Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
Subscription Form

Get notified of the best News

Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn 0
22K Followers
25K Likes
5K Followers
1K Followers
Mountain Life
Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
  • Mountain Lifer

Steelhead Seekers: Diving in the Name of Research

  • September 10, 2019
  • Mountain Life Media
Total
14
Shares
14
0
0
0
0
0
Total
14
Shares
Share 14
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0
BenHaggar ML Steelhead 1 copy
Here fishy fishy.


words & photography :: Ben Haggar.

Gearing up with layers of fleece, down, neoprene hoods and astronaut-esque gloves air locking into his dry suit, Josh Korman, Ph.D. and fish expert, and his team of biologists are in for a cold day on the river. The water and air temperatures are only a few degrees above freezing, but what’s a little discomfort in the pursuit of science?

It takes a special kind of dedication and love for fish to jump into the Cheakamus River in search of steelhead—a curious piscis that straddles the line between salmonid and trout—before the snowmelt runoff clouds up the water in early spring. Steelhead are clever and skittish fish, so having at least 5m of visibility is key to successful spotting. 

The fishy game of cat and mouse begins south of the Cheakamus Canyon, in a region where the river flow relaxes to a more manageable Class 2 whitewater. The 14-kilometre swim will take around 4-5 hours, and Korman’s team of three might have 30 steelhead sightings each. While their float-and-see methods are simple, the issue they are studying is slightly more complex.

Back in the 1950s BC Hydro created the Daisy Lake diversion dam. The agreement was that Hydro could take 55 per cent of the water flowing into the lower Cheakamus River and put it through the turbines, spitting it out into the Squamish River. It was a controversial decision to take more than half the water out of the Cheakamus, changing the timing and hydrology of a river which had no data regarding fish or any other animal habitat considerations. In its day, the Daisy Lake dam was a decent player in hydro generation, but now only contributes about 1.5 per cent of BC’s electricity.

Fast forward to the late ‘90s, the Ministry of Environment did some accounting and found that Hydro was taking more water from the Cheakamus than originally allowed, which led to the implementation of the Water Usage Planning Process (WUPP). WUPP seeks to strike a balance between competing uses of water, where the numbers for volumes of water being held up or diverted are based around actual scientific data regarding the health of the rivers that are being used for profit. 

Korman does escapement studies—enumerating how many steelhead are returning to the river each year to gauge the health of the Cheakamus population, which is estimated at around 500-800 fish.

“In wide rivers, swimming is the only way to get accurate counts of adult fish,” he says. “You can’t put gates or fences across big rivers like the Cheakamus, so three of us will fan out across the river and visually count the fish. Depending on water clarity and other factors, we can get population estimates based how many fish we see in the river that day.”

After nearly 20 years, Korman’s swim data is the only longstanding research that enables biologists to see a longer-term picture for steelhead. And that picture suggests the current flow regime has had a negative effect on the population.

SeatoSky16
Catching a steelhead on the fly is an anglers dream. Unless there are no steelhead..Photo: Marshal Chupa

Steelhead are a priority species because they spend more time—up to two or three years—in the river than other residents like pink or chum salmon which migrate out to sea much earlier. Steelhead utilize some of the best survival skills from their salmon cousins, like journeying to salt water to grow in size and strength, but also maintain the capacity to survive solely in fresh water and reproduce more than once—traits more common to rainbow trout. This combination, the best of both worlds, makes for a beautiful fish that is highly-prized by anglers and a perfect gauge of the health of the river.

Presently, the WUPP is in the review phase with the ultimate decision to be made by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), the Ministry of the Environment (MOTE), and BC Hydro. Government agencies are tricky entities: federal governments can change every four years, and so can their priorities. Past cuts to DFO and MOTE funding, combined with people sitting in the federal committees that have neither the experience nor the longevity and historical knowledge to properly judge the issues has not made it easy for fish in BC. As a crown corporation, BC Hydro’s focus on profit and customer affordability over stewardship doesn’t help either. 

Case in point: 2019 will be the final year of funding for Korman’s Cheakamus project unless the government moves to prioritize long term monitoring of fish stocks and taking care of rivers being used for resource and profit. 

Whether a more natural flow cycle (which would have periods of flood and drought), or keeping the minimum required flow is chosen, it’s researchers like Korman braving ice cream headaches in frigid waters that provide hard factual data in hopes that governing bodies can find a balance between recreation, resource and the environment. Whether Canada’s elected officials will act or not… that’s an entirely other upstream battle. —ML

Total
14
Shares
Share 14
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0
Related Topics
  • fishing
  • River
Mountain Life Media

Previous Article
  • The Great Outdoors

Whistler’s Newest Backcountry Hut is Open for Business

  • September 9, 2019
  • Ben Osborne
View Post
Next Article
  • The Great Outdoors

After Eighty Years, Salmon are Back in the Seymour River

  • September 13, 2019
  • Ben Osborne
View Post
You May Also Like
knorthphotography.Beverly-Glenn Copeland-crop
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer

Beverly Glenn-Copeland: Finding the Universal Broadcast

  • Mountain Life Media
  • January 17, 2023
Talon-Pascal-lilWat-feature-crop
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer

Talon Pascal, Culture Keeper

  • Mountain Life Media
  • January 9, 2023
M-Fredriksson-Christina-Lusti-2
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Skiing
  • Women

Christina “Lusti” Lustenberger: Killing It Softly

  • Mountain Life Media
  • January 3, 2023
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Skiing
  • Videos

Friday Flick: Santa Rips

  • Sarah Bulford
  • December 23, 2022
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding

Arc’teryx Backcountry Academy is coming to Whistler B.C.

