dryfly

A young man with his pants hanging half off his ass, two gold front teeth, and a half inch thick gold chain around his neck; walked into the Lethbridge Social Service office to pick up his welfare cheque. He marched up to the counter and said, "Hi. You know, I just H A T E drawing welfare. I'd really rather have a job.. I don't like taking advantage of the system, getting something for nothing." The social worker behind the counter said "Your timing is excellent. We Just got a job opening from a very wealthy old man who wants a chauffeur and bodyguard for his beautiful daughter. You'll have to drive around in his 2015 Mercedes-Benz CL, and he will supply all of your clothes." "Because of the long hours, meals will be provided. You'll also be expected to escort the daughter on her overseas holiday trips. This is rather awkward to say but you will also have, as part of your job, the assignment to satisfy her sexual urges as the daughter is in her mid-20's and has a rather strong sex drive." The guy, just plain wide-eyed, said, "You're b_ulls_hitting me!" The social worker said, "Yeah, well yes, but you started it."

30 years ago (seriously) I told my (then) ten-year-old son to paint my 1971 alum boat with assorted yukko paints for camo for duck hunting. Some if it is still on the outside hull. Ain't pretty. However, 4 years ago I did some refitting of the inside (took out a bench seat and added a p/w casting floor) and painted the inside hull with a brush and some sort of gray metal paint. Paint is still as new...unlike the boat overall which is showing its age. But the inside hull paint is crisp..crisp as gray can be. It'd paint the whole thing again if needed....does not need it. It is 44 years old after all. You could probably do a good job that will last ten years for perhaps $300 for paint, masking tape, brushes and paper and a few hours in a warm shop. Put some tunes on the radio or iThingy and go crazy. Maybe it is the old fart in me. Limited income and lots of time.

Great record. Nice presentation too.

Sent this email today to several people...sorry, poorly formatted ...images missing..you will get the idea.... Clive =========================================== RE: Aeration at Police Outpost Lake (POL) ... and "parks" budgets Thanks for your reply. Please note that some of this letter has nothing to do with fisheries management directly. And despite my seemingly critical tone, I and others appreciate our fisheries and the work done by you and many others including ACA. Thanks. The law regarding aeration The criminal code is worded much stronger then mere "liability" in that should a person die as a result of open water, those responsible can be charged with manslaughter. It is serious stuff. The law is frankly absurd given our climate and the fact that most cities in Canada have ponds or rivers which they keep open in winter. The city of Lethbridge keeps the river open at the water plant and AE&P (presumably) operates/owns the weir in the city and water remain open below the weir in winter. AE&P manages dozens of water-control structures across the province, either in flowing or still water, that cause water to be open all winter or cause water to prematurely open come spring. This is much much bigger than merely lake aeration. These examples are no different than aerators keeping water open. As the law is now worded, a mayor, reeve or the Hon. Shannon Philips might be charged with manslaughter should some idiot fall into the water kept open by a man made device or structure. The criminal code is clear: Inline image 1 Inline image 2 Case law has determined that signage and fences are not adequate. A change must be made to the law that accepts "due diligence" as a defense against idiots and at the current time it does not. I am sure your Minister is not about to change the law for some fish, but she, her colleagues and municipal leaders might be interested in repercussions of this old law given their personal liability in case of a death in any body of water for which they are responsible. Perhaps the legal team in E&Ps can get around this somehow. This is much bigger than a few dead fish....it needs fixing. Aeration at Police We were not aware that POL was not aerated last winter. I attended POL on March 26, just a few days after ice out, and indeed there were no aerators in the lake at that time. It is possible they were removed a few days before. See photo below. Ignoring repercussions of the criminal code, it is a concern that POL perhaps was not aerated last winter that apparently there were no plans to do so this winter (even before this inane legal issue arose.) Fortunately, the past several years have had higher than average precipitation and water levels at POL are quite high. But in all likelihood, sooner or later when we go into a drier period (such as in the 30s and 80s), fish will die over winter if E&Ps is unable to aerate. See the outdated sign at POL below. Occasional winter kill at POL is a reality. (Well I guess the sign may no longer be out of date.) Can you please explain to me why POL was not aerated? You referenced ____ 's email and you stated, "​ ...the issues of cost and mechanism for service delivery..." Do you mean it is too expensive to aerate? I understand that E&Ps own 3 or 4 aerators of which 2 or 3 were purchased by the Oldman Chapter of TU. If this is a money issue, then I will be taking this up with the Minister as it is unacceptable. One could ask: why bother stocking this high-end lake with expensive stock with the aim of raising large fish if we can't afford to keep them alive? Yesterday's budget shows that the "parks' portion of E&P's budget increased by $11 million, or close to 12%, a huge increase in times of constraint and with inflation at 1.5%. Perhaps some of this increase will go toward existing park operations. I know this is beyond your authority, but one would hope that increase is not all going toward the proposed Castle Park, as conceptually attractive as the proposed park appears. We also need to maintain existing parks and services as well. I know this is not your mandate, but while I am on this subject (and have an audience), I've also included a couple of photos of the disgraceful condition of the interpretive signs at POL provincial park hiking trail ... most are damaged, missing or contain incorrect information. Mike, thanks for any clarification you can offer. Much appreciate your help. Regards, Clive Schaupmeyer Coaldale POL March 26, 2015...no aerators ​ Outdated sign at POL ... don't take it down just yet. ☺ Inline image 3 NOT FISHING RELATED: Missing signs at POL hiking trail .. September 2015 Inline image 4 ​​ NOT FISHING RELATED: Incorrect information .. September 2015 Inline image 5

