1 fish halibut limit

[ratherbefishin]

We went out halibut fishing this morning-picked up our 2 fish limit[1 each] and were heading home.One was about 30 lb-the other maybe 12lb.The 1 fish limit is supposed to be to conserve the halibut stock-but what I'm wondering is how many small halibut are ''released''simply because the angler wanted a larger fish-and at $300 for a charter-don't think this isn't happening. Maybe if you were fishing jigs and lip caught a halibut a release may result in survival-but bait generally results in deep hooking-where mortality is almost guaranteed -but the fish is released anyway.

If the stocks are such as we need to limit the catch-what makes more sense to me is a 10 fish season limit and a 2 fish per day limit-the way it now stands I wonder how many ''chickens'' are being killed with the 1 fish limit?

Do the people coming up with these 1 fish limits ever consider the release mortality factor?Is the 1 fish limit actually counterproductive to conserving halibut stocks by increasing the number of fish killed?

[Camp Cook]

So how many dead little ones are being thrown back in when a larger one is caught later in the day?

[6 K]

I'm willing to bet the B.B.Qs and frying pans get going if a big one is brought to boat later in the day.
You want to conserve halibut, buy back or close some commercial fisheries. All sport fishermen together do less damage than even one of them.
But don't hold your breath waiting for a goverment to do something logical.

[ratherbefishin]

if you think about how many halibut just ONE skate is capable of catching [250 hooks]vs ONE sport boat with just TWO lines out,PLUS the weather factor which greatly reduces the fishing opportunity-and then the number of times I've sat out there for 4 hours with NOTHING,imposing a 1 fish limit,especially if that one fish was only 12 or 15 lb. seems a bit harsh[besides I can't see the average charter boat fisherman being prepared to shell out $300-$400 for just one halibut of that size]-but if the sport catch needs to be curtailed-then a 2 fish per day-10 fish limit would be far more acceptable.

[Edward Teach]

Mortality rates for released fish are taken into consideration.
The same argument could be made (and likely would be made) for 2, 3, 4 fish limits.
If all anyone is catching is chickens then the halibut population has bigger problems and in that case, if it were my call to make, NOBODY would be fishing them.
Sports fishermen are the most difficult group to police so the rules for them are of necessity more strict.

[snareman1234]

I am a guide in port renfrew and from my experience
teh chicken fishery seems to be sustainable
however the big halibut fishery (over 60) is not
those are our breeding stock, if we left them alone
we could pull tons of chickens out if we left the chicken producers alone.
I believe the chicken fishery is sustainable just from personal experience though
I have no scientific evidence, only that I have fished for both big and small halibut
and I have seen chicken spots produce limits of fish conistantly all year long.
and I have seen big Hali spots get wiped out, and noticed a loss of larger fish at times.

[RustyRipper]

Mortality rates for released fish are taken into consideration.
The same argument could be made (and likely would be made) for 2, 3, 4 fish limits.
If all anyone is catching is chickens then the halibut population has bigger problems and in that case, if it were my call to make, NOBODY would be fishing them.
Sports fishermen are the most difficult group to police so the rules for them are of necessity more strict.

Great comment, x2

[ratherbefishin]

I'm NOT against sports limits on halibut-it is very shortsighted to decimate ANY species,but I still believe an annual limit makes more sense than a 1 fish daily limit-given the number of times I've gone out and just soaked bait.For the times the wind and tide co operated and we have been on fish-taking 2 is reasonable ,especially when there are smaller fish around.An annual limit of 10 or 20[such as we have for chinook] seems to me to be perfectly acceptable in terms of conservation -but I would like to hear some unbiased scientific evidence from fisheries ,not user groups.

I would like to hear something about taking chickens and preserving larger breeding stock too-that sounds like the same concept of releasing larger breeding fish stocks or taking immature bulls and leaving the older bulls to breed.

[snareman1234]

I would like to hear something about taking chickens and preserving larger breeding stock too-that sounds like the same concept of releasing larger breeding fish stocks or taking immature bulls and leaving the older bulls to breed.


I agree, because as we know it, total closure would be the best for the fish, howwever there are many that rely on these fish for their lively hood, every guide in port renfrew, bamfield etc.

But I think the 1 fish a day will, as you said, force us to target larger fish, and release smaller ones.

from my experience, fishing both sizes, sitting on the hook all day looking for big ones is maybe a 1-2 big fish a day system.

drifting for chickens, if fished all day could produce over 30 a day, and not just for one boat, there could be 25 boats there. of course no one would take 30, i'm just saying if we stayed at it all day, as opposed to finishing and leaving.

Also from an enviromental aspect, the clients paying the big bucks want their hali limit, so that means our boats will be driving to the bank EVERY day. as opposed to bank for hali/smaller salmon one day, then close to shore for trophy salmon the next.

