Beluga's a small community consisting of a few cabins, an airstrip and a power plant near the mouth of the Chuit River (yes, the entire town is in the picture above). Not a bad place to live off the land . . . so long as you don't mind fending off open pit coal mines and brought your woman with you.I was in Beluga on a site visit for work. One of the River's primary tributaries is the site of a proposed coal mine. The so called Chuitna Coal Project is a hair-brained idea of marginal economic value that would sacrifice the strongest salmon-producing system on the west side of Cook Inlet in the name of coal exported to foreign markets. A great idea, I'm sure.
Thanks to a bit of mud and mosquitoes the size of pterodactyls, actually getting to the stream took a little work. I'm not sure I had been on an ATV since participating in a Forest Service ATV safety session that resulted in a medevac flight for one of my coworkers. It's no wonder why rednecks love those things.
The main stem of the Chuit was running low and clear with a few Chinook splashing around here and there. This place is so rich in coal that chunks of the stuff literally were all over the gravel bars. Amazing.We eventually worked our way up to "Stream 2003," the tributary where the mine is planned to go. Despite having a name that sounds like it came from a GIS technician who had never been to the stream, it's a great place for coho salmon.
This fish weir on Stream 2003 is operated by a contractor as part of the mining company's efforts at collecting baseline information. Josh, if you're interested, I'm sure they pay well.After spending a couple days tromping around the watershed and meeting with locals, it was time to head home. No fishing for me on this trip; although, I'll have to head back this fall for the coho run.
