TR: Early Steelhead Fishing & Other stuff

Speaking of which. . . Ive been out fishing for steelhead, doing a
little doctoring of deer damage to my little ponderosas and
winterizing my outfit. Weather was nasty for three days (SOP for
steelhead fishing, actually tropical compared to what is on the way
this year). Then yesterday the weather broke and the colors were
magnificent. Fallow and no-till swaths the brightest white gold, early
fall planted swaths an emerald browned-green, and the background skies
either sunny blue and cumulus white clouds OR deep egg-sucking leach
purple grey.

Fishing was good but . . . closed for all but steelhead and the near
mythical Browns. I C&Red a number of Rainbows, 3 in the 15 plus range
and only one was arguably a steelhead. Every bow was a fighter. Not a
cutthroat to be seen, and no suckers. Two gear guys passed thru
claiming one steelhead definite and a couple of big rainbows.
Everything I caught on either a purple/pink egg sucking leach, or a
two fly set up of a nymph followed by a Freight Train. Sometimes a
split shot, sometimes not depending . . . .

Lots of geese high up, as well as egrets. (Do the egrets go south?
Never noticed before.) Hawks galore. My dog chased a Martin (?) along
the river bank and we spooked some big assed deer. Coyotes much in
evidence, think once they may have been stalking my chubby dog. She
went deep into the van after one possible encounter. At home she barks
fiercely when the pack howls in the woods; Here she is more practical.
I know she is really ****scared of cougars so who knows and I have
never actually seen a cat out there. Heard, but never seen one.

Dave

On Nov 15, 1:14*pm, DaveS wrote:
Speaking of which. . . Ive been out fishing for steelhead, doing a
little doctoring of deer damage to my little ponderosas and
winterizing my outfit. Weather was nasty for three days (SOP for
steelhead fishing, actually tropical compared to what is on the way
this year). Then yesterday the weather broke and the colors were
magnificent. Fallow and no-till swaths the brightest white gold, early
fall planted swaths an emerald browned-green, and the background skies
either sunny blue and cumulus white clouds OR deep egg-sucking leach
purple grey.

Fishing was good but . . . closed for all but steelhead and the near
mythical Browns. I C&Red a number of Rainbows, 3 in the 15 plus range
and only one was arguably a steelhead. Every bow was a fighter. Not a
cutthroat to be seen, and no suckers. Two gear guys passed thru
claiming one steelhead definite and a couple of big rainbows.
Everything I caught on either a purple/pink egg sucking leach, or a
two fly set up of a nymph followed by a Freight Train. Sometimes a
split shot, sometimes not depending . . . .

Lots of geese high up, as well as egrets. (Do the egrets go south?
Never noticed before.) *Hawks galore. My dog chased a Martin (?) along
the river bank and we spooked some big assed deer. Coyotes much in
evidence, think once they may have been stalking my chubby dog. She
went deep into the van after one possible encounter. At home she barks
fiercely when the pack howls in the woods; Here she is more practical.
I know she is really ****scared of cougars so who knows and I have
never actually seen a cat out there. Heard, but never seen one.

Dave

Sounds like you live in.....or at least near.....a very nice place.

Yes, egrets go south.....well, in this hemisphere.....at this time of
year.

Any idea of what species of hawks? Various kinds migrate along
regular paths in the eastern U.S., some of them in huge numbers. It
can be an awesome sight in some of the better known hotspots. No idea
whether western birds do the same, or whether they are the same
species as we see around here.

I've never seen a live marten. The literature says they were
extirpated from Cheeselandia a long time ago. Recent attempts to
reintroduce them have met with some succes, from what I've read, but
they are still very scarce. Much more likely to see mink around
here. I've encountered many of the latter. A big mink would be about
the size of a small marten. The riparian habitat would pretty much
clinch the matter around here, given how rare the martens are.

Coyotes may not actually eat your dog.....but they will certainly kill
it, given the opportunity, if it isn't particularly large and/or
fierce. One of them gave Becky's 65 lb. Norwegian elkhound a nasty
gash a few years ago. Its partner was close at hand. I think that
only Becky's proximity and intervention saved poor Cullen.