[ratherbefishin]

we don't fish jigs-which might be easier to release with less mortality-bait seems to be swallowed with deeper hooksets and a successful release seems harder to achieve.I'm just concerned the 1 fish limit is going to be counterproductive in terms of conservation.We fish 2 lines per boat-and even a 2 fish limit means only 4 halibut taken[and lots of times we only got 2 or 3]

[Johnnybear]

The 1 fish limit is supposed to be to conserve the halibut stock-but what I'm wondering is how many small halibut are ''released''simply because the angler wanted a larger fish-and at $300 for a charter-don't think this isn't happening. Maybe if you were fishing jigs and lip caught a halibut a release may result in survival-but bait generally results in deep hooking-where mortality is almost guaranteed -but the fish is released anyway.

If the stocks are such as we need to limit the catch-what makes more sense to me is a 10 fish season limit and a 2 fish per day limit-the way it now stands I wonder how many ''chickens'' are being killed with the 1 fish limit?

Can you point me in the direction of any literature that says the 1 halibut limit is a conservation measure?:|

I agree with alot of folks that talk about releasing the larger females (I don't have that problem as I can't seem to catch the bigguns:roll: ) and should be practiced. My question is are the commercial guys practicing this?

I agree with your suggestion about the annual limit of 10-20 or something like we have with the Springs and it is a good idea:grin:.

I like jig fishing period. Not so I can release halibut for a bigger one(I prefer the chickens for eating) just because I find it more productive and a funner way to fish.



Mortality rates for released fish are taken into consideration.
The same argument could be made (and likely would be made) for 2, 3, 4 fish limits.
If all anyone is catching is chickens then the halibut population has bigger problems and in that case, if it were my call to make, NOBODY would be fishing them.
Sports fishermen are the most difficult group to police so the rules for them are of necessity more strict.

I agree with the sports sector as being difficult to police and I agree that the lodges should be recording their catches as well as individuals on their licenses. The real data needs to be collected.


I am a guide in port renfrew and from my experience
teh chicken fishery seems to be sustainable
however the big halibut fishery (over 60) is not
those are our breeding stock, if we left them alone
we could pull tons of chickens out if we left the chicken producers alone.


That right their is a breath of fresh air coming from a guide. Thanks you for your comments.

[ratherbefishin]

if I get 2 or 3 halibut in a season,I'm happy,give most of it away anyway,not that I don't like it but because fresh halibut is absolutely superb,way better than frozen and I like to share it with my family and friends.I don't need to get a 100 lb. fish-I'm quite happy to get a 25-40 lb chicken,but I DO want to get a fish or two when I spend $300 on a charter-and the guide wants me to get a fish too-they don't like taking a clients money and sending them on their way home skunked either.As far as ''policing ''the sports fishery-thats as easy as a creel survey at the ramp.One fisheries officer[or student] could cover most of the ramps on a random basis.Guides[who catch most of the halibut] aren't going to risk losing their licence by overlimit fishing
I suggest most people will honour a system if they know why, it makes sense and is enforceable -but spending money on rediculous things like checking samon tags[remember that one?] is beaurocratic, doesn't have public support,and is labour intensive

[blindguy]

First of all it is not a conservation isue there are more halli now than ever and the biomas is getting bigger and suppossed to be until 2011,our TAC went down this year because we went over our quota last year.
I have fished the same spots for the last 20 years and i get halli there consitantly and this year has been the best i've seen by far.
How do you have a chicken only fishery have you ever tried to pull the hooks out of a 100lbr not fun and very dangerous.Everybody can go out to the bank and load on chickens if there are say 40 boats all 40 will get there limit of chickens but if all 40 of those boats came and anchored for the so callrd larger ones i bet less than 10 of those boats would get fish.
I think it's personal preferance catch chickens if you want or go get a big one,ther's no shortage of either.
Have you ever seen yhe back of a commercial boat they don't let go anything.

[ratherbefishin]

well, if its NOT a conservation issue-then WHAT is it?why did they introduce the 1 halibut limit?All I'm saying is I would be happy with a couple of halibut-but going home with just one 12lb fish is a bit frustrating

[blindguy]

They introduced the 1 halli limit because we went over our quota last year so our sports quota went down by however much we went over combine that with way more fishing pressure and there you have it.
A little birdie told me it's going back to 2 a day june 15 lets keep our fingers crossed.
As far as letting halli go they are a very tuff fish unless hooked in the guts they will live.Most small halli are hooked in the mouth area because there not big enough to swallow the bait.

[6616]

Quotas change. In their ultimate wisdom the Feds have decreed that the halibut quota for the commercial fleet is 88% and the allocation for the sports fishery is 12%. I would guess this has something to do with the daily limit, and I would think this is an issue that sports anglers should be outraged and writting letters about.

