jpinkster

I posted this in a FB group earlier, but I wanted to extend the conversation to this community as well (apologies for the redundancy): So...this is something I've been curious about for a long time. I've been fishing for pike in southern Alberta for pretty much my entire life. I've seen many of my favorite fisheries deteriorate due to over-fishing and over-harvesting in the last 10-15 years. I look at the creation of some of our "trophy" trout lakes that have zero keep limits, and I get kind of jealous. I know there are a few people in this space that were involved in making that happen, so my question is: What would it take to make something similar happen for a local pike lake or two? The idea of a trophy fishery within a few hours of Calgary is certainly interesting.

I'm getting married this year. Our game plan is to head to Playa Del Carman for our honeymoon in September. Our plans really aren't going to change much, so I just hope the blow can be softened a bit between now and then. In regards to fishing.... I would HIGHLY recommend a sturgeon fishing trip on the Fraser. You can pretty easily make a weekend out of it and it won't crush your wallet. We did a two day trip in September. I paid for my flight to Abbotsford on points, but if you include accommodations, guides, tips booze and foot I spent less than $800. We used Cascade Fishing Adventures. They don't do the shameless promoting that outfits like Sturgeon Slayer do, but you might get your best bang for your buck out of these guys. The outfit has been fishing sturgeon on the Fraser for over 25 years. Sturgeon fishing is one of those things ever angler needs to get out and try at least once...I was smiling from ear to ear the entire time. http://www.cascadefishingadventures.com/ I'm including a shameless picture because I can.

The shared file isn't working anymore because apparently this was released before it should have been. I'm hoping it is reopened to the public soon.

Under the previous government, no. Under the current government, maybe. Minister Phillips really seems to have a good understanding of these kinds of issues. Some of their decisions around flood mitigation for Calgary were made with environmental considerations in mind. This current government has spent a lot of time talking the talk, but these kinds of things are opportunities to walk the walk.

I really care about the east slopes, and I know a lot of you in this space do too. Check this out: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-Hurymu1vf0RU5wMEFXcm5qT0k/view This is great work, and I hope it leads to positive change for our native species!

I have almost the exact same ones. Aside from the fact that they keep sliding down my nose, they are great.

Ultimately I would select the remediation or decommission of the site over those two options, especially with the future of coal under the new government. If I had to pick the two options you outlined, I'd pick a functioning mine with appropriate oversight/regulation.

That's great, except for the fact that organizations like TUC don't have the financial resources to do what you are talking about. It's on the government to make sure industry plays by the rule, and it is on industry to play by those rules. Oversight and regulation is exactly what government should be doing.

I think that's the problem....the quality of the oversight has been lacking. I'm all for having a functional industry that plays by the rules...but we need to make sure the rules are enforced properly.

I've heard that they don't taste great from the river anyways...

I'm back and forth through there all the time to go to my parents place. The Columbia is tricky to fish unless you have a boat. It is also closed up stream of the Highway 1 bridge in Revy all the way to the dam. I have heard that the Little Yoho is a good place for an adventure up by Field. If you get a chance you should also look at Kinbasket Lake. I have a few family friends that make a yearly trip there and they absolutely love it. There are a few rivers around Revy that I've always wanted to try. The Perry River to the west of Revy looks really enticing from the road, and the Illecillewaet River also looks very fishable from the road. I have never once seen anyone in either river...at least not from the road.

I'm totally on board with what BC does re: single barbless across the board as well. I'm doing my best to not use trebles, even when I'm pike fishing. Since I'm exclusively catch and release, it doesn't make any sense for me to ever use more than a single hook.

Catch and release and a fall closure to protect spawning Brown Trout. That's what I'm looking for.

As someone who is involved on a number of boards, this pretty much sums things up for me. The best way to influence change is from the inside (unless you're on a Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta Board like me...in that case things don't change).

We actually alter our nymph rigs specifically for stone fly season. Typically we have our bigger fly on the bottom. In May-June-July we keep the stone on top with the nymph at the end and a splitty or two above the stone. This keeps the stone tight to the bottom and has the nymph slightly suspended. Works really well.

I'll use stonefly nymphs for about 2 months out of the year. That's probably enough for me to make them my 8th pattern on the list.

Now I'm only a few years into my fly fishing odyssey, but this year I tried something different....I drastically dumbed down my fly selection. The main staples in my box this year were: Pheasant Tail (sz. 14, 16, 18) Hare's Ear (sz. 14, 16, 18) Dirty Worm (of course) Maribou leeches (black, olive, brown) Stimulators Parachute Adams Hoppers I had my most productive season fishing these 7 patterns. I stopped obsessing over matching the hatch and just focused on presentation. Knowing which flies to use at which time can be very intimidating, especially for a beginner. Patterns that can imitate a number of different bugs are the ticket to better fishing in my eyes. At the end of the day it's all about getting the fly to where the fish are!

Potentially another small bit of good news: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/alberta/ottawa-declares-proposed-alberta-coal-mine-site-endangered-trout-habitat/article27571074/ Looks like the impacts of some of these projects are finally going to be fairly questioned. I know several people who have worked their asses off for years on this. I can only imagine their level of elation over the news that has come out this week.

If it saves a species, isn't that worthwhile?

Aren't Bulls on the Gazette already?

Some good news for our native trout species today: http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/p2/2015/2015-12-02/html/sor-dors241-eng.php A lot of people have worked for a long time to make this happen. Congratulations to everyone who is doing their part to protect our native trout species!

^Good points here. I just don't think it is responsible to point to places like China and India and say "they are way worse than we are, so why should we be punished?". This could be an opportunity to take a leadership position and set the standards for some of those other jurisdictions. I really do wish that Neil Young and Al Gore would spend more time hammering on China and India. The reality is simple; we get hammered on this stuff because we actually give a crap about these issue. The same can't be said for some of those developing markets.

"Right to operate" is a phrase that comes to mind. Industry buy-in with this program will greatly bolster their social-licence on resource extraction.

So...what do we all think? http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/alberta-unveils-details-of-its-climate-plan The fact that this government was able to introduce something that is receiving positive reviews from industry and environmental groups is pretty impressive. I see a lot of merit in a carbon tax scheme, but I would personally prefer a cap and trade scheme. Cap and trade gives economic incentive for lowering a carbon footprint instead of just the introduction of a tax for going over. I suggested that I was comfortable with this new direction on my FB wall last night. I was almost instantly lambasted by a bunch of oil patch guys that are outlining this as the undoing of our economy as we know it. There are carbon tax schemes around the world, and they have proven effective in most jurisdictions. Surely the sky isn't falling. The comment that our economy is bad so we can't focus on the environment is a cheap cop out. If we continue to make excuses for not acting on the enviro file, it will never be properly addressed. This entire scheme is inclusive as it will impact corporations and individuals. If this new strategy forces Albertans to make more environmentally sound decisions on a daily basis, that is a huge win. A recent polled showed that an overwhelming majority of Albertans are in favour of measures that would protect our natural areas. It's time for us to start putting our money where our mouths are.

Working at City Hall during this entire Uber episode has been challenging. Calgarians are being led to believe the entire thing is a political issue, when really it is a legal issue. The framework currently doesn't exist for Uber to legally operate in Alberta. The City has a role to adjust bylaws that would allow Uber to operate, and the Province will need to create a new insurance framework for Uber. Disagreeing with a law doesn't make it acceptable to ignore it. Imagine if other new market entrants behaved the same way Uber has?