Indicators.

Yes, students, today's lesson is about 'indicators'

No, not 'turn-signal indicators'. Indicators that help us to know the best places to find fish!

...Pointers, as it were.

Which reminds me, I used to have a pointer. Raised him from a puppy. But... he died.

I trained him to 'point' fish! He was quite remarkable, actually. A quick learner.

How did he die? Drowned, I'm afraid. First time out, too. ...But... he held his 'point' right to the very end! Tragic, really...

But, back to the indicators.

Spotting a herd of sea lions frolicking and flinging large salmon in the air is usually a good indicator that there are, or at least were, fish in the area.

One can also look for harbour seals. Or, if you're in American waters, (...such as the Inside Passage...), the harbor seal.

I know, Mike. I'll try not to make waves. I'll just ride out the ones from the wakes of the American destroyers. ;-)

The most commonly reliable indicator for the location of fish, however is birds!

Eagles swooping down on a salmon. Loons, posing regally for coinage. Terns just waiting patiently ...(the origin of the expression "Just wait, you're a tern!"). All are good indicators of fish in the area.

If you're wise, you'll look for murrelets (often found in the company of goldelets and frankincenselets).

Auklets are excellent too, but there are a number of varieties that you need to be able to identify in order to determine what type of fish are near-by.

There's the jaucklette. A small, muscular, female bird whose plumage gives the appearance of wearing a baseball cap. Generally associated with aggressive, coarse fish.

The chauklet comes in not only light and dark plumage, but there's also one that is all white. (I do have a weakness for the Belgian variety.) By the way, if you happen to snag one of these, give yourself a treat. Take it home for dinner. They're great bakers!

Though they're pretty annoying, try to ignore the gauklets. They just crowd around, get in the way, watch and don't do anything to help the situation.

And, of course, there's the cosmopolitan auklatté. This is the one most likely to be familiar to city folks. It's particularly popular in Seattle and is found mostly on the West Coast or in major urban centres.

The auklatté is identified by its smooth, light brown body is topped with a head of almost 'fluffy' white plumage, occasionally sprinkled with a bit of cinnamon or chocolate.

Though a favourite snack of the more 'sophisticated' predators, the auklatté is noted for causing them to become rather jumpy and 'hyper' after more than one or two.

Of course, if you just can't seem to locate a Fish Finder... look for Franklin's Gull!

Well, that's the end of today's lesson, students.

A reminder before I leave you, though...

It's Knarp season again, so stock up on those Knarp lures and order your Johnstone's Custom Knarpoon today!

Now, don't forget... have fun ... And converse with your catch!