With logic like Shanny's we are doomed. She personally has protected the Castle by creating a park (even though we can't look after the parks we have) and she claims she has worked to protect fish in the headwater and Castle drainage and by (illogical) extension she implies we have protected all fish in Alberta. Did I hear that right? It is definite that nothing is very clear or certain regarding Police Outpost Lake as ACA apparently does not manage aeration there. I rec'd this email today from AE&P senior fisheries bio. I will post an update if things change or as more info arrives. Alberta Environment and Parks – Parks Division has supported aeration of Police Outpost Lake in the past. I’m not exactly sure of the current situation regarding the implications of liability. However, it is my understanding that POL was not aerated last winter and aeration is not planned this winter. I had a chance to correspond with Keith Bocking, and he indicated that discussion of aeration has also included the issues of cost and mechanism for service delivery. Keith is in a better position than I to explain the Parks perspective. Will post more when available. I think the best course of action (and Don noted this earlier today when he wrote his MLA) is to alert municipalities and cities. More clout that fish.

My 2 cents. Ya'd need about a trillion dollars worth if liability insurance these days. Just saying. Not saying that fly anglers are stoopid in a Darwin way, but *hit happens.

HA HA! Apparently the law predates 1920 so we can't even blame any current political philosophies. There are oodles of arcane laws in Canada. "For example, recently a Toronto businessman found that to sell edible underwear in his 'Adult Entertainment’ store, he’d need a food license. Who knew?" "I'll teach those redneck anglers, bird watchers and cottage owners a thing or two."

I gotta get a life!! So how is a stoopid person falling into open water any different than the guy's other stoopod brother jaywalking and being hit by a cement truck? Could not the same argument be made? i.e. That the municipality failed to provide adequate warning and protection from speeding traffic? Existing 263. (1) Every one who makes or causes to be made an opening in ice that is open to or frequented by the public is under a legal duty to guard it in a manner that is adequate to prevent persons from falling in by accident and is adequate to warn them that the opening exists. Here is a fictitious addition about (say) roads ... and you can think of many many other examples. 263. (3) Every one who makes or causes to be made an open access to roadways frequented by the public is under a legal duty to guard it in a manner that is adequate to prevent persons from walking or falling by accident and being hit by a hybrid cement truck, Smart car or Prius. This whole thing is absurd. Have a nice day.

Here is a PDF copy of the ACA proposal. I think this is the final copy: http://flyfishing.afgmag.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2015-16-Aeration-plan-final.pdf The legal opinion http://flyfishing.afgmag.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Executive-summary-related-to-section-263-McLennan-Ross.pdf Regarding due diligence, the courts have said NO MATTER WHAT IS DONE TO INFORM AND PROTECT, if someone gets hurt/dies then those precautionary actions were inadequate. Lose lose. The morons win legally....but are dead. Good people lose.

