18 minute read
California golden trout memories ignite an American
Author Lance Sawa’s childhood fascination in California with rare fish, including golden trout, has followed him into adulthood in Japan. He traveled north to discover more about the itou, a long-lived but highly endangered member of the salmonid family. (LANCE SAWA)
ON THE TRAIL OF THE ITOU MEMORIES OF CALIFORNIA’S ICONIC TROUT STIRRED ON A FISHERMAN’S EXPLORATORY TRIP TO NORTHERN JAPAN
By Lance Sawa
Down a nondescript road north of Independence, in California’s high desert area in Inyo County, is a historical landmark, Mount Whitney Fish Hatchery. Mount Whitney started raising fish in 1917, but in 1918 it began rearing golden trout, which is California’s state freshwater fish and one of its “heritage trout” species.
The golden trout is endemic to California waters, but through their efforts the fish is now in multiple states and no longer endangered.
My dad and I would go to the old fish hatchery before it was closed temporarily in the late 1990s – before the restoration of the old building. The fish food was only 25 cents and we would throw it out for the many large fish in the front pond. Then we’d walk out to the rearing ponds and be in awe of the huge fish mere feet from our fingertips. They too would get a handful of fish food as they fought and splashed for the pellets.
Inside the old main building there was information not only about the local area but also about the important work they do. Displays on the lifecycles of the trout they raised. History about the fish hatchery itself.
One photo of a train of mules heading up a snowy pass with fish fry
Sawa took one of Japan’s high-speed bullet trains north to snowy Aomori Prefecture at the top of Honshu Island. (LANCE SAWA)
to transport into the high mountains stays with me to this day. Always the “Staff Only” door with a small window into the hatchery proper called out to me.
Years later I learned that the serious fish rearing is done just 10 minutes up the road at Black Rock Fish Hatchery. I never had the chance to go see it, and I believe it is not open to the public. This is where all those golden trout were – the ones I never saw at Mount Whitney Fish Hatchery.
As you might guess, catching and seeing interesting fish is where my passion lies. It would be great to see a school of those once endangered fish swimming around.
THE SNOW FELL AS I got off the bullet train in Aomori, located in the northernmost prefecture (also known as Aomori) on Japan’s Honshu Island. All the weather forecasts called for rain, but a sudden change in the wind turned that into snow for three days.
I had carefully planned to drive around in northern Japan during those days before the snow started, but now I was not looking forward to driving a rental car someplace I have never been to in the snow.
The next morning greeted me with even more snow that had fallen overnight. I could see the mountain in the distance that I would be driving
Itou have become sporadic in their native habitat in Russia’s far east and northern Japan, but the Ajigasawa Itou Farm has been producing more of these fish, many of which go to market as a local delicacy. (LANCE SAWA) Thanks to crossbreeding Russian and Japanese strains, the itou farm’s broodstock program is doing much better these days. (LANCE SAWA)
An albino itou at the fish farm is allowed to live, but others end up as sushi in local restaurants, connecting residents to a native species. (LANCE SAWA)
around, and it was covered in snow.
After a local specialty apple Danish for breakfast I got onto another local train to get to the car rental. The hand- drawn comic illustration on the wall to remind me of social distancing was drawn up by an Aomori artist. A model of a Nebuta hawk lit up and a display showcased Aomori’s proud heritage.
The drive took me around Mount Iwaka, the one with fresh snow on its peak, and as I drove the wind pushed the small car around. I reached the city of Ajigasawa along the coast as the early winter storm created whitecaps on the ocean. From there I headed straight into the mountains once again. After a nerve-wrecking two-hour drive I was finally at my destination: Ajigasawa Itou Farm.
Itou, or Japanese huchen, are a species of taimen and member of the salmonid family, and are critically endangered. Their range once encompassed far eastern Russia, the Japanese island of Hokkaido, and parts of northern Japan on Honshu – mostly around Aomori. Now they are only found in some remote parts of Russia and a couple of lakes in Hokkaido. Fishing for them is strictly catch and release, but itou are so rarely seen that many times they are taken out of confusion. Their rarity has given the species the name “phantom fish.”
But in 1985, Ajigasawa Itou Farm began with the dream of keeping the itou alive. In 1987 the first fish were hatched and began to grow. It was the first time itou had been in Aomori since before World War II.
As the fish grew, a serious problem began to surface: inbreeding. The broodstock was just too few in number and many of their progeny were dying before reaching sexual maturity. Even worse, there was no new broodstock to be had in Japan.
