Fishing Not Allowed in North Van District?

N

nani-te

New Member
I was recently approached by a Park Ranger at Cates Park who informed me that fishing along the Cates Park coast is a grey area for fishing and crabbing (not the dock there). I asked if there were any spots in North Van that I would be able to fish and he said that I can't fish anywhere.

This was my first time attempting to fish. I just got my license and I thought I went through all the regulations to make sure I was following the rules and the fishing regulation website for BC does state that Cates Park is in Region 28-11/28-12 and places in North Van like Rice Lake and Capilano River are open to fishing.

Is there a definitive source for these types of regulations in North Van? Is it really true that fishing is not allowed in the district, and the coast is a 'grey area'? I'm not really sure what that means. I really want to follow the rules.

I do see videos on Youtube of people fishing the Capilano River and such, but I also don't want to be confronted by a Ranger again for a mistake I was not aware of as it kind of took the wind out of my sails.
 
There are different licenses for saltwater and freshwater. Saltwater is federal government (DFO) and freshwater is provincial.
 
sasqman said:
The BC fishing app is a great tool for saltwater fishing regs.

play.google.com

FishingBC - Apps on Google Play

British Columbia's tidal (saltwater) sport fishing app.
play.google.com play.google.com
Click to expand...
I downloaded the app and checked the regulations but could not find any closures or restrictions for 28-11, except for Bivalve species.

So according to this app and the website, i should be allowed to fish in Cates Park.

Am I reading the app wrong?
 
Nani-te, I am curious about this issue, since I grew up in N.Van District. Google led me to this same topic on the Fishing With Rod forum, discussed a couple of weeks ago. One fellow emailed the District, and received this response:

(From) Michael MacFarlane <MacFarlaneM@dnv.org>

Good morning Rod, rangers generally only do enforcement at the wharf as I agree the jurisdiction only applies to chattel and the wharf. The team generally warns the public that fishing this time of the year can be hazardous as we have many young kids that swim at our beaches. To date no tickets have been issued. I will speak to the staff regarding giving out the appropriate information
Kind regards, Michael Macfarlane


The forum member added his own comment:

"I think what this means is that it is permitted to fish below the high water mark at Cates Park. I agree with Mr. MacFarlane that any conflict with swimmers would be very unfortunate. And of course the dock is still off limits this time of year.
So... behave well and we get to keep our fishery at Cates."

Hope this helps. Tight lines!
 
I would add that the above member appears to make an assumption that fishing below the high water mark is permitted. I would not make that assumption myself. If you're interested in checking, the District of N.Van would have detailed info on its coastal boundaries.

I found a reference to coastal ownership laws, which indicates that local governments have authority over coastal areas, including between high and low water (foreshore, or inter-tidal), and sometimes even lower (nearshore, or subtidal):

"Local governments (municipalities and regional districts) hold the authority to plan and regulate land use within
their respective boundaries, which may extend over foreshore and nearshore areas. They do this through official
community plans, zoning, development permits, subdivision authority, building permits, and a variety of regulatory
bylaws that affect land development."

 
I encountered the same situation with a park patroller. Based on my prior research their jurisdiction ends at the high water mark and there is no water lot in the area with the exception of the channel created for launching. I stated that unless they could provide a specific regulation prohibiting my activity that I was going to continue, which prompted them to call their supervisor who told them it wasn’t a hill to die on.

If you’re looking for an area where you won’t be harassed the Seymour River estuary has been producing Pinks as of recent and I’ve never encountered a problem there.
 
Last edited:
Birdbrain said:
Nani-te, I am curious about this issue, since I grew up in N.Van District. Google led me to this same topic on the Fishing With Rod forum, discussed a couple of weeks ago. One fellow emailed the District, and received this response:

(From) Michael MacFarlane <MacFarlaneM@dnv.org>

Good morning Rod, rangers generally only do enforcement at the wharf as I agree the jurisdiction only applies to chattel and the wharf. The team generally warns the public that fishing this time of the year can be hazardous as we have many young kids that swim at our beaches. To date no tickets have been issued. I will speak to the staff regarding giving out the appropriate information
Kind regards, Michael Macfarlane


The forum member added his own comment:

"I think what this means is that it is permitted to fish below the high water mark at Cates Park. I agree with Mr. MacFarlane that any conflict with swimmers would be very unfortunate. And of course the dock is still off limits this time of year.
So... behave well and we get to keep our fishery at Cates."

