Fishing in the River

Fishing in the River. . , ”This river is remarkably clear and crowded with salmon in maney places… , Salmon may be seen at the depth of 15 or 20 feet… , The number… , Is remarkable to say.” , ~Captain Wm. Clark , The Nimi’ipuu relied upon the fish of the rivers for a significant portion of their food supply. In early spring, the men would travel to the Snake and Clearwater rivers for the salmon runs. Steelhead, sturgeon, trout, eels, and crayfish were all caught and eaten in their season. Although berry and root gathering and hunting were fundamental, the salmon runs were essential to survival. All able-bodied men participated, using hook and line, spears, harpoons, dip nets, traps, and weirs. , Sturgeon , The sturgeon of the Snake and Columbia rivers are modern relics of an ancient group of fishes. They are remarkable for their size and lifespan: up to 20 feet long and 1,500 pounds and living for over 100 years. Sturgeon have a heavy, armor-like skin instead of scales and a skeleton of cartilage rather than bone. Similar to salmon, they live part of their lives in the ocean and swim upriver to spawn in fresh water. , A Ton of Fish , As Stephen Ambrose noted in Undaunted Courage, the Snake and Columbia River system “produced more salmon than any other river in the world. Nez Perce catches were incredible: one man could kill a hundred salmon on a good day, a full ton or more of fish.” , ”Our diet extremely bad having nothing but roots and dried fish to eate, all the Party have greatly the advantage of me, in as much as they all relish the flesh of the dogs, Several of which we purchased of the nativs for to add to our store of fish and roots &c. &c. “ , ~Captain Wm. Clark, October 10, 1805 , Eels at Asotin , The Nimi’ipuu rarely camped near here at the “Tseminicum,” their word meaning the “Meeting of the Waters.” They preferred sites like the mouth of Asotin Creek, where they fished for the Pacific lamprey eel. They called this ell ”Heesut’in,” from which the name Asotin is derived.