[ratherbefishin]

who decided how to cut up the pie-88%commercial and 12% sports?What is the rationale behind that allocation-is it just pulled out of the hat, traditional catch, or based on dollars per pound return on the fishery?How can they even estimate the numbers of halibut in the ocean?

[6616]

Arbitrary decision by FOC.

See this link.

http://bcwf.bc.ca/committees/fisheries/subcom/tidalwaterfishery/reports/2009_halibut_exe_sum.html

[ratherbefishin]

salmon numbers can be estimated by river returns-and even then they are way off-how in the world can they come up with any idea of halibut stocks on the open sea?[correct me I am wrong, but I believe halibut move around as well,so numbers being up or down in a particular area cannot be taken as proof of either abundance or scarcity]

[westhoyt]

I have been going to Kyoquot for 10 years now, just got back from there yesterday, The last 5 years the halibut fishing is going downhill, smaller fish every year and less abundance, I dont know if it is overfishing by sporties or commercial groups, or are halibut a cycle fish.
The 1 fish per day limit is ok , but I am also concerned about badly hooked throwbacks.
I also dont like the resorts displaying pics of there docks sinking with tons of fish they have just killed, I mean these guests probably throw most of the fish they take home in the garbage a year after their trip.
Maybe the commercial quota needs to be lowered but their fish isnt getting frostbite down in the hold, it is in the stores and the people paying market price are definately eating it,
I also know that when the limit was 3 over 2 days , guys would say screw it and catch there 3 limit to avoid another trip to the outside, so now they only catch their 2 and go home instead of 3.
Anyway I am done my rant but fishing in the Pacific sucks compared to back in the 80's.

[dryflyguy57]

6 k your post really shows your ignorance of the halibut fishery !

[ratherbefishin]

I am woefully ignorant on the sex life of halibut-but assume the ''closed season'' is to allow halibut to lay eggs undisturbed[as we do for other fisheries]Is there some way,other than closures, that the breeding stock can be preserved?What preditors,other than man, do halibut have?Do seal /sealion populations impact halibut?What effect does ''El Nino'' have on them?How far do halibut range?Do they migrate at all,or move to better food sources?[heck-I don't even know what their main diet is-although last week one we caught was filled with crabs ]

[steel_ram]

There are a few pigs in the sport fishery that I think do a lot of damage. Especially when they pound some of the smaller banks. I refering to those few guy's who every spring brag about their head count, 40-60 fish for a few. 10% of they boats catch 90% of the fish.

I don't really care who they're feeding.

Pretty hard, if not useless to try to enforce a posession limit. Tag systems are a joke.

[blindguy]

Westhoyt talking about halibut getting frostbite the commercial fleet hasn't even sold all the halli they fished last year,there is still a large amount sitting in freezers somewhere.

[dryflyguy57]

Westhoyt was that you fishing the smaller reef off Kyuguot last Sunday ? If so that was me that came out to jig just inside you with the C-Dory . Nice day for sure compared to the storm warning the day before . I only saw one boat so that is why I ask .

[Johnnybear]

I have been going to Kyoquot for 10 years now, just got back from there yesterday, The last 5 years the halibut fishing is going downhill, smaller fish every year and less abundance, I dont know if it is overfishing by sporties or commercial groups, or are halibut a cycle fish.
The 1 fish per day limit is ok , but I am also concerned about badly hooked throwbacks.
1)I also dont like the resorts displaying pics of there docks sinking with tons of fish they have just killed, I mean these guests probably throw most of the fish they take home in the garbage a year after their trip.
Maybe the commercial quota needs to be lowered but their fish isnt getting frostbite down in the hold,2) it is in the stores and the people paying market price are definately eating it,
I also know that when the limit was 3 over 2 days , guys would say screw it and catch there 3 limit to avoid another trip to the outside, so now they only catch their 2 and go home instead of 3.
Anyway I am done my rant 3)but fishing in the Pacific sucks compared to back in the 80's.

1) Why don't the commercial guys show pics of there hold's being unloaded? And I highly doubt that anyone paying charter boat fee's are letting their catch go to the garbage! :wink:.
2) That is just commercial fisherman talk(I like to catch my own thank you).:D
3) We are expecting a significant come back with regards to the salmon fishery this year. They are having sockeye openings that were closed for 2 years. Is this all a bad thing? It might not be like the 80's but still it is positive:|.

[westhoyt]

I was there with a buddy , I was in a whaler, my buddy was in a Maxum. I dont think I saw any other boats, Sunday was an awesome day.

