Print

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

[winter steel]

     I can't wait for the day that DFO imposes a leader restriction. The scene on the Vedder/Capilano/Chehalis and even the Chekamus (to some extent) is sickening. I really do not understand what satisfaction a person can get from landing a fish that has been lined/flossed. Are your egos so important that you have to catch a fish at all costs. Maybe you do not know any better, ( I doubt it) but really ignorance is no excuse. I would love to see an angler have to pass a test before he/she can receive thier license. Fish ID's, basic river etiquette, catch and release practices, and how to use the regulations. Fishing is not a right, but a privelage and ensuring one knows the basic regulations and restrictions leaves no chance for them to plead ingorance when busted. Also, more visuals on rivers highliting specific regulations could help the general angling public regulate the streams better themselves. I was on the Vedder Saturday and did not make many friends as I was very vocal about the lack of "angling" (by definition)  going on. I firmly believe that if you are not part of the solution then you are part of the problem and river etiquette is becoming a huge problem to fishermen and even more so the fish.
    As a side bar, the bait ban that has been proposed for next year would only encourage more flossing. I understand the reasoning behind a bait ban on certain rivers to protect juveniles/steelhead and whatever else. However, I think the use of larger hooks and perhaps spot closings would be a better answer to the problem. I say ban wool after what I saw this weekend. Tight Lines.

[Floater]

All very good ideas but remember one thing. The dfo would make about 50 percent less money if they had to make people take tests. Do you really think they will freely give up all those liceanse bucks and spend more on tests and people to process them and so on.

[BwiBwi]

May be not ego. But wanting a fish on the dinner plate???

[dennisK]

the vedder is the sacrificial lamb in the BC river system by the DFO. This is why you have VERY VERY FEW DFO officials enforcing anything there.  By having one throw away river (hatchery arguments) they can focus on more import smaller wild gened streams.

[pontooner]

Hmmmm you seem to target people just trying to bring a fish home to there family, yet you have nothing to say about the commecial fishermen who I belive don't use bait or lures to encourge a bite, yet take hundreds of thousands of fish just to end up selling it back to YOU(as a far less quilaty prouduct).As far as proper etiquette keeping your mouth shut about a COMPLETELY LEGEL method of fishing IS proper etiquette, no wonder you made few freinds.As far as being part of the solution what have you done lately, beside complaining about what isn't being done???  You don't see rod in here debating right and wrong.

[Fish Assassin]

All very good ideas but remember one thing. The dfo would make about 50 percent less money if they had to make people take tests. Do you really think they will freely give up all those liceanse bucks and spend more on tests and people to process them and so on.

Money collected from licences and fines don't go back to DFO; they go into General Revenues.

[winter steel]

    Hey, pontooner I love guys like you. What have you done for me lately? Well, I'm attending a DFO discussion downtown Tuesday night (6:00 pm at the BCIT campus), I help with the broodstock program on the Capilano, volunteer at the Seymour hatchery when needed, financially help with the Steelhead Society, Pacific Salmon Foundation and oh ya pick up bottles, beer cans, line and other crap left behind on rivers by others. I also ran a kids fishing camp this summer teaching young anglers how to fish and everthing associted with it. If you consider intentionally snagging fish as a completely legal means of fishing I won't bother wasting your time or mine. The commercial fishery is not a past time, hobby, recreation or sport it is a lively hood for those in it and because they have abused the resource in the past they are suffering for it today.
    I was not asking for a ralley cry from Rodney or anyone else for that matter. I believe that there is always room for improvement and angling just so happens to be one area that I care about and would love to see a few things implemented to make the experience more enjoyable for all anglers. I don't care if you want a fish for the table, you have every right to your fish and enjoy it with your family. I am not denying anyone that right, I just don't think it should be at all costs (i.e. illegal means).

[redtide]

theres plenty of fish in the river. theres no need to bicker about flossing or short floating. the hatchery is well on its way of recieving brood stock eggs from the wild fish in the system. its good to see so many people fishing the vedder beacause then the hatchery will continue to keep production high. the vedder is a huge moneymaker for the government(taxes) , tackleshops, fishing guides and of course the city of chilliwack. remember the vedder is a hatchery river which means there will always be fish. theres plenty of room for all license holders whether you floss or float so please get out there and fish and stop this stupid stupid i hate flossers argument. really man.....give it up.

