HALIBUT CLOSURE

Isn't it interesting that this possible or probable closure is happening once the big lodges up in the Charlottes and the north coast are shutting down for the season. Imho the numbers of hali caught will drop exponentially once these lodges close for the season so they are saying fack everyone else if this actually happens, it's ********, I bet if they left it open to say mid oct the recreational catch would increase much less than a measly 1%
 
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Not sure where you got your numbers but it looks to me that south coast and north coast takes the same amount of pounds.
http://www.iphc.int/meetings/2017am/IPHC-2017-AM093-AR08b.pdf

Not as recent as the 2016 data, admittedly, my response is based on older 2005-2012 era data where the three main north coast areas historically took the most halibut poundage by far. The 2016 data does show that areas 1-4 in the north coast region harvested just less than half the total rec quota. Thats 4 out of the 28 saltwater areas where halibut are harvested, or 15% of Hali fishing areas harvesting approximately half the quota.

Again those 4 areas are dominated by lodge operations. However, given the increase in the south coast harvest on par with the north coast, perhaps it shouldn't be a surprise that the quota is done by September!

Thx for posting the most recent Data GLG.

Cheers!

Ukee
 
Heard great Hali fishing. Wonder what iphc set lines found this year. Honestly we have to push for 20%. Only makes sense. That'd give us 1/2 any size. This year should really motivate sfab to push for it and lobby the new liberal government
 
We got checked by DFO today, and while we had their attention I asked about the closure. They confirmed that the closure is indeed happening on Tuesday.
 
I can see more guides and lodges buying quota
I would see way more doing it if Max size was 60lbs. As most lodges are closed now. Think.

If you can't get 2-3 halibut (all you need for winter...myself anyway) in 7 1/2 months of opportunity. Probably don't have a place to complain...ample opportunity regardless of schedule. Even if you needed 4-5 halibut. So to say screws reg fisherman is somewhat silly to be honest.

Think sfab did good job nailing amount we needed this year to allow proper opportunity for all sectors of rec fishermen and size given the small 15% we had
 
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Well this SUCKS eh!! If a full season is important to you anyways. Or in my case you where working on plans for a late sept ,early Oct Halibut trip . HA HA!

Is anyone really surprised by this? Honestly we could see this from a mile away. 15% was not enough years ago wen we got the extra 3%, and it is not enough now. Yes some very hardworking creative thinking folks managed to keep us in full seasons for a few extra years. Yes many of us are appreciative of that fact,and understand this would have come sooner had it not been for those efforts. Bottom line is we have proven that playing with the math to make the same bad situation look different from year to year has not solved our problems. The fact that we are right back to where we where wen everyone got pissed off and pulled together
proves that point.

I agree fully that we need to go after a higher percentage of the TAC. I also understand that a large effort has been made to show that the rec sector is a leader in taking steps to manage our fishery in a responsible, and accountable way. So now it is time to use those facts to go after a proper share of the resource that will better represent the value,and needs of our sector.
No I do not agree with splitting our sector into more segments with such foolishness as guide and lodge rec quota and non vested rec quota. . How do you think that would go wen quota dips really low and we are facing crappy heavily restricted salmon seasons. How much more value will be put on that quota and how much narrower do you think the funnel will get. Do we not think those with the most $ in the game will not yet again come out on top.
This ITQ SCAM that was passed off as a management tool continues to push more and more opportunity and access away from the Joe Canadian and funnel it to less and less people. If we continue to put all our effort into trying to make things work within this scam instead of pushing as hard and as publicly as possible against ITQ, private ownership of 85% of the resource, and the two teared divisive quota leasing BS we will never see any substantial long term change.

Nothing in this post is intended to be in the spirit of criticizing the SFAB ect, for we would be lost without them and I for one am grateful for the work done.. The only reason I jumped in on this is in the hope that the complacency that has fallen upon many of us will come to an end and folks will start getting interested in the big picture again. If we go down the road of splitting our sector or trying to raise money to buy our way into more quota we will only be speeding up the inevitable end game that the ITQ SCAM is on a very deliberate path to achieving.

These are my thoughts on the matter. they have not changed since I was first made aware of the ITQ back wen we rallied for the 3%..Guess thats why this posts reads the same as countless others I have made over the last number of years.
 
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I would see way more doing it if Max size was 60lbs. As most lodges are closed now. Think.

If you can't get 2-3 halibut (all you need for winter...myself anyway) in 7 1/2 months of opportunity. Probably don't have a place to complain...ample opportunity regardless of schedule. Even if you needed 4-5 halibut. So to say screws reg fisherman is somewhat silly to be honest.

Think sfab did good job nailing amount we needed this year to allow proper opportunity for all sectors of rec fishermen and size given the small 15% we had
Well I think the timing and the secrecy does indeed screw many"reg fisherman", Lodges etc. not so much.As you point out though "reg fishermen" had 7 1/2 months to catch halibut (just didn't know it)and didn't. I'd guess that mistake won't be repeated next year, I know that I intend to focus on halibut early, rather than get surprised,as I'm sure will many others.Rather than spread the fishing over the year, there will be a lot more people targeting halibut in the Spring and come summer a lot less quota remaining. Maybe next year when the lodges open the quota will have already been burned through already by those silly people who learned from their mistake this year.
 
as a guest in your country again thank you for letting us enter and fish for them
glad to hear that the isolationist views dont seem widely held - countries that get along on many levels of sovereign friendship usually extend these sort of privileges mutually to each other but hey we are fisherpeople not diplomats...

we did fish for halibut this year and take a total of five fish over about 3 days of effort. maybe next year I will anchor up like David and get it done faster ! The point about starting sooner is well taken, i think you will see people starting sooner and or halibut fishing in marginal Spring weather ( like we see IMO the " farked" up derby like season out of Neah Bay imo your longer season approach has been safer - a few spectacular anchored up incidents notwithstanding...
 
i also agree with the points about working together...split up and you will find yourselves swamped
and i think there are fewer of you than ever - Quarterdeck which used to be slammed in August was a veritable Ghostown.....lots of open moorage on the fingers....
 
Huh, my opportunities never changed. Still only able to get two of my 6 cuz of location and the regs. Might as well suck it up guys because your getting a taste of what the rest of the province gets.
 
Huh, my opportunities never changed. Still only able to get two of my 6 cuz of location and the regs. Might as well suck it up guys because your getting a taste of what the rest of the province gets.

Might as well suck it up hey???
Attitudes like that will get us less TAC.

You live where you live and I live where I live......I grew up in the kootenays and have lived on the coast since I was 18. Why? Because I wanted to log all winter and guide all summer. That suck it up comment kinda pisses me off.

Rant over
 
Might as well suck it up hey???
Attitudes like that will get us less TAC.

You live where you live and I live where I live......I grew up in the kootenays and have lived on the coast since I was 18. Why? Because I wanted to log all winter and guide all summer. That suck it up comment kinda pisses me off.

Rant over

Yeah. That's too bad. Pissed me off last year when I got told the same thing. Doesn't change a thing. My opportunities never changed.

Maybe time to go two fish per angler per season? No different than most interior anglers get. So yeah .... suck it up.
 
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