A quick search brings up numerous references to the problems. I am going to continue looking for some reference to cities with open water. Some discussion in Ontario where cottage owners protect their boat docks with bubblers. See page 8 here: http://www.elpoa.ca/services/elpoa-newsletter.pdf Two law professors and two opinions. Professor Knutsen is an expert in insurance and accident law, and he had some interesting perspectives on this issue. First, he noted that landowners are generally required to make reasonable effort to prevent people from interacting with hazards (such as an opening in the ice) on or around their property. In the event of a lawsuit related to an accident, a landowner must show that he or she acted the way that a ‘reasonable’ person ought to have. Seems to me that the professor (above) is missing the point. This is not about a lawsuit. This is about some schmuck being charged with manslaughter because of some Darwin boob. Last winter, Mike Day erected two warning signs, and a string of red and white flags marking the opening in the ice caused by his bubbler. This year he plans to install a solar-powered warning light. Erik Knutsen, the Queen’s Professor, suggested that it might also be reasonable to consider that kids can’t read warning signs, and may be drawn toward red flags and holes in the ice. Also, it might be reasonable to consider what would happen to the flags and lights after a big winter storm or a period of warm weather. Based on a quick perusal this seems to have discussed for some time. I can't see the law changing just like that. And what would change? Perhaps an inclusion of some "due diligence" law. My guess is the thing that could move this along is for cities and municipalities to take action. A few dead fish sure was heck won't make one iota of difference. What do people with real lives do on a Saturday night? :lol:

Thanks Don. Will keep looking. Would be nice to attach a formal copy to letters. One letter concept would be to send the press release to legal offices and politicians in many cities with a covering letter. Hey Weedy1, that comment is what makes this whole thing so inane. Lethbridge and Medicine Hat water/power plants also cause open water all winter. As noted, U of A, Wabumun power plants, Sheerness (an artificial cooling water lake) .. all the same.Sewage treatment plants across Canada that put clean water back into rivers. Man-made open water. The list is endless as the stupidity ... which is a nice segue to: The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits. Albert Einstein Poor old Albert would pull his hair out today.

Ya can't fix stupid... http://globalnews.ca/video/1271187/river-ice-break-up-sparks-warning-from-officials And in the photo below as well...there is open water below this water control structure in Saskatoon. I bet five bucks that every city and every municipality owns examples of where open water is "created" by man-made structures. Sure this is flowing water and the structures not natural. But POL is also a partially man-made reservoir. Is there a difference? Not if the legal eagles are interpreting the law as rigorously as the case law example provided.

Don Thanks for the info. If you have an email copy of the ACA release could you please email a copy to me? Thanks, Clive schaupmeyer@gmail.com

Thanks for the information Don. Looks lie ACA is doing the right things under the circumstances. Oh well, on the bright side folks always said there were bigger fish in Police Outpost when it winter killed every few years. Maybe we will get to find out. Just kidding. This is serious stuff. Gosh I agree with Weedy....there is all sorts of situations where power plants or simple weirs create open water. E&P operates a weir on the OMR in the City of Lethbridge. The ice on the river is always dodgy and unsafe but there is indeed open water immediately below the weir and it is there solely because of the weir. There is zero difference between a weir and an aerator. Both are manmade devices that cause open water. That one is permanent and one temporary should not be germane. Both are potential killers of stoopid people. And ya can't fix stoopid, eh?

Just fabulous! Great experience and special for your dad.

Good on you! Great stuff. Thanks for the photos. All Canadians should be required to spent time north of 60, eh? Gives perspective on geography, immenseness, climate and our need to protect our North and to have a presence there. I've been to NWT and Yukon five times and last summer spent one week in Nunavut to 70° N lat in the middle of nowhere. Lovely people, great geography. The far North has this huge mystique that is hard to explain. Thanks! Clive

When the water is cold and the trout sluggish in winter, the bobber-to-fly depth should be shorter than in summer. In winter, it is better to not be on the bottom with a lot of slack in the leader. Here's why. Takes are soft in winter and if there is slack in the line below the bobber, takes will be missed. The trout will "mouth" the fly and simply open its mouth and eject the fly and you will never every see the bobber move because of the slack in the leader. If the fly is tied a tad short, then a soft take is more likely to be detected. Sure, you will miss a few fish clinging to the bottom. Can't get 'em all anyway. I've not fish in winter for a few years (something that needs addressing), but hope to get out a few times this winter.

