Indian Arm Chinook net pen project - historical info

[TheBigGuy]

Derby requested that we create a thread to get as much historical info about this old Chinook rearing project in Indian Arm.

I already posted my recollection of that project, I will repost it below. I was not involved, but this is what I recall reading about it in the past when it was in production. Anyone with first hand knowledge please post details for Derby..

I'm not a 100% sure as it may have been closer to 25 years ago when the program was in full swing. I believe the juvenile smolts were raised in net pens in one of the bays in Indian Arm. When the smolts became large enough to be released I think they moved them to where the discharge tubes from the buntzen powerhouse enter the ocean. I think they kept them in the vicinity of the powerhouse water tunnels long enough to imprint on that location as there home river. Once imprinted they were released to roam the ocean like any other salmon. In four years the adult springs returned to the Buntzen powerhouse discharge tubes as that was there home river to them. Anglers got to fish for them from July right till the fall because the springs had no real river to ascend. Kind of like shooting fish in a barrel. They couldn't spawn in the discharge tubes so they were available to fish all summer long. I believe they used the Quinsam strain of red springs that returned early and reached large sizes. It was a very nice fishery while it lasted.

 

[Derby]

looking for someone perhaps in involved with process.... the why and how...I believe it ran the same time when there was a project up the Howe sound near Squamish I believe....

PM me if you don't want to reply

 

[Teja]

There is a DFO report with some background linked at http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/Library/70023.pdf

 

[TheBigGuy]

I apologize for mistakenly placing this in the reports thread. Please feel free to move it to a more appropriate location site admins.

As far as reports go. I can report that the fishing was quite good around the Buntzen Powerhouse while this project was in operation. Unfortunately, my report is a little out of date.

 

[TheBigGuy]

Here's another out of date fishing report I found on another forum.


Back in the 90's DFO had a pen up by the Indian river and were releasing Springs to see if they would come back to spawn. I know for sure they did come back because I took a 9' zodiac up there on a calm sunny September morning to take a look and when I was cruising by the Buntzen powerhouse you could see them jumping. I stopped and literally parked my boat right over where they were rolling. Huge fish jumping all around me and I was the only person there. I pulled out my med/light 10' mooching rod with 15lb main, put on a 3oz buzz bomb and started stripping line, headed for the bottom.

I got about 12 pulls off,approx 20ft and the line went slack. I was pretty close to the powerhouse so I figured I hit bottom and started to reel up. The rod tip started to bend and I thought "Damn! snagged on the bottom" so I gave it a good yank to see if I could unsnag it. It wouldn't come loose so I gave another yank and all of a sudden the bottom started to strip line off my reel. HOLY S*** FISH ON!!!

I played that fish for 45 min. and it actually towed me across the inlet to the other side by the Brownie camp before I managed to boat it. I'll never forget the feeling of that fish slowly towing me and my boat across the inlet. It was surreal. It was a 46lb red Spring half the size of my boat and my biggest fish ever. I don't know if the spring took hold in the Indian river and have never heard of any more tyees being taken up that way although I don't fish the chuck anymore and have since sold the boat. It just might be a local secret. Does anyone know if there are springs in the Indian river? It might be worth a try around September to see if the springs did take hold.

 

[fishin solo]

Was it packed like the cap when this fishery was going on ? Just curious

 

[TheBigGuy]

The most I can remember was 20-25 boats tops. Although I didn't go up there too often back then. I only went up when it was too snotty to even fish in the harbour. It was great because it could be 5-6 footers here, and nothing more than a ripple up the arm.

 

[TheBigGuy]

No nasty currents, cruise ships, freighters or Harbour Police to contend with either. It was pretty relaxed fishing. More like lake trolling than the combat zones off the cap and sandheads. The only negative was that they can get some pretty big jellyfish in the arm some years.

 

[trophywife]

how can we all get this going?

20 years ago they had rearing pens in buntzen lake also, i was told they where chins?
hiking around the mouth 15 years ago i saw a few large springs, i just thought they where harrison whites, raised in buntzen lake that could not go back up the penstocks. mother nature forced them to spawn up the indian.

