Forces of nature
When you hear boulders boom as they slowly tumble beneath the pressure of water during a mountain river flood, it sinks in why river rocks are smooth and round. The forces of water and erosion are astonishing. Geologic events are right before your eyes and in your ears.
Jeffery Mount of the Public Policy Institute of California calls this State "North America's most variable climate." Drought, flood and fire come to mind, with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions tossed in as well.
Flood in particular, raise questions about the survival of trout, steelhead and salmon during such events. The Pacific Rim in general beg the question of how such species exist instead of ending up as
an evolutionary dead end eons ago. Any creature surviving beneath the water at such times seems dubious.
Each time, as an angler, you touch even a small wild trout, a window into the life of an extraordinary creature is before you. Few have the opportunity of close contact with such an iconic creature. We're fortunate that landing a wild trout is not as unlikely as finding a wallet in a mall.
Craig's Corner
by Craig Ballenger, CalTrout Ambassador