After a quick stop for coffee and donuts, I was at the dock on the east side of the Puget Sound before 5. Mark Taylor, chair of the Washington TU Council, beat me there and we loaded his boat. Mark had been catching king salmon every morning all week and the tide was perfect on this particular day. We anticipated a fine morning on the water.

I’ve always considered myself to be a big time fish geek, but Mark definitely has me beat. An avid angler, Mark is attempting to catch as many species of fish as he can. I think he told me he is up to 237 or so. In addition, Mark guides anglers through his company, Raven’s Luck Guide Service. The rest of the time, Mark works as an aquarium fish distributor, so he spends time with fish from all over the world.

I was hoping to check Chinook salmon off my own, very informal, species list, but even the best laid plans…

Unfortunately, Mark’s boat was experiencing technical difficulties and we were unable to reach the fishing grounds. Such is life as the “Luckiest Guy in America.” These things can happen on any fishing trip, but they are particularly unavoidable during a 5+ month angling voyage.

While we were both disappointed about missing out on double digit salmon, all was not lost. I still had a fine TU project site to visit.

After another round of coffee and donuts (early mornings call for extreme measures), I met with Andy Batcho, a longtime TUer affiliated with the Des Moines Salmon Chapter.

Des Moines is a seaside hamlet on the south side of Seattle. Historically, the small coastal streams in the area held salmon runs. And now that the big rivers are obstructed by dams, small stream salmon populations are particularly important.

Andy and his fellow chapter members have undertaken an impressive, multi-faceted restoration project on two local small streams.

Walker and Miller Creeks flow behind houses and through a community park before finding the ocean. They were devoid of fish for 50 years, but thanks to the Des Moines Chapter’s restoration work, hundreds of adult salmon now return each year.

Andy is a retired Boeing engineer turned full-time “Fish-head.” When he is not out seeking state and world records with his fly rod, Andy is designing and implementing stream habitat projects.

Using his technical abilities as an engineer, Andy set about learning whatever he could about stream design. He tracked down experts from all over the state and tapped their brains about improving habitat, restoring native plants, re-establishing wetlands, and so on. Andy reports that experts from universities and government agencies are thrilled to share their own two cents about stream restoration plans, allowing laypersons (or retired engineers anyway) to design highly effective stream improvement projects. The best projects are usually a product of the best laid plans.

Furthermore Andy has found that “When you turn out a fantastic plan, money falls out of the sky.” Particularly when wetland restoration is involved, state and federal agencies have financial resources available for making these projects happen.

In a seemingly tireless effort, Andy and his fellow chapter members created great restoration plans for their two little creeks and secured the necessary funding. They then enlisted the help of the community to make their ideas reality.

Since 2004, they have built a saltwater marsh and a natural rearing pond, greatly increasing the success of salmon smolts and coastal cutthroat. During my visit, they were working on restoring pools in a section of stream in front of a community recreation building. The pools will provide cover for adult fish on their spawning run as well as protection for immature fish before they leave for the ocean.

In addition, the community has been involved in re-planting native vegetation and constructing a trail system around the newly improved stream.

Numerous boy scouts have completed Eagle Scout projects here. We visited briefly with one scout who was constructing 123 feet of raised plank trail to protect the stream’s riparian zone, yet still allow the community to use the park.

Details such as the construction of the trail loop have helped the project earn support from the entire community, even the residents who don’t necessarily care about fish.

And I’d bet that even those folks who only thought about fish while sitting in a restaurant had a change of heart when they first saw spawning salmon in their own backyard.

By empowering the community with a good restoration plan, the Des Moines Salmon TU Chapter is completing a large-scale effort that is producing real results. Kudos to Andy Batcho and the other hardworking TUers who made this fine project possible!

To see photos of the project site and coastal cutthroats, CLICK HERE.

To learn more about TU in Washington, CLICK HERE.