WESTMORE — Fisheries biologist Pete Emerson will be available for a guided walk at the Willoughby Falls on April 27.
The goal of the walk will be to observe the steelhead spawning migration and to answer questions from the public about the fish, the river, and the state-owned lands that border the river much of the way to Lake Memphremagog.
The walk will take place at 10:00 a.m. at the Willoughby Falls Wildlife Management Area, in Orleans.
Steelhead are a strain of rainbow trout that migrate from their natal rivers as juvenile fish when they are around six inches long.
They leave the relative safety of the river, moving downstream towards the ocean where abundant food helps them grow considerably larger than their stream-dwelling cousins.
The Orleans steelhead are content to stop their migration at Lake Memphremagog where they feed for a year before returning as adults to spawn.
Steelhead can return to spawn many years, drawing anglers who prize their strength and size. They can get as large as 24 inches and up to 6 or 7 pounds.
There is no need to sign up for this guided walk, just show up.
