Siren call
of Kispiox

There is always time in my schedule for the
Kispiox in the dying days of Autumn.

Not because the river holds the largest strain of
steelhead on the planet -- I’ve never cared much
for trophies in the past, and care even Icss now. I
don’t make the trip because I expect to catch
prodigious numbers of fish, because I never do.

- And, I don’t yeam to do battle with Kispiox stecl-

head because they don’t fight very well.
I come back because J like the trip from Ter-

--race. I like to roll along the Skeena, note the

changes and glance from the bridges for as long

"as the highway will let me.

I love to look for the places where the Skeena

has carved a new contour into a bank or where a

gravel bar has, re-emerged, reformed by the high
water.

I like the rhythm of the ride and rhythm of the
landscape, It takes nearly three tapes to get to
Kispiox, 1 used to play Bach and Beethoven --
sometimes I still do, and it’s apt -- but more often
these days, I spin a long series of two minute la-
ments by Howlin’ Wolf or Son Seals or some
other blues man: music whose architecture is so
urban it becomes exotic as the score to'a Skeena
travelogue,

After crossing the second to last bridge, I like to
stop, not because the stretch of river from the vil-
lage bridge to the Skeena gives up a lot of fish,
but because the villages of native peoples are al-
ways quiet places.

_ Tike to walk along the trail following the river
and hear only the sound of the water. 1 like to stop
at the confluence of the Kispiox and Skeena and

“watch the smoke-rise from the homes in.the.dis-....):

tance, then’scan the giant cutbanks on the far side.
of the big river looking for dark patch of black
that distinguishes a bear from a stump.

" ‘The Kispiox is a flyway. From that spot at the
mouth of the river, where the big fish congregate

_ below the market garden before moving into the

smaller system, I’ve been alerted by their cries
and looked up to.see the great, dynamic, rippling
V’s of geese cutting through the cold air on their
way south.
"Qn the way back I’ve come across the beds of
moose who live tenuously outside the protection
’ of regulation ‘so they may champ on the red dog-
wood stems that grow alongside river and reserve.

Olga is a another reason I retum to Kispiox each
year, Still running the Steelhead camp that pro-
vided lodging for legendary fishermen and still
houses fishermen from all over the world, still
fighting for the survival of her river tirelessly, it’s
hard to believe that Olga is 75.

But there she is, on my most recent trip, unfurl-
ing a giant birthday card put together by her
daughters for the gala celebration.

In the centre is black and white 8 x 10 of a Uk-
rainian beauty with the captivating smile and
sparkling eyes that remain unchanged today.

"It was a wonderful party!" she says in that
wonderful voice that breaks up gently along the

' edges.

I also go back to Kispiox for the characters: to
tun into a Bob Yorke -- obsessed with giant steel-
head, fishing harder than ever‘ now that he’s no
longer netting Alaskan salmon -- or Ted Wil-
liams, who retired batting over three hundred so
that he could fish the world over, or Ron Tetreau,
who has caught so many steelhead people call
him the human net, or to talk to Bob Clay or Gord
Wadley, inen who make their living guiding
sports from Washington State to Tokyo along the
bends of the river in drift boats.

And I go to meet avid anglers like the intense
young Dutchman from Zwolle whom we met
while having lunch at the Sweetin River, The
river was swollen and coloured from rain the
night before.

The Dutchman took a picture then sat down and

- threw a trio of flies across the picnic table as if he
were casting dice on a backgammon board:
strange flies made of plastic and foam with small
bills: behind the head to make them skate along
the top of the water, They were tied with surgical
precision; they were fascinating.

"I've been driving up and down these roads," he
said. "There is so much logged forest. I come here

_all the way from Europe. I come to sce wilder-

‘ness. Idon’tlike whatI see.

“] will stay for five weeks," he said, “then I
will go back home and give slide shows in
Europe. I wilt show sportsmen what is happening

- to the wilderness in B.C., and they can decide

what to do I think." ;
I didn’t want to talk about it. I wished him clear
water then cruised home on the back road to

Kitwanga. Feeling satisfied and calm after a fish-
ing trip where I hadn’t wet a line.

The trick splashed through the rain filled

potholes as Muddy Waters sang Rollin’ and Tum-
Shin’. fo

It may be hot, but local fastball
player Brad Nevfeld has no intentions
~- of-getting out of the Kiwi kitchen be
now finds himself in.

Geiting used to the heat is apparently
the only problem Neufeld has en-
countered since joining - his
Queenstown, New Zealand team.

Queenstown’s opponents certainly
haven’t been much of one so far.
” Playing four games almost immedi-
ately upon arrival there, the Terrace
import pitcher ied the team to three
wins and helped his own cause by
blasting three home mins,

That fast slart is all the. more
noteworthy given the end of the season
here meant he had been idle for several
weeks prior to joining Queenstown.

Neufeld gol his chance to play
abroad thanks to a Hazelton ball
player, explained mother Rita Neufeld. .

Having played in New Zealand last
year, that player hadn’t been able to go
this timc and suggested they might
want to get hold of Brad.

They did just that and he was quick
to accept the invitation.

Before he could go, however, Brad
had to get Sofiball B.C. to release him.
That did not prove difficult but the
Teaction of an organization official to
the request did provide the family with
a good Jaugh, recalls Rita.

“You mean you're way up in Ter-
race and you’re actually going to go to
New Zealand ta play ball,”’

Rita said it appeared usually only
players from the larger centres headed
out of the country to play ball,

Brad first started playing ball in his
hometown of Clearwater at age five.
Four years later, it was not his pitching
prowess but his power at the plate that

prompted requests he move up an age

Neufeld joins Kiwi tea

group.

