Save the Moke!

The key word is needless. EBMUD does not need to drown more of the Moke to get water. There are a host of other real-world solutions.

The threatened river is loved by many for its beauty, for its beginning kayak runs and year-round angling. It is very regrettable that EBMUD is cultivating the fear of future water shortages directly into needless river destruction, we need your support so that we can ensure the voice of the river is heard.

Learn more here: www.friendsoftheriver.org/savethemoke

Comment - tell us about your experiences on the Moke, share pics and videos...we cant lose this cherished section of the Mokelumne

Richard Bangs, Rain and the Eng Theng

Random odds and ends and a report about the Fly Fishing Show in Pleasanton.

• 2007 Mark Dubois Award Winner Richard Bangs will be giving a slide show about Morocco at Mountain Travel Sobek. They are good people.


• At FOR World Headquarters (aka our Sacramento office) we are, in theory, 88% of normal for precipitation. Paso Robles is at 49% of normal, which isn’t good for drought, but might be good for fire scorched hillsides. It can be hard to make heads or tails of our water picture at the moment. It is easy to tell, however, that one year of decent rainfall that approaches normal, won’t get us out of the water fights we have ahead of us. As I write this from my Placerville home, it is raining on a 45% angle and the big pines are swaying like a tired angler after a few Steelhead Pale Ales.


• I was at the Fly Fishing Show in Pleasanton over the weekend, manning the Friends of the River table. Some of our fellow river-savers were out there, Western Rivers Conservancy and Trout Unlimited were within casting range. It was good to spread the word about our work with the mad-for-fly-fishing masses. It was also good to hear how many folks had heard of Friends of the River or were getting our emails through their Fly Fishing Clubs. During the slow periods I got to work on filling my fly box. I tied about 2 dozen #16 bead head pheasant tails and twenty #14 Eng Thengs (a fly from my home water of the Upper Sacramento invented by Dunsmuir guide and all around good guy, Wayne Eng). Thanks to Big Bird for working the table with me on Saturday.

For a fly fisherman in California, this is a beloved sight... the Red Barn on the Fall River. Located to the East of Mt. Shasta, the Fall River is the largest upwelling of spring water in North America and happens to be one heck of a fishery.

Bjorn - FOR Development Director and fish nut.

Bottled Water, McCloud River, Project Tap, Pasadena & Pleasanton Fly Fishing Shows

I don't know if you noticed... but we actually had one or several decent storms in the past week or so. While the needle is still pegged in the red, it was very nice to hear rain on the roof and hear of flakes in the mountains. It was a little bit of good news in these interesting times. Here are a few more little tid-bits I've collected for you:

• There are some really interesting films focusing on water these days. In addition to the two movies about the Klamath (Rivers of Renewal and Upstream Battle), a movie about the murky world of bottled water looks very interesting and is probably an important watch.


• Trout Unlimited’s On the Rise TV show recently aired an episode focused on the McCloud River, a true California gem, and discussed the threats posed by a proposed Nestle water bottling plant


• UNICEF is doing some interesting things around their Tap Project. The YouTube-ized Tap experience is worth a quick watch.


• If you are going to be browsing the booths at either the Fly Fishing Show in Pasadena (February 21-22) or Pleasanton (February 27 – March 1), stop by the Friends of the River Booth
  

Below is a picture of the Merced, just outside Yosemite. A beautiful CA river.