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WEEKLY FISHING REPORT
Jan 16 - Jan 23, 2011

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FISHING REGULATIONS

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PHOTO OF THE WEEK: Glen Kilcup hold a Brook Trout caught Jan 22 in Irrigation Lake.  Glen caught this Brook Trout while fishing in a Fund Raising Derby organized Calvin & Brenda Glaim of Houston.  Proceeds donated to the Houston Food Bank. (For more details please see Report below)

IMPORTANT Halibut Issue: Please see Halibut Information below.

Fishing Report from:  Ron Wakita of Reliable Guide and Charters, Kitimat BC
cell.250 632-1275  email: wakita@telus.net
website www.reliableguideandcharters.com

City Centre Hardware & Sporting Goods     
"Kitimat's Largest Tackle Store"
380 City Centre
Kitimat BC V8C 1T6
bus.250 632-3522  fax 250 632-3528           
wakita@telus.net

 We are also offering Gift Certificates for Guided River Trips and Ocean Charters.  Anyone interested please contact Ron wakita@telus.net

 

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Selected Rods 30 to 50% OFF

Kitimat River

We received an unbelievable amount of snow last weekend and many anglers in Kitimat were busy shoveling their driveways.  It seemed that we were shoveling around the clock.  With all the snow that we received caused access to the Kitimat River to be limited.  When the snow finally stopped it was followed by rain which made shoveling even worse.  Snow + Rain = Slush Slush is the worst conditions in my opinion.  It makes driving dangerous, walking in it ugly and fishing in it is a pain.  Consequently due to the weather the only thing to report on the Kitimat River was there was none going on.
 
Douglas Channel
The Resident Salt Water Anglers were in the same boat as the Freshwater Anglers.  They were busy shoveling their driveways and coping with the snow and then the slush.  The additional issue of a huge snow fall followed by rain is that the rain saturates the snow and the snow load on boats has to been addressed for obvious reasons.  There was no fishing activity on the water this week due to the weather.  This is one of the few times when there was no fishing going on in either the Kitimat River or the Douglas Channel.  Such is life in the North West.
 
Special Report - Ross Lake
 
 
 
Jan 17 Ariel Kuppers, Clint Travis and Errol Doe went ice fishing on fishing Ross Lake.  The conditions in the Kitimat area were not good so they went to Ross Lake.  They only caught one Brook Trout but they traveled to fish and enjoy the fishing experience.  Only hardcore anglers can relate to passion for fishing and understand the extremes that that anglers go to sometimes to be able to fish.  They were using Berkey's Hot Ice Combos baited with Procured Shrimp.  The fishing wasn't the greatest but they were fishing in the comfort of an Outpost 6003 Ice Fishing Tent made by Frabill.  I am happy to report that all said that they a had a Great trip. 
 
 
Irrigation Lake 
Jan 22 Glen Kilcup of Fishawk Guiding reports, "Here's a respectable brookie I caught this weekend. I attended the 2nd annual ice fishing derby at Irrigation Lake where the biggest fish caught was 1 pound 10 ounces. I landed 8 fish and lost 5 but was not able to place, but my partner Mike cashed one in at 1.2. He ended up in 6th position. Not very many fish were even weighed in as the day for most was fishless. Good clear, warm weather prevailed for most of the weekend here but the lakes were very watery and slushy with still 2 feet of ice.The day turned out to be allot of fun and success for organizers Calvin & Brenda Glaim of Houston. With a wide variety of sponsors and donations, the proceeds go to the houston food bank. Good job guys! Next year they claim it will be bigger and better again! Lots of derby info will be posted on facebook.
The Brook trout pictured here was quite close to 5 lbs and was released.
Salt water krill was my bait of choice and has always proven effective in winter and in all lake trolling situations. Good times........"
 
Thank You to everyone who contributed photos and info to this Fishing Report.
 
Good Health and Good Fishing!
 

