Fish Ladder Clean Out

Last saturday morning I went to help out with the fish ladder clean-out. It involves blocking the river in front of the top of the ladder so the water drains and we can shovel out the detritus that has built up over the winter. First they put a piece of plywood in front of the top of the ladder and putting plastic over that:


A couple of the guys had come up a couple of days earlier to cut up the tree that had been swept downstream and onto the ladder so it could be moved:


Here the water has gone down enough for the guys to start shovelling the rocks, leaves, and other stuff that got stuck in the ladder. Notice I am absent from these pictures. My back is still healing and while I can walk almost normally now, I couldn't quite do the bending required for the heavier work:


While the guys were doing the heavy stuff I went for coffee and then spent some time sitting in the river, downriver, looking for various aquatic bugs. And checking out the fairy ring of ferns growing on a small island:


In the middle of the clean out we were joined by a feathered friend. Definitely click on the pic for a better look at this eagle. It sat there quite patiently watching us for about 5 minutes before leaving:


I had a most excellent nap after wards. Getting coffee and looking for bugs is hard work you know.

S.