GBL,

I'm hardly a kid, and I'd appreciate that you not talk to me like one. OK, you've fished the Skagit longer than I. I didn't discover that great river until 1972.

If I've been brainwashed, it's to let objectivity rule over my emotions. I've watched treaty Indians set and drift net all over that river system, from the Jetty drift at the mouth, upstream to the old government bridge on the Sauk. I'm well aware of the effectiveness of gillnetting. I've also flown the Skagit and Sauk doing spawning surveys of chinook and steelhead, and seen that, in spite of the interception fisheries of treaty and non-treaty fishing, thousands of salmon and steelhead nonetheless survive the gauntlet and return to their spawning grounds.

I know the situation isn't perfect. I've talked with both WDFW and tribal enforcement officers, and seen the poacher nets they pull from the river (and not all of them are owned by Indians, BTW). Poaching occurs, but less happens now than did 20 and 30 years ago. But you say the Indians have wiped out the steelhead. I've seen and counted the steelhead on the spawning grounds that disprove your allegation. Like I said, it's incumbent on you to prove that your views and opinion are indeed facts. Can you prove that the WDFW escapement estimates based on redd counts are faulty? It's your opportunity to put up, . . . or . . .

Sincerely,

Salmo g.