FishwithJD

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WDF&W to Eliminate Steelhead Fishing in Puget Sound Drainages?

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Could buget cuts end steelheading in Puget Sound rivers?

Uh, oh! Thanks to a $20 to $30 million in shortfall in funds, The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is faced with making some super deep cuts in upcoming years, several of which would have profound impacts on anglers and hunters in the state…

Department Director, Phil Anderson, said cuts might include 20 wildlife enforcement jobs, closure of seven to 11 fish hatcheries, the elimination of steelhead fishing in Puget Sound tributaries and closure of some of the agency’s 700 public access areas.

Say what?

Read more at the Tri-City Hearld

Own a piece of History: The Barefoot Bandit’s Getaway Boat (bullet holes included!)

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Merc's are tough, but they're not bulletproof!


Colton Harris-Moore, AKA “The Barefoot Bandit,” who bizarrely became somewhat of a folk hero after going on a 2-year crime spree that included breaking into dozens of homes and committing burglaries in Washington, Idaho and British Columbia and the alleged stealing of at least five planes, despite a lack of formal flight training, was finally apprehended in Harbour Island, Bahamas on July 11, after police shot out the engine of a boat he stole.

Now, of course, the 19-year-old Bandit’s getaway boat is up for sale on eBay. For those of you with $110,000 laying around, the vessel is a 2002 model 32-foot Intrepid center console sportfisher with twin 275HP Mercury Verado outboards…in great shape, aside from a few bullet holes. Don’t worry, though…the motors will be in working condition upon purchase but the bullet holes will remain. In addition to the shot gun blasts, the boat has some nice Uzi holes in it as well. For more pix and info, click HERE

Tracking Oregon’s Salmon Recovery Efforts

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Lots of good data here!

Here’s a pretty cool tool that should help you kill (even more) hours at the workplace: The Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife’s new online Salmon Salmon Recovery Tracker website which allows you to take a very in-depth look at how salmon (mainly coho at this point, but the website will include Chinook and steelies in the future) are doing.

For example, you can look up a specific water…say the Nehalem River…and take a look at all sorts of different data sets. In this example, we’ll go with “Spawner Abundance” and then take a look at the years 2005-2010 (it will go back to 1989!). Hit the go button and {Presto} you can see how many fish were observed on a given year and then what percent of the escapement goal that number is (in this case, the river’s been ranging from 19.2% to 167% of the target number of spawners).

Anyway, there’s lots of cool stuff to dig around in here. Check it out!

Alternative commercial fishing gear to be tested on lower Columbia River

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Back then, we thought the resource was limitless...now we know better! (Photo: www.nwcouncil.org)

Okay, I guess this is a positive thing that they’re trying to modify commercial fishing gear on the lower Columbia….but I do have one question to ask before you read on: WTF?? They can still commercially fish on the Columbia? I’m not into messing with person’s livelihood, but can somebody explain to me how netting salmon in a river is a good thing in the Big Picture?

I’m off the soap box now…go ahead and read on…

Starting this week, fishery managers from Washington and Oregon will test the feasibility of five types of alternative commercial fishing gears on the lower Columbia River. Expanding on a pilot project conducted last year, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) will work with commercial salmon fishers to test purse seines, beach seines and trap nets.

In addition, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) will work with a team of commercial fishers to test commercial troll gear and tangle nets during fall chinook and coho salmon runs. Click here to read more…

Cheating bass angler stuffs lead weights in fish; banned for life from tournaments

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Mike Hart's method for making bass heavier (Photo from www.bassnman.com)

Professional bass angler Mike Hart of Winnetka, California, was caught weighing in bass stuffed with lead sinkers Wednesday during the WON BASS U.S. Open at Lake Mead, Nevada.

Lead weights commonly known as ring or torpedo sinkers rigged with a single hook to keep them in place were found in the bellies of three dead bass that Hart weighed in as the fish were being cleaned in order to be donated to charity, prompting a lifetime ban from the WON Bass circuit. U.S. Anglers Choice has also banned him from participating in future events and you can rest assured that all major bass tours will do the same.

Read the full story from Rich Holland at WONEWS