The past couple of pink years I've noticed some terrible things. Usually once fish get stacked up (and we all know how thick they can get in some systems) we start seeing so many foul hooked.
This was indeed a big problem in the Chilliwack River system two years ago when they stacked up in huge numbers. Managers and enforcement officers did not anticipated the type of fishing pressure generated as a result and there were many issues (unknowingly foul hooking fish, intentionally snagging fish, high grading, general bad etiquettes etc). We had a long discussion at the Sport Fishing Advisory Committee after that, came up with a few adjustments but no real solutions at the time. This fishery attracts lots of newcomers who are not familiar how fishing should be done, but many are willing to learn, so it's up to experienced anglers to have a bit of patience and provide some pointers when needed to make things better.
There's also a need for more presence of enforcement on the C-V system during September and October. It's harder to find as they are very busy protecting the Fraser River resource (September, endangered interior steelhead and coho run time, confiscating illegal nets). The strong return of pinks often devalues them in some "experienced" anglers' eyes, like what we had to watch a couple of years ago during this trip:
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/2009/10/06/vedder-a-love-and-hate-relationship/On the more positive note, the tidal portion of the Fraser, where fish are constantly on the move, have little to no problems when it comes to fishing etiquettes and regulation compliance. Fish are moving with the tide, so foul hooking is difficult unless you really try to snag them. There isn't a need for that of course because they're already so easy to catch by simply casting and retrieving a lure properly. Two years ago, we chatted with one DFO officers who had just finished checking a long line of anglers (perhaps a few hundred?) and there wasn't a single violation. It's truly a positive environment and that's why I prefer to fish for them in the tidal portion (Richmond) and make more effort to keep things the way it is by education.
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Topic: PINKS (Read 10647 times)