northfork
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Posts posted by northfork
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I think you'd have to be pretty naive to think the NDP will secure a second term. I'm planning on doing what I can to shift the conversation within conservative circles to a place where better stewardship is a point of priority.
Correct. Thank you. And amidst all the other messes they will have to clean up, I am hopeful it is higher on the agenda as well. This province needs to quit ignoring the environment and taking it for granted. Responsbile management and resource development is crucial at this point in time.
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!07 million for the clean up. Would have been cheaper to replace that old line with a new one.before it ruptured. Not sure why there isn't some regulations in place that force these company's to have to replace pipe after a certain amount of years.
Don't know if any of you have ever dug up old pipelines but the stuff they used to do just wouldn't be allowed by today's safety standards.
That's what I do for a living is dig up old pipelines. Surprisingly, it likely isn't cheaper for them to replace that line or they would have. The construction and engineering in terrain like moose mountain is pri-cey. There should absolutely be tighter regulation but things are slowly changing. Their needs to be a lot of regulations created and updated, another big one I deal with on the reclamation side is the abandonment timeline regulation - this needs to get pushed through. Same with forcing more line integrity monitoring and digs.
As a footnote here I am in no way defending husky or any producer for allowing these things to happen. But to answer your question it is generally cheaper for them to repair, clean up, and pay any fines, than to have a pipeline offline and thus losing production profits and spending money to replace. It's generally a decision made by a Calgary, Dubai, or Houston bean counter who has no regard for the environment and potential offsite impacts, be that watercourse contamination or whatever.
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Born and raised third generation Albertan, never out of sight of the foothills and mountains. Fished since 2 years old with the old man following him on the brown trout creeks and getting in his way in the boat fishin the central alberta trout lakes. We would troll "nymphs" (doc spratleys, wooley buggers, etc) with a light action spinning rod and do reasonably well but I can always remember watching guys like Don anchored up in a pontoon not moving for hours and catching fish. Told myself I wanted to do that. Old man bought me my first flyrod at 12 or 13 years old and together with a lot of reading, I spent a lot of time figuring it out, thank god for goldeye on the red deer river. Have fished a lot of water and returned to a quarter of it. Like a lot of these wiser oldtimers, am beginning to spend more time on the boat fishing stillwaters both here and BC to get away from the masses chasing cutthroats and bulls on the once great and fairly secret drainages in this area. Now it seems everyone and their buddy is a guide and is into water never before fished. Instagram heroes I like to call them.
Fisheries biologist on paper but didn't take me long to figure out jobs were scarce and pay wasn't great. Like most other Albertan kids I have been in the oilpatch ever since, now I work mostly on the abandonment and reclamation side which is nice.
Have fished with a lot of guys off this forum and learned even more from more, I don't post much these days because I don't have much to say. I'm not a self proclaimed guide or pro.
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The thing with Simms, or any quality made item really, is you get what you pay for. When you buy american/canadian, of course you're gonna pay more. I have always been a firm believer in you get what you pay for and try to preach this to all my fishing and hunting buddies. Don't buy something cheap, cause youre gonna just end up replacing it with something of good quality anyway in short order, so save yourself the money and spend the money (If that makes sense). The two things you get with buying domestically produced products, is you get quality assurance - you know you're getting good materials and craftsmanship in every single piece. AND, because they are so well made, you get a company that will stand behind it. Simms and St. Croix Rods are probably two of the best companies I've ever dealt with, the few times I've needed any help.
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Hey bloom,, I can't recommend the freestones enough. Absolutely 100% the best wading boot I've ever owned. 3 seasons out of my first pair (100-120 days) and all that wore out was the felt.
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On the river and/or in person, wide open in discussions.
On the internet, not so much
, Lornce's comments notwithstanding.When I first took to the web for information, I found quite quickly that the information I sought detracted from my pursuit. (This is a personal comment, not advice.) My enjoyment is derived by the journey, not the destination. I'm completely self taught and wouldn't have it any other way.
I understand why people want specifics. It takes a lot of time and energy to get to a fishing spot, let alone search for one. And when you find one, it is easy to feel protective of it. But many people do not have the time, and only get weekends where competition is higher. I guess "catching" is paramount to enjoyment for some. Not to be misunderstood, I love to "catch" fish, but if I don't, it is not a lost day for me.
Generic information about techniques have a place on the net, specifics, no.
JMHO.
I agree 100% with this. It is the new era of a lot of fisherman they just expect people to tell them where when and how. Half the fun for me was and still is figuring it out. I for one am just getting sick of 4x4ing down goat trails for 30 km thinking nobody will be at the end only to find two camps and 4-5 vehicles. I don't know if that's due to the recession and more people have more time to fish, or if Alberta really is getting that populated.
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Drove through construction several times from Kelowna to Calgary on Monday. Was not great.
I hear ya - 13 hours Kamloops to Rocky earlier this month.
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Wow bud nice response. If you have nothing positive to contribute to the thread......dont
You should reap what you sow. Bud.
