The Daily Alaska empire., 1946-10-21
MORE SALMON IS
 GOAL OF STREAM
 IMpR0v'T SURVEY

salmon stream improvement recon nsissance. the Fish and Wildlife vessel Brown Bear arrived in Ju- neau las. night with a party of seven stream improvement program surveyors aboard. The party is headed by aquatic biologist Sam uel J. Hutchinson, Alaska pink sal mon authority who directs the fish cries biological station at Little Port Walter.
 Other members of the scientific group are: Biologists Mark Mor ton, John Hodges, Robert Halver- sen; hydraulics engineer Scott Bair and his assistants Willard Drewington and Stan Pederson. Captain of the Brown Bear is Dan Drotning, who navigated his vessel and crew of nine men on three month Arctic ocean trip this sum- mer, prior to assignment to the stream improvement program n Southeast Alaska.
 Sd1D1UH StTtdHI -IIt
 Hutchinson and his picked crew commenced one-month recon naissance of Southeast Alaska streams at Dolomi Creek, on east ern Prince of Wales Island, Uc- tober 2. Since then, they have been working northward, hitting selected salmon streams on the is lands of Southeast Alaska
 The biologists and engineers go ashore in small boats seven days per week, armed with note books, measuring tapes, cameras and surveyors transit. Two experienced men check the lower reaches of each stream for available spawning areas together with the numbers and species of salmon present. The engineer and his crew survey falls which block the salmon'S course upstream Two or more biologists accurately measure and record all available spawning gravel in the stream above the falls, taking care ful note of all windfalls and othsr minor and major Instructions. They wade the stream and follow game trails upstream until the water diminishes to a trickle.
 When consolidated, the reports from the three sections of the stream give a clear-cut picture of its potentialities and it's need for improvement Mir Hutchinson asks that anyone having knowledge of streams that are impossible to salmon please write him in care of the Fish and Wildlife Service Re- gional Office at Juneau.
 Just Kickoff
 This is just the kickoff, Hutch inson explained. There is plenty of hard work ahead, but our goal is che which I am sure Alaskans will approve-more salmon for AL aska.
 Nature is doing her best to produce salmon, but mankind will have to assist where insurmount- able obstacles are encountered We are going to let nature carry the ball, as in the past, but we'll help her along with boost in the rough spots.
 Burnett Inlet Creek on Etolin Island is a fine example of how obstacles in a stream can cut down salmon run" Hutchinson con- tinued. We found a nine-foot waterfall 50 yards from salt water which stopped the salmon. Sever al thousand pinks, echoes and chumS were seen below the fall, but only seven cohoe salmon had made their way above the fall to take advantage of over half a mile of excellent spawning area The fish below either knocked themselves out trying to jump the waterfall or spawned ineffectively in brackish tidal water
 Depressing Situation
 We have encountered vari- ation of the same depressing situ- ation on nearly every stream we have surveyed" the biologist lead CT said, but" he concluded en- Enthusiastically, don't be surprised i you hear jack hammers and tht ringing of heavy tools along somt of the creeks next year. Fish lad ders are the answer We have barely scratched the surface or hundreds of acres of first-clas spawning area to be made avail able for Alaska's salmon Th' wheels are beginning to turn ant we'll get results that will pay of in the form of more salmon il these Alaskan streams.
 Although checking on escapemen and stream seeding is not par of the present stream improvement project, Hutchinson reported tha his party had found good escape ment in the Clarence Strait an Southern areas becoming progres sively poorer as the group worke northWard.
 The Brown Bear is to leave her at midnight on the southward le of the stream improvement recon naissance. First call will be { Gambler Bay, after which survey will be made of streams near Pet ershllrp and Wraneell. in Wranee