RIVERS ARE RUNNING high, cloud colors are ranging from oatmeal to gunmetal gray and fleeing for a palm-tree shaded beach and tropical drink service seems like a more and more enticing option as the winter slog continues.
For those forced to stick it out until spring, there is a fishing option that would provide the funding for some future fun — tickets for the 2020 Olympic Peninsula Salmon Derby are on sale online and at area retailers.
Catch a big enough fish and walk away with the $10,000 first prize — more than enough to crack a coconut in Cancun.
The derby itself will run Friday through Sunday, March 13-15.
A post-derby barbecue is traditionally held Sunday along with an awards ceremony at the Gardiner Boat Ramp.
Clinton’s Mark Thompson bagged the winning blackmouth in 2019, a 19.35-pounder that he caught on the derby’s first day.
He planned to use the $10K first prize with his wife to visit his grandchildren in North Carolina.
Tickets are $40 at retailers and are available on the North Olympic Peninsula at Swain’s in Port Angeles; Brian’s Sporting Goods in Sequim; the Longhouse Market and Deli in Blyn; Four Corners Store, the Fish ‘N’ Hole and Quimper Mercantile in Port Townsend and Olympic Equipment Rentals in Port Hadlock.
Online at gardinersalmonderby.org, tickets are $44 per person.
Proceeds go toward the nonprofit Gardiner Salmon Derby Association, which supports scholarships for college-bound students and community and emergency services.
The derby is part of the Northwest Marine Trade Association’s Northwest Salmon Derby Series and all ticket-holders are entered to win a fully-loaded Kingfisher 2025 Escape HT valued at $75,000.
The boat is powered by a Yamaha 200HP and a 9.9 HP four-stroke motor on an EZ-Loader trailer valued at over $75,000. The boat is rigged with Shoxs seats, Scotty downriggers, Raymarine Electronics, Dual Electronics stereo, a WhoDat Tower and Burnewiin accessories.
Ridge lift off
We have lift-off, or at least added assistance in making it up to the top of the ski hill at Hurricane Ridge.
Hurricane Ridge Ski and Snowboard Area said earlier this week that the Ridge’s poma lift will begin operations Saturday.
For information on ridge conditions and road status, call 360-565-3131 or check twitter.com/hrwinteraccess for the most up-to-date status updates.
Alcids lecture
Saturday, the Dungeness River Audubon Center’s Focus on Series will take a deeper look at alcids — a group of sea birds that includes puffins, murres, auklets, guillemots and murrelets.
These deep-diving, fish-eating birds live in the sea and nest on shore.
Present Ken Wiersema will discuss what makes them unique in our ecosystem from 10 a.m. to noon at the center, 2151 W. Hendrickson Road in Sequim.
The cost is $10 for the public, $5 for members.
For more information, call 360-681-4076.
Razor digs
Razor clam digs continue on the following ocean beaches and tides:
• Today: 6:32 p.m. -0.6 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis.
• Saturday: 7:08 p.m. -0.5 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Mocrocks.
• Sunday: 7:42 p.m. -0.3 feet; Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis.
Under state law, diggers at open beaches can take 15 razor clams per day and are required to keep the first 15 they dig.
Sasquatch sightings
The state Department of Transportation has discovered evidence of what may be Bigfoot on or near mountain passes in Washington.
The agency posted photos of what it said might be a Sasquatch at Sherman Pass on Wednesday to it’s Twitter feed.
The sighting was caught by a traffic camera pointed toward state Highway 20 on Sherman Pass on Wednesday, and shows what appears to be a Sasquatch-like figure near a tree.
“I’m not superstitious … just a little stitious,” the person running the account said in the tweet.
Other users took the bait, replying to the tweet to ask for more photos and if a search party could be formed to look for the figure spotted by the cameras
WSDOT East tweeted on Thursday that crews were headed over Sherman Pass again — with a chance to see Bigfoot.
They made several passes with a snow plow and even stopped at the top of the summit near the camera to see if they could find Sasquatch — but the beast had fled.
Snoqualmie Pass also had a sighting Thursday.
The person running that Twitter account said it appears Bigfoot is making the round across mountain passes, with another glimpse captured on the I-90 wildlife crossing near the pass.
Maybe the yeti will make his way to our neck of the woods next.
