Book description
The Atlantic salmon is an extraordinary and mysterious fish. In To
Sea and Back, Richard Shelton combines memoir and deep scientific
knowledge to reveal, from the salmon's point of view, both the
riverine and marine worlds in which it lives. He explores this iconic
fish's journey to reach its feeding grounds in the northern oceans
before making the return over thousands of miles to the burns of its
birth to reproduce. Along the way, Shelton describes the feats of
exploration that gave us our first real understanding of the oceans,
and shows how this iconic fish is a vital indicator of the health of
our rivers and oceans. Above all, To Sea and Back is the story of
Richard Shelton's lifelong passion for the sea and his attempt to
solve the perennial enigmas of the salmon's secret life.
Richard Shelton headed the Freshwater Fisheries Laboratory at
Pitlochry from 1982 to 2001. He is currently Research Director of the
Atlantic Salmon Trust and Chairman of the Buckland Foundation. He
lives in Fife. His first book, The Longshoreman: A Life at the Water's
Edge, was published by Atlantic Books in 2004 and longlisted for the
Guardian First Book Award.