However, Rita said, he turned the of
fer down, ‘‘He wanted to stay behind
fo get the extra pitching,’? she ex-
plained.

Staying in the Squirts division turned
out to. be a pretty smart choice: his
team won the provincial title that year.

The family moved to Terrace in 1988
and Brad joined the Midget team
which his “father coached to the '89
B.C. Summer Games.

That was also the year he graduated
from Caledonia‘and moved on to the
local Junior fastball team where be was
coached Norm Zloklikovits, recently
named to the Sofiball B.C. Hall of
Fame... ; ;

Brad’s stint down under ends in early

April, which will be just about right for
the starl up of the season here,

Brad Neufeld

‘Let it snow, let it snow’.

That’s the refrain being sung by Shames
Mouitain personnel as opening day draws
nearer.

Shames spokesman Louise Pos said the
ski hill is set to launch its new season at 9
a.m., Friday, Nov. 20.

However, while everything else is in
readiness for the big day, Mother Nature
has to make her contribution yet.

Although there wasn’t a lot of the white
stuff on the slopes as. of last Friday, she
pointed out there had been a considerable
amount there two weeks earlier.

Unfortunately the mild weather that had
moved, into the area had melted off that
first build-up. .

‘Not that anyone’s too worried. ‘Once. il
slarts falling, it-docsn’t take too long,”
Pos said, ,

When skiers do return to Shames, they'll
find two new runs waiting for them. One
runs alongside Southpaw in the back
bowls and.the other is a high-intermediate
rin along Galloways. Neither have ‘yet
been named. ; ;

That?ll: take the runs total to 17, offering
something for skiers of ail Icvels of
proficiency, no
. Also new this year will be a child mind-
ing service, one that should be welcomed
by- those who want to ski but arc faced
with the problem of .what they do with

theirkids, © e :

Now, parents will be able to head for the
lifts knowing: their offspring arc in good
hands. Pos said. the service will take kids
from three years old up. ee

_. A‘new-‘bag lunch’ area has also been in-
. stalled next to the day lodge. A separate:

‘| building: complete. with deck;:she. said: it

-features the same decor as the lodge and

Shames keeps
eye on the sky

offers a place for people to go and have a
peaceful lunch instead of being ‘‘in the
middie of all the kerfuffle”’.

Pos said season pass sales had gone well
during the Early Bird promotion and ex-

pected a new surge in purchases to follow -

the season’s start up. ae
An adult scason pass costs $485 while
other rates are $295 for youths (13-17

years) and $230 for juniors (8-12). and:

seniors (65 and up). ;

Also being offered this year are’ flex
pricing packages. Pos said these give -

people who ski only infrequently a chance
to save a little compared to getting a $28
day ticket cach time, ;

Now, parents will be able to head oe

for the lifts knowing their off-
spring are in good hands.

There are two packages available, the |’ ©

first being good for two weckend days and
one. weekday. and costs. Prices arc. adult
$75, youth $47 and Junior/senior $36.

Pos pointed out the three days did not.

have to used consecutively, in other words.
could be spread out over a length of time.
The other package is a mid-week which

is good for five days on the mountain and °

here again they cam spread out across the
scason, Oe

The mid-week will cost an adult $120, a
youth $75 and juniors/seniors $60.

And, once: the mountain. is up and.

schussing, those wanting to get updates on
snow -conditions have a choice of photic.

numbers: cither.638-8SKT or. 1-800-663-:

7SKL

CATCH OF THE DAY. Terrace PeeWee rep goalie Cameron Eyjolfson picks the puck out of i
the air in weekend. Tri-City league action. Eyjofson had already found himself the centre of far i
too much attention in the second periad as the Kitimat visitors repeatedly swarmed over the &
Terrace blueline time, potting three goals in less than six minutes to build on their first period
lead. See next week's paper for full results of both PeeWee and Bantam games. .

SOCCER

—S

Cal looks to
better placing

In less than 48 hours, the Caledonia Senior Boys
soccer squad will take to the ficld in Coquitlam for
their opening game of the ‘92 provincial
championships.

And though Cal cruised to the northwest
qualifier’s spot by clobbering Aiyansh 7-1, coach
Joe Duben has no illusions as to what's wailing for
them in Coquitlam.

“It’s going to be tough,’’ he admitted.

Whereas the northwest season has been over for
some time, most of the southem teams had the ad-
vantage of being right in the middle of theirs.

Duben said he had tried to offset that by arranging
a {ew games with the local Oldtimers team.

A total of sixteen teams are entered in the tourna-
ment and will be split into four groups of four.

The team finishing top in each group’s round
robin will advance to the semi-finals.

The remaining places will be decided based on
points accumulated and goals scored in the round
robin.

Although that system placed Caledonia in the
basement Jast year, Duben is hoping for better
things this time around. ;

(We have a better team than last yéar,”’ he said.”

While the "91 team had been made up entirely of
grade 11s, half this year’s line-up were making 4
return trip to the provincials, he pointed out.

That experience, he suggested, had to help the
team.

He also stressed that although Caledonia finished
last in their group, they were much closer than that
indicated.

Twice Cal had taken the game to overtime before |
going under and lost the others by just a single goal.

“We were right in there, but the ball just didn’t
bounce our way. That happens sometimes,” he.
said.

Not that there was any shame in even a sixteenth
place finish, Duben emphasized.

Given 106 teams started out vying for a spot in
(he tournament, finishing sixteenth out of the entire —
province was no mean achievement.

=. the public la:
- the season.
~ membets wl

“LOCAL FIGURE ‘Skaters: put.on a free -show. of thair: skills for

st waek in a Warm-up for the first major campetitlon of.
“It's"the Catiboo, North Central Regionats ‘and ‘club:
il head off for the Prince George venue tomorrow, *-