[Rodney]

WS, have you been given an agenda on the public consultation tomorrow night?

For those who are unaware of, DFO is having a series of fall consultations with the public. The schedule can be found on this page.

This topic came up during lunch at Cookies last Saturday (it always does ), we all agreed that there is no one simple solution for this. Anglers are great adapters and new techniques will emerge. Leader length restriction is not the answer, how about just pinching on a split shot one foot above the hook and multiple split shots several feet up from therek. Float fishing only is not the answer, you can simply adjust your float to as deep as you want. Should spoon fishing be banned because you can simply let your spoon drag along the bottom in a slow pool until you bump into a fish's back? The list goes on.

Regulations need to be reviewed constantly as you made a good point, there is always room for changes. Enforcement is needed because some people just can't play by the rules. However, I think the most important factor is the number of misinformed anglers out there. Most are learning how to fish by watching what others are doing. When we talk about how angling is degrading, it's not just how frequently people are flossing, snagging fish. How about the need to catch a fish becomes so much to the point that someone has to pull a knife out when tension reaches its high point? How about the amount of garbage being left behind by people who only narrowly focus on the fish they want to catch instead of their surrounding?

It's great to see participation of angling increasing, but if the new participants are not informed, which may lead to the end of fishing, then something needs to be done.

[Rodney]

theres plenty of fish in the river.

We've all heard that before.

Don't be so sure about production of fish at the hatchery. It maybe a good idea to pull out some stats on budget and fish prod. from the past ten years. Like Buck said in another thread, we'll start to see some noticeable differences in the next two years.

[winter steel]

Rodney, I ahve not been given a schedule, but I do  agree with you whole heartly about misinformed anglers and no simple answers. Unfortunately, on a recent trip I realized that some anglers consciously choose not to be informed and really if you abuse it you lose it. Rodney, are you kidding me, dragging a spoon on the bottom at the prices you and the stores charge for spoons  LOL. I'll see you Tuesday night, tight lines.

[Rodney]

Not sure if I will be there on Tuesday night, as most of the issues scheduled to be discussed are most likely already been going back and forth in emails with them throughout the year. I'll try to get an agenda tomorrow morning and see what's up.

Damn, just when I was thinking about increasing the price of my spoons...

[Gooey]

Rod, Please PM any details (agenda etc) about tomorrow, winter steel, bug pumper and I are all planning to attend. 

My impression was that the agend it "fisheries reform"...pretty board topic which leader lengths/regs/flossing could all fall within.

As Pontoon highlighted by his misinformed comment re :

a COMPLETELY LEGEL method

, a lot of guys dont even realize flossinging is snagging hence it is illegal.

FF if you think discussions like this on FWR are useless chatter, maybe we will see you at the consultation where your voice can be heard by DFO directly.  Thru this consultation, we all have a chance to help shape how our treasured spot evolves; I wonder who cares enuff to try and make a difference?

[Rodney]

These are the topics that will be discussed. How they are going to fit all those in three hours, I am not sure.

• Fisheries Act Renewal
• Fisheries Reform
• Integrated Groundfish Proposal
• Wild Salmon Policy
• Species At Risk Act List & Freshwater Recovery Strategies
• Proposed Rockfish Conservation Areas

I am surprised there isn't one set up in Chilliwack for the Fraser Valley crowd.

I am also frustrated that a public consultation is being set up in the middle of the salmon season. The stakeholders meetings are taking place on Wednesday and Thursday, are people expecting the guides just drop their business for two days to attend these?

I'll forward all info if I get some tomorrow.

[James]

as one of those mis educated fishermen , I only heard of "flossing" or "short floating" when i came to this forum not long ago . I never use a leader longer than 18" . So i don't think i "floss" . But what is Short floating . ? I ask because i don't want to be a mis informed person making a mistake i didn't know about . Other than that i will leave the topic alone .