Kokanee spawn in full swing during Penticton Creek Restoration Walk

The restoration of Penticton Creek is a pretty big deal.

It repairs man's damage of the past, gives fish such as the kokanee salmon a better opportunity to successfully spawn and ensures future flood control.

As an added bonus, it'll return an unsightly concrete channel to the living and natural waterway it once was.

It's also a multi-year, and perhaps multi-decade, affair that may well end up costing $30 million.

So the annual Penticton Creek Restoration Walk, held in September when the kokanee salmon are headed upstream, is a great way for people to see what's already been done and what's upcoming, and to ask questions of those in the know.

On Saturday morning, Bruce Turnbull of the Penticton Flyfishers took an enthusiastic group on the 2019 version of the Restoration Walk.

There's been no fresh construction on the creek since the 2018 walk, but folks had a chance to see how the 2015 and 2018 modifications (between the Nanaimo and Ellis bridges) are holding up, as well as chat about upcoming sections.

They also got a good look at the creek's seasonal fish trap, situated just south of the art gallery, where the Flyfishers catch, count and release kokanee. This year, the numbers are looking rather hopeful.

Indeed, 318 fish were counted during the Friday night check, and another 128 Saturday morning. That, said Turnbull during the tour, is a positive sign.

"We're at 3000 already, which is good," said Turnbull. "We should have another few days at that 300 to 400 range and then it will start dropping off. You can't predict what the fish will do. They're late coming in this year so there's still a few more to show up."

Turnbull added that the spawning run will likely carry through to mid-October. "Every fish over 5,000 (last year's cumulative total, the highest number since they began counting) is a good thing."

But to most on the tour, the highlight of the morning was experiencing firsthand how the returning kokanee are taking to the fully restored Nanaimo to Ellis sections, where the creek has been deepened, the flow of water eased and the concrete flume replaced by pebbles and rocks.

From practically any given vantage point between the two bridges, one could see dozens, if not scores of kokanee, either resting, spawning or making their way further upstream.

Occasionally, a fish that had reached the end of its life cycle would gently float by, a reminder of how quickly death comes after eggs are laid and new cycles are begun.

For more information, look here, or head down to the creek to see for yourself.