Canoe Flipping

In early summer of 2001 a three day canoing/fishing trip was the cure for the long ache of a cold wet spring. The canoes we used for most of our upper Miramichi fishing trips were 21 foot freighters. They were stable and we grew to trust them. Marvin, Damien and Scott were in one canoe floating over a deep hole. Damien spotted some big trout and when the other two inexperience canoe men decided to lean over the same side to see the fish, the canoe flipped. Denis and I were upstream about 200 yards. We had a good view of their pitiful faces as we glided passed. A site for sore eyes alright. They sat in the canoe filled with water, their fishing rods and gear floating around. They were wet, cold and Damien’s pride was hurt. He repeatedly commented on how he never flipped a canoe in 20 years. I suppose some would say it was crewel of Denny and I to start laughing at them. After we recovered our breath from laughter, we helped dump the water out of the canoe and gather the gear and beer. Damien’s two week old cell phone which he bought at a cost of $500.00 was sitting on the river's bottom. I am not sure where all the fishing tackle came from but there seemed to be a fair amount of it floating down the river.

Salmon

When the leaves fall from the trees in fall, the salmon settle into their winter home on the upper reaches of the salmon rivers. They spawn and house themselves under the shield of the winter’s ice. In spring the adults head down river to the ocean and feed for the summer. Some make their way to the coast of Green Land then back to the very spot where they were hatched. On the way down the river these fish are easier to catch because they are hungry and feeding at every opportunity. They are referred to as black salmon or slinks, etc... because they are dark in color due to water staining and skinny because of the lack of winter food supply and their spawning ritual. These black salmon heading down river do not fight as good as a salmon that just returned from the sea because the black salmon are worn out. If you decide to fish these worn out salmon I highly recommend you try to capture the salmon quickly, take a picture and release it back in its realm as quickly as possible. A speedy capture and speedy release helps ensure the fish’s survival; they are already in a week state so a lengthy fight on the end of a line will surely be it's death. A quick capture and release gives it a chance to survive and maybe next year you will catch it again after it gains 15 pounds.