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Thanks for the reply, so is this picture the upper fall? Will be heading out this weekend. Thanks
Someone already told you it's the lower falls, and to look for the other dozen vehicles that will be parked at the trailhead.
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You've gotta do something here. I don't understand why that stretch isn't closed until June anyway. It's heartbreaking to see things like this, we all work so hard to care for bull trout in this part of the province up to and including restricting road access into many stretches of rivers, and the few ruin it for the greater. That fish is good as dead. Sure maybe they didn't know, I would definitely reach out to them on the importance of caring for fish and proper handling, if they disregard your advice and coaching then let them know the consequences.
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Without enhanced enforcement this won't make a significant difference. It's time for an OHV task force to be created between F&W and RCMP.
I couldn't have said it better - this is a step in the right direction though.
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HAHAHAHAHAHA A FRICKIN TRAVESTY! DEAR GOD BEST THING I HAVE EVER SEEN!!!
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Chatting with friends who got caught working up there I guess it's quite chaotic. I also learned today the mill in High Level caught fire, and there is now another fire near Lac Ste Anne. Buckle in boys, I think we're in for a lot of it this year.
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I just find it sad that these people don't have any respect for our lands. It's ridiculous that people don't hold themselves to a higher standard when using public lands, as you said fishinglivin I'm sure they would be upset if we did this to their land, so why is it ok for them to do this to all of our public lands.
We need more enforcement, when you look at the eastern slopes from the castle all the way up to the ram, these issues are prevalent and only getting worse. Unless we get more enforcement, stiffer fines that make these people think twice about their actions and a change in attitude about how as individuals we use public lands I'm affraid it will reach a point where our lands will be destroyed.
What will it take for the govt to see and realize that unless more enforcement and stiffer fines are what we need to protect our eastern slopes..
Agreed, but in far too many areas there's already irreparable damages. This extends all the way past the Ram/Kiska FLUZ, this goes all the way up the east slopes to grande prairie prit near. I don't understand how people don't have any regard for their own backyard. It's setting an example for new users, too. Though the influx of people to the province has slowed due to the current economic situation, it almost appears to me that new users who see this going on, with no consequences, feel that this is acceptable. The oldie but goodie, you don't know what you got til it's gone, is going to start ringing true before long.
These people are just straight up d-bags. Probably the same type who drop their garbage on the ground even though there's a trash can 5 feet away.
A few of the off road groups usually put together clean-ups for McLean and the Ghost after May long weekend. If anyone is interested in helping instead of just venting their outrage on the internet let me know.
Exactly. There are far too many who complain on the internet and it stops there. Put your money where your mouth is! Get your boots on the ground and get out there, or donate to the cause. Although it shouldn't need to be done in the first place, there are few things more satisfying than cleaning up some A holes mess at a random campsite and have other users drive by and stare in utter shock at persons cleaning up a mess made out in the forestry. I believe if more people made a scene of doing this that people may start to get the point. I just hauled an entire 8 foot truck box of garbage and other crap out of some abandoned leases this past week. I only hope that others can do the same. If our older generation could see how we've treated the west country and the state we have left it in now there would be tears in their eyes. I took my mother for a drive out around Swan Lake recently, first time she's been out there in 20 years, and she just could not believe what she saw. Between feral horses, landscape and riparian destruction, and garbage/mess left behind by campers, she asked the same question, how can people have such blatant disregard for their backyard.
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Stop at TC Outfitters in Red deer for materials. Check out Central Alberta Fly Tying Club for details. Excellent selection.
Is this the new one down in Riverside?
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Problem is fivefold when you live in Edmonton and your local fly shops...aren't local. I tend to support Calgary flyshops when I'm down that way. That said, every store has it's ups and downs. For instance, in Edmonton;
1) Fishin Hole; (I am a former employee) very friendly, easy to deal with, especially Brian at the new west end store. Decent enough selection, but I don't like the brands of reels they carry, but the issue that drives me nuts s their 2 tier system of flies. You can buy the cheap flies that are cheaply made, or buy premium flies and pay a premium price. I might as well order online. But good overall. Excellent sale every year in August; best way to buy high end fly rods, by far.
2) Cabelas; I agree with the comments above; Norm is a good guy to deal with, but overall, the fly shop is treated like an afterthought by management. They do carry some fly tying materials not carried by anyone else though (for Edmonton remember). But what I hate most - and I HATE this - is the completely segregated operations between US and Canada. Incredibly discriminatory. Go on the US website, see a smoking good deal on an item (even factoring exchange) and will they deliver to Canada for an in-store pick-up? NOPE! All Canadian orders handled internally through Winnipeg. Sucks. Oh, and does the Canadian Cabelas website ever offer the same smoking deals? NOPE! So, I go to Cabelas, but I spend very little in the fly shop. Only as a last resort. I will give one positive kudos; I buy virtually all my SImms clothing at Cabelas; when they offer a good deal on clothing, its a good deal. It's the only store I know where I can buy Simms clothing at 40% off (otherwise, I'd never buy Simms).