Even the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has finally (after
lo these many years) been forced to confess that, yes, there ARE
cougars here. Never yet seen one myself, not has anyone I know and
trust, but it's just a matter of time, I suppose. Personally, I hope
it's someone I know and trust, rather than your humble
correspondent.

Wolfgang
who dislikes bitey things like mosquitoes......and even more dislikes
others correspondingly as they increase in size.

On Nov 15, 3:38*pm, Giles wrote:
On Nov 15, 1:14*pm, DaveS wrote:





Speaking of which. . . Ive been out fishing for steelhead, doing a
little doctoring of deer damage to my little ponderosas and
winterizing my outfit. Weather was nasty for three days (SOP for
steelhead fishing, actually tropical compared to what is on the way
this year). Then yesterday the weather broke and the colors were
magnificent. Fallow and no-till swaths the brightest white gold, early
fall planted swaths an emerald browned-green, and the background skies
either sunny blue and cumulus white clouds OR deep egg-sucking leach
purple grey.

Fishing was good but . . . closed for all but steelhead and the near
mythical Browns. I C&Red a number of Rainbows, 3 in the 15 plus range
and only one was arguably a steelhead. Every bow was a fighter. Not a
cutthroat to be seen, and no suckers. Two gear guys passed thru
claiming one steelhead definite and a couple of big rainbows.
Everything I caught on either a purple/pink egg sucking leach, or a
two fly set up of a nymph followed by a Freight Train. Sometimes a
split shot, sometimes not depending . . . .

Lots of geese high up, as well as egrets. (Do the egrets go south?
Never noticed before.) *Hawks galore. My dog chased a Martin (?) along
the river bank and we spooked some big assed deer. Coyotes much in
evidence, think once they may have been stalking my chubby dog. She
went deep into the van after one possible encounter. At home she barks
fiercely when the pack howls in the woods; Here she is more practical.
I know she is really ****scared of cougars so who knows and I have
never actually seen a cat out there. Heard, but never seen one.

Dave

Sounds like you live in.....or at least near.....a very nice place.

Yes, egrets go south.....well, in this hemisphere.....at this time of
year.

Any idea of what species of hawks? *Various kinds migrate along
regular paths in the eastern U.S., some of them in huge numbers. *It
can be an awesome sight in some of the better known hotspots. *No idea
whether western birds do the same, or whether they are the same
species as we see around here.

I've never seen a live marten. *The literature says they were
extirpated from Cheeselandia a long time ago. *Recent attempts to
reintroduce them have met with some succes, from what I've read, but
they are still very scarce. *Much more likely to see mink around
here. *I've encountered many of the latter. *A big mink would be about
the size of a small marten. *The riparian habitat would pretty much
clinch the matter around here, given how rare the martens are.

Coyotes may not actually eat your dog.....but they will certainly kill
it, given the opportunity, if it isn't particularly large and/or
fierce. *One of them gave Becky's 65 lb. Norwegian elkhound a nasty
gash a few years ago. *Its partner was close at hand. *I think that
only Becky's proximity and intervention saved poor Cullen.

Even the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has finally (after
lo these many years) been forced to confess that, yes, there ARE
cougars here. *Never yet seen one myself, not has anyone I know and
trust, but it's just a matter of time, I suppose. *Personally, I hope
it's someone I know and trust, rather than your humble
correspondent. * * *

Wolfgang
who dislikes bitey things like mosquitoes......and even more dislikes
others correspondingly as they increase in size.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Well I looked at some pictures and now I am further puzzled. The
picture most like what i saw looks like a Fisher. The Wiki pix is the
color i saw. It was definitly not an Otter, nor a Mink. Size and tails
don't work. And probably not a Marten because those ears and their
color don't fly. I think I saw a Fisher. Wiki map shows range of the
Fisher coming down into Blue and Ochico Mt's in Oregon, but says they
were pretty much gone from W.Wa except for a planting in 2008 in the
Olympic Mtns.

