Recommendations for 2009 Halibut Season

[Red Monster]

It's a public resource: find a fair way to give more of it to the public. Why is it always the sporties who take in the neck? There must be a win-win for this situation.

A yearly limit for sure, as I already suggested. What are the commercial guys willing to change?

I don't like the idea of measuring those big fish; it's an accident waiting to happen. Some sort of rule where you can catch one large fish or two smaller ones might make more sense.



Remember, it's called "fishing," not "catching."

 

[Islandgirl]

Scratch the size limit.. So you are on a 3 day fishing trip and you need to keep your 5 foot hali INTACT so DFO can measure it when they check your catch!( Just more B.S) Annual Limit on the lic. and NO surcharge for a stamp..Since when has salmon/steelhead stamp revenue ACTUALLY gone to restoration habitat, etc. To my knowledge it just goes into General Revenue.

 

[bee15]

im not going to be measuring any halibut while its smashing around trying to get back down.if it needs to be measured its too smallto keep. we let em go they end up at thriftys anyway whats the sense in that. i can get a legal salmon home but not a couple of 60inch halibut with meat going bad,plus stinkand flies while i wait for,dfo to find a measuring tape, this whole thing is ridiculous.we should at least tag the fish we let go, so they can be tracked, when caught again.

 

[bee15]

so dfo grossly overestimates how many fish sporties catch and then cut them back.the amount of fish we catch between now and april is hardly adrop compared to what the commercial catch will be. and our catch will be spread out all over the coast. not concentrated in one area.there is enough hli out there for all of us

 

[bee15]

why should we live with anything. halibut stocks are in good shape on the coast its just a problem that the longliners see our catch as money out of


"their


' pockets.i could buy a bigger boat or a bigger girlfriend if the sporties would go away"attitude.

 

[drhook]

Good points 'Islandgirl'. Say "NO" to size limits and extra fees on our licence! Measuring live halibut and/or keeping halibut for measuring is absolutely ridiculous!! Stamps or fees on your licence is nothing more than another tax! Wake up and stop the bleeding! The only additional regulation that I would agree to is an annual limit of 10 or so.

 

[TheBigGuy]

I don't have a problem releasing larger Halibut. They are often poor eating, and worm ridden. Large females are better off left to reproduce. I get tired of listening to everyones rational. Why should I release a large fish, the commercial guys, natives , seals, etc, etc will only get it anyways. Pehaps the fish we release, will be harvested later, but that is a poor reason to refuse to practice catch and release on large fish. Halibut are a hardy species and would survive catch and release with low mortality rates very well. If this permits the season to be returned to a year round fishery with a two a day limit I'm all in favour. A yearly limit of ten would also seem a natural choice. Harvesting more than ten Haibut a year as a sportfisher is pure gluttony,and an excess that should be curtailed anyways.

 

[Cuba Libre]

Gee Big Guy... just one question.... Who made you God so that you can judge what is best for the world?




20ft Alumaweld Intruder

 

[TheBigGuy]

I'm not judging anyone Cuba, That was an awesome Halibut you caught earlier this year, congrats again on the trophy. It's just that if compomises have to be made to maintain a year round 2 fish a day limit I can certainly accept C&R.

 

[walter]

I wonder what the mortality of large 60" fish released with two 10/0 singles or trebles down the throat would be? Most that i catch, have swallowed the hooks down and i dont get them until i clean the fish.

This size limit is a bandaid tactic and will do more harm than good in most cases. It will also allow one to pic and choose what is kept, sort of like weeding the garden.

Lodges have an entire diffrent agenda on this, as there season is short in comparisson to Sooke and Victoria.

If Sooke and Victoria fisherman loose there april - June fishery it will finish most recs and guides in area 19-20. However it is no skin off for lodge operations, who peak in June - August for Hali and Salmon. Some are for 1 and 1 with no loss of season, while others are just fine with 2 and 2 and short seasons. 12 new lodges started up on the BC coast this season alone, halibut presure was up 125% last season.

Remember, SFAB can only make reccomendations with IHC, the final word comes from the plain numbers. With the north pacific biomass said to be on the decline by US scientific predictions. A 10% reduction to the entire allocation pie is going to happen for 2009 wether we like it or not. Do the math, we are over 290 000 lbs this year already, subtract another ten percent for next season. The word is, FN want to see sporties shut down and commercials dropped by 50% for 2009. Call BS if you choose, but mark my words you will see a drastic drop in opportunity in the very near future.

 

[TheBigGuy]

quote:Originally posted by walter

I wonder what the mortality of large 60" fish released with two 10/0 singles or trebles down the throat would be? Most that i catch, have swallowed the hooks down and i dont get them until i clean the fish.

That is the reason why the sfab has recomended non-stainless hooks be used. Simply cut your leader and the hooks will rust out in salt water very quickly. It also depends on the methods you use. I use a more active jigging method and rarely have deep hookings. Feeding the fish line on the bite with bait will also result in deeper hookings. Some modifications in gear and methods would obviously be required with C&R regs.

 

[SerengetiGuide]

One thing that would affect me with regards to the annual limit is that we make dinner and meals for all our clients. Many of them want halibut or salmon for dinner once they get off the water and before the season really gets into high gear usually myself and my Dad or a friend of mine will go out and stock up for the upcoming season...but if there is an annual limit then we won't be able to do this and still have any left over for us...or for that matter it would prob only last us 1/2 the summer. Being able to do this drastically reduces our meal costs as well from a business perspective.