3) Wholesale Sports; used to quite like wholesale; they were close to where I live, probably the best fly tying variety, some decent flies. Unfortunately, - this may only be the southside store - they've gone some sort of metamorphic existential crisis, as in "should we even have a fly shop". Huge staff turnover, difficult to find fly fishing specialist staff, and for about 2 years, they decided not to stock their fly bins; they were 80+% empty. The ultimate deal breaker; no flies???? That's the daily draw for fly fishers that purchase! What a doorknob decision by mgmt. Also, their advertising just blows. I never know when a sale is on, unless I physically go to the store. One kudos is that they constantly have a clearance shelf; picked up some top brand name fly lines for 40% off. Gotta hunt for them though.
Anyways, having no dedicated fly shop in Edmonton blows, but it's been like that for decades, ever since Denny's closed their doors. I know of one fellow toying with the idea, and is currently running a virtual store through Facebook, but that's it. And I get that, I totally understand; between the 3 box stores and the fact that there's no Bow river, pretty tough to make a go of a fly shop in Edmonton. You'd be relying on a fairly small, concentrated group of hard core fly guys to make a go of it.
Anyways, the Cabelas topic got me going, lol.
Cheers.Mike 'Smitty'
I can relate Mike, at least you've got a couple options in a pinch. Whenever I'm in Calgary for business or pleasure I stop in... We don't have much locally here. Two shops with a mediocre selection and medicore prices.
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Agree that trees need to be harvested and they will come down, one way or another. The precip and tree species we have here do not grow "old growth" forest like the West Coast.
Slightly off topic. This is an interesting read. Unbelievable fires in 1910.
http://mountainlegacy.ca/research/documents/Annand-1910Fires-FinalReport.pdf
1919 was also another huge fire year. One covered 2.8 million hectares on the AB-SK border.
Very interesting read, thank you Clive for the link. I'm not sure if the old growth comment was directed at me but you are correct the species compositions of forests here are not like the rainforest types in BC featuring hemlocks, cedars, etc. But we do have a lot of old, sick spruce forests here.
One of the problems in my opinion is that the government looks at timber completely as a monetary value and no further, which is why they supress so much fire. Why burn it when we can harvest it..... It would be nice if the end result of clear cutting was nicer than some ripped clay and stumps and planted lodgepole pine saplings - Fire = grass and fresh growth = elk (which are disappearing off the central foothills landscape and the govt cant figure out why??)
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I think we need to get our house in order with our natural fish before we start anything else. Why stretch our resources more especially now that the province has far less money coming in?
Because they didn't when there was more money coming in?? Now is the time, we have the NDP who might listen after 44 years of conservatives who wouldn't.
Smitty I am 100% in on this. I brought it up a couple weeks ago on the Beaver Lk thread and wanted to see if anyone had some insight... Bob Edens in Red Deer had this going http://www.albertafishinginsights.com/about/ but it seems it's been inactive a while. He was on the right track.
Am 100% in and willing to put my money where my mouth is, but where do we start, who do we talk to,and how do we get things in motion. Tallieho made some really good points. In this neck of the woods that would be one of the most important things is keeping an eye on the bucket brigade, some of these local rednecks have ruined basically every non-QSF in the Rocky district by illegally introducing perch.
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agree with what most have said, expensive. I also think the way they bar-code their flies is ridiculous. Havta put a bar-code on every darn fly. no wonder the files are expensive when you gotta pay somebody to bar-code them all. Just silly.
Could you imagine having that guys job??
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Berkley Vanish. Enough said.
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Honestly a letdown... Ever since Edmonton got one and now two and now Calgary, the appeal is gone. Support your local fly shop.
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Bingo on the balance - They need to improve somewhat on cutblock placement and management for the protection of headwaters. At the same time, however, the longer the government allows every forest fire to be surpressed as soon as possible, the more fire hazard and unhealthy our forests become. Most of the east slopes now are overdue for a burn and are sick. Pine beetle can be a perfect example. Logging, when done sustainably, can help improve a forests health. We just haven't got there yet and need to.
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Flywiz hit the nail on the head guys, every time people are not following the rules it weakens the integrity of the flyfishing community.
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To rerail this thread the gate is open but the sign still says closed. Why do people continue to drive down there when the sign says closed. Just because the gate is open doesn't mean diddly respect the sign.
Anyone Else Trading Marijuana Stocks?
in General Chat - Not Fishing Related (NFR)
Posted
Just curious if anyone else is trading marijuana stocks the last year or so? They are definitely a subjective stock in regards to news speculations and federal government announcements as it pertains to the legalization of this stuff. I'm neutral on the subject, I don't use it but have no issues if people do responsibly. I don't want to turn this into a debate about it and its legalization.
I bought in cheap on canopy growth corp (TSX: WEED) - right? And sold a month or so ago right around its peak. I did well but may regret it in the long term. I took a percentage of some of these gains and invested into some smaller companies like organigram holdings and aphria, as well as a couple smaller up-and-comers.
I would like others to sound off if anyone else has been taking chip shots with these and what your thoughts, predictions, and outcomes have been. It's a very controversial topic.