Per the coyotes, even on my Island they've pretty much worked their
way thru the feral cats, and the ranging domestics. I think we lost
one that way. Folks here think the packs will try to lure out loose
dogs. Most days the coyotes howl for part of the night, and the sea
lions bark on and off for the rest. Sometimes "newcomers" ask "if
something can be done about it."

Per the hawks I generally assume they are Redtails but fact is I
should look at some pix because I know there are some different ones I
see. Here in W.Wa I see Eagles more often than hawks. Over on the
Eastside, there is a wind setup that blows thru a narrow gap (200
yards) West of me, and up-swells. The hawks tend to hang there over
the line of river trees. I should find out specifically what they are.

Dave

On Nov 15, 8:48*pm, DaveS wrote:

Per the coyotes, even on my Island they've pretty much worked their
way thru the feral cats, and the ranging domestics.

Now you just need wolves, to work their way through the coyotes ;-)
(for some reason the tune to "I know an old lady who swallowed a fly"
just popped into my head)

dogs. Most days the coyotes howl for part of the night, and the sea
lions bark on and off for the rest.

Huh...I enjoy your posts describing your place but for some reason I
thought you were far inland...of course I wouldn't post on ROFF exact
info on my whereabouts either (even though it'd be easy enough to
find), but your sea lion comment shattered my mental picture...time to
make a new one.

Jon.

On Nov 16, 10:52*am, Jonathan Cook wrote:
On Nov 15, 8:48*pm, DaveS wrote:

Per the coyotes, even on my Island they've pretty much worked their
way thru the feral cats, and the ranging domestics.

Now you just need wolves, to work their way through the coyotes ;-)
(for some reason the tune to "I know an old lady who swallowed a fly"
just popped into my head)

dogs. Most days the coyotes howl for part of the night, and the sea
lions bark on and off for the rest.

Huh...I enjoy your posts describing your place but for some reason I
thought you were far inland...of course I wouldn't post on ROFF exact
info on my whereabouts either (even though it'd be easy enough to
find), but your sea lion comment shattered my mental picture...time to
make a new one.

Jon.

Ditto. I was thinking Eastern Washington, near Idaho.
Frank Reid

On Nov 16, 8:52*am, Jonathan Cook wrote:
On Nov 15, 8:48*pm, DaveS wrote:

Per the coyotes, even on my Island they've pretty much worked their
way thru the feral cats, and the ranging domestics.

Now you just need wolves, to work their way through the coyotes ;-)
(for some reason the tune to "I know an old lady who swallowed a fly"
just popped into my head)

dogs. Most days the coyotes howl for part of the night, and the sea
lions bark on and off for the rest.

Huh...I enjoy your posts describing your place but for some reason I
thought you were far inland...of course I wouldn't post on ROFF exact
info on my whereabouts either (even though it'd be easy enough to
find), but your sea lion comment shattered my mental picture...time to
make a new one.

Jon.
I like property, it is harder for "Suits" to steal. I have a few
places.

I live mostly on an island in the Puget Sound, and for years worked
out of Seatte. The scale here is small, fir forest, etc, rural/
suburban and my place is a small orchard above an arm of the Sound.
The dominent human ecology is affluent, , liberal, white/API/Native,
commuter. The topography is such that night sounds carry.

I also have a small, extremely fertile, place about 300 miles East, on
the Southern Palouse, in the Touchet River valley. The geography,
people and climate could not be more different. My wife sometimes
thinks I live out there. I lease out most of the land and water, no
more livestock, and am doing conservation plantings myself. My place
is tiny by local standards. Both places have lots of coyotes and
wildlife. Sooner or later some onsite Roffian action is warranted, as
there is plenty of river to go round.

Dave

On Nov 15, 9:48*pm, DaveS wrote:

Well I looked at some pictures and now I am further puzzled. The
picture most like what i saw looks like a Fisher. The Wiki pix is the
color i saw. It was definitly not an Otter, nor a Mink. Size and tails
don't work. And probably not a Marten because those ears and their
color don't fly. I think I saw a Fisher. Wiki map shows range of the
Fisher coming down into Blue and Ochico Mt's in Oregon, but says they
were pretty much gone from W.Wa except for a planting in 2008 in the
Olympic Mtns.