As I know nothing of the specific details about this specific rainstorm (and how it was somehow different than the hundreds of other rainstorms and that something may or may not be different now), I've nothing to say about the facts behind this. That's for experts to decide. But the comment was made, "Perhaps this forum was not the right place to seek support for the welfare of the fishery." Here's a word of advice about getting support for a fisheries issue on this or any forum: start with a rational title instead of some sensational statement as was used: The Biggest Canadian Environmental Disaster If you start with a nonsense title like this, then support for your cause and concern will be hard to find. Lots of folks are fed up with eco sensationalism which fills our media these days. Maybe the actual story is indeed factual, but the title is certainly not. It is not that anyone here is not concerned about "welfare of fisheries." Folks are just sick and tired of eco bullshit which the title is. I make no apologies for being blunt. Regards, Clive PS: I guess since I am already banned, this is unlikely for me to get out on parole in the near future.

George Carlin on saving the planet. Language warning. Oh well.

Hey Rick, That's a great story and timely and pretty much describes me to a tee, except I don't drink. We just got back from 6 days at Police and coming and going, my truck looks like 1) I am driving to Kathmandu to Everest Base Camp 13, 2) I am re-arming Ghengis Khan with war supplies or 3) the Beverly Hillbillies. I take too much stuff. And saying, "Well I least I am covered for rain, snow and pestilence." does not cut it because rarely can I actually find what I need at the moment. As for flies, I am so proud of myself. I went through numerous fly boxes and assembled a Police Lake Day Box which contained every fly that I'd ever caught fish on in Police and a few extras. We fished parts of five days and not once did I have to rummage through any of the other boxes. The Day Box was great. However, I am not sure if the analogy with Jackie's shoes is valid. She wants a new pair of shoes. You, on the other hand, need more fishing stuff. A man has to have what it takes to put meat on the table. No wait.... Thanks again for the fun reads. Clive

Thanks all. Was great trip as always. Don, the CO came by and was most interested in the technology and sees great uses for drones. He politely asked me to not fly over the campground which I should have known. (Was great to see Sean/Shaun the CO aorund the park. Nice young man.) There are so many rules for drones it is almost impossible to fly one legally. But it boils down to common sense, public safety and awareness of surroundings. Expect more restrictions as people continue to abuse the privileges. The drone gives great perspective on surroundings. There are a lot of limitations to what they can do (eg. 2 km limit) and it takes some training to feel comfortable flying it when it is not in view (not recommended..just ask me). It has some nice "failsafe" features which so far have saved me a couple of times. I purchased it to photograph properties for friends, but see the opportunities. It is just an added dimension to photography. Just FYI, I have a DJI Phantom 3 Advanced ... very happy with it. It is not as fancy as the way more expensive DJI Inspire. Clive

Hah! Good one Perry Mason. Interesting perspective. An aerator did NOT creating a hole, but merely preventing ice from forming. No matter, it has ACA's attention. Stopping aeration would not be a good thing.

With my limited video editing skills and novice drone photography skills, I hacked together a 4-minute video of our gang's Police Outpost trip last week. The video on YouTube is "milky" and not as crisp as the original MP4. There is not much actual fishing footage. It is more of a personal photo essay for our group and some of the scenes and people will mean nothing to you. It is made with a combination P&S stills, DSLR stills, drone stills and drone video. Regarding the aerials of the boats in "launch bay," I need to be be much closer because the drone camera has a wide angle lens. But I am not comfortable flying low over water yet. I need to hone my aerial skills...a work in progress...like life. ☺ At the risks of falling asleep, here is the video. Clive

I am posting this item as a review only and do not intend to infringe on AO copyright. Thanks to AO for the item. Not sure if this was previously posted. Brian Rousch sent me this article from Alberta Outdoorsman. Don mentioned this last week while fishing at Police. Naturally, there are all sorts of reasons the old law is idiotic, but the law is the law and ACA (and TU who owns Police Lake aerators) could possibly be liable for some moron who is trying to get a Darwin Award nomination. Apparently this applies to all water bodies in Canada. At Police (for example), aeration is managed by E&P (Minister Phillips) and Oldman TU owns the actual aerators. The is "Criminal Code" and it is not a matter of monetary liability, but criminal liability and people could be charged with manslaughter. If anyone has an update, please jump in. Clive

Nice pose bigdirty..cute fish. "In aperture mode: 35mm 1/4000 f1.8 iso500" Drop your ISO to 200. Although the DOF is good, (say) f4 or so would be okay as well and shutter speed at the focal length could be way less. If you wanted a good print, you'd be happier with less ISO.