For newcomers to the Puget Sound region — or anyone who wishes to learn about salmon — check out the new video by my friend and former colleague Josh Farley of the Kitsap Sun.

Like many print journalists who have expanded into multimedia, Josh became recognized for his quick-hit news reports. Especially popular was his weekly video “Bremerton Beat Blast,” in which he counted down the top stories of the week in Kitsap County. Now, with a goal of going much deeper into regional topics, he has launched a new series he is calling “Tales of the Sound.”

His video “Secrets of the Salmon” (first on this page) features some of the important salmon locations in Puget Sound, including the Big Beef Creek Research Station, a so-called “index stream” used for estimating the number of chum and coho salmon returning to all of Hood Canal. Along the way, he interviews some of the interesting people involved in habitat restoration projects.

“Secrets of the Salmon” is actually the second video in “Tales of the Sound,” a partnership between Josh, the writer and moderator, and producer Jon Kozak, who shared the filming and did all the editing. The goal, Josh says, is to create a series of videos that will remain relevant and informative over time.

The first video provides a geological lesson featuring the worn-down and rounded-over peaks of Green and Gold Mountains near my own home. These state-owned lands are great for short hikes, as Josh explains in a story that accompanies the first video. He actually went out and found the so-called “tin mine” that I have heard about for many years but never realized that the mine was more like an unrealized fantasy.

Josh and Jon have drawn upon revealing aerial footage from Kitsap Sky View LLC to help tell these stories. The amount of work that goes into these productions is fairly remarkable for a full-time newspaper reporter plus a part-time videographer.

“As you know, we work under crazy deadlines,” Josh noted, “but it is nice to be able to do something like this on the side.”

I was pleasantly surprised and happy to hear that my stories and blog posts provided some direction for Josh when it came to figuring out which experts hold the secrets to the salmon and should be included in his video.

Josh is nothing if not enthusiastic, and that’s one thing I love about him. Future videos, he said, may focus on the Suquamish Tribe, its past and present, and the historical mosquito fleet ferry system.

He is especially looking forward to telling the story of the Navy’s ballistic missile submarines. If you drive past the Bangor installation — part of Naval Base Kitsap and home to the Trident nuclear submarines — you will be in vicinity of the largest deployment of nuclear weapons in the U.S., Josh told me. I would tell you more about his video concept, but I’d better not steal his thunder.

Josh says he is open to other ideas, especially if he can find a Kitsap connection. Feel free to write him at josh.farley@kitsapsun.com.