Swimming Upstream

The Salmon: Determination against the odds.

April marks the beginning of the Pacific Northwest’s salmon run.

What creature is more inspiring than the silver salmon?

I went to the observation deck on the Columbia River. As I watched and waited, only a few overachievers made their way past the underwater window. Maybe because the weather felt more like early February? Salmon are/were a vital aspect of Native American culture in the Pacific Northwest. The symbolism they associated with salmon include traits such as intensity, confidence, determination, wisdom, and spiritual desire. They’re apt descriptors considering strong currents, raging rapids, fish ladders, seals, bass, and bears are just a few of their natural predators. Their big killers are the illegal commercial fishing fleets and climate change evaporating or warming their cold northern waters. With the drought in California, fish biologists reported that out of 2,000 salmon eggs, 2 fish might survive to adulthood. Maybe the official ending of the drought will give them a fighting chance. In the last 100 years of drastic population decline, they’ve become the underdog.

We cheered them on as they struggled to the top of the fish ladder, knowing it’s just one step in their marathon journey. Did you know that they are guided back from the sea to almost the exact spot where they were born by a magnetic-type compass in their brain? Did you know that once they leave the sea to spawn in their native waters, they don’t stop to eat? That’s dedication!

If you haven’t had the pleasure of watching salmon swim, consider a trip to the Columbia River and the Bonneville Dam Visitor's Center. Between now and mid-June, it’s fun to watch the majestic monsters on their journey to the sea.

It's National Poetry Month. Check out David Whyte’s lingering, beautiful imagery: Ode to the Salmon