The Muckleshoot Indian
Tribe
have always held
the salmon and their
habitat in highest
regards. Even with modern
harvesting methods, the
fishermen and processors exhibit exceptional
care in handling the
salmon and their environment.
During the Summer and Fall,
at the peak of Puget Sound salmon runs,
the Muckleshoot fishermen carefully 
set
their nets using both large
and small boats. At harvest time, the nets are retrieved by hand
and each fish is carefully removed
from the net to prevent damages
that could occur with a mechanical
method. Each boat carries crushed
ice to pack around the fish immediately
after they are caught and bled
to insure their quality and freshness.
The fish are then quickly
transported to a nearby
dock at which time they are
counted and sorted for both species and quality. Also at this time,
the Indian 
biologists
look for tagged fish and inspect for the health
of the fish. This insures both a healthy and stable run of salmon
for future generations. Packed in
ice, the fish are immediately transported
via a waiting tender to the processing
facility where they are unloaded
and readied to become either hot
or cold smoked salmon.