I've seen exactly two fishers in my life.....both of them in the wild.
Given their size, overall configuration, and habitat, the only things
they could possibly be confused with are martens or otters. As in
your case, both of those were eliminated by various cues. Mink was
not even a realistic possibility.....these animals were both several
times too large to be mink. Scarcity always makes one wonder, but
when no other plausible possibility presents itself......

Per the coyotes, even on my Island they've pretty much worked their
way thru the feral cats, and the ranging domestics. I think we lost
one that way. Folks here think the packs will try to lure out loose
dogs.

Interesting, about the cats. I'd have thought that coyotes would
content themselves with much less dangerous prey. As for luring loose
dogs, yeah, that wouldn't surprise me. I've seen a pair of coyotes
follow a dog for a couple of miles. I think the only thing that saved
the dog was that it stayed relatively close to its owner, who was
riding his bike in to the parking lot at Slew Creek in Yellowstone.

Most days the coyotes howl for part of the night, and the sea
lions bark on and off for the rest. Sometimes "newcomers" ask "if
something can be done about it."

Well, they could be shot.

Per the hawks I generally assume they are Redtails but fact is I
should look at some pix because I know there are some different ones I
see.

Day in and day out, in this part of the world, Redtail is the safe
default assumption.....for those who don't know their hawks very
well. Some winters Rough-legged is a better bet, and in some
environments it might be harriers or even, in a few times and places,
Cooper's. But Redtail is indeed what most of them are most of the
time.

Here in W.Wa I see Eagles more often than hawks. Over on the
Eastside, there is a wind setup that blows thru a narrow gap (200
yards) West of me, and up-swells. The hawks tend to hang there over
the line of river trees. I should find out specifically what they are.

Sounds very typical of Redtails.....but I don't know western species.
Could well be something else.

Eagles can be seen just about anywhere in Wisconsin these days, but
the best bet is near the Wisconsin River or the
Mississippi.....especially in winter. I've counted well over a
hundred perched on one smallish island in the Mississippi between La
Crosse and Prairie du Chien. Many more were in flight throughout the
area. One never actually gets blasé about it, but the adrenaline rush
sort of runs out after a couple thousand.

Wolfgang

On Nov 17, 5:13*pm, Giles wrote:
On Nov 15, 9:48*pm, DaveS wrote:

Well I looked at some pictures and now I am further puzzled. The
picture most like what i saw looks like a Fisher. The Wiki pix is the
color i saw. It was definitly not an Otter, nor a Mink. Size and tails
don't work. And probably not a Marten because those ears and their
color don't fly. I think I saw a Fisher. Wiki map shows range of the
Fisher coming down into Blue and Ochico Mt's in Oregon, but says they
were pretty much gone from W.Wa except for a planting in 2008 in the
Olympic Mtns.

I've seen exactly two fishers in my life.....both of them in the wild.
Given their size, overall configuration, and habitat, the only things
they could possibly be confused with are martens or otters. *As in
your case, both of those were eliminated by various cues. *Mink was
not even a realistic possibility.....these animals were both several
times too large to be mink. *Scarcity always makes one wonder, but
when no other plausible possibility presents itself......

Per the coyotes, even on my Island they've pretty much worked their
way thru the feral cats, and the ranging domestics. I think we lost
one that way. Folks here think the packs will try to lure out loose
dogs.

Interesting, about the cats. *I'd have thought that coyotes would
content themselves with much less dangerous prey. *As for luring loose
dogs, yeah, that wouldn't surprise me. *I've seen a pair of coyotes
follow a dog for a couple of miles. *I think the only thing that saved
the dog was that it stayed relatively close to its owner, who was
riding his bike in to the parking lot at Slew Creek in Yellowstone.

Most days the coyotes howl for part of the night, and the sea
lions bark on and off for the rest. Sometimes "newcomers" ask "if
something can be done about it."

Well, they could be shot.

Per the hawks I generally assume they are Redtails but fact is I
should look at some pix because I know there are some different ones I
see.

