoying a day in the water. This is one of those “how much can you write about as there is a “ton” type of stories. First it was a 1,625 mile drive to get here while pulling a trailer with an ATV in it for my next adventure, and pretty much staying in the GMC Hotel the entire time. Second is arriving at a remote camp nestled in the mountains and meeting the crew I mentioned and about 15 other people doing research. Just as much as anything else would be the learning curve I would be on as I observed, helped, and always waded following this snorkel team. Here is the scoop in as few words as possible. First, each team which can vary from 2 to 4 people, hike into a predetermined site on a steam that can be 2 to 15 feet wide and 2 inches in some places to 4 feet deep. This in itself can be a physical task and is found by using OnX. Once the site is reached, depending on the width of the stream, either one or multiple people suit up and one person takes data and as each survey covers 100 meters of stream with measurements of stream width taken 6 times. Next the snorkelers get into the water, which due to fact that their wet suits are partially shredded, can feel very cold with an average stream water temp of 51 degrees. What the snorkelers are looking for and tell to the data recorder is the number and size of steelhead/rainbow trout, cutthroat, brook trout, bull trout, and presence/absence of non-target native fish such as dace, suckers, pike minnows etc. The crew was extensively trained in early June in fish identification and estimating size, which with the larger fish is completed by knowing the width of their hand. Interestingly, in most cases when spotted, the fish are not scared of the snorkeler. My main job was to record data which is a huge responsibility but quite simple once trained and that enabled us to have two crews. For myself, some of my main challenges were to do the data correctly and just as importantly to not fall in the often very slippery, rock or gravel bottomed streams. Also keeping up to 21-24 year olds in our mountain hikes. In the late afternoon I was with Treygan and Selina. Bull trout are one of the most loved fish in the mountains and a very clear sign of the health of our rivers and streams, unfortunately they are not doing well and are labeled as “Threatened.” Bull trout have two main life histories, one is a “resident” and they are much smaller than “migratory”bull trout that come back to where they were born to spawn. A resident bull trout is large at 12-15 inches and the migratory bull trout which lives most of the year in lakes or larger rivers can reach into the high 30-inch mark. We were on our last site/pass of the day, and I have to tell you that due to the cold water temps, pulling themselves on the stream bottom through countless deadfalls and over hundreds of rocks all day these kids are visibly worn out. They say this snorkeling is a lot like “underwater rock climbing.”Treygan and Selina came across an incredible find; 4 big bull trout ranging from 22 to 33 inches. They were even able to make a really cool video with Selina’s phone. This evening at camp where each crew does it owns cooking and just about everyone sleeps in a tent on the ground, the bull trout experience was the talk of camp. I think that just as interesting is the chinook salmon. They are born in these streams and rivers, live in fresh water for a year or two, migrate roughly 900 miles to the Pacific Ocean to salt water, live there for several years and then migrate in an incredible journey to spawn and then die where they were hatched. As sometimes happens I have used more space than I should. For everyone reading this I hope you can at least partially understand how important this work is and be thankful that there are enough men and women that get the education and are willing to do the research to protect our natural resources. Sunset Challenging would be a good way to describe a snorkel crew’s job. AWARD WINNER CHEVROLET 172584 Klemme Sales Inc. 125-129 Second Ave., Stratford, WI 54484 ph: 715-687-4511 • fax: 715-687-4507 715-223-2777 93304_2 328 www.smithbrosmeats.com Hwy. 13 South • Colby, WI 54421
Prentice-Rib Lake’s Kaleb Scott (l.) and Henry Regier find some open space to run in as they near the mile mark in Saturday’s WIAA Division 3 boys state championship cross country race. As the team placed second, Regier finished 27th individually and Scott was 50th. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS
North Crawford’s Landry Stluka makes the catch, but Gilman’s Lucas Halida forces Stluka out of bounds before he can get a foot down and complete the fourth-down reception during the first quarter of the Pirates’ 36-0 sectional final win Friday. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS
Rib Lake’s Coralee Glenzer (l.) and Madeline Anderson are all over this ball sent over the net by Prentice during Thursday’s 3-1 WIAA Division 5 sectional semifinal win. The victory secured Rib Lake’s spot in Saturday’s sectional final in Frederic. MATT FREY/THE STAR NEWS
Grant Neubauer shows off two of his smallmouth bass while weighing at the 2024 Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Championship held in La Crosse Oct. 22-25. Neubauer caught 69 pounds and 4 ounces worth of smallmouths to place sixth in the tournament, just missing out on a spot in next spring’s Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic. SUBMITTED PHOTO
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