[vanislehunter1]

1) Why don't the commercial guys show pics of there hold's being unloaded? And I highly doubt that anyone paying charter boat fee's are letting their catch go to the garbage! :wink:.
2) That is just commercial fisherman talk(I like to catch my own thank you).:D
3) We are expecting a significant come back with regards to the salmon fishery this year. They are having sockeye openings that were closed for 2 years. Is this all a bad thing? It might not be like the 80's but still it is positive:|. Really?? they're opening the sockeye? hopefully they go through the inside passage as 2 years ago the sockeye fishing was amazing!! that has to be the best fishing, we got a spring and 7 sockeye in one day (4 per person, 4 fish limit, 2 people = 8 fish) those are great eating fish. I hope to see them like that many more times.:D As well as the other post, look at how much fish these guys catch. :neutral: Thats in winter harbour, apparently they catch these by chumming for the fish. more fish are being caught than let go. they need to do something about it SOON. http://www.qualicumrivers.com/photo_gallery/2007Season

[Salty]

.:D As well as the other post, look at how much fish these guys catch. :neutral: Thats in winter harbour, apparently they catch these by chumming for the fish. more fish are being caught than let go. they need to do something about it SOON. http://www.qualicumrivers.com/photo_gallery/2007Season

I've fished their area (used to live near there) and I highly doubt that they are chumming, which I'm not sure how much good that would do in 300 ft plus water with big tides and wind and swell. In my experience if you have the boat and experience to go off shore, once you find the 'chicken coup' there are piles of fish and its easy to get a limit. ..

[ratherbefishin]

are there some areas that there are predominently ''chickens'' while other areas are mainly bigger fish-or do they mix?

[blindguy]

There are definatley areas where you get nothing but chickens and other spots where you will get both.

[ratherbefishin]

is depth of water a factor?

[blindguy]

No depth isn't a factor but i do find more big fish in the rock piles for sure.

[Salty]

are there some areas that there are predominently ''chickens'' while other areas are mainly bigger fish-or do they mix?

The way I understand it, there are resident halibut and transient halibut.

Generally younger fish up to 50 or so pounds stay put or are resident fish. They don't cover a lot of ground and just move for feed. When they grow bigger than this they are 4 or 5 years old I believe it was, anyway at that point they all tend to become transient. They cover lots of area for whatever reason, and are in their breeding prime. Speaking of which a friend is a fish biologist and has been for 30 plus years in the chuck here. He says no one really knows for sure where halibut go to breed and exactly what the process is. :-?

Later in life most fish become more resident once again, and move mainly just for feed and will stay put more. I've had it pointed out to me that the resident fish (young ones, and older fish over about 120 lbs) are thicker by proportion, where the transient fish (50 to 120 lbs or so) are much leaner because they travel so much and don't fatten up much.

[MichelD]

See page 37

http://www.iphc.washington.edu/halcom/pubs/annmeet/2009/bluebook/iphcbluebook09.pdf

Archival tagging has identified spawning migrations of up to 1200 km.

[ratherbefishin]

1200 KM!-that would cover pretty much the whole BC coast....!

[MichelD]

The juvenile and adult halibut migrate clockwise (southward-eastward) and eggs and larvae migrate northward-westward.

[pro 111]

I'm willing to bet the B.B.Qs and frying pans get going if a big one is brought to boat later in the day.
You want to conserve halibut, buy back or close some commercial fisheries. All sport fishermen together do less damage than even one of them.
But don't hold your breath waiting for a goverment to do something logical.
All sports fisherman together do less damage. Get your head out of your ass and do some homework before you start slagging the working man . A comercial halibut boat can only catch 1% of the comercial TAC.This year it is down to 6.7 million lbs. wich means a comercial guy can only harvest a max of 67000 lbs of halibut. the sports fleet takes a million lbs and they are not acountable for any of there buycatch. the comercial sector is acountable 100%. a camera rolls 24 -7. they also supply all the older and disabled people with halibut who cant go fishing but love eating fish.And they keep 200 000 restaraunts across canada supplied with halibut. They also pound for pound leave way less of a carbon footprint compared to the averge sport fisherman. The coast was built from comercial fishing and logging , not from some greenhorn feeling seasick loosing all his jigs on the bottom because he thinks its a fish biting the bait!!!

[joshj]

All sports fisherman together do less damage. Get your head out of your ass and do some homework before you start slagging the working man . A comercial halibut boat can only catch 1% of the comercial TAC.This year it is down to 6.7 million lbs. wich means a comercial guy can only harvest a max of 67000 lbs of halibut. the sports fleet takes a million lbs and they are not acountable for any of there buycatch. the comercial sector is acountable 100%. a camera rolls 24 -7. they also supply all the older and disabled people with halibut who cant go fishing but love eating fish.And they keep 200 000 restaraunts across canada supplied with halibut. They also pound for pound leave way less of a carbon footprint compared to the averge sport fisherman. The coast was built from comercial fishing and logging , not from some greenhorn feeling seasick loosing all his jigs on the bottom because he thinks its a fish biting the bait!!!


Good on you pro 111, way to call it like it is. Saw your article in the paper up in QCI and you had it right on there too!!!

[Mr. Dean]

Lets talk about "wastage"....