  • Sarah Bulford
  • December 20, 2022
Ricky-Lewon-ski-racer
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Skiing

Ricky Lewon and the Need for Speed

  • Mountain Life Media
  • December 9, 2022
Raphael-Zarka
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer

Art vs. Skate

  • Mountain Life Media
  • December 5, 2022
TylerRavelle_R_Kimura-1410
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Snowboarding
  • Surfing
  • Women

The Jess Kimura Interview

  • Mountain Life Media
  • November 24, 2022

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Featured Posts
  • Mountain-Life-Coast-Mountains-Winter-2023 1
    ML Coast Mountains Winter-Spring ’23 Issue Out Now
    • February 3, 2023
  • Saint-Lawrence-ice-canoe-Jean-Anderson 2
    Jean Anderson: 40 Years of Ice Canoeing
    • January 31, 2023
  • CHOK-Images-RAB-Avril-2022 3
    Chic-Chocs: True Eastern Alpine
    • February 2, 2023
  • Life-Time-Grand-Prix-gravel-bike 4
    New Docuseries Profiles the World’s Elite Off-Road Cyclists
    • January 30, 2023
  • Fjallraven-Nuuk-Parka-daniel-blom-photo_jacket 5
    Gear Shed: Multisport Winter Roundup
    • January 26, 2023
RECENT POSTS
  • L'Hymne-des-Trembles-Laurentians-Quebec
    L’Hymne des Trembles: Uncompromising Laurentian Skiing
    • January 27, 2023
  • Brian-Hockenstein-surfing-Iceland-water-and-ice-ML
    In the Land of Water & Ice
    • January 24, 2023
  • Marie-Pier-Desharnais-A-Womans-Experience-on-K2-flag-crop
    Marie-Pier Desharnais: A Woman’s Experience on K2
    • January 23, 2023
Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn 0
INSTAGRAM
mountainlifemedia
22K Followers
There are some first times that we will always remember. Like the time I skied off-piste through the alpine highlands of le parc national de la Gaspésie.
@shimizuimg getting those January goods ❄️ #mountainlifer
With four decades of ice canoeing under his belt, Jean Anderson has dominated a sport that's unique to Quebec and that he helped shape.
Featuring three gravel and three MTB events, the series explores the intense competition and love of the sport among 60 of the world’s premier cyclists.
Winter commute with #mountainlifer @michelle_pittam ❄️🚵‍♀️🌲
@lhymnedestrembles.ca is no mirage. Set in the lush Laurentian forest, yet easily accessible (less than an hour and a half from Montreal), this luxurious ski-in ski-out residential resort by @groupebrivia is nestled at the foot of the Versant Soleil side of Mont Tremblant. The Tremblant region is a perennial destination for outdoor enthusiasts from around the world, and within the province, attracting 3.5 million visitors annually.
ML staff and gear partners highlight the latest jackets, boards, crampons, hoodies, insoles and bindings in alpha order. #Linkinbio to learn more!
Adventures like this one require an inspiring team. @timemmett is a longtime friend, adventure partner and extraordinary human; an explorer, pro climber, surfer, freediver—you name it. @luca.freediver is an incredibly talented freediver, fresh off breaking the Canadian national freediving record (85 metres). The fourth man on the team, @brianhockenstein, is a filmmaker and multi-talented snowboarder always ready to jump into the fray and capture the magic. - words Jimmy Martinello. #Linkinbio to learn more!
We came in search of the connection of the human spirit to both art and adventure, whether climbing from the depths of moulins and ice caves, breaking through ice while paddleboarding fjords, climbing icebergs, freediving between tectonic plates or surfing cold waves.
A thousand and one things could have gone wrong, but she made it to the top:  @mariepier.desharnais is the first Quebecois woman to climb K2.
Follow

Subscribe

Subscribe now to our newsletter

There are some first times that we will always remember. Like the time I skied off-piste through the alpine highlands of le parc national de la Gaspésie.
@shimizuimg getting those January goods ❄️ #mountainlifer
With four decades of ice canoeing under his belt, Jean Anderson has dominated a sport that's unique to Quebec and that he helped shape.
Featuring three gravel and three MTB events, the series explores the intense competition and love of the sport among 60 of the world’s premier cyclists.
Winter commute with #mountainlifer @michelle_pittam ❄️🚵‍♀️🌲
@lhymnedestrembles.ca is no mirage. Set in the lush Laurentian forest, yet easily accessible (less than an hour and a half from Montreal), this luxurious ski-in ski-out residential resort by @groupebrivia is nestled at the foot of the Versant Soleil side of Mont Tremblant. The Tremblant region is a perennial destination for outdoor enthusiasts from around the world, and within the province, attracting 3.5 million visitors annually.
Mountain Life
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Advertising

Input your search keywords and press Enter.