KARLTJK RIVER RED-SALMON INVESTIGATION 



25 



August 16. — Several hundred fish were schooled off the mouth of O'Malley River, and about 

 2,000 were spawning in the river. Some of the fish observed on the eighth, at the foot of O'Malley 

 Lake, were spawning, but the majority were still waiting and were massed in close schools in shallow 

 water, close to shore where drainage from springs cooled the water. * * * About 1,000 were 

 dead along shore. Between 1,000 and 1,500 fish were seen in the creek that enters at the upper 

 end of O'Malley Lake. Most of these were dead, though there were a few hundred live ones in 

 the creek and in the lake about its mouth. 



August 22. — Comparatively few live salmon were found in Upper Thumb River — estimated 

 10,000 to 20,000. There were a few hundred about the mouth of the upper river. In the river 

 below Thumb Lake, however, salmon were more numerous than they had been since the heavy 

 spawning in July. The number here was estimated at between 1,000 and 1,500. A few were 

 schooled off the mouth of Salmon Creek, but no such number as in early July. 



August 23. — Halfway Creek was explored as far as the first falls that are impassable for salmon 

 The available portion of the creek is only about a quarter of a mile in length. About 1,200 to 1,500 

 fish were spawning here, and it was estimated that not less than 5,000 had previously spawned 

 and died. 



Grassy Point Creek was less well populated, although about }/% mile is available for spawning. 

 Estimated only 300 live salmon here, largely confined to the lower two-thirds of the stream. Esti- 

 mated that between 5,000 and 10,000 had spawned here during the early run. 



Spring Creek contained very few fish. A dozen or so were seen off its mouth, and about 75 in 

 the stream and the spring pools. Moraine Creek M r as examined for only a few hundred yards 

 and contained virtually no spawning fish. Only 7 five salmon were seen in the creek, and a dozen 

 or so were in the lake about the mouth. 



Cottonwood Creek was explored to the first impassable falls — about a half mile. Estimated 

 that 5,000 to 10,000 salmon had spawned here earlier in the season, although on this date there 

 were only some 500 live fish in the stream and about 200 schooled in the lake near its mouth. 



Little Bear Creek is a small, spring-fed stream of much the same character as Spring Creek. 

 It rises in several shallow pools, averaging 25 to 30 feet across, which are used to a limited extent 

 by the spawning salmon. It was estimated that several hundred salmon had spawned here, but 

 no live ones were seen. A few dozen were in the lake just outside. 



August 24- — A few dozen fish were seen off the mouth of Salmon Creek, but there were very 

 few fish in the creek itself. Only about 50 were counted in the first 200 yards. 



Thumb River, below Thumb Lake, contained a number of salmon, estimated at between 

 1,500 and 2,000. They were spawning there and not passing on up the river. About 800 salmon 

 were spawning along the shore at the head of the Thumb on each side of the mouth of the river. 



Big Bear Creek: This is similar in character to Spring Creek and Little Bear Creek, but is 

 larger than either, containing two or three times as much spawning area. It was estimated that 

 about 1,000 salmon of the early run had spawned here, but there were only a few dozen live fish 

 on this date. 



Willow Creek is another steep, bowldery stream, similar to Cottonwood, Grassy Point, Half- 

 way, and Meadow Creeks. Quite a number of fish were schooled off the mouth and some were 

 spawning along the beach, the total number being estimated at 200. This stream is passable to 

 salmon for about a quarter of a mile. There were about 400 live fish in the creek, and it was 

 estimated that 4,000 to 5,000 had spawned here previously. 



O'Malley River: Five hundred to 1,000 fish were schooled off the mouth, and about 1,000 

 were spawning in the river between Karluk and O'Malley Lakes. The fish previously noted were 

 spawning all along the shore at the foot of O'Malley Lake. 



Falls Creek: The scene here was typical of most of the streams at this time — many dead fish 

 almost completely decomposed, the water foul with refuse from the carcasses, and comparatively 

 few were congregated in the holes. 



Canyon Creek: One thousand two hundred to 1,500 live fish were observed in the lower half 

 mile, and a dense school containing several hundred was off the mouth of this stream. 



Salmon were spawning all along the beach, from a little distance east of the mouth of Canyon 

 Creek to Cascade Creek. They did not appear to be very abundant, however. * * * Esti- 

 mated about 1,000 in all. 



