FishwithJD

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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…

Finally, some good fishing news!

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Vinman with a nice Clacka steelie


Well, it seems like good fishing and fishery news is harder to come by these days, but here’s one for ya: The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife today approved a temporary rule increasing the combined steelhead/salmon bag limit (total of three fish a day ) on the Willamette, Clackamas and Sandy rivers, effective June 18 through Oct. 31.

Under the rule change, anglers are permitted to retain up to three adult adipose fin-clipped fish per day. The combined three-fish total allows for retention of steelhead, salmon or both, of which no more than two may be salmon.

The temporary measure was enacted in response to strong early returns of summer steelhead that have been observed at ODFW fish counting stations in the three rivers.Click here to read more…

B.C. Day Dreamin’

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So, I’ve been working on a couple articles today for Salmon Trout Steelheader and Fish Alaska magazines, going through my photo catalog and…BAM…I ran across this one of me and Matt “Go Home” Kinne in British Columbia a few years ago and I’ve gotta say my productivity for the day is now pretty much shot.

I mean, how’s a guy supposed to work when you’ve got B.C. steelies on the brain? Short answer: You can’t. Think I’m gonna walk down to the river now…

Holy Crap! A 30-pound steelhead on the fly!

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When Andrew Fairclouth hooked, played and released the first steelhead of his life, a nice 12 pounder, there’s no way he could have known that a dozen casts later he’d make fly fishing history. But that’s exactly what happened on a spring day just a few seasons ago in northwestern British Columbia.Click here to read more…

Should I wear rubber gloves while fishing?

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JD, What’s your take on touching bait and tackle with bare hands when fishing for steelhead ? People wearing rubber gloves to wipes and sprays. Where really is the fine line at before being wasteful of the enjoyment and the time out fishing ?

–Wade

Wade,

I tried wearing rubber gloves one season…both in Alaska and back home in the Lower 48. All I can say is it was a miserable experience…my hands were a mess! They’d sweat like crazy on hot days and then I would get water in the gloves at some point. Between the sweat and H2O, my hands would end up super white and clammy at the end of the day…and smelling worse to the fish than had I just gone “el natural.”

Plus, tying knots and feathering a baitcaster with Latex on is a royal pain. Nope, not a big rubber glove fan here!

Instead, I will wash my hands in lemon dish soap prior to fishing and then, if the bite is really tough, I may wipe a little shrimp gel between my palms (the wife’s really happy about that one!) to get a little masking scent going. Just in case, you can carry some Hand Sanitizer with you too, if you really want to get clean between fish or if you get a cut or scratch. The shrimp gel overtop will mask the smell enough for the fish to keep biting, and it may sting a little, but it beats wearing the gloves that’s for sure. In conclusion,

I agree, if you get too caught up it it all, you start to miss the point…