L! 2000/2(;)01 Freshwater Fishing Regulations Synopsis: B.C
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Photo: Rick Blacklaws 2000/2001 Please refer to the 2000/2001 Freshw"'"a'""te-r"";F;-'is"-;-hin""· -g----_.r Regulations Synopsis ~ for ~l o~her fishing regulations. ~)VO\)\.'(' Websites: 2000/2001 Freshwater Salmon Supplement and 2000/2001 B.C. Tidal Wate~s Sport Fishing Guide: - --. http://www-comm.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca -------------_.....l! 2000/2(;)01 Freshwater Fishing Regulations Synopsis: http://www.gov.bc.ca/fish B.C. Salmon Update Line on the Talking Yellow Pages Victoria 953-9000 }Ents1 code 741-9000 "3467" 299-9000 aT ''FINS'' TOU-free: 1-877-32(;)-3467 Table of Contents Introduction Freshwater Licence Fees .... ............................. .. ...... .. 2 This guide is intended as a Angling Etiquette ............... ... .......... ... .... .... .. .. ............. 2 supplement and complement to both Catch and Release Tips ... .......................... .. ... ... ... ... .. 3 the British Columbia Freshwater Freshwater Creel Surveys .... ... ... ...... .. .. .. ... ................ 3 Fishing Regulations Synopsis for Atlantic Salmon Alert ... .. ............................ ... .. ... ... ... .. 4 2000/2001 and the 2000/ 2001 Packaging Guidelines .. ..... ... .......... ... ....... .................. 5 British Columbia Tidal Waters Sport Observe, Record, Report .......................................... .. 6 Fishing Guide. Information contained Salmon Identification ... ............... ... ....... .. ........ ......... 12 in this booklet deals with non-tidal Fishing Regulations salmon fishing only. For regulations Region I : Vancouver Island ....... ... ... .... ... ... ............... 7 regarding tidal fisheries please . Region 2: Lower Mainland ........................................ 8 consult the Tidal Waters Sport Region 3: Thompson-Nicola ...... ... .. ... .. .. ........ ... ...... 11 Fishing Guide, and for regulations Region 4: Kootenays - no salmon regarding other freshwater fisheries, Region 5: Cariboo please consult the Freshwater Fishing IPart A: Fraser River Watershed) .. ... .... ................. .. 15 Regulations Synopsis. Region 5: Cariboo (Part B: Coastal Watershed) .... 16 Region 6: Skeena ........ .. .... .. ........... ... .... .. ... ... ... ...... .. 17 Region 7: Ornineca-Peace ............ ..................... ..... 24 1 Region 8: Okanagan ..... .... .. .............. ...................... 25 Freshwater Licenc e Fees· (April t 2000 - March 31, 2001) LICENCE TYPE Resident Non-Resident Non-Resident Alien Basic Licences Annual Angling Licence $30 $40 $55 One Day Angling Licence' • $ 8 $15 $15 Eight Day Angling Licence •• $17 $25 $30 Annual Licence for Disable d $ I N/A N/A Annual Licence for Age 65 Plus··· $ 5 N/A N/A Conservation Surcharges Steelhead $15 $40 $40 Salmon $10 $20 $20 • Does not include GS T - please refer to the Freshwater Synopsis for more detailed information. •• You may buy as many Eight Day and One Day Licences as you need, but only one Annual Licence. ••• The reguiar fee for an annual angling licence applies if the B.C. senior citizen is not a Canadian Citizen. Salmon Conservation Stamp Your Basic Licence must b e validated with a salmon conservation stamp to keep a salmon of any legal size or species lother than kokan eel from non-tidal waters. A stamp is not required if you intend to release ali salmon caught. Freshwater Anglin g Etiquette 0 Protect river habitat - fish require suitable habitat in order to reproduce and grow. These guidelines help prote ct fish, and as an angler, the 0 protection of fish must always be of primary concern. Respect public and private property. Always ask permission before entering private property, use the Be courteous and use co mmon sense. pathways provided, and always close gates behind you. Be aware of reguiations and obey the law. 0 Don't litter. Leave your fishing spot better than the Keep fish immersed in water until you identify the way you found it. species. 0 Use the Observe, Record, Report line If releasing, follow the guidelines of the following 11-800-465-4336) to report violations. publications/videos: Han die With Care, Angling for the Future, and Release 'Em Right. You can obtain them by Some additional tips for flyfishers: calling 1604) 666-0384. 0 Flyfishers require room - leave enough space between Respect other anglers an d allow them space. you and the next angler. 2 Limit your catch, don't catch more than your limit. 