By no means am I saying I'm against it...and in fairness we don't have to make them halibut or salmon, but we always try to make the guests happy...just stating how it would affect us on that regard. And I realize this is a somewhat selfish point of view...and not to worry, I much rather think conservation before making halibut meals every night. Just giving my 2 cents.

PS - On the size limit...wait till I, personally, catch one monster. My personal biggest is still only 80lbs, and I just want to catch one biggy...then I'd release the rest after that. Clients have caught some monsters...but not I...not yet anyway. Just to experience it would be awesome I think...man vs. beast...$#!*, just getting tired thinking about that haul up now lol

www.serengetifishingcharters.com

 

[tiller]

Hey Serengeti I am pretty sure there is rules against going out and stocking up on sport caught salmon and halibut to serve to your paying guests. If there is not a rule against it, there should be. Stocking up on personal sport caught fish to serve to your paying guests to save money is pretty shady in my opinion. We should all be trying conserve the resource and not trying to get the most we can out of it. I am sorry if your meal costs will go up.


"One thing that would affect me with regards to the annual limit is that we make dinner and meals for all our clients. Many of them want halibut or salmon for dinner once they get off the water and before the season really gets into high gear usually myself and my Dad or a friend of mine will go out and stock up for the upcoming season...but if there is an annual limit then we won't be able to do this and still have any left over for us...or for that matter it would prob only last us 1/2 the summer. Being able to do this drastically reduces our meal costs as well from a business perspective"

 

[powder]

Well said Tiller, can not agree more!

 

[crabbuster]

So you take the clients out fishing and then make them a meal?? Sounds like a heck of a good idea to me,but why does it have to be fish? After a days fishing I would be more than happy to have a good bbq'ed steak,ribs,what ever,and talk about the day out over a couple of cold ones! You obviously know what pleases them more than I though. Sorry to get off the thread topic,my bad.

 

[Cuba Libre]

The one thing that has never been clarified in Court is the issue of "personal property" There is a strong argument that once a fish is removed to the fishermans place of residence and processed, it becomes "personal property. In otherwords it is his ( or hers)to do with as they please. ( I guess the argument is the same as an Agricultural Inspector turning up at your house and telling you that you cant trade the windfalls off your tree for a few jugs of cider.[xx(])

In the past DFO has tried to make the case that it is illegal for a lodge or resteraunt to serve fish to guests that were not purchased from a commercial outlet, even if in some cases the fish are the guests own fish caught that day. It is a grey area in law apparently as DFO had chosen not to lay charges.

It is a very common practice and until the law is clarified dont expect it to change.




20ft Alumaweld Intruder

 

[richmake]

One thing that would affect me with regards to the annual limit is that we make dinner and meals for all our clients. Many of them want halibut or salmon for dinner once they get off the water and before the season really gets into high gear usually myself and my Dad or a friend of mine will go out and stock up for the upcoming season...but if there is an annual limit then we won't be able to do this and still have any left over for us...or for that matter it would prob only last us 1/2 the summer. Being able to do this drastically reduces our meal costs as well from a business perspective.

By no means am I saying I'm against it...and in fairness we don't have to make them halibut or salmon, but we always try to make the guests happy...just stating how it would affect us on that regard. And I realize this is a somewhat selfish point of view...and not to worry, I much rather think conservation before making halibut meals every night. Just giving my 2 cents.

PS - On the size limit...wait till I, personally, catch one monster. My personal biggest is still only 80lbs, and I just want to catch one biggy...then I'd release the rest after that. Clients have caught some monsters...but not I...not yet anyway. Just to experience it would be awesome I think...man vs. beast...$#!*, just getting tired thinking about that haul up now lol

www.serengetifishingcharters.com

I'm not gonna bash the kid all too hell...but like I always say...I stand behind my statements.
The topic is more ethics than anything.
Some of my clients like to have there fish prepared at a local restaurant in the evening....it's there fish...so be it.
I don't think that loading up on personal Halibut to serve your guests is the proper way to go about it.
If your trying to save a buck and your meal costs are gonna break ya...better look at other options.
I don't think legally you can even make your own guest's lunches unless you have food safe/proper facilities/ etc.
Don't quote me on the last one but my insurance say's no way!
Anyhow, I'm sure that Serengeti doesn't take a ton of fish...but if we all did this, it only gives the commercial guy's ammo!
Annual limit is definately the only way to go...

www.coastwidesportsfishing.com

 

[crabbuster]

What I have a problem with is the fisherman who takes out those who don't even fish, out with him/her,BUT they have a licence and return with the limit they are allowed. If I take out 4 guys from work who don't fish,but want fresh fish,so they pay for their licence. I'm probably not explaining this well but do you get where I'm going?

 

[scott craven]

As long as they are a license holder, they are entitled to their
2 Halibut a day.
4 guys on a boat can legally bring back 8 halibut, wouldn't likely
happen unless you were out on the offshore banks.
But that's why we have the problem !!! people are greedy and will
keep taking until it's all gone.

 

[OldBlackDog]

No, that is not the problem.
The Government did not allow the correct allocation to the Sports Anglers is the problem.

quote:Originally posted by r.s craven

As long as they are a license holder, they are entitled to their
2 Halibut a day.
4 guys on a boat can legally bring back 8 halibut, wouldn't likely
happen unless you were out on the offshore banks.
But that's why we have the problem !!! people are greedy and will
keep taking until it's all gone.