King-- You sound like a Port Townsend liberal (all politics aside, really) in that a number of folks in this area are doing just that-- changing the way they live to benefit not only salmon but all the natural environment. Smaller, eco-friendly houses, living off the grid, making wise environmental choices in everything from recycling greywater to storing rain to use in their organic gardens. Some of it is rubbing off on me...

Aunty-- I will try to get that issue by hook or by crook.

As far as the warmwater fishing goes-- the tackle industry calls it adipose fever-- whenever of salmon or steelhead are doing well, fishing for other species stops in the Northwest. This is especially true in the fall when bass fishing drops off, and a lot of bass guys hook up their sleds. Since some of the walleye fishermen use sleds as well, when the salmon or steelhead are in, all they have to do is change some of their tackle boxes.

You may also be seeing the effects of the economy. When folks are laid off or unemployed, they tend to go fishing more often-- as witnessed by the increase in hook sales; they go way up in a down economy. Another thing that seems evident is that there is more disposable income (contradictory, I know) in that sales of aluminum boats are way up-- a number of factories are sold out of their production or have a substantial backlog of orders. More disposable income puts more people on the road chasing fish.

Thinking about it a bit more, since the blackmouth fishery seems to have tanked over the last few years, it could be that saltwater guys are moving around a lot and may be in rivers or bays or places they haven't fished before. I know that several folks from around here are fishing in SW Washington because of better opportunity.

Keith