Ron Wakita
Reliable Guide and Charters
380 City Centre
Kitimat B.C
V8C 1T6
bus.250 632-3522  cell.250 632-1275
fax. 250 632-3528
wakita@telus.net
www.reliableguideandcharters.com


IMPORTANT Halibut Issue:   
DFO is determined to impose an In Halibut Closure to the Recreation Anglers this season.  This is not a conservation measure it is a misallocation of Halibut Stocks generated by a grossly unfair and flawed Halibut Allocation Policy.
 
Kitimat Residents has have just this week formed a group called the Kitimat Halibut Allocation Task Force to organize opposition to this grossly unfair allocation of a Canadian Common Resourse.  Mayor and Council is will be represented on this Task Force along with the Chamber of Commerce and the Rod and Gun, CAW, Teamsters, Laborers Union, MK Bay Marina, MK Bay User Group, Teachers, Charters, Guides, businesses and many anglers.  Please stay tuned to this Fishing Report for developments including a Town Meeting hosted by the Sports Fishing Institute in Kitimat.  Details should be available soon.  One of the significant decisions made by this Task Force was that Letters should now be directed to the Prime Minister of Canada and copied to the DFO Minister.  It was decided that the DFO Minister is determined to serve the interests of 436 Commercial License Holders and compromise of the rights of the majority of Canadians to fish for Halibut.  If years of negotiating with the DFO Minister and countless Letters has not produced a fair and equitable Halibut Allocation Policy, we have decided to direct our Letters to the Prime Minister of Canada.  We intend to hold the Conservative Government accountable allowing the DFO Minister to enforce this grossly unfair Halibut Allocation policy.  Recreation Anglers demand fair and equitable access to Halibut.  To think that all Canadians will be prohibited from fishing for Halibut by August while 436 Commercial License continue to fish is wrong. 
 
We are asking all Canadians to help oppose to this Halibut Allocation Policy.  Please review the sample letters provided at the end of this Fishing Report.  These letters should help you write a letter to the Prime Minister to stand up for your right as an Angler and as a Canadian.  These letters were originally written to the DFO Minister but the Kitimat Halibut Allocation Task Force is now requesting that all future Letters be sent to the Prime Minister.
 
Or you may be an Angler who would like to visit BC to fish for Halibut.  There is a sample Letter from a group of Anglers from New Zealand provided to be assistance to Anglers from out of country.  Anglers from out of country, please feel free to write or email our Prime Minister as well.
 
IMPORTANT Halibut Issue:  
The Clock is ticking and there are 10 days before Halibut Season opens. The SFI just posted a catchy phase on their website:

EITHER WE STAND UP NOW OR BE STOOD UPON FOREVER!

Please write a letter to the Prime Minister of Canada and cc the DFO Minister of Fisheries. 

Please Send Emails and Letters to:

Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2
Fax: 613-941-6900
E-mail: pm@pm.gc.ca

Copies of your letter should be emailed to:
Honorable Minister Gail Shea
Shea.G@parl.gc.ca 
Nathan Cullen Cullen.N@parl.gc.ca
Robin Austin robin.austin.mla@leg.bc.ca
Sports Fishing Institute at: info@sportfishing.bc.ca
 

Sample Letter from a Kitimat Resident


Honorable Minister Gail Shea:
 
I write to you in regards to the current DFO Halibut Allocation Policy.  The Halibut Policy allocating 88% of Canada's Halibut Stocks to 436 Commercial License holders and the remaining 12% to the rest of the Canadian population who are potentially Recreation Anglers is wrong.  The Recreational Sector represents the majority of Canadians and should be allocated equal access to this Canadian Common Resource.  
 
The Recreation Sector also contributes millions of dollars to Local, Provincial and Federal Economies. In these troubled economic times the current Halibut Allocation Policy will have a devastating and far reaching negative impact on the Canadian economy.
 
