Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Rodney]

Several years ago, I started a similar thread to gather some feedbacks and ideas from you on fisheries that are available in the Lower Mainland. That particular discussion generated lots of good ideas and they have been brought up at meetings to further improve what are available to region 2 anglers. The previous thread only focuses on Lower Mainland catchable rainbow trout/urban fisheries, so I'd like to expand that discussion to all other fisheries for this year.

Now that 2012 is almost over, I'm interested in getting thoughts from those who have participated in this year's fisheries, including the Fishing in the City program (urban catchable rainbow trout fisheries), our summer and fall salmon fisheries, winter steelhead fisheries in the Fraser Valley, anadromous trout and char fisheries, saltwater fisheries, etc.

What we are looking for here are constructive feedbacks. They can be both positive and negative, but please present them in a civil manner so we can take your ideas and concerns to further discussions if possible. Have you enjoyed the quality of these fisheries? Thoughts on enforcement? Fishing reports, stocking database, have they been useful to you? What else would you like to see?

Let's hear it.

[EZ_Rolling]

The catchable rainbow trout program is good but I would love to see the daily catch reduced to 1 fish .... It seems if you don't get to the lake quick it gets fished out fast, these trout are fun to catch but should not be considered a food source.

Also would like to see the retun of cut throat stocking on the local rivers as I understand this has been greatly reduced or stopped in several rivers.

[fishfryer]

I'd like to question the motivation of a mid November chum retention on the Squamish...end of October I was into 20 chromers in 2 hours, two weeks later, they declare an opening, and ever snagger and his dog, or wife, is below the powerlines killing rotting. spawned out chum...why???

[rhino]

A few of my personal observations this year.

more angler then previous years.

more chum then previous 2 years on the Chilliwack system

I noticed less chum last 2 years in the harrison and chehalis systems

Local lake stocking programs didnt seem to produce fish for me. It seemed difficult to "catch fish". Maybe the pervious poster is correct in suggesting the limit should be reduced.

[Rodney]

I'd like to question the motivation of a mid November chum retention on the Squamish...end of October I was into 20 chromers in 2 hours, two weeks later, they declare an opening, and ever snagger and his dog, or wife, is below the powerlines killing rotting. spawned out chum...why???

For the Squamish River chum salmon retention opening, there are two discussions where your questions have been addressed.

http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=31585.0

http://forum.flybc.ca/index.php?showtopic=40608

[canadiansoul]

There should be more DFO officers out there checking licenses....when I was fishing at Stave for coho, DFO came out and within 10 minutes, over 1/2 the people there left. Most of them did not have a fishing license!  

[fishnjim]

i also would like some river/slough cutthroat fisheries expanded.  maybe even some cutthroat lakes?

[clarki]

This year I invested much of my fishing effort off the beaches for coastal cutthroat. While I have sent in my annual creel report to the Ministry of FLNR biologst responsible for the portfolio (as I have done in years past) I will say that the cutthroat fishing this year was excellent. Between my buddy and I we hooked just over 100 cutthroat, and landed 60. 90% of the fish were wild and most were over 30 cm. Very pleasing to see large numbers of big wild fish. I have nothing but positive comments on the fishery and the apparent health of the urban coastal cutthroat.

[fic]

I wonder what happens to the majority of the hatchery trout that get stocked in the lakes.  Do they really get fished out quickly, or do most of them just die when they couldn't find enough food to eat. If they do live a few years, you would expect to see them get quite a bit bigger and fatter over time.  I also didn't have much luck with the stocked trout and I didn't many other people catch either.  May be it's because I go when the weather or timing is convenient for me.

[Shawn6o4]

I have had lots of fun catching these trout at rice lake, one thing i would suggest is the stockings be farther appart, it seems too close together. I also agree at lowering limits to 2

[noobfisher]

I think the urban stocked trout fishery should be a total catch and release program.  More fishing for everyone to enjoy and it would instill conservation values to the urban fisheries.  I'd rather see a young kid catch a fish with his mom / dad then some of the regulars that see it as a daily meat source.  Barring that the limit should be one fish.

I've been to Rice lake before and one guy goes there and catches fish after fish, once he reaches his four he starts giving them to other people fishing around him, then he keeps fishing keeping the largest fish.  I mean really, leave some for the kids to fish.  (RAPP time)

I'd like to see more enforcement both in the urban fisheries and along the river systems.  The provincial and federal government need to fund more conservation and fisheries officers to deal with the poachers, polluters that are rampant it seems along the Vedder.  Nothing ruins a nice day on the river than a guy that squeezes next to you and starts ripping his line, makes me sick.

I've enjoyed both the urban stocked trout fishery and the vedder this year, however the one thing that keeps disappointing me are all the people that don't comply with regulations, and the rampant flossing and snagging of fish on the Vedder this fall.

Perhaps a video blog from Fishing with Rod about ethical fishing techniques (ie snagging, flossing etc) to educate the masses. 

[JPW]

I'm all for lowering the limit on the urban lakes, but it means nothing without enforcement.  As it is, many people take more than 4...

[gln]

On the Stave River on 287th. street I would like to see The City of Mission supply garbage containers and friendly informational signs about cleaning up your own mess by the parking lots and trail entrances to the river.

I was really shocked that my fellow fishermen would leave as much garbage as they did. I don't mean a bit of line here and there but it was like walking into a garbage dump.

I feel very sorry for the local residents that have to put up with the mess from the fishermen and at the end of the season having to clean it up, it really was appalling.

Gerry

[milo]

1. More daily enforcement of the basic stuff (license, barbless hooks, limits...) Would be nice to have more undercover COs fishing among us on the more popular flows.

2. I would like to see more FF only waters in the LML. Maybe FF only sections on the Vedder, Squamish, Harrison? I'd be willing to pay extra for that kind of experience. Imagine...you cast your fly line...a fish hits, you land it...and you just keep working the run without half a dozen beeks swarming you and casting over your fly line. A man can dream, no?

3. Roe harvest ban in chum season (breaks my heart to see all those chum does slit open and disposed of only for their eggs).

[Rodney]

All the comments look good so far, please keep them coming.

Re: Urban lake stockings/fisheries. I know many have pointed out that they get fished out rather quickly. From my experience using these lakes, I find that not to be true. While success rate may go down over time, it is not the result of overfishing. These fish do become harder to catch as time goes by because they get used to the environment, they become a bit smarter once being caught and released.

BTW, if you go down to Lafarge Lake right now, you should have no problem hauling in quite a few because they lake has had four stockings of 1000's fish this fall and usage has been quite low.