150% agree. Looking at the data and listening to the Area 19 guys tell us they don't catch hali in June something is way out of whack. 900 fish in June and enough TAC to run a fishery coast wide for Feb - April is what 2017 Area 19 catch was. So if we aren't catching them there in June, then someone is not completing a log book to record they aren't! Every boat is counted on over-flights, and they are recorded against the halibut catch estimate unless the operator fills out a log book. The log book entries are DEDUCTED from the over-flight estimates.
We can get a whole bunch of TAC back if we accurately recorded our catch in log books - that includes accurate measurements because a few cm adds up to 70,000 pounds in a hurry.
If we all do our part, we can make a difference. Thanks Fishtofino for your insightful post. Let's do this guys. Same goes for DNA sampling - up to 70% of the fish we catch in some areas are thought to be hatchery origin - DNA will tell us that, and provide strong rationale to support marking all hatchery chinook so we can look at Marked Select Fisheries.
I was one of those Area 19 guys saying we don't catch Hali in June. I will repeat three of the reasons listed by Gord Martin of Foghorn Charters as to why we CAN NOT fish for Hali in June, here they are:
June has some of the largest currents in the year. There are 8 days where you can get a line to the bottom for more then 2 hours. No other fishery in the coast, except near maybe Malcom Island is so current bound for halibut fishing. Hence, we don't target them heavily. This is not a problem in Port Renfrew, Bamfield, Tofino, Uclulet, Kuyuqot, or anywhere on WCVI. In fact, several of the guides in area 19/20 will not book in June just because of this! Myself, and Wolf included. Yep. We turn down $700 because the currents suck that bad.
We have outbound migration of dogfish. There is near zero effort for halibut fishing in June, as the dogfish can be maddening. We have excellent Creel data, as there are 4 very busy ramps, Cattle Point, Esquimalt Anglers, Pedder Bay, and James Bay. There are not a lot of halibut coming in then.
Area 19 and 20 are also unique, becuase it is about the only place you can catch a halibut in sheltered waters. For the 10K pounds our fishery consumes (Based on creel data), it allows possibly the largest amount of recreational effort in sheltered water with the least amount of catch. You don't get a lot of guys in 17 footers targetting Halibut in Nootka Sound. That 10K of quota gives us a 3 month season, enjoyed by rubber tire anglers,
not the lodges and guides that dominate the rugged, off shore halibut areas of WCVI/QCI. 10K of quota is enjoyed by hundreds of anglers for three months, as catch success is very slim unless one really knows what they are doing in the JDF. 10K pounds of Quota keeps 16 guides going for 3 months, not 2 days as on WCVI.
My argument was that if a late start is to benefit the bulk of the coast, in my eyes it opens up a can of worms making it preferential for lodges and guides only to target halibut, as the South Island Area is probably the best bet to find them in anything less then a 21 foot boat (The Bulk of private boats are smaller). We are about the best bet for sheltered water fishing, and our impact is the least based on the number of rod hours versus fish taken, as most boats take up a skunk. Our impact on rockfish/yellow eye is also zero, as I have not seen on in JDF in a very long time. That's another big wild card for our halibut fishery. We have near zero bycatch. No orange pumpkins floating around our boats as we are anchored on our rock piles.
This could drive a wedge between guides and recreational anglers, and have them be licensed differently, a road that we do not want to go down. I think that road would be very easy, as I was at the meeting in 2009 with Minister Shea, setup by Chris Bos. 10 minutes into the meeting, she asked the group, made up mostly of guides, if ITQ's would help our fishery. Yep, thats right,
before the first cup of coffee, her first answer was ITQ's, the very system that is the root of the problem for fair halibut access.. That says to me, that the powers that be consider the rec fishery to be more of a pain to manage, then a smaller commercial fleet, which would then deny everyone who lives on the coast a chance to enjoy the fishery without paying a guide to do so. Think PEI Tuna....
It may be time to have halibut manged based on areas on the coast. Based on the bulk of the taken happening in June-Aug, perhaps pulse openings would be the answer? Every other day in August. That way, all the lodges that championed a 2 fish posession limit to increase stays would get an extra day! Business would be better. After all, it makes more sense to throw water on the hottest part of the fire (Prime Time), then shoulder seasons. Would also stop those pesky Area 19/20 guys from the hali slaughter that apparently happens during those monster currents in JDF.