I have lived in Kitimat since 1955 and I have fished for Halibut for 55 years.  Fishing for Halibut is not only a Sport but it is also an integral part of my way of life.  I have chosen to live in Kitimat to enjoy the Douglas Channel and to fish for Halibut with friends and family.  I also harvest Halibut for food for sustenance.  There is a sense of satisfaction from eating the food that you catch yourself, 
 
It is apprehensible to think that only 140 of the 436 Commercial License holders actually fish for Halibut.  The majority of the Commercial License Holders lease out their quota and sit at home profiting from leasing out a Canadian Common Resource.  THE CANADIAN PEOPLE OWN THE RESOURCE not the Commercial License holders who were gifted their allocation for FREE!.
The reference to these Commercial License Holders coined by the Sport Fishing Institute, "Slipper Skippers" is both accurate and disturbing.
It is intolerable to think that my way of life and my right to fish for Halibut has been reduced because your Ministry has mismanaged our Halibut Stocks.
 
I  find it appalling that the current DFO Halibut Policy will prohibit me and all other Recreation Anglers from fishing for Halibut in August 2011 while the Commercial sector will continue to fish.  Your policy serves the interest of select few but compromises the rights of all Canadians who wish to fish for Halibut.  I can not believe that the Conservative Government continues to allow this unfair allocation of a Canadian Resource.  This policy has reduced my confidence in the Conservative Government. 
 
As a Canadian Citizen that is being effected by you decisions I demand you to change your Halibut Allocation Policy.  You have the Authority under the Fisheries Act to allocate a fair and equitable share of Halibut Stocks to the Recreation Sector.  In the interests of the majority of Canadians you must change your Halibut Allocation Policy or resign.
 
I would appreciate it if you respond to me directly as I believe after paying Federal Taxes for over 50 years I have earned this consideration. 
 
Sincerely,
 
Ferd Bouzane
3 Fulmar Street
Kitimat B.C.
Canada

V8C 1T3


Sample Letter form an Angler from Alberta

Minister Gail Shea  (Minister of Fisheries and Oceans)

I am writing this letter with regard to your Halibut policy that I recently heard of.  I truly found it unbelievable that the “Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO)” is determined to enforce this Halibut Policy allocating 88% of Halibut Stocks to 435 Commercial Halibut License Holders and only the remaining 12% to the rest of the Canadian population.  This is a grossly unfair distribution of our common Canadian resource.  This resource does not belong to an independent group of commercial fisherman, it belongs to all of us.  

I have traveled and vacationed with my family for 35 consecutive years to the B.C. coast near Prince Rupert,  to the Queen Charlottes, and to the Kitimat area.   We have enjoyed trying to catch our “common resource” of halibut.   Now you wish to strip this resource from us Canadians and only allow commercial fisherman the privilege to catch, this is totally wrong.    

I am absolutely positive of the huge financial input I provide into the B.C. economy for these few days of enjoyment that you wish to strip.   It is factual that the sport fisherman provides much more financial benefit to the economy than the commercial fisherman, than you are even considering in this policy.

This is a very horrible and unfair halibut policy that needs to be reversed.  You cannot allow such an unfair fishing regulation of our common resource to be made and enforced.    You must reconsider your decision.

I am very concerned of the thought process that is taking place to even consider such and unfair practice of our common Canadian resource.

Please reconsider this decision.

Regards,
Brad Kuny
RR 2, Site 2, Box 12
Leduc, AB., Can.
T9E 2X2


Sample Letter from New Zealand

Minister Gail Shea,
 
Whilst I’m not a Canadian nor a Canadian citizen and probable have no right to comment on your laws, I feel very strongly about what is happening with the halibut fishing. It appears to me that once again Big business is trying to run the country and in the long run it is the small businesses and the small communities that suffer.
I think it is unfair that the majority of people have to suffer so that a minority can make huge amounts of money. I know it is the same all over the world but you have the power to make it different.
 
I have been coming to your beautiful  country now for several years and love it. I have fished all around Vancouver, central B.C., Terrace , Kitimat and will be in Terrace once again in 2011. When we fish up there we always spend two or three days in Kitimat and next year will be no exception. That was until we heard about the possible closure of the halibut season. There will be five of us fishing next year [ September 2011 ] and halibut fishing is the reason for going to Kitimat .If there is a short season then there is no reason to travel to Kitimat. I hear you say “ so what” but think of it this way, 5 nights in a motel – 5 breakfasts – 5 lunches – 5 dinners – 5 people hiring a guide , a bit of shopping  and a hire car, that is money that won’t be coming into the community . If we feel this way, how many others are like us …. 10 – 100 – 1000 and this will happen in all small communities around B.C. The tourist dollar is what helps these small towns survive and there must be millions and millions of dollars bought in each year by people like us.
These communities are no different than other towns worldwide , they are struggling in these difficult times so why make it harder for them. The money and the good will these communities bring to your great nation are immeasurable.
  
