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On The Rise TV Show Profiles McCloud River, Nestle's Threat To an Underground Favorite

By Tom Chandler 2/14/2009

It was gratifying to see the Friday night broadcast of Trout Unlimited's "On The Rise" episode - the one focused on the McCloud River and Nestle Waters of North America's cavalier approach to the water. (The show is being re-broadcast Saturday 2/14 at 1pm PST.)

Regular Undergrounders know of my distaste for Nestle Waters, their predatory approach to small towns, and their apparent lack of concern for the McCloud River.

And yes, it's clear to me the McCloud River is a favorite among my readers (soneone said if the McCloud's not a favorite, it's because you haven't fished it yet).

Curtis Knight of CalTrout filled the early part of the show deftly outlining the threats to the river, and yes, I made an appearance in the last segment, where I successfully didn't soil myself.

In fact viewers were treated to an inside view of the the Underground's Brown Trout Mobile (the slowly deteriorating brown Bronco), and you probably also got a good glimpse of the river, which - as host (and new daddy) Frank Smethurst put it - was still somewhat TU (totally unfishable).

Thoughts
The show did an excellent job covering the threat to the river, and maybe now you know why CalTrout's Curtis Knight is an Underground favorite.

The show would be a ton more fun if they'd broadcast some of the interaction between the crew and Smethhurst. It's pure guys-on-a-fishing-trip entertainment, even if it doesn't fit into the show's format.

From a purely personal perspective, it's a glimpse back into time - a look at a couple months and a couple pounds ago, on a river that you can't legally fish right now.

I hope this places a little more pressure on Nestle to start playing fair with rural towns, and while it's a small victory, it's a shame that every town facing Nestle can't get its own TV show (interesting fun fact: Nestle is the most-boycotted corporation in the world).

Now that my brief broadcast career is over, see you back on the river, Tom Chandler.

AuthorPicture

Tom Chandler

As the author of the decade leading fly fishing blog Trout Underground, Tom believes that fishing is not about measuring the experience but instead of about having fun. As a staunch environmentalist, he brings to the Yobi Community thought leadership on environmental and access issues facing us today.

11 comments
[...] thought that – after last year’s breakthrough episode featuring me not soiling myself on camera – TU would simply bow to the inevitable, ditch Smethurst, and offer me the starring role my [...]
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Hey Tom, I watched the TU show including your 15 minutes of fame ;-) It was also nice to see that I wasn't the only one dredging (with the high flows). Was that a spey rod? Anything to raise awareness that this great stream is at risk already has my vote. I was also please to hear that it was "TU['d]" at those flows. While I think that raising the flows in the springtime if there is data (by biogists ... more not associated with PG&E nor some whitewater group) to support that it will improve the health of the river is a good thing; some of the flows in the flow study were BIG enough that the river was basically blown and dangerous to wade. Moreover radical changes to a healthy tail water seem ill-advised. Thoughtful & transparent management should be the end goal.
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@Eric: I thought the way they handled the Web site stuff on the show was kinda cool; the picture of Smethurst throwing the streamer over his shoulder (while apparently walking on water) deserved a showing on the broadcast.
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As I promised, I watched the DVR'd show this afternoon. It is going to stay on my DVR, not just because I now read the blog of someone moderately famous, but because it was actually a good episode. Catching fish under really tough conditions and exposing the bottled water industry, as well as your website, is good reason to show it to all of my friends.
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Guys: Thanks for the kind words. It was an interesting experience, and wholly unlike what most of us would consider a normal fishing trip. I don't think I'd want every fly fishing trip to be like that. And yes, I was happy to stick a few pins in Nestle, though I think On The Rise was smart to go with Curtis Knight's concise analysis of the Nestle situation; they'd ask me a question about Nestle on ... more camera, and twelve minutes later, I'd find myself detailing the company's depredations in Maine and Michigan, which are a little far afield. @Jim: I stand by what I said about the original episodes, but to be fair, I think you need to compare today's shows with the originals to see how far they've come. One of my biggest complaints were the obviously setup scenes pretending at spontaneity, and we're seeing fewer of those in this season's shows. It also seems that Smethurst started to hit his stride halfway through the last season (the Gunnison episode leaps to mind), and yes, I'm happy to see the recent episodes placing a greater emphasis on conservation. I'd still love to see On The Rise do away with the setup stuff entirely - a construct that places distance between viewers and the show - and believe the viewers would love to see some of the crew's interactions with Frank, which are mostly damned funny, and wholly engaging. I don't think that's in the cards, but as one of the few shows touching on real conservation issues, I'm an On The Rise fan. The trick now is getting them back out for a piece on the Klamath.
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I have been fishing the McCloud since the late 60's and love the River. My brother lived in McCloud in the 70's and we had a great time both on the river, in the surrounding country, and in the town of McCloud. The McCloud is not especially predictable, which adds to the charm. I salute these folks for presenting a side of the story and placing some non-monetary value on this wonderful resource.
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I know you critiqued the show some time back, and I was in agreement with your opinion of the show.I was just wondering what your feelings were now?
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Good episode, watched it last night~
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Another bullet in the beast. Good job! Was cool to see his "highness" out there firing a few rounds. That should make them squirm a little. Saw some pretty fish too.
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Tom, I also DVR'd the show and watched it this morning. Overall a good show (I watch 'em all), but Don Quioxte?!
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caught the show this morning on DVR. Enjoyed it. Great job to Smethurst, TU, CalTrout, the crew, TC, and anyone else I forgot. Glad to see you all got a few digs in on Nestle. keep up the good work.
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