For those that want some real world data, take a look at the International Halibut Commision's website. It's all statistical and dry reading but if you're wanting to know whats what, that's where it is.

[ratherbefishin]

I've got another trip scheduled for Monday,June 1-hopefully the limit will be increased to 2 fish like it was last year,we use bait and take the first fish we catch ,no matter how small and don;t throw any back,so having at least the chance of keeping something a bit bigger than 12 or 15 lb would be welcome.If the limit isn't increased,I'm considering switching to jigs so we could release smaller fish

[pro 111]

thanks for the suport joshj , I wish more people could see it the way it really is. Nothing wrong with sports fishing , I love it . I just get sick and tired of all the idiots out there that spout there mouths of , without any thought or regard to another persons livelyhood .

[ratherbefishin]

3 nice halibut,chickens, this morning-hoped the limit would be increased from one to two, but no such luck.Had a great time anyway

[Mr. Dean]

thanks for the suport joshj , I wish more people could see it the way it really is. Nothing wrong with sports fishing , I love it . I just get sick and tired of all the idiots out there that spout there mouths of , without any thought or regard to another persons livelyhood .

This "idiot's" 1st and FOREMOST regard is that of stocks.... Clearly whats been going on with the commercial fishery isn't working. And now that it is realized (through reduced TAC), they insist on us (common persons) to hand over allocations like they grow on tree's. Utter nonesense IMO.


I honestly believe that any commercial interest (be it group or individual) knew goin in, that, days and harvests would both be limited rather than unlimited. And now that the writing is on the wall, they expect us to bail 'em out (buy their quotas) because of their poor management practises. Double Utter Nonesense.


Nonesense..... pfft, seems to be the general thinking when it comes to commercial fishing (EC Cod, WC Salmon,,,,, ect). For some reason it seems perfectly acceptable to rape and plunder the common person right out of what rightfully belongs to them.

I dunno, I was brought up with doing the right thing and fixing what I broke, instead of looking next door for a replacement. Call me an Idiot (whatever), all I see is an opportunistic industry that's not willing to take care of themselves OR the quarry that they seek.

My 2 cents.

[Piperdown]

June 15, 2 / day :biggrin:

[ratherbefishin]

What I would like to know is-who controls the commercial sector and sports fishery -is it in the hands of individual fisherman,or the fish plants-or is it the US interests?Who are the lobbyists?I would like to think the allocations and quotas are made on pure scientific data without politics being involved, but I'm a bit too skeptical of vested interests

[westhoyt]

I dont see it in fisheries notices that June 15 we are allowed 2 per day? canyou confirm Piperdown?

[Mr. Dean]

What I would like to know is-who controls the commercial sector and sports fishery -is it in the hands of individual fisherman,or the fish plants-or is it the US interests?Who are the lobbyists?I would like to think the allocations and quotas are made on pure scientific data without politics being involved, but I'm a bit too skeptical of vested interests

A united, multinational board of data-digesters (Inter Hali Commission) sets catch limits for both Can and US (TAC).... DOF then takes it upon themselves on how the TAC is divied up AND how it wil be caught in regards with daily limits and allocations.


EDIT.
The lobbiests are them that raise the most fuss. CLEARLY the ones with $$$ win the honours of top squealers.

[Mr. Dean]

If the stocks are such as we need to limit the catch-what makes more sense to me is a 10 fish season limit and a 2 fish per day limit-the way it now stands I wonder how many ''chickens'' are being killed with the 1 fish limit?

I don't agree with sliding backwards from 3 fish to 2. I personaly don't know of anyone keeping more than 10 as it is but I'm sure they're out there. My spin on the situation is that we need to make the takers of the resource accountable for their actions; there is no way in hell that sporties could dent this resource based on their take (TAC) alone, when compared to commy interests.... Same said for consrvation efforts; our catches just don't amount to diddley thus have miniscule impacts (ehtical people/fishing sector in whole, we are ... ;))

Any Consrvation Concern the "we" are forced to live with, is done so to help a commercial boat load its hull. Which is ironic when you start to think a bit, because its their mess, created by themselves. And now they literally wanna take food of my plate; go figure?

[Piperdown]

I dont see it in fisheries notices that June 15 we are allowed 2 per day? canyou confirm Piperdown?
I am hearing it from my suppliers and some of my buddies on the boards. Seems they think with this downturn in the economy and lack of bookings we will be taking less fish, keep the fingers crossed!

[dryflyguy57]

Mr. Dean , I have to take you up on your offer . You are an idiot . Quota is impossible to buy as nobody is selling . I don't think those left in the industry need bailing out . Someone I know just sold his quota to the native buy back for close to 2 million dollars , well over market i have been told so in effect you just helped buy him out . Try to be more informed before you slag someone . You sound like a fish pig to me .