Minister, if you have taken the time to read this then I thank you and hope in the end you will see reason. The smaller towns need all the help they can get and this is something that you can do at little or no cost to the Government.

Yours Sincerely,
Graeme Ivamy
1 Havelock Street, Mornington,
Wellington 602,
New Zealand
gcivamy@xtra.co.nz

Sample Letter to the Editor: Please use my Letter to the Editor as a Template, make any changes you wish and submit it to your local Newspaper.  Please send a copy of you Letter to the Editor to the DFO Minister and the SFI 

 
To the Editor:

The intended purpose of this letter is to inform all Recreational Anglers of the Department of Fisheries and Ocean's (DFO) Halibut Allocation Policy.  The specific injustice of the current DFO's Halibut Policy is that it allocates 88% of Halibut Stocks to 436 Commercial Halibut License Holders and 12% to the rest of the Canadian population who are potential Recreation Anglers.  How a grossly unfair distribution of a Canadian Common resource exists defies common sense.  I can not believe that the Conservative Government is allowing the DFO Minister to enforce this unfair policy. Furthermore, because of this policy, Halibut closed to Recreation Anglers Oct 18th in 2010 while the Commercial sector fished on.  This is not a conservation issue, it is a misallocation of Halibut Stocks.

The Sport Fishing Institute (SFI) estimates that if the current DFO Halibut Allocation Policy is not changed Halibut will be closed to Recreation Anglers as early as July 2011.

The Sports Fishing Institute, B.C Wildlife Federation (BCWLF) and the Sports Fishing Advisory Board (SFAB) have been negotiating with D.F.O with no success.  The only way that this absurd policy is going to change is for the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to receive a letter or email from each and every Recreational angler and indeed from each and every Canadian who thinks this policy is wrong.

The importance of letters or emails to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Minister Gail Shea Shea.G@parl.gc.ca can NOT be emphasized enough.

If everyone does their part by sending a letter or email to the Minister collectively we can make a difference.   

The Sports Fishing Institute has just formed an alliance with the B.C. Wildlife Federation (BCWLF), the Southern Vancouver Island Anglers Association and the BC Federation of Driftfishers to right the imbalance of this unfair allocation of Canada's Halibut resource. They are also asking other groups to join this alliance.  Please contact Alison Obrecht at SFI if your group wishes to join  info@sportfishing.bc.ca  We are hoping every Fishing Group, Rod and Gun, Chamber of Commerce, Labour Union and many other groups join this alliance.

SFI is also coordinating the efforts of individuals by requesting that copies of letters and emails to the Minister be sent to  info@sportfishing.bc.ca 

Please also send a copy of your letter or email to your Member of Parliament.  Our MP for Skeena is Nathan Cullen  Cullen.N@parl.gc.ca and our

MLA, Robin Austin

The voice of everyone who thinks that the DFO Halibut Allocation Policy is wrong, needs to be heard in Ottawa.  Please send an email or letter to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.  I also urge everyone to forward this info to everyone in their Address Book.    

Honorable Minister Gail Shea Shea.G@parl.gc.ca

Honorable Minister Gail Shea
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6

A letter to the Minister does not require a stamp, only an envelope and a few minutes of your time.  You will be rewarded with the satisfaction of doing your part to correct a DFO policy that is grossly unfair to the majority of Canadians.  If everyone does a small part, collectively we can make a Big difference.

Sincerely,

Ron Wakita 

City Centre Hardware & Sporting Goods
"Kitimat's Largest Tackle Store"
380 City Centre
Kitimat B.C.
V8C 1T6
bus.250 632-3522  fax 250 632 3528
wakita@telus.net  www.reliableguideandcharters.com


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