Day in and day out, in this part of the world, Redtail is the safe
default assumption.....for those who don't know their hawks very
well. *Some winters Rough-legged is a better bet, and in some
environments it might be harriers or even, in a few times and places,
Cooper's. *But Redtail is indeed what most of them are most of the
time.

Here in W.Wa I see Eagles more often than hawks. Over on the
Eastside, there is a wind setup that blows thru a narrow gap (200
yards) West of me, and up-swells. The hawks tend to hang there over
the line of river trees. I should find out specifically what they are.

Sounds very typical of Redtails.....but I don't know western species.
Could well be something else.

Eagles can be seen just about anywhere in Wisconsin these days, but
the best bet is near the Wisconsin River or the
Mississippi.....especially in winter. *I've counted well over a
hundred perched on one smallish island in the Mississippi between La
Crosse and Prairie du Chien. *Many more were in flight throughout the
area. *One never actually gets blasé about it, but the adrenaline rush
sort of runs out after a couple thousand. * * *

Wolfgang

The concerns around here seem to be on the seabirds. The Eagles seem
to be relatively plentiful. Bald down where I am, Golden northward
like up in the San Juan islands. Not sure about the Ospreys.
Occasional on this island.

Dave

On Nov 17, 5:13*pm, Giles wrote:
On Nov 15, 9:48*pm, DaveS wrote:

Well I looked at some pictures and now I am further puzzled. The
picture most like what i saw looks like a Fisher. The Wiki pix is the
color i saw. It was definitly not an Otter, nor a Mink. Size and tails
don't work. And probably not a Marten because those ears and their
color don't fly. I think I saw a Fisher. Wiki map shows range of the
Fisher coming down into Blue and Ochico Mt's in Oregon, but says they
were pretty much gone from W.Wa except for a planting in 2008 in the
Olympic Mtns.

I've seen exactly two fishers in my life.....both of them in the wild.
Given their size, overall configuration, and habitat, the only things
they could possibly be confused with are martens or otters. *As in
your case, both of those were eliminated by various cues. *Mink was
not even a realistic possibility.....these animals were both several
times too large to be mink. *Scarcity always makes one wonder, but
when no other plausible possibility presents itself......

Per the coyotes, even on my Island they've pretty much worked their
way thru the feral cats, and the ranging domestics. I think we lost
one that way. Folks here think the packs will try to lure out loose
dogs.

Interesting, about the cats. *I'd have thought that coyotes would
content themselves with much less dangerous prey. *As for luring loose
dogs, yeah, that wouldn't surprise me. *I've seen a pair of coyotes
follow a dog for a couple of miles. *I think the only thing that saved
the dog was that it stayed relatively close to its owner, who was
riding his bike in to the parking lot at Slew Creek in Yellowstone.

Most days the coyotes howl for part of the night, and the sea
lions bark on and off for the rest. Sometimes "newcomers" ask "if
something can be done about it."

Well, they could be shot.

Per the hawks I generally assume they are Redtails but fact is I
should look at some pix because I know there are some different ones I
see.

Day in and day out, in this part of the world, Redtail is the safe
default assumption.....for those who don't know their hawks very
well. *Some winters Rough-legged is a better bet, and in some
environments it might be harriers or even, in a few times and places,
Cooper's. *But Redtail is indeed what most of them are most of the
time.

Here in W.Wa I see Eagles more often than hawks. Over on the
Eastside, there is a wind setup that blows thru a narrow gap (200
yards) West of me, and up-swells. The hawks tend to hang there over
the line of river trees. I should find out specifically what they are.

Sounds very typical of Redtails.....but I don't know western species.
Could well be something else.

Eagles can be seen just about anywhere in Wisconsin these days, but
the best bet is near the Wisconsin River or the
Mississippi.....especially in winter. *I've counted well over a
hundred perched on one smallish island in the Mississippi between La
Crosse and Prairie du Chien. *Many more were in flight throughout the
area. *One never actually gets blasé about it, but the adrenaline rush
sort of runs out after a couple thousand. * * *

Wolfgang

Concern around here is with the seabirds. Eagles, bald here, Goldens
further north like up in san Juans . . . doing fins AFAIK

Dave