[ratherbefishin]

I'm done halibut fishing for the year,the dogfish are showing up, but in 2 trips,the total catch for the boat was 5,split among 3 guys.That in my opinion, hardly means we endangering or even impacting the resource

[Salty]

Mr. Dean , I have to take you up on your offer . You are an idiot . Quota is impossible to buy as nobody is selling . I don't think those left in the industry need bailing out . Someone I know just sold his quota to the native buy back for close to 2 million dollars , well over market i have been told so in effect you just helped buy him out . Try to be more informed before you slag someone . You sound like a fish pig to me .

I won't go the idjut route, but your idea of how things happen in the commercial fishery are quite out Mr. Dean. Google Suz uki and other big environmentalist orgs and you will see that the commercial halibut fishery on the west coast of noth america is one of the most sustainable.

The boats that fish around here are owner oporated for the lions share and most are less than 40 feet. They hire a deck hand or two and have ater. Some of the processing companys are 'international' but they have dick all to say about catch quotas.

[pro 111]

Keep up the good work salty ! CFV HOPEFULL

[Mr. Dean]

You sound like a fish pig to me .

Quite the opposite.... I'm a guy that affords the chance to go off fishing ONCE a year for my piddly eight salmon and 3 meesly hali's.

The ONLY reason why we're faced with a reduced TAC is because of a couple of year class fishes *might* be in trouble.... If I'm reading between the lines correctly, it *shouldn't* be a problem as long as we let the over abundance of youngsters grow up a bit. Thus the reduced TAC.

I'll give this; All my understandings are of the past 2 years studies of the IPC's stats (primarily), the wildlife federation reports, The SF Advisory Board reports, as well as other SF interest groups. I have not looked into them as of this year because of what I learned, sickened me to death. It was the politics of it all that did me in.

But the rumblings are the same this year and I keep coming back to these simple questions:

Who profited from those year classes of fish?
Who is lobbying for reduced sportfishing allocations.
Who proposed that if the SF sector wanted/needed more allocations, we should buy it from commercial interests via stamps and tags?

In my fishing practices, I'm being hit with a 35% reduction (3 --> 2 fish posession limit) AND required to put in extra (and expen$ive) effort through reduced daily limits.... I'm being squeazed out of accessing a resource that is rightfully mine. HELL!!! All I wanna do is to take a vacation and go get some fish for my freezer/family; Why is it so difficult?

And what happens when I am pushed out? Will all *my* fish get to swim and be free??? NO! because the mandate is to attain TAC. So if the SF sector can't afford to go fishing, exactly just who will be the benifactor?

It shouldn't be like this, not when it's US, the common person, that retains title of this stock AND for the very plain fact that our harvests don't make a dent in conservation issues because of our little take of TAC (at this point in time).

If someone here can explain and justify that, I'm interested.


Mr. Dean
aka; The Ignorant Fish Pig... I love it! :mrgreen:

[Mr. Dean]

Google Suz uki and other big environmentalist orgs and you will see that the commercial halibut fishery on the west coast of noth america is one of the most sustainable.

I agree it to be, too. We just need to get over a little hurdle. My beef is how that hurdle is being mandated in regards to "flick the fly off the wall" (read; Sportfishing) and how Canadian Laws being over-looked.. :wink:


Hey, the EC Cod fiasco started somewhere......

[blindguy]

I heard the same piperdown lets keep our fingers crossed.

[Johnnybear]

I'm done halibut fishing for the year,the dogfish are showing up, but in 2 trips,the total catch for the boat was 5,split among 3 guys.That in my opinion, hardly means we endangering or even impacting the resource

Sorry here your done for the year hope it's not because of the dog fish:???:. They can be funny little fish for sure. I have fished amongst them before and still kept getting cod and halibut with only the occasional dog fish hook up. Sometimes they are thick and you can't keep them off:(. You can try moving to a different area to get away from them.

I'm just getting started:roll:. We got 3 on Sunday and heading back out on the weekend:-D.

[ratherbefishin]

I'm fishing out of Sooke -we got a dozen dogfish,they chew up everything-funny, they seem to be very agressive-but once they moved on we picked up another couple of halibut in quick succession-the last one hit both baits seconds apart ,and was hooked up by both.No,we'll switch to springs now-I generally book a couple of halibut trips then go to salmon.But taking home a couple of halibut is fine-its when you get one small one and you're done fishing is what my beef is about

[Gateholio]

What do you guys do with the dogfish you catch? Fish & Chips?

[Piperdown]

We send em to pemberton for fish and chips :biggrin:

[ratherbefishin]

Catch and release- carefully and gently recycle them back into the environment[cut their belly open and toss them back]

[blindguy]

Try fishing rocky areas not quite as many dogs normaly or switch to jigs or spoons.

[6 K]

6 k your post really shows your ignorance of the halibut fishery !


