BurningChrome

Yeah my off road group has worked with Cows & Fish on a few projects now and they're decent folks. If you're going to the Chinook Waters thing in Lethbridge next weekend we can talk about it.

No he wasn't there. I thought it was a pretty informative session but it was also my first time going.

They probably don't have a PR firm writing it for them...

On Thursday I was at the Westslope Cutthroat Trout stakeholder workshop put on by Cows & Fish. Folks from AEP, TUC, TU Oldman, Spray Lakes Sawmills, some ranchers, and a couple reps from the Crowsnest Pass Quad Squad were also there. Here's what the Quad Squad released shortly afterwards: https://oldmanwatershed-council.squarespace.com/blog-posts/2016/2/19/news-release-from-the-crowsnest-pass-quad-squad

I think either one would be fine without one necessarily being better than the other. I know lots of guys who use a 7wt and lots who use an 8wt. Just buy one of each

This made me lol.

There are many who think that dams made the 2013 floods worse. Wonder what happens when they rush the Springbank dam to appease the squeaky wheels and it lets go during a flood event. Personally I have no sympathy for the people who are building and re-building multimillion dollar houses in Rideau and Roxboro if they get flooded again. As the saying goes, some people have more dollars than sense.

Makes sense being site specific. No different really than having more luck with hoppers off the grassy banks.

I think the eddy is a perfect spot to launch a pontoon, water master, etc. out of. If people used the berm spot for drift boats and the eddy for pontoons it'd help relieve a bit of congestion at least.

Didn't SRD and F&W pay for the repairs after 2005?

Patagonia has a minimalist jacket that doesn't break the bank. You could also check out non-fishing waterproof jackets if you're just looking for something to keep the rain off. Seems like if you add a couple fly box pockets and a zinger to a Gore Tex jacket it pretty much doubles the price.

Heh, I can http://store.arbusa.com/ARB-Fridge-Freezer-50-Qt-10800472-P3626.aspx

Probably the most thorough comparison I've seen. http://expeditionportal.com/the-big-chill-overland-journals-cooler-test/

So what about mining, O&G, and logging? Those are even longer term, deeper damage, and cover far more area. I always find it humourous when people on this forum lose their minds over quads but excuse anything that industry does because that's where they get their paycheques. Not saying that quads don't do any damage, because yeah they do, but there's definitely a double standard around here.

I've never gone to the redneck board, but I imagine that they don't like any regulations at all. This is likely not the same user group that belongs to the OHV organizations like RMDR and AOHVA. My guess is that a lot of people on the redneck board also gill their fish, take pictures of them lying on the rocks, etc. Just like this forum is only a small sampling of fly fishers in Calgary I imagine theirs is the same when it comes to OHV use. So let me be up front. I don't ride an ATV or MX so I can't speak for those groups. What I can say is that none of those groups will call for closures because there is currently no way to get new trails in Alberta. All trails are "existing linear disturbances" which generally means former seismic and logging access. 99% of the current designated trails in Southern AB are in what we'd deem to be sensitive areas - McLean Creek, Waiparous, and the Castle. So if the groups say "hey, Waiparous is too sensitive so let's shut it down" then the immediate response will be "but so are McLean and the Castle so let's shut those down too". Suddenly there is nowhere legal left for even the responsible users to go. Kevin has the right approach on this - create new, sustainable trails that aren't in sensitive areas for people to use. That's what groups like mine and some others have been advocating for a while. As for YouTube videos and the mud and snow forum (not familiar with this one), like I said to Peter, a forum only represents a small percentage of the total user group. I think a lot of the redneck boggers are more likely to make a video and post it because they want the most views and sadly that's the type of thing that gets them.

Well, there's no easy solution otherwise it probably would've been implemented by now It's been a wild west free for all for so long that it'll take time to change peoples' attitudes. Anyone expecting change to occur overnight is living in lala land. And there is currently no education for it to be working. Right now before you can get a hunting, boating, or driver's license you need to take a course or pass an exam but you can go out and buy a quad or bike then go out with it the next day. Licensing with a course requirement that includes trail ethics and safety would be a good start. You'd even get places like Blackfoot Motorsport on board if they could administer the courses and exams and make a bit of profit on it. Some of the license and course fees would go back into the resource in the form of rehabilitation, creating new trails that are sustainable, building bridges over water crossings, and of course enforcement. You could probably have that fall under the current ACA. There will always be asshats no matter what. We have speed limits but you still get guys doing 150 down Deerfoot. We have fishing regs but you still have guys keeping more than the limit or fishing closed waters. We have hunting regs but you still get guys poaching or hunting on private land. That's the role of enforcement and hopefully if you have a course and licensing scheme set up you'll have more enforcement. And finally, just like with the sad state of fines for poaching, you need enforcement with teeth. Significant fines with the ability to impound vehicles. This is all stuff I've thought about and my off road group discusses regularly but nobody listens. The current "management" of trails is binary - either open or closed. As soon as there's a problem they simply close a designated trail which concentrates users into smaller areas. At that point guys get fed up with congestion on the designated and look to make their own trails. So what needs to happen is a good (as in fun), sustainable trail system needs to be set up before you take away existing trails.

Certain members of a user group. And yes, you can absolutely approach something like this without instantly going to conflict.

Because you can. Sense of accomplishment. Pride in craftsmanship. Just for the experience of it. To make it the way you want. The list goes on. It's no different than tying your own flies when you can get them for pretty cheap online.

I think these would probably be what you're looking for: http://www.leevalley.com/en/Hardware/page.aspx?p=32065&cat=3,42363,42348&ap=1

+1 for KP. I'd also add Aaron Caldwell to the list. Oh, and Dee.

Well, I'd say that Collette has a certain agenda. I know several OHV user groups who've offered to talk to her about responsible OHV use and management plans but she has never taken any of us up on it. When you only ever present one side of a story it's difficult to think you aren't writing your bias instead of reporting objectively. As I posted on FB, this is something that should be looked at for Alberta: http://www.nohvcc.org/docs/miscellaneous-files/ohvguidelines.pdf?sfvrsn=0

I wish the news article was more reflective of the shared file. While the shared file talks more about coexistence the Herald article seems intent on creating conflict between the user groups.

I'd say that's changing. I used to feel they weren't doing a lot but things seem to be picking up. I was on the redd count in the fall and there was a good turnout of volunteers. Bought a membership this year for the first time in quite a while.

When do you plan on going? Fish Tales usually puts on a spey demo in the spring where they bring out a bunch of different rods and lines to play with. Just like a single-hand rod you want to try a spey rod before you buy because they're all a little different. One to look for if you go to the demo is the Redington Chromer. They had it out in the fall and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it casts for a fairly reasonable price.