PAT NEAL: Smells like spring fever

THERE MAY BE nothing more beautiful than pussywillows in the snow. Unless it’s the white blossoms of the Indian plum above the pale, yellow flower… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: To build a fire

Camping isn’t just for summer anymore. The woods, beaches and campgrounds are full of campers in the dead of winter. These are not the carefree… Continue reading

ron allen

POINT OF VIEW: Good stewardship for future generations

IT IS A tribal saying that “Every River Has Its People” and the Dungeness Watershed has been the home of the Jamestown S’Klallam and their… Continue reading

  • Feb 24, 2024
  • By W. Ron Allen Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe
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PAT NEAL: Fishing from a sinking boat

It was another tough week in the news. Steelhead fishing on the Olympic Peninsula has gotten so crowded you’ll want to bring your own rock… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: The 50th anniversary of the Boldt Decision

It’s been 50 years since the Boldt Decision of Feb. 12, 1974. The world has changed. You can see it in the barren rivers, smell… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: The green crab blues

The green crab is in the news again. Scientists are tagging them to track their movements. The green crab is an invasive species first noticed… Continue reading

The monument to the October 1808 wreck of the S.V. Nikolai marks the area where a handful of survivors built a refuge after escaping from the Quileute and the Hoh. The monument at 5333 Upper Hoh Road was dedicated in 2015. (Pat Neal/For Peninsula Daily News)

PAT NEAL: Those crazy Russians are at it again

Those crazy Russians are at it again. In 2022, Russia made itself the laughing stock of the civilized world by suggesting a restoration of its… Continue reading

The monument to the October 1808 wreck of the S.V. Nikolai marks the area where a handful of survivors built a refuge after escaping from the Quileute and the Hoh. The monument at 5333 Upper Hoh Road was dedicated in 2015. (Pat Neal/For Peninsula Daily News)

PAT NEAL: Remembering a guide’s friend

Like the good Book said, “There were giants in the land.” We lost one last week. If you didn’t know Bob Gooding and his tackle… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: A short history of winter

As a kid, I remember the old-timers saying, “We don’t have winters like that anymore.” Referring to sometime in the distant past when things were… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: Peninsula power problems

IT WAS A dark and stormy night. Then the power went out and it got darker. The storm got wilder. Our thoughts were with our… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: New Year’s resolutions

By now, I’m pretty sure we’ve all had it up to here with know-it-all newspaper columnists wasting valuable print space spouting off phony New Year’s… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: ‘Tis the season of holiday stress

It’s been another tough week in the news. The holiday stress is running at a fever pitch. I blame the media. People are stressed out… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: Yes, Virginia, there is a steelhead

I am 8 years old. My family and I have been fishing for steelhead all year and haven’t caught one. Some of my friends say… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: My Christmas wish list

Call it the magic of the season or the true Christmas spirit. It’s time once again for my Christmas wish list. It’s not my intention… Continue reading

PAT NEAL: Endangered species roulette

In last week’s episode, we broke the story about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declaring war on the barred owl. The agency announced plans… Continue reading

A barred owl perched on a road sign. (Pat Neal/for Peninsula Daily News)

PAT NEAL: The barred owl menace

And so, another hunting season passes astern. I hope you did better than I did. All I got was the ingredients for tag soup. That’s… Continue reading

A barred owl perched on a road sign. (Pat Neal/for Peninsula Daily News)

PAT NEAL: How to have a happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving. The word conjures images of black-robed pilgrims in white starched collars sitting down to dinner with their Indian friends to give thanks at the… Continue reading

Marilyn Lewis as a young woman.

PAT NEAL: She died with her boots on

In last week’s episode, we were celebrating the life of the Hoh Tribal woman Tsi-hos-tub. Called Pansy Martin Snell by the Europeans, she is the… Continue reading

Marilyn Lewis as a young woman.
Daughter of the Olympic Wilderness: The Life and Times of Pansy Martin Snell

PAT NEAL: Daughter of the Olympic Wilderness

Read any good books lately? Daughter of the Olympic Wilderness: The Life and Times of Pansy Martin Snell (Poseidon Peak Publishing, 2023) is the latest… Continue reading

Daughter of the Olympic Wilderness: The Life and Times of Pansy Martin Snell

PAT NEAL: Fishing for excuses

Profiling and stereotyping have no place in a Wilderness Gossip Column. In last week’s episode, it was mistakenly mentioned that deer hunters have more excuses… Continue reading