All sports fisherman together do less damage. Get your head out of your ass and do some homework before you start slagging the working man . A comercial halibut boat can only catch 1% of the comercial TAC.This year it is down to 6.7 million lbs. wich means a comercial guy can only harvest a max of 67000 lbs of halibut. the sports fleet takes a million lbs and they are not acountable for any of there buycatch. the comercial sector is acountable 100%. a camera rolls 24 -7. they also supply all the older and disabled people with halibut who cant go fishing but love eating fish.And they keep 200 000 restaraunts across canada supplied with halibut. They also pound for pound leave way less of a carbon footprint compared to the averge sport fisherman. The coast was built from comercial fishing and logging , not from some greenhorn feeling seasick loosing all his jigs on the bottom because he thinks its a fish biting the bait!!!

Well….. I have been taking some bashing I see. (Thanks for the p.m. bringing it to my attention pro 111)
Here is some of the latest HOMEWORK I've been doing.

I got invited on a charter last Tuesday. My buddy won it at a fund raiser. The owner my buddy and I soon discovered we had something else in common. We all had worked as Commercial fishermen. (Yes, that’s right even ME) Talking about the one Hali limit on the way out the owner/captain told us the boat he used to work for just came in with 168,000 lbs and another he knew of came in with 90,000lbs ( so much for the fore mentioned 67,000 lb max)

Anyhow, back to the charter. We started into turbit and hali pretty quickly. An hour and a half later I happed to be closest to a rod that got hit hard. 70 lbs, personal best, yep, it went into the freezer. After that we kept a 15 and the guide kept a 10. Then said told my buddy and I quote “Not to worry if we get another big one, we will release the little one.” This happens often I think, probably every client that charters with this individual hears this. In our case I pushed for some Spring trolling and off we went.

Accountability of bye catch……? As I said above I HAVE worked the commercial fishery I know all about how untargeted or unmarketable species are “released”. As far as I know there are limits on every species sports fishermen are allowed to retain and those that we aren’t are supposed to be released gently and alive. There is no need to remind me of how the POOR sports fisherman releases unwanted fish, I once threatened to throw a older gent in the Skeena for stepping on the heads of the pink as he ripped the hook out then kicked them back in. But don’t ask me to swallow this Camera running 24-7 stuff either. Sure, nothing lost damaged erased or taped over ect ect. Even if this were the case, who would watch hundreds of hours each from thousands of boats to see if there had been an infraction? If there are cameras on commercial boats, I would think they would be used for spot checks. No need to blast my intellagents again.

I know the commercial guys work hard, real hard, sometimes in snotty, even dangerous, weather. I have been there. However as a group, even according to pro 111, they get the lion’s portion of the catch. (6.7 million total minus 1million for sports 5.7 million for commercial) So in my mind they should take the lion’s share of the cut.

A million pounds caught by the sports fishery seems high to me personally but B.C. is a big place so I take that as info. On that note I take back what I said about the whole sports fleet taking less than one commercial boat. Apparently, we take about as much as oh …………. Eight to seventeen commercial boats (depending on what hearsay you hear). In defence of my statment I must honestly admit I was not thinking of the guides as part of the sports fishery, which they are of course.

Oooo...That could be a real poop storm post:lol:. Lets make the guide community part of the commercial sector. With manditory end of trip weigh ins and their catch going toward the commercial TAC and keep the division of allotment the way it is now.:biggrin:

Cutting sport fishermen’s quota by 50% is too much. If the stock is truly in danger then close it totally for everyone. If that is unnecessary at this time, what about a bracket quota idea, one over 40lb or two under? Halibut are suppose to be so uniform that their weight can be calculated by measuring, so perhaps length brackets. That way someone getting a fifteen could still potentially go home with 55lbs (Quite reasonable in my books) and the guy who lands the 45 or bigger has done well too.

I hope this relieves me of the “head up my own ass, Idiot, and Seasick Greenhorn status.:neutral:
6K
http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/phpFjEMfxPM.jpg

[ratherbefishin]

I'm probably not too difernent than most sports fisherman-all I want to do is go out ,have a great day on the water and catch a fish or two-I don't need to fill the freezer.But there;s a couple of things-one-if I am paying a lot of money for a charter-I DO like to at least catch SOMETHING-and I don't like to have to pack it in when I get one small halibut-a couple would be nice.The days of abundant fish and people showing up with campers and spending weeks fishing and taking back hundreds of pounds of canned salmon are over.But today if can't people can't have the expectation of going out and catching a couple of fish -probably not a lot of them are willing to shell out several hundred dollars for a day trip,or several thousand dollars at a lodge and that frankly, is bad for the charter business and tourist business-people come here,among other things, to go fishing.Do you think the fisheries department understands that?

[Salty]

What do you guys do with the dogfish you catch? Fish & Chips?

I've always thought of giving that a try Gate but you need to deal with them right away and skin them. (Escentially, they pee through their skin):???:

But then higher quality fish come aboard and I usually end up using them for crab bait. I composted some too back when we had an acreage. They can't be too bad tho, the Brits have been eating mud shark for years with chips. ..

