Sockeye salmon swimming up the Adams River (Image credit: CFJC)

By Connor Gunn/CFJC Today

SALUTE TO THE SOCKEYE

Dominant Adams River year for salmon

Oct 13, 2022 | 8:00 PM

Hundreds of thousands of salmon swim up the Adams River to complete the beautiful cycle of life that is celebrated in the Salute to the Sockeye.

For the first time in the event’s history, the Little Shuswap Lake Band is leading the salmon run that will see more than 100,000 visitors view the spectacle in the Scotch Creek area west of Salmon Arm, throughout October and into November.

“Bringing everyone together to enjoy the land, enjoy the people, meeting new people it’s a beautiful thing. I love it,” said Little Shuswap Lake Band Councillor Wesley Francois.

Every four years, the salmon complete their life cycle in the Adams River and compared to non-dominant years, 300,000 salmon will swim up the river.

Traffic Control Measure

Pleasant Valley roundabout to be built in the spring

45m ago

Labour Statistics

Regional unemployment spiked in December

3h ago

Routine Patrol Leads to Bust

Police seize drugs, vehicle key fob programmer in Kelowna

3h ago

“These salmon are coming back to where they were born to spawn to populate the next generation and end their life cycle and contribute to all the other species,” said Michelle Wiebe with BC Parks.

“It’s an epic journey that they’ve been on that takes about four years to complete. Now what we see in this dominant (year) is a lot of the salmon coming back and that’s what draws a lot of the visitors,” noted Ken Benoit, Adams River Society President.

People come from all over Canada, and the world, to witness the salmon spawn, and groups of children get to listen and learn about the long journey.

“I learned that salmon can hold oxygen in their throat and breathe underwater,” said one Grade 2 student.

“Learning about how the salmon could help the trees and also the other animals,” another student added.

“We also saw a salmon dissection so the kids got to see the innards of the fish. It’s really important that the kids get out into nature and spending the whole day out in the forest. That’s pretty much the goal,” elementary school teacher Ingrid Van Varseveld remarked.

As the bright red sockeyes’ lifespan is coming to a close, people get the chance to see the beautiful views and learn the history of the famous fish.

“It’s not about dollars and cents. It’s about us sharing our culture, our heritage, our language and the way we do things — the way we used to do things with the world. That’s what it’s about,” Francois added.