Takayuki Kato had an idea how to solve it, but his plan had its own problems. Kato’s idea was to go to Sakhalin Island in Russia and get more broodstock. Hokkaido and Sakhalin used to be connected and the fish should have been able to interbreed, but it had never been done before. Russia did not agree to the idea; Japan also did not agree to the idea. Even with this, in 1996 Kato went to Sakhalin to capture wild itou.
At the end of the trip he brought back sperm and eggs. Kato used the eggs and sperm to see if the Russian itou and the Japanese itou were still close enough to breed.
THANKS TO KATO IT was discovered that the two strains of fish were indeed close enough to breed. With the newly fertilized eggs, the farm began to see clear improvements. But just as that problem was cleared up, another showed up in the form of water.
Fish began to die and get sick in the summer once the temperatures got too high for them. The farm had been using river water, but with new dams and an increase in water temperature, it was getting too hot for the fish.
The search was on for a water source that was warm enough in winter but also cool enough in summer. The adjacent Shirakami Mountains had just the cooler water they needed. A small weir was built to supply the farm with water and then it was piped in. It still feeds the farm today.
This was all recalled to me by Takahashi-san, the main worker
Even short on time and despite frigid weather, it’s hard to keep our American Angler in Japan away from a river full of fish. “Fifteen minutes of fishing just wasn’t enough, but I had to get going,” Sawa writes. (LANCE SAWA)
now. He talked with so much pride about keeping these magnificent fish alive and all the care that went into them, as well as the hardships just getting started. I had called ahead and Takahashi-san happily showed me around, telling me stories about the phantom fish.
One story about itou was that the meaning of their name is demon fish and about how they truly live up to that. Even though they are fenced in, if any kind of animal gets into their water, the itou eat them. He has seen birds, raccoons and even monkeys eaten by these fish.
I was first shown the market fish, which are 10 years old. Ten years before they are ready for market seems to be a long time. But the goal behind this whole endeavor was to be able to share itou with everyone.
Some of the fish are sent to museums and aquariums for shows and exhibits. Many are kept for broodstock, but most are sent to market for eating purposes and they are starting to become an Ajigasawa speciality product.
While one special albino itou was allowed to grow, these fish are at a minimum 24 years old, with one this year dying at 31. Takahashi-san said it was sad to see it die because of the amount of care that goes into each fish. He laughed, though, and said her age in human years was about 110, so the fish had had a long life.
Lastly, I was shown fry born in 2020. Two large tanks in the small room held them. I had expected more and asked if that was all there was.
They explained to me that itou do not produce as many eggs as salmon because they don’t die after they spawn. They also spawn in the spring, not in fall like salmon.
The tiny fish were all swimming happily, though, and they looked to be in good health, without a single dead fish in sight.
The fish for the market were already gone by the time I had arrived, but Takahashi-san told me about a restaurant that received a fish just that morning.
It is always best to ask the locals about fishing spots and I asked him if he knew of any nearby. Most were done for the season, but he did show me one that should have fish, though there was no guarantee because of the weather. We talked a bit more before I wished him luck and thanked him for his time and all his hard work with these remarkable fish.
I PRAYED AT A nearby shrine for safety in the treacherous two-hour drive ahead of me. The fishing spot wasn’t far from the farm and I was able to find it, thanks to Takahashi-san’s directions.
A dead fish on the banks and another swimming not far from shore gave me hope. The one fish swam away the second I got too close, but I still tried for a bit. The cold wind bit at my face, but the clear water and white mountains called to me. Though not surprising, 15 minutes of fishing just wasn’t enough, but I had to get going.
Back in Aomori, after four hours of driving I was ready for dinner. The small restaurant Takahashi-san mentioned was not hard to find and
the warm fireplace welcomed me wholeheartedly. With my body finally starting to warm and the snow still falling outside, I ordered; the assorted fish came out and everything looked great. But the two pieces of itou really stood out to me, and the thought of all the hard work that went into them had an impact.
Yes, the flavor and texture was wonderful. For a freshwater fish it tasted so clean. The oils stayed on my tongue just enough to enjoy, but not too long to be overwhelming.
The fish melted in my mouth like it was cooked, but it was rubbed with just a bit of salt, which made adding any soy sauce unnecessary. The other seafood was delicious and almost on par with the itou.
