"Extinction Stops Here" Road Show Visits Ventura

Brett Millar from Great Pacific Iron Works, sends us this report about some honored guests who visited recently:

Great Pacific Iron Works, the original headquarters for the retail division of Patagonia in Ventura, California had an extremely unusual visitor this past week. Save Our Wild Salmon and their “Extinction Stops Here” road show stopped by with a 25-foot-long metal and fiberglass salmon to raise awareness for endangered wild salmon and steelhead in the Pacific Northwest.

Save Our Wild Salmon is a nationwide coalition of conservation organizations, commercial and sport-fishing associations, businesses, river groups, and taxpayer advocates. This partnership was formed in order to help restore what used to be a thriving species of fish that, in the time of Lewis and Clark, numbered over 16 million within the Columbia and Snake River Basins alone. Today, as few as 10,000 salmon return to the Snake River each year. The main reason for this huge decrease in numbers is the various human-made dams blocking the travel of these magnificent creatures to their original spawning grounds. The group’s present focus, and the reason for the five-state road tour with Fin the giant salmon, is campaigning for the partial removal of four dams on the lower Snake River in Idaho.

[Joseph Bogaard and Jeremy Nickel pose with some of the Patagonia kids. Photo: Brett Millar]

“This administration and its federal agencies continue to disregard the cultural and economic value of these fish and their importance to the people of the Northwest. If we’re going to maintain fishing communities and economies, we need real political leadership to ensure long-term protection and restoration of the rivers, streams and oceans where wild salmon live and spawn,” said Joseph Bogaard, Outreach Director for Save Our Wild Salmon.

Joseph, along with his traveling partner Jeremy Nickel, have been driving down the Pacific coast for over three weeks informing the public on their way about the plight of our nation's fish populations. Those who stopped by to see this gigantic fish -- it was made by a small number of artists up in San Francisco about 20 years ago -- could sign a petition and/or send a postcard urging political leaders to ensure that the federal government meets its responsibility to restore these once wild and scenic places where fish used to thrive.

Extinction Stops Here is project of Save Our Wild Salmon, with support from American Whitewater, Association of Northwest Steelheaders, Clackacraft, Federation of Fly Fishers, Northwest Energy Coalition, North Olympic Salmon Coalition, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Patagonia, Sierra Club, Salmon Protection and Watershed Network, Trout Unlimited, and United Anglers of California.

To learn more about Save Our Wild Salmon's trip down the coast, visit their Web site: www.wildsalmon.org

Brett Millar
Patagonia's G.P.I.W.
Environmental Grants Coordinator

[YC contemplates the size fly it would take to land a 25-foot salmon; Looking out Fin's mouth at Save Our Wild Salmon's information table; A beautiful mural is painted on the inside of the fish; Anthony (I.T.) and his son Anthony Jr. walk inside the belly of the not-so-beastly Fin. All photos by Brett Millar]

Comments

[steve stracqualursi]

For all OR attendees, consider checking out:

Laura Veirs Benefit Concert
August 11, 2007
Outdoor Retailer Summer Market
Pierpont Place – Salt Lake City
Nonesuch recording artist and singer-songwriter Laura Veirs will headline a solo benefit concert for Save Our Wild Salmon during this year’s Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in Salt Lake City. Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors Osprey Packs, Chaco, Patagonia, and Verde PR, all ticket proceeds will go to support Save Our Wild Salmon.

The show is open to the general public as well as attendees at the OR show. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online (scroll down to “Get Tickets for Laura Veirs”), from sponsor booths at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, and at the door on the evening of the show. Tickets are limited, so reserve your seat today! For more information, contact Kristie Miller at kristie@wildsalmon.org.

[Dave Sheek]

I love things like this... Save the fishies!

[patagoniacommunity.blogspot.com]

Great cause, great idea. Sometimes it takes a giant fish strolling down your street to grab your attention. Keep up the good work guys.

[Amy Kober]

It's great to see this big salmon raising awareness about the need to remove the four dams on the lower Snake River.

Dams are coming down to restore salmon and steelhead runs elsewhere in the Northwest -- we recently celebrated the demolition of Marmot Dam on Oregon's Sandy River.

I'm looking forward to watching those fish come back, and paddlers are excited about the new boating opportunities.

I hope the restoration of a free-flowing Sandy River inspires people on the lower Snake and elsewhere.