Record-Breaking Catch Tips The Scales

Grant Martinsen, a retired biology teacher and football coach, went fishing in Oregon's lower Rogue River this past Monday only because his friend was too sick to go hunting. A longtime veteran of trout and steelhead fly-fishing, Martinsen had no idea that he would break the 15-year fly-fishing record by landing a monstrous 71 1/2-pound, 4-foot-long chinook salmon.

After catching the fish, Martinsen weighed his catch at the nearby Gold Beach's Rogue Outdoor Store, where it will eventually be mounted and displayed. The salmon still has yet to be certified by the International Game Fish Association, but once deemed official, will bring Martinsen and the Rogue River global publicity.

The lower Rogue is known more for its large population of salmon than for the actual size of its fish, but this year, the river has seen a large number of salmon caught in the 50-to-60-pound range. Cutbacks in commercial harvesting and excellent feed conditions are attributed by scientists to be the cause for the growth spurt.

For more info on fishing, cast out a line and lure in our following selection of books!

Fly-fisher's Guide to Oregon
By John Huber
One of the west coast's premier fly-fishing destinations, Oregon is home to dozens of lakes and rivers that are teeming with fish. Huber's book, part of the well-regarded Wilderness Adventures Flyfisher's Guide series, comprehensively covers where and when to go. Other invaluable information in Huber's thoughtful guide: basic fly-fishing techniques, maps, driving directions, and listings for restaurants, accommodations, and local flyshops.

The Longest Cast: The Fly-Fishing Journey of a Lifetime
By Alexander Taylor, Lefty Kreh, and Peter Pickford
The Longest Cast isn't just one of the finest books on fishing, it's arguably one of the most appealing and beautifully photographed books available on any sport. In this "Endless Summer" of fly-fishing, author Taylor travels all over the world looking for pure and untainted fishing locations. Pickford's extraordinary, full-color photographs of each location accompany engaging essays that not only describe the author's travels, but also explain what time of year to visit each location, and what fly-fishing strategies and equipment to use.

A River Runs Through It and Other Stories
By Norman Maclean
Maclean's unforgettable memoir describes his experiences growing up near Montana's Big Blackfoot River, where fly fishing is the only thing that brings him, his small-town minister father, and his troubled brother together. Eloquently using fly fishing as a metaphor for life, Maclean's tragic novella weaves a concise and melancholy tale of an American family. This latest edition also contains a foreword by Annie Proulx, and two other autobiographical stories from Maclean: "Logging and Pimping and "Your Pal, Jim"" and "USFS 1919: The Ranger, the Cook, and a Hole in the Sky."

Gould's Book of Fish: A Novel in Twelve Fish
By Richard Flanagan
A May/June 2002 Book Sense 76 Pick!
"This vast, artful epic is the most audacious yet from this wonderful Tasmanian novelist. Sculpted from a turbulent national history, this vibrant story poses as the journal of a penal island convict who relates brutal and hilarious tales of the island's eccentric inhabitants and the atrocities they perpetrate. Flanagan's narrative sweep, vivid imagination, and rugged poeticism make him a world-class author." - Jamie Kornegay, Square Books, Oxford, MS

Moby-Dick
By Herman Melville
Considered by many to be the greatest novel ever written, Moby-Dick isn't really about fishing since, technically, a whale is a mammal. Anyway, if you don't know the story: Ishmael, Queequeg, Starbuck, Stubb, Pip, Captain Ahab, and the rest all board the Pequod and find themselves scouring the ocean in search of a cuddly white whale. And what is it all about? Everything!