Early last Saturday morning I walked the trail along the Columbia River. By Hood River Best Western’s dock, I saw some large fish in the shallow water east. Initially, they were by themselves—sending up a sand and bubble storm fluttering their tails and fins in the sand. Soon a darker fish came over to one of them, seemed to sympathize with her/him, sort of swam around and over the top, and finally settled down next to the fluttering fish—emulating its behavior. I thought salmon (a guess) laid their eggs in the tributaries where they came from. Were these farm raised fish who couldn’t find the farm? Or was the water so warm the fish decided it wasn’t worth the extra effort to swim up the river when this sandy place seem to be okay. Any answers readers care to supply?
Ann Marie Jelderks
Hood River