0 Never step downstream in front of another angler. Catch and Release Tips Don't handle a fish by the gills or the eyes; this will kill it. Practising good catch and release techniques begins before you catch the fish and doesn't end until after you set it Try to release your fish in a quiet patch of water so it free and it swims away. can swim into the current again when it's ready. If your fish does not immediately swim away, revive it Before you go fishing: by holding it correctly oriented, facing upstream. Move Use appropriate it forwards and back to keep water running through tackle, not too its gills. Be patient, this may take a bit of time. When light. so you can the fish begins to struggle, let it swim away. play your fish Factors affecting fish survival lit it seems unlikely that quickly. your fish will live, consider keeping it it it is a legal fish): Use barbless Where it has been hooked - hooks piercing the eye, hooks - not only gill, or brain area usually results in the death of a fish. is it easier to remove A fish with bleeding gills is unlikely to survive. from the fish, it's the law! If there is a large temperature difference between While you're fishing: where the fish was hooked and the surface water temperature, this increases the amount of stress the Keep alert when angling to keep from deep hooking. fish is subjected to. Play the fish as quickly as you can so you don't tire it out. Freshwater Creel Surveys Assess the fish : size, condition ILe. where it's been Creel surveys estimate angler catch and effort on our hooked), and species while it's still in the water. A fish freshwater systems. The infor.mation is used to deter.mine Sling made out of meter sticks and some cloth can the catch of salmonlds by recreational anglers and the measure the fish while it's still in the water! amount of angler effort on the rivers. Creel infor.mation can also be used by city Chambers of Commerce to While releasing the fish: deter.mine benefits to their respective communities from Keep the fish in water. A fish needs water to breathe, angler dollars. and water supports the weight of the fish. Challenges: Handle the fish as little as possible, protect the slime! Thousands of pieces of data must be collected and Removing even a little bit of the protective slime layer entered accurately in a timely fashion from diverse of a fish leaves the fish open to fungus infection. Wetted, geographic locations. bare hands are best. and wetted cotton gloves are preferred over wetted wool gloves. Thousands of anglers from diverse geographic, ethnic, linguistic and socia-economic groups are interviewed Use soft, knotless nets or no net at all - try using a fish to collect angler catch and effort infor.mation. sling. Each creel survey design must take into consideration Unhook the fish using a pair of long nosed pliers. If the the individual characteristics of the fishery being fish is deeply hooked, or you can't remove the hook, creeled while staying within certain scientific cut the line as close to the hook as you can. standards. Don't squeeze the fish, as you will cause internal organ 3 damage. Infor.mation that can be gleaned from the surveys include: Exotic Alert: Atlantic Salmon in B.C. Report Atlantic Salmon Catches: 1-800-811-6010 'The Ministry of Environment. Lands and Parks encourages anglers to report the catch of Atlantic salmon in lakes and streams near the west coast of the province. Anglers are asked to pay special attention to salmon with unusual spotting and eroded fins. Atlantic salmon can be identified by: 8-11 anal fin rays (Pacific salmon have 11-13 rays) very noticeable. large. black spots on the gill cover (not common on native salmon) large scales and black spots on the back may have very noticeably eroded or worn fins from containment in net-pens Report any captures or sightings of Atlantic salmon to the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo. 1-800-811-6010. 'The entire fish (including entrails) should be saved. preferably frozen. for positive identification and biological sampling. with as much information as possible regarding date. location and method of capture. Number of fish caught. which species. and the time of long they have been fishing or are planning on fishing. year they are caught Hourly rod counts -creel surveyors count the number Number of fish released and the number of marked fish of anglers on a representative section of the river every Number of anglers and the total hours fished hour on the hour. This gives an overview of when peak fishing hours occur. The hatchery contribution to run sizes Effort counts - twice a week. once on a weekday and Method of fishing (ba.it/tackle/fly) once on a weekend. total effort counts are conducted Run compositions and stock timings to count all the rods on the river. Common methods involve counting from a boat or a plane. This. combined Methods of creel data collection (Depending on the survey with the hourly rod count data. is used to extrapolate design. the creel technicians may collect data using any the total angler effort on the river per day. combination of the following methods): Individual angler interviews - this is the part of the Complete census - all anglers on a river are interviewed data collection that most anglers are familiar with. as they leave the fishing site. 4 anglers are asked for the number and species of fish Thank you to all the anglers whose courtesy and caught. kept. and released. if any were fin-clipped. how information make the BC creel surveys a success! Packaging Guidelines: the tail attached and be at least 62 cm long. If necessary the fillet can be cut into two pieces; the tail must remain Transporting Your Salmon attached to one of the pieces.