 

[TheBigGuy]

Restoration project Indian River

http://www.nsnews.com/news/restoration-projects-enhance-north-shore-salmon-runs-1.2043521

 

[TheBigGuy]

how can we all get this going?

Not really sure. The guys in Sooke are just getting their net pen project underway maybe they have some suggestions. Lots of red tape to fight, and financing is a huge obstacle I'd expect.

 

[the fog ducker]

was a great fishery in the 90's , 25-30 boats ? nah , , was kept pretty low key , all whites , peeked around beginning of october ,
weeding through the jelly fish was a pain ,
few outings with multiple fish over 30 , few chum thrown in as well ,
seemed to ony like specific areas ,
got some deadly pics in the vault ,

totally agree on bringin it back !!


fd

 

[TheBigGuy]

Hey Felix, I think you must have been fishing there near the tail end of the net pen project. All the fish I ever caught there were red springs that showed up around the end of July. They usually peaked by the second week of August I'd say back then. I'm guessing the beginning of the project used the early red Quinsam stock, then they switched to the late white Harrison Stock before the project was discontinued. I forget exactly what year the CAP hatchery switched to the Harrison whites for brood stock. As the fish penned in Indian Arm came from the cap hatchery the stock obviously changed before the project ended. I only ever caught reds up at the powerhouse, and back when I fished it they came in pretty early in the summer. End of July, beginning of August, just like the Cap way back then when the reds were brood stock.

 

[the fog ducker]

fished it hard from mid sept to mid oct , all whites ,
smoked them all , like clock work every year
buddies i took out , still ask me about it all the time ,
pretty low key fishery , personally cant stand the cap fishery ,
was great back in the day , a circus show at best today ,
no thanks , moved west

later....

fd

 

[Sr SQ]

I don't remember much about the particulars but did spend quite a few hrs trolling the power house for them back in the 90s........
Lived in Moody and remember they had pens in the inlet up by the refinery, not sure what they reared (for whatever reason I'm thinking these were coho ) but they are still there.
I do remember the jellies, and that it didn't take long for the fish to blacken up once they got back to the outflow.

 

[Derby]

I'm making a few inquires with DFO to see what I can dig up... then see what moving forward can or maybe be done.... I.perhaps the folks doing the double piping can cough up the money for such project?

 

[TheBigGuy]

I'm making a few inquires with DFO to see what I can dig up... then see what moving forward can or maybe be done.... I.perhaps the folks doing the double piping can cough up the money for such project?

That's a great idea, because from the sounds of it the days of fishing the mouth of the Cap are numbered. If they don't want anglers blocking the narrows they need to spread the hatcheries production around to other locations.

 

[Derby]

just one of many angles available just need back ground info get it started... once and if we can get it going will need some help and need to put a committee together.. but until then any info will help out...

 

[chris73]

Yes, there are certainly lessons to be learnt from the Sooke net pen project. It for sure isn't as easy anymore to get DFO's approval for projects like this as it may have been in the distant past. They now (rightfully) realize that transferring salmon stocks from one part of the province to anywhere else in the province is not good for the biology of any salmon stock. So, if they indeed used Qualicum Chinooks in Indian Arm that would be a NO NO today. DFO has created these bio-regions where within salmon stocks are closely enough related to each other to potentially allow a stock transfer within this region. To even get the idea off the ground with DFO you need to find a native stock of Chinook within the region of Indian Arm and hope there is a facility that can give you fish for a net pen project. Sooke got lucky in that Nitinat River is within its region and has a large hatchery with Chinooks that has already provided Chinook brood to the Sooke River for years. So no new bio-impact. Money can be found if there is enough interest in the community. But you need dedicated volunteers to pull this off every year for several week in the spring. Lots of cheerers at first and quickly it will be down to the same old trusted people who do it all....

 

[terrin]

I'm making a few inquires with DFO to see what I can dig up... then see what moving forward can or maybe be done.... I.perhaps the folks doing the double piping can cough up the money for such project?

A few salmon in net pens won't get a social license to double pipe Raw Bitumen.IMHO Also the Feds would want even less boats up in Indian arm not more. Take a look at the Washington Ferry Video.