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A é¢ -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Tuesday, April 21, 1987 One Woman's View by Chris Carlisle It never really occurred to me before how much like rainbow trout we can be. And I'm not talking about the fact that trout look beautifyl and shiny from a distance, but when you get close enough to touch, sometimes they're all slimy and cold I was in Part Hope recently, right in time for the trout run up the Ganaraska River. After watching from the bridge downtown as the fish made their way upstream, my sister took me up to the dam where my eyeballs nearly popped out. Packed in at the bottom of the dam, skin to skin like so many humans crammed in a city, were 90 million (give or take a few rain- " bow trout. Great, big, huge rainbow trout that I'm sure were all Just starving for a nice juicy worm. Unfortunately for my stomach, the area is. a reserve and the fish are safe there from hooks and nets, forever. 4 8 It was agony watching them. | kept imagining them hot and sizz}- ing in the frying pan and I kept remembering last summer when ! came home skunked after just about every fishing expedition But never mind that, there were all these fresh fish. some up to 17 pounds (that estimate from another onlooker--I'm no good at guessing weights) aflxiously awaiting their turn at the big jump * In order to get upstream for spawning, these guys first had to get over a 12-foot dam. And in order to do that, they had to jump. Imagine standing at the base of a f ive-storey building with water roaring off the roof and down the sides like a mini Niagara Falls Imagine your hands tied behind your back and having to charge at the building and leap six times your height, up onto the roof, against the on-going current. , oo These rainbow trout did no better than I would. It was smack. crash and thud against the concrete wall every tim&_Bellies and heads smashing and then. the fish bouncing backwards into the rushing waters. Some tried a leap from a few feet back, jumping right up into mid air, missing the wall entirely. Some dove head first . straight into the wall and others dove in groups of three or four But none made it up more than a few feet and all were immediately thrown back. oo I was getting one heck of a jgadache wayching them . I asked the weight-guesser if any ever made it. I assume he and his friend were locals because they seemed to know all about it He said they. never conquered the 12-foot leap but instead waited until 'the natural resources guy opened up the little fish canal which was directly underneath us and which I hadn't noticed. In the fish go, um- ping up little ladders until they get to the top where a select couple thousand are tagged, checked for health and released upstream after donating a scale sample. (By the look of some of the trout below. - 'they needed the scales for transplants.) The dam, he said, was to keep the undesirables. such as suckers, from getting out of Lake Ontario and up into the streams and rivers. So there they were, just like humans, struggling up-hill all the way. forcing their way against the current to follow that inner drive to attain success and happiness; in their case, spawning. They fight and fight, jumping up small waterfalls and obstacles and when they think they're getting closer, suddenly there's a gigan- tic roadblock that they can't possibly cross. Some brave and deter mined souls try anyway, following their instincts. all using different strategies, all smacking their heads against a brick wall Finally, through some miracle, they see the light--or as they call it, the fish ladder. The doors suddenly open for them and if they re not too tired or shellshocked, tifey carry on, knowing bliss and retire ment are on hand. But even then there's another obstacle to overcome--the natural resources employee who picks and/chases which ones will make it through Lo The lucky ones go on--the healthy, strong, determined ones. 1 guess--and the rest are turned back to remain with the masses. to keep on fighting, waiting for their chance Maybe next vear mathe the next I'm glad I'm not a trout. Despite it's obstacles. life as 3 h man seems so much easier At least we can think our w ay arou problems + 2h 1 Le Editorial Comments i (From page 4) the time may be here for a Township wide citizens commuttee who would advise the local council on where money should be spent each year, and actively go after any grants that might belavaidabie from ~ other levels of government. He also suggested the time may be here for a 'pay as you play policy when it comes to baseball diamonds. especially for the adult teams He said the volunteer organizations are faced with a Catch 22" | situation. They have done a lot of hard work to improve the facimes This, along with the growing population, has increased the demand but at the same time the organizations are having trouble recru tng people to cairy on the work as long time members decide # < me to drop out of the picture The growing pains in Scugog are obvious and Not-so-0oVIOUS this individual wondered where things are going and what th ngs will be like in five years for the volunteers, organizations and boards, Letters Library budget cut unjustified (From page 5) Uxbridge.......................... $31.70 Newcastle . . $27.91 Brock... $16.86 Scugbog ...... $13.87 Other libraries in the province serving the similar size population as Scugog:- : Local Support Per Household Lindsay ........ 35.86 Collingwood .........................2456 East Gwillimbury. ........ 47.01 Whitchurch-Stouffville........... 38.72 Orangeville........................... 29.28 In addition tothe increased use of the library over the past year, we also have the lowest number of staff for a library our size in the whole province. They are doing a very good job. Their wage increases pro- - posed for 1987 are an attempt to bring theni closer to those in other libraries of the same size, and more in line with the municipal staff in Scugog. Yours sincerely, Margaret Wilbur, Chairman Nancy Williams, Margaret Geer, Clare Monsell, Jack Moore, Peter Talbot, Jenny Yorgason. Scugog Memorial, Public Library Board. Common loon graces Lake Scugog To The Editor: As [sit at my picture window and look out across the Scugog Lake, I do not believe my eyes, for there, ten feet from the shore is a loon. My window is thirty-five feet from the lake and I am observing it forty-five feét away. What a thrill! There it is! There is a loon! Let's bury (From page 5) crying when we hear the label. Sometimes, our hearts beat faster and we feel very angry when we hear the name retarded. We hope that things will get bet- ter. We want people to know we are not retarded; it just takes us a little longer to learn something new. But, wwe do learn something new every- day. We are a group of people who believe in community living. I have seen loons other years but this one is so near. I don't need binoculars to see the beauty of its' coat. It is dressed in black and dot- ted with large and small polka dots and a collar with black and white stripes. It has a big long black bill and the underspots are white. With its black head, I can see it the labels Join us to bury the labels mental- - ly retarded, mentally handicapped, mentally disabled and developmen- tally handicapped. "We are people first!" Affirmative Action Committee for "People's First." Patricia Pinder, Cindy McKinley, Darlene Durward. Port Perry. WE'VE CHANGED ' OUR TUNE! ELY © REACHES LISTENERS! Central Ontario Radio PLUS: All Request Saturday Night and Big Band Sunday Night Each and Every Week! diving again and again and coming up like popcorn. It seems to be en- joying the water now that the winter ice has left us. According to the bird book, loons are practically helpless on land and they seldom are seen on ground far from the water's edge. Their colours change in summer and winter. Many 'wood carvers have carved out the loon in basswood and I have enjoyed the beauty of their work. When I see the wooden birds, I can almost hear the call the loons give with their mournful, wavering cries. A cry that lingers in my mind. It is called the Common Loon, but I think, that it is one of the most handsome of birds that we see along the shores of Lake Scugog. Yours truly, = Violet Hanley R.R. 3, Port Perry