I saved the second piece of itou for last. It was just as great as the first piece. And the thought of that school of marvelous fish at the fish farm brought a smile to my face. CS
Back in town, a plate full of sushi, including some itou (front plate, center), tempted Sawa. It had him reflecting about all the hard work his new friends at the fish farm were doing. (LANCE SAWA)
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INCREASE YOUR DEPTH OF FOCUS WINTER FINDS SALTWATER BASS IN DEEPER WATER, AND HERE’S HOW TO TARGET THEM
By Capt. Bill Schaefer
As we head into 2021 and the dog days of January, I have started to fish a little deeper for sand bass and calicos off the Southern California coast.
Yes, you can always score some saltwater bass in the kelp, but as the waters of the Pacific cool, the bulk of the fish are off in deeper water on man-made artificial or natural structure. A lot of food is located in this deeper water – easy pickings for the bass. All it takes is bundling up a tad more and braving the cold of winter to fish. Come on, it’s Southern California for gosh sakes!
ELECTRONICS COME IN HANDY The day before I started writing this, I ventured onto the ocean to see if the salty bass would play. And I realized that the most important part of this type of fishing is a fish-finder. Yes, you could drift all around, but the fish-finder is just that: a way of finding your target.
I run a Lowrance HDS Live 12 with amazing resolution, but many lowerpriced units have just as nice resolution nowadays, along with down-scan and side-scan sonar. This helps find even the smallest rockpiles or breaks in the contour of the bottom.
So while we were out there looking around, I found a large cloud
Author Bill Schaefer recently headed out to the Pacific to fish for saltwater bass, which generally move to deep water in colder winter conditions. Here, he shows off a nice sand bass caught off a natural drop-off in 100 feet of water. (BILL SCHAEFER)
An umbrella rig baited with red swimbaits mimics a group of red crab, a favorite meal of bass in the Pacific. Schaefer says to note what fish you catch spit up, which will help better key in on color or bait types to use. (BILL SCHAEFER)
of bass hanging just off a natural drop-off that went from 80 to 110 feet of water. You will learn to recognize schools of fish and bait just by using your unit.
Calicos tend to look like the most classic marks we’ve all seen. If you see a ball of bait with streaks running all around and through it, then it can be bass feeding. Stop and give it a few lure drops.
The first mark I found looked right, but we couldn’t get a bite after a few drops, so we moved on. I’ve learned to never give up, though. The bass may not be feeding, so find the area where the bait is and the fish are more active.
FINDING FISH We traveled a few hundred yards south to another rockpile I had marked recently. Now, this is a great reason to have mapping on your fishfinding unit. It’s to your advantage to be able to mark spots and return to
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The bait was there and the bass were feeding, as the streaks showed on my meter. We had numerous fish over the rails quickly and I had the big one that got away, but that’s another story. But seeing the bass on the meter enhances your confidence and the excitement of catching fish.
Now that you found the fish, how do you catch them? The first thing to realize is where the bass are located in the water column. If they are up off the bottom feeding on a ball of baitfish, then you don’t want to throw a 2-ounce jighead with a
Once the bass school up in deep water it can be great for catching 2-pound calicos like Capt. Kelvin Nettleton shows off. (BILL SCHAEFER)
swimbait. It will rocket right past them and they’ll never even see it.
That said, you do have to take wind and current into account, but you don’t want to use any more weight than you have to. You want that bait to swim slowly by them on the way down. Then you can retrieve it at different speeds to see if the fish want it swimming slower or faster. This technique will work no matter where the bass are depth-wise.
TACKLE CHECK For your tackle for this deep-water bass fishing, the tackle you use for kelp bed areas will work. For example, I use a Daiwa DXSB casting rod and Lexa reel with braid or Maxima 15- to 20-pound Ultragreen monofilament line. As I mentioned, jig heads will vary in weight.
Some like the braid because it lets you feel those bites easier when fishing in deep water. You can also use spinning gear if you like it. It is also better when you are being blown around a lot by the wind. Line drops off a spinning rod and reel easier, so it will sink to your spot instead of wanting to swing in towards the boat.
Those of you who are like me can use your trolling motor – I like my Motorguide Xi3 – and “anchor” in place over a spot with the GPS anchoring feature.
LOOKING FOR A GOOD MEAL When you bring a fish up, they will usually spit up what they have been eating. Red crab, various shrimp, octopus, squid, mackerel, sardine or anchovy are all favorites of saltwater bass. Keep an eye out, as it just may tell you what color or type of bait to throw.
On our trip, the fish we caught were spitting up red crab, so we went with that and a lighter jig head, and our baits just fluttered down slowly, like a red crab drifting with the tides. We had a great day on the water and so can you. Give it a try and you’ll be fishing salty bass as a year-round fun fest. CS
