fishteck

Harvie Passage is a complicated issue. Developed by Alberta Transportation with stakeholder input. Once complete, Alberta Environment and Parks takes over the ongoing maintenance. The city by way of the Bend-in-the-Bow Park redevelopment of the adjacent Pearce Estates Parks have their own agenda as to how the park should look. My opinion is that the redeveloped park will have more of an environmental component than to enhance Harvie Passage use. Theoretically, the new Harvie Passage Low Flow Channel will accommodate drift boat passage, provided the Bow River flow is more than 45 CMS and the irrigation sleuth gates are closed (May - October). Hopefully a take-out boat ramp will be available above HP at St. Patrick's Island and a put-in/take-out below HP at 17 Ave SE/ Cushing Bridge that will be reopened to the public. The problem at this point in time is the need for a take-out point directly above the weir. No good answers for now.

Bron: What does Sue Higgins Park parking have to do with the River Access Strategy? There are no plans for a boat ramp or a hand launch site in this park. The objective of the River Access Strategy is to resolve trailered boat and carry in boat access to the river with adequate parking, road access, toilets, garbage bins, etc to meet environmental standard, public sanitation and habitat protection. There has been some discussion to expand the strategy to include amenities at strategically located river bank locations. Any of the river edge parks would fall into this scope if adopted.

This project has taken a lot of work by many committed individuals, as Bcube has said, do your part and complete the questionnaire as best you can. There is no doubt that the City will listen to what the general public has to say. The fishing community must get their message across that the River Access Strategy boat launch access is important to our recreation activity. The door is now open at City Hall to make improvements to river access, With the fishing community's support for the strategy there is confidence that financial resources will be make available.

The guys at the Bow River Chapter - Trout Unlimited Canada are the local experts. Go to their webpage: http://www.bowriver.org or Facebook page

All these comments are admirable, but is it really possible to COMPLETELY clean a drift boat? Too many concealed areas on the floor of most drift boats. Cosmetic cleaning to protect the fishery just won't stop the encroachment of whirling disease. Of cause every bit helps!!

CRUA as a river user stakeholder was asked by Calgary Parks, the administrator of the River Access Strategy to supply a list of river access sites in Calgary that would meet the needs for public access. Attached please find CRUA's recommendations. If City Council approves a budget for boat launch improvements, all of Calgary's Bow River will be open to drift boat use. Go to the following link for details. https://bowrivertrout.org/2016/09/23/calgary-river-users-alliance-recommended-river-access-improvements/ Feedback is welcome. Moving forward there is a need to address boat ramps across the Bow River Basin. It is encouraging to see AEP and other stakeholders showing interest. If anyone is interested in working with me on this expanded river access project please send an email. Fishteck

Harvie Passage redevelopment will start in the next few days with in-stream work continuing until September 15.Details of the work can be found in the attached link https://bowrivertrout.org/2016/09/01/harvie-passage-redevelopment-starts/ The adjacent Pearce Estates Park is the focus of the Calgary Parks regional redevelopment Bend-in-the-Bow Phase 2 Development that will add infrastructure to support the use of Harvie Passage. The current redevelopment concept can be found at the following link. http://www.calgary.ca/engage/Documents/Bend-in-the-bow/BITB-Phase-2-What-We-Heard-Report-2.pdf A major component of both projects is safe river access and recreational use. It is also hoped that public boat ramp access will be reinstated at or near Cushing Bridge.

This is potentially a devastating event, but hopefully CFIA that has jurisdiction over the control of movement of both fish and humans, we will see containment of the disease. It is important for us to realize that the weather we have encountered this year puts fish under stress. Low Bow River flows, high weed growth with higher than normal water temperatures stress fish populations. Add Whirling Disease and thing will only deteriorate.

Becube: Your are right the west bank is subject to damage with another flood like we had in 2013. Downstream of the Deerfoot Bridge would be better protected. Consider the following criteria when looking at boat launch sites: Access into a year round deep body of water. Restriction of access to the riverbed City road access, and security issues. Adequate parking space for truck/trailer and car use for now and into the future Availability of the land. City and provincial ownership is preferential. Potential DFO and AEP regulations - Likelihood of site approval. Access to shuttle services. Cost to develop site Keeping these criteria in mind, is Pine Creek access the most suitable site? I will let others on the chat page respond! We need to keep in mind that the proximity to Fish Creek may take Pine Creek off the table. In addition a boat launch further down the river on the north/east side close to Policeman's Flats is far more attractive to develop. Also the current river access strategy is addressing sites that can be developed for public access over the next 2 -3 years and at a reasonable cost to the city. I will have more details on this subject within a couple of weeks. As I have said earlier, the bigger picture of river access is within the Bow River Basin from Cochrane to Carsland that needs to be addressed ASAP. Fishtech

