Next Up - The Fish Hatchery

One of our camping days was spent on a self-guided tour of the fish hatchery.  They grow Salmon there. Okay, it's a bit more complicated than that but it boils down to the same thing.  They are like a fish maternity ward - sort of...

Here we are newly arrived at the visitors center. Isn't that a cute parking sign?

When you walk into the building there are informative signs and maps all over the place.  The room behind the glass windows is the "delivery room" where they actually birth those little fishes.  They say there is a difference between Steelhead and Chinook Salmon, but to me they are all just fishy critters.  I think I might like to eat one, but none were ever offered to me and I don't think the Forest Rangers would like me to help myself to a fresh catch!

I think you can read this if you enlarge it.

Hmmm..... Winter Steelhead and Spring Chinook - sounds suspiciously like squash to me!

Here is the delivery room up closer.

Here you can learn all about making baby fishes. :)  I never had any babies and when I asked the Duchess about it she said all babies are made this way! 






Here is some more stuff to read.  You can just zip right through these if you don't like fish!  

Now, finally, here I am with Lady G heading towards the holding ponds for the babies.

This is a cool thing to see.  The babies are born with the instinct to swim against the current.  Here are two little ones trying to jump into the pipe.  Can you see them?

They never did make it but they tried until they got too tuckered out!


This is one of the holding ponds.  It was full of tiny fish.  If you look closely you can see them.  Actually what you are seeing is their shadows.  The ponds have nets over them to keep the birds from stealing the babies.  Soon they will be released into the river and they will head out to the ocean to grow up.  Then they will come back here.  They are born that smart.  They don't even have to go to school to learn that.  So next time you see a school of fish you can be sure there are no Salmon in the class!

Then we headed down to see the Mom's and Dad's :)

This is the fish ladder. They come up the river to the ladder and have to jump against the current to get back home.  We saw them do it last year and it was pretty amazing.  They never give up.

Once they make it up the ladder they go into the adult holding ponds.

There are some really big adults in there!  Looks yummy :)

This was posted near the tanks.  They have to keep track of everything that comes in.

This is another view of the babies ponds.

Now we are leaving the adults behind and heading back to the visitor center past the babies ponds.

Finally back at camp.  We were exhausted from all that fishy excitement.

And, just so you know - This was the year of the braces.  They're blue!

Next up - We head to Dog Creek!

Thanks for stopping by :)

Kisses,