[RustyRipper]

Here is some of the latest HOMEWORK I've been doing.

I got invited on a charter last Tuesday. My buddy won it at a fund raiser. The owner my buddy and I soon discovered we had something else in common. We all had worked as Commercial fishermen. (Yes, that’s right even ME) Talking about the one Hali limit on the way out the owner/captain told us the boat he used to work for just came in with 168,000 lbs and another he knew of came in with 90,000lbs ( so much for the fore mentioned 67,000 lb max)


Accountability of bye catch……? As I said above I HAVE worked the commercial fishery I know all about how untargeted or unmarketable species are “released”. As far as I know there are limits on every species sports fishermen are allowed to retain and those that we aren’t are supposed to be released gently and alive. There is no need to remind me of how the POOR sports fisherman releases unwanted fish, I once threatened to throw a older gent in the Skeena for stepping on the heads of the pink as he ripped the hook out then kicked them back in. But don’t ask me to swallow this Camera running 24-7 stuff either. Sure, nothing lost damaged erased or taped over ect ect. Even if this were the case, who would watch hundreds of hours each from thousands of boats to see if there had been an infraction? If there are cameras on commercial boats, I would think they would be used for spot checks. No need to blast my intellagents again.



Alright just to clear you up of a couple things, since you seem to be so skeptical of what someone is telling you with clearly more knowledge of commercial fishing than you have, first off I'm not sure when this skipper of yours was talking about bringing in 168,000 pounds on the same boat, because that is horsesh*t. Unless that was in like 1987 then it is completely illegal, the cap has gone done fairly steadily in the last few years. Just four years ago it was around 100,000 lbs per boat and now it's done around 65-67000. I don't know who that guy was but he was lying. As far as the cameras go, there is no tinkering with them whatsoever; the hard drive boxes are in a locked metal box for security and can only be accessed by archipelago (hired by DFO) and if someone where to tinker with it, the recorded video would be void and fines would ensue. As to them watching the video, they do in fact watch it, albeit it is sped up so as not to be watching video for a week straight, but if there any suspicious behavior is seen on film or if there are any discrepancies with the fish count from log book to validation, then the video must me watched in full, which is paid for by the captain of the vessel. (happened on a boat I was on once, we had one undersize and it cost the owner 8000 bucks to have them watch the whole thing). I am not trying to brag about how good DFO is or archipeligo for that matter, I think they have a lot of improving to do, however I am trying to make you realize that this is not like the old days of commercial fishing where people caught as much as they liked and killed everything they didn't want, we are a very tight operation and for the last decade or more it has been the commercial sector who has taken the biggest tolls (the cap has been cut by almost 50%) and that is how we make our living, you are complaining about being cut in half and you do it for fun, get real, take one for the team like we have been doing for years.

[Mr. Dean]

Has anyone here flipped through the catch stats????????????????????????

[Johnnybear]

Has anyone here flipped through the catch stats????????????????????????

I'm been starting to wade through a lot of the data on the IPHC site and reading the publications etc. The bycatch is suprisingly high still both for other species and for other fisherman not targeting halibut but catching them. I will continue to read information posted on that site as I find it very interesting.

[Salty]

On the cameras, a bud here fishes live cod and has a camera on 24-7 as well. Yes! Even for the small rockfish that you see in Cinatown.

All commercial ground fisheries have cameras now and every fish that comes aboard has to be held up or passed by the camera somehow. And they have to keep a separate clicker count of each and every fish and what species they are. If the count doesn't add up with the camera, buddy is in deep shit. And if there was any evidence at tampering with the camera and/or cheating in anyway, it would be surrender the licence time and possibley the boat too.

That's the way it is fellow sportys. Straight up. Lots of nasty crap happended in the commercial fisheries in the past but not now and to blame them is illinformed. Even the salmon guys go through lots of hoops, revival tanks and the like. It ain't the wild west.

[RustyRipper]

Well said Salty, I'm glad some people understand what's going on. To add to that though, all bycatch caught while targeting another species must be accounted for by previously aquired quota. For example, if a guy were longlining halibut and got into a pile of yellow eye, he must keep everyone that he catches, there is no releasing and even if you were to, you must have the quota to cover it. If you run out of yellow eye quota, you have no choice but to go in and find more, even if you have plenty of halibut quota left. The integrated fishing system is very tight so believe me when I say we are very well set up. Watch out or it may come to the same ways for sports.

[pro 111]

Thanks for the clarifacation Rusty Ripper . You took the words right out of my mouth. As for 6 k your status still stands . Like I said before get your facts strait and do some homework before you start slagging the working man.

[ratherbefishin]

I'm not sure its the ''working man'' that people are talking about-but the big commercial interests behind it with big bucks for lobbying