Just got back from 194 Ave SW.. Scouting out discussions on a boat launch. The thought was to look at the Pine Creek Water Treatment site or the Tree Nursery downstream and adjacent to Deerfoot Trail. Interestingly enough there is a walk in access and a parking lot just upstream of the Pine Creek facility. With the high bank, a boat ramp in this location would be difficult, but not impossible. . What is a problem is low flows in the back channel (75CMS today),the potential for for RV access to the river bed and islands and conflicts with wade in fishermen. If a boat launch was to be considered in this general area, it would need to be further downstream, closer to the bridge in the mainstream of the river to accommodate year round use. All this talk about the time it takes to get on the river is nonsense, I live in the northwest of the city and it can take me an hour to get to Graves Bridge some mornings and longer to Fish Creek or Policeman's Flats. Does a 20 min. travel time have any impact on 10 hours of river drift / fishing time? Does anyone expect the city or the province to cater to those individuals who want to launch a boat 20 min. from home? No.

BurningChrome: An interesting comment. The debate taking place right now is what is a good boat launch, how to protect them against future floods and keep the abusers off river bottoms. Not a lot different to what we see in the back country with RV use where the general public can access the wilderness areas without damage to sensitive areas. For the fishing community and those who develop boat ramps, Fish Creek Provincial Park boat ramp is considered the "gold standard". It has everything that government officials and the public want, but at a very high cost. What we (CRUA) expects to see within the city is improvement to the existing boat ramps that allow for public access and Fire Department use. and protection of the environment in the most cost effective way to Calgary. AEP has exactly the same mandate with river access on public land. Opening up and improving river access above and below Calgary will only take place with public advocacy. There's the problem, lots of talk within the fishing community as we see on the Forum, but no, or very little concerted action or discussions with the authorities. Hopefully this will change once our community see the boat ramp improvements within Calgary.

When I read through the comments on this discussion it is obvious that a few facts need to be pointed out. A survey conducted by AEP In 2010 documented that there were 56,519 active anglers in Eastern Slopes Zone 1 (the southern foothills region) each spending on average $1967 / year on their fishing activity for a total of $111 million. What is probably more important is just how many drift boats and inflatables owners use the Bow River each year. No hard data, but probably 150 of each, spending twice the Alberta average at $3934 / per boat owner / year for a total of $1.20 million annually. Therefore as boat owners using the Bow River we need to face facts that our contribution to the local community could be limited. We are very fortunate that the City of Calgary, with the Calgary River Access Strategy is taking trailered boat ramps very seriously and we should be very thankful for that. For more details go to the following link that documents the economic importance of recreational river use to the local economy.. https://bowrivertrout.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/crua-economic-position-statement-to-city-of-calgary-revise-19-may-2016-1.pdf Expect to see some movement on river access outside of the City of Calgary. I have thought for some time that there is a need for a "Bow River Basin River Access Strategy" covering river access from Cochrane down to Carsland and on the reserve.

The 194 Ave access is a part of the CRUA stakeholder discussions with Calgary Parks. A total of 30 river access points have been identified from Stony Trail in the north west to Mahogany in the south east. A short list of feasible trailered river access ramps will be developed as part of the Calgary River Access Strategy. Go to the City of Calgary River Access Strategy to engage in the development of this project http://www.calgary.ca/CSPS/Parks/Pages/River-Access.aspx?redirect=/riveraccess

The blocks are being removed this aafternoon

City Parks Cautions Graves Bridge Gravel Bar Abusers! Graves BridgeThere is a hard boat launch underneath the Graves Bridge, where Glenmore Trail crosses the Bow River. The 2013 flood significantly changed the riverbank in this area. There is now a large gravel bank between the water and the boat ramp. There have been multiple reports of vehicles driving into the river and along the gravel bar. According to Alberta Environment and Parks, anyone doing this can face fines, Under the Public Lands Act, ranging from $250 up to $25,000. Our rivers are important ecosystems. Vehicles can introduce oil, gasoline and other pollutants, or create harmful ruts and erosion problems that affect these sensitive areas. To prevent this type of activity, a gate was installed at the Graves Bridge access site. Because we realize that many responsible boaters rely on the Graves Bridge site for river access, the gate will remain open at this time. However, we will monitor the situation, and the gate may be closed and locked if misuse of the gravel bar and river continues. See link for more details http://www.calgary.ca/CSPS/Parks/Pages/River-Access.aspx?redirect=/riveraccess

