Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

Author Topic: 2019/2020 Chilliwack River winter steelhead fishery information & water condition updates  (Read 35565 times)

GENERAL-SHERMAN

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 263

Just stay on the main road 10 minutes and when you hit the junction of three roads stay to the right ... the unstable areas start about 2-300 yards down that road . They were hauling logs up here somewhere today which makes me think the road never washed out . You used to have to ride mountain bikes or motorcycles in there but they fixed it a couple years back.. machines have been taking logs at the back end for a couple years now...the road repair didn't look like a solid repair but who knows.I don't think the mountain is full of clay like the surrounding hills around vedder from the crossing to limit either. Lots of small creeks and seeps come off that mountain (McGuire) and drain into the Tamahi which probably caused the road to washout originally. If u find a fresh washout or slide on the road be sure to post it. There's a really big one on that goes into liumchen creek as well. That's the creek that drains into Wilson road. Occured 5+ years back maybe a better example of a serious slide if ur going site seeing. Drive in through sleepy hollow road off of cultas  and the valley behind the military site which can be seen from the spur road on the east side of the valley. As soon as u hit the fresh clearcuts look across the valley to the west(international ridge ?) I think it's called. Roads a little greasy mind you though .
« Last Edit: February 04, 2020, 08:12:38 PM by GENERAL-SHERMAN »
Logged

chris gadsden

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 13952

River has dropped but did not look too good at noon today in the Lower.

chris gadsden

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 13952

Visibility around a foot today, raining now.

Wiseguy

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 794

I concur. Maybe a foot in the lower at best. 2 feet in the upper at best. Silty conditions and high water. Saw the broodstock guys out today. Don’t know if they tubed anything today.
Logged

chris gadsden

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 13952

River around a foot or so around noon then when out shortly after I was told.

chris gadsden

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 13952

Water did not look that great in the Lower when I looked but with the slides it can change by the hour.

wildmanyeah

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2065

2/9/20   Rodger Langille   12.01   77.50   40.00   Doe
2/9/20   Bill Coward   13.31   80.50   41.50   Doe
2/8/20   Brian Nomura   8.81   77.00   38.00   Doe
2/8/20   Jim Walker   11.33   78.50   40.50   Doe
2/8/20   Keith Laxton   8.68   73.00   35.00   Doe
2/8/20   Brandon Winkelmann   10.51   73.00   45.00   Doe
2/8/20   Sterling Haglund   9.32   75.00   38.00   Doe
2/8/20   Brian Mirea   12.14   78.00   41.00   Doe
2/7/20   James Smith   15.41   87.00   45.00   Buck
2/7/20   Ron Valer   9.85   76.00   38.00   Doe
2/7/20   Brian Nomura   11.37   80.00   40.00   Buck
2/7/20   Sam Peacock   15.45   88.50   44.50   Buck
2/6/20   James Smith   10.14   75.50   39.00   Doe
2/6/20   Patrick Abramson   11.50   80.00   39.00   Doe
2/3/20   Andrew Cunning   9.92   73.00   39.00   Doe
Logged

Dave

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 3402

Always more female hatchery fish caught than males .. interesting, and I wonder why?
Logged

avid angler

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 371

Dave I have found the same with wilds as well. Seems to be a 70:30 doe to buck ratio
Logged

Dave

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 3402

Dave I have found the same with wilds as well. Seems to be a 70:30 doe to buck ratio
Do you mean for this season, or others as well? I'm asking because we see more males in our counts, probably because they are opportunistic and tend to stick around longer.
Logged

wildmanyeah

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2065

The high female ratio is apparently not uncommon for anadromous steelhead.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_h8UT3v2AM  They touch on it a bit in this youtube vid at the 13 min mark.
Logged

Dave

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 3402

The high female ratio is apparently not uncommon for anadromous steelhead.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_h8UT3v2AM  They touch on it a bit in this youtube vid at the 13 min mark.
Awesome memory you have!!  thanks for this, seems like a good life history strategy for a species not as numerous as other salmon species.
Logged

wildmanyeah

  • Old Timer
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2065

Awesome memory you have!!  thanks for this, seems like a good life history strategy for a species not as numerous as other salmon species.

I think it begs the question tho if harvesting trout in a system that supports steelhead should be allowed or what impacts it may have.
Logged

avid angler

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 371

Literally every season for as long as I’ve been fishing my friends and I have caught significantly more does then bucks both hatchery and wild
Logged

DanTfisherman

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 123

I believe Mr. Bison commented on this with some stats at the Steelhead Society presentation a few weeks ago.
He basically looked at the various trout that may emerge from eggs when they begin to hatch, and with figures, demonstrated that female fry from a female Steelhead parent have a higher likelihood to head to the ocean than others mating combinations/sex that hatch and emerge from the gravel.

He also mentioned that a key concept to increase the number of fish that will leave their natal system and head out to the ocean is to decrease the quality of their rearing habitat.  He noted in systems with warm water conditions, minimal nutrients, and poor habitat, trout fry were more likely to leave and migrate to the ocean than systems that had good habitat, cooler oxygenated water, and lots of feed.  Makes sense, as a fat steelhead is not going to take the risk to go out to the ocean, while a skinny, starved fish which is uncomfortable is likely to leave to look for better sources of food.

According to him the two biggest factors acting against Steelhead survival, and maybe other Salmonoid species is:
#1.  In shore survival as they leave the estuary, move into the inner passage, as spend the 7-12 days needed to migrate up and make it to the open ocean and feeding.  High rate of loss of fish (I think he had figures of up to 70%) and Mr. Bison hypothesized it was due to high rates of predation from pinnipeds.  He stated if this was dealt with and solved, this would be the most important factor to assist us to help with steelhead survival and recovery.
#2.  In the open ocean when it came to feeding, increased competition from rival species produced in hatcheries are leading to smaller overall size, lower survival rates, and when they do return, due to their smaller size, the salmonoids are producing up to 25% less eggs to lay.  This increased competition comes from massive hatcheries out of Japan, Russia, other Asian systems, as well as our own systems found locally and in Alaska.

Please keep in mind I am providing a crash summary of studies he was telling us about that focused on Interior Steelhead.  I would suggest much of what he states and suggested COULD be applied to other Steelhead species which are genetically different than interior stocks.  It could be argued this is a theory which is being applied to a different group of fish, and thus, the speculation is incorrect, not factual, and not valid.

Dano
Logged