Eel River
River in CaliforniaWikipedia
48
MENTIONS
5
EPISODES
5
PODCASTS
Search complete. 48 mentions across 5 episodes found for "Eel River".
Oct 10, 2026
Mr BallenHOST
Okay, let's get into today's stories.
Mr BallenHOST
One night in the fall of 1966, a 30-year-old man named Sam and his three friends snuck along the banks of the Eel River estuary near Eureka, California.
Mr BallenHOST
When they found a good spot to fish from, they put down all their fishing gear and opened up their tackle boxes.
Mr BallenHOST
All four of them pulled out these special glow-in-the-dark lures, and they tried to stay as quiet as possible as they attached these lures to their fishing rods and then slowly waded out into the water.
Mr BallenHOST
But what ended up happening is the poachers actually caught Terry.
Mr BallenHOST
But after Sam had reeled the warden out of the water, even though he yelled for his buddies to run, Terry Grosh just pulled down his hood and he's like, yeah, you're all under arrest.
Mr BallenHOST
Once word got around that Terry had literally been in the water with the salmon to protect them, Very quickly, poaching stopped at the Eel River Estuary, at least for quite a while.
Mr BallenHOST
And in fact, the stunt by Terry was so successful that it inspired a few other game wardens along the west coast of the United States to also get in the water and catch illegal fishermen that way.
Jim SowerNARRATOR
Well, you mentioned three sightings you've had.
Jim SowerNARRATOR
Where? Around Eel River, Trinity Forks, Snake River.
Jim SowerNARRATOR
Some people ask if they are real, then why are there never any bones found? Do they bury their dead? Yes, but in water, weighted down in rivers or ponds with stones.
Jim SowerNARRATOR
So we're talking about an animal that is shy, clever, and territorial, all signs of an intelligent creature.
Steve MartinSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
and
Old Crow Medicine ShowSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
I was educated well On a stern and double wheeler where I learned my rebel yell Then I started roustaboutin' at the age of thirteen Lord, I'm a child of the Mississippi I was raised on the river, muddy water gonna carry me home She's gonna rock me like a baby, rollin' in her sweet lovin' heart Just a barefoot boy born in Dixieland Brought up on the banks of Eel River, man Sweet child of the Mississippi I know every stretch of river I know every railroad bridge From up in St. Paul, Minnesota Down south to the Memphis pyramid Lord, she's proud and she's lonesome And I know since I was a kid I was a child of the Mississippi
Steve MartinSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
Hey, I was raised on the river
Old Crow Medicine ShowSOUNDBITE_SPEAKER
Sweet loving heart.
Dave SchlomHOST
I'm Dave Shlom.
Dave SchlomHOST
Many Californians would be surprised to learn that the third largest watershed in the state is the Eel River.
Dave SchlomHOST
I know I was.
Dave SchlomHOST
Named by white settlers for the lampreys they saw there, this magnificent wild and scenic river system has its headwaters just north of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Dave SchlomHOST
We'll be speaking with publisher Tracy Diaz and editor-at-large George Revell.
Dave SchlomHOST
California Fly Fisher is a beautiful magazine that can be enjoyed by both fly anglers like me and those who are just interested in California's incredibly diverse waters.
Dave SchlomHOST
But first, let's take a deep dive into the natural and human history of the Eel River system with our guest Charles Schneider from California Trout.
Dave SchlomHOST
Raised by loggers in Northern California, Charles is a connectivity program manager for California Trout, and he joins us now from his home in Petaluma, California.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
Even Paul got a call.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
I got this log that I pulled out of Eel River.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
And it was, you know, five foot at the small.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
There was two logs.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
It was a five foot 20 and a six foot 16.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
Seven foot at the butt sinker wood that came out of the Eel River.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
Right away, it was like, oh, we need to get that.
Steven CrowningshieldGUEST
And it turned out that it has the purple streaky in it, and it is super fine-grained.