TransAlta Update: Monday August 15 As informed by the media, recreational boaters were having trouble in the Bow due to exposed debris around the Crowchild Bridge area. The CFD Deputy Chief has requested our collaboration to reduce flow from Bearspaw to help the crews that will remove those hazards from the River tomorrow afternoon. We have made our best water management adjustments and will reduce the flow release from Bearspaw gradually from around 109 m3/s at 8:00 AM to 65 m3/s at noon, and will maintain the low flow during the afternoon until sunset; at that time, we will gradually increase the flows in the river to return the Bearspaw reservoir to normal operation.

Calgary Parks Department has developed the following webpage " River Access Strategy" to engage the public in the consultation process. The fishing community support is needed to assure more river access is developed http://www.calgary.ca/CSPS/Parks/Pages/River-Access.aspx?redirect=/riveraccess

If Bow River fishing access is important to you, especially boat access, go to the following link for Bow River Trout's Summer Newsletter. Working with Calgary River Users Alliance, BRT is in negotiations with Calgary Parks Dept. to resolve access to Graves Bridge boat ramp closed to the public earlier this year. In addition, CRUA,, as a stakeholder will also have input into the "Calgary River Access Strategy" passed by City Council in June. There has also been discussions with Alberta Environment and Parks and other organizations to expand river access in the Bow River Basin. The fishing community needs to support these initiatives. https://bowrivertrout.files.wordpress.com/2016/08/brt-newsletter-summer-2016-21.pdf

Phone city Bylaws - 311. Although they have no jurisdiction on the gravel bar, that can ticket as they leave the the grave bar and enter city property. The ramp is city property. City Administration has requested the Bylaws patrol the area more frequently. The other option is to take a photo with licence plates and post it on this site and or send it to AEP and the city.

The high flows have nothing to do with cleaning up the coliform contamination. Has no one seen the rain coming down the past 5 days!

Graves Bridge upgrades. New park bench, garbage bin and toilet Also a new gate added. Will it be locked? Go to link for details https://bowrivertrout.org/2016/07/14/graves-bridge-boat-ramp-gets-an-update/

MacKkinnon's was cleaned up last week . New signs added and within one week we see industrial wast dumped again. https://bowrivertrout.org/2016/07/13/mackinnons-flats-cleaned-up-but-not-for-long/

Does anyone look at the bow river reservoir storage reports. See the following link, it is published every day. Although a lot of the chat revolves around the Ghost Reservoir Floor Mitigation Project that AEP and TransAlta agreed to run for 3 years. Water was released from the dam in May and June with a hold back of flows to fill the dam to normal operating capacity by the end of the first week of July. What caused the extremely low flows this year was a combination of low snow pack, and early run-off and drought conditions the last month. The Ghost Reservoir fill is taking place now. On June 30, Ghost Reservoir was at 46% capacity and from what information I have been given, will not reach historical fill levels this year. Starting next week we should see a slight increase in flows once the dam operating procedures return to normal for this time of year, that is, "water in - water out". If, or when it rains we will see a corresponding variation in flows as the rivers rise upstream of Ghost Reservoir. Some of that water could be held back to add to the Ghost storage capacity. https://bowrivertrout.files.wordpress.com/2016/07/res_storage-jun30.pdf Have a look at the reservoir capacity for dams upstream of Ghost on the Bow River and Barrier upstream on Kananaskis River, just about all are extremely low. Cascade that has one of the highest storage capacity on the upstream dam system is only at 56%. If anyone wants to blame someone for the low flows it needs to be pointed to the fishing community for not having organized opposition to flood mitigation projects. But, opposition to the management of potential floods would not get much of a hearing. Just pray for rain and not too much at one time!

High temperature and low flows in the Eastern-Slopes streams and rivers of the Rockies prompted the Alberta Government to issue a fishing advisory for the region today. If temperatures remain high and Bow River flows continue to be low through the summer, will we see a fishery closure on the river later in the summer? I believe YES. Go to www.bowrivertrout.org for some addition information

This is why MacKinnons is under threat! https://bowrivertrout.org/2016/06/16/mackinnons-flats-river-access-a-public-disgrace/