Hope this helps. Tight lines!
Click to expand...
Thank you for finding this!
I do see that this situation is more complicated and no one seems to have the right answer. Even the district contradicts themselves in that forum thread.
Maybe fishing isn’t allowed in North Van… that’s a shame. I really don’t want to be a lawyer to cast a line. I’ll have to find a different hobby.

Thanks!
 
Forza said:
I encountered the same situation with a park patroller. Based on my prior research their jurisdiction ends at the high water mark and there is no water lot in the area with the exception of the channel created for launching. I told that than unless that could provide a specific regulation prohibiting my activity that I was going to continue and they called their supervisor and were told it wasn’t a hill to die on.

If you’re looking for an area where you won’t be harassed the Seymour River estuary has been producing Pinks as of recent and I’ve never encountered a problem there.
Click to expand...
Thats good to know about the Seymour River Estuary! Anything to avoid conflicts. :)
 
I was approached there for fishing in the park and the Rangers were polite but not well informed. I would suggest standing ankle deep in the water and tell them you're not in the park, you're in a federal waterway.
 
Pewpster said:
I was approached there for fishing in the park and the Rangers were polite but not well informed. I would suggest standing ankle deep in the water and tell them you're not in the park, you're in a federal waterway.
Click to expand...

Thats a good idea! Is that the case for all beaches? If there isn't a watershed lot then the water part (or below the high tide mark) is crown land?
 
Birdbrain said:
If you want to explore the legal details of foreshore jurisdiction in B.C., (and other BC environmental laws), West Coast Environmental Law has excellent info. Here's one of their articles:

You can also find info on crown land and water on several B.C. government sites.
Click to expand...

Thank you for this information! It does appear that jurisdiction is quite complex, especially in the lower mainland waterways.
It does appear that the federal government controls fishing in waterways according to that pdf, so that may be why the rangers refer to the coast as a grey area (and the lack of waterlot status helps that).

I was able to meet another park ranger today and asked if they could clarify the rules. I was given the Lead Park Ranger's business card so hopefully there will be a definitive answer soon after this long weekend!

Thank you for everyone's assistance!
 
Good Morning everyone!

I was able to speak to one of the Lead Park Rangers at the district on the phone, the same one in the email above, Michael MacFarlane, and he was able to clarify the issue with the 'grey area' at Cates Park. In fact, his email above is indeed the Park Ranger's position but he also provided more detail on the phone that I can provide below:

The main issue with the grey area shoreline there is that there are a lot of families on the beach and there is a lot of boat traffic and the rangers want to make sure that no one is hurt or impacted by fishing lines or hooks. Its a safety concern for them.

Technically speaking, he said that fishing is allowed in the water there. the shoreline is the definitive line for jurisdiction it seems, he also commented that the bylaw is a bit ambiguous.

However, if they start seeing 50 fishermen out there near the wharf crowding out the boats and the families on the beach the rangers may not be too happy (and if its a safety concern, even if its 'allowed', I can see some action being taken, like another bylaw with stricter terms, or some other powers being used). Therefore, this is why it is discouraged and I completely understand where they are coming from.

I think as long as we mind our own business, don't crowd out others on the beach or in the water, stay away from the traffic there and go to a secluded spot it should be fine (he mentioned to stay away from the wharf as much as possible). The key is to be respectful and as safe as possible, but he did mention it is heavily frowned upon still.

Fishing off the wharf is indeed allowed after I believe Oct 15th (its on the sign there).

I also sent an email to the DFO and they confirmed region 28-11 is open and any fishing restrictions imposed are from the province or municipality, so I believe the ranger's position on this matter is the one that matters.

He was also able to clarify that I am able to fish in Lynn Creek and other parts of North Van as well! I went down to the Seymour Estuary yesterday and it does indeed seem like a great spot!


TL;DR technically speaking, if we are beyond the shoreline and as far away from the wharf as possible we can fish at Cates Park. The DFO also confirmed that 28-11 is indeed open and any restrictions are from the province/municipality. However, its still heavily frowned upon by the rangers due to safety concerns and if the fishermen cause any issue with the crowds or boats there, that may lead to the rangers taking stricter action as it becomes a safety concern at that point. So the fine line is whether fishing can be done in a safe and respectful way there. So its a grey area because fishing is technically allowed in accordance with what is stated in regulations and bylaws, but its also a safety concern in that area due to how busy it is.
 
Thanks for following through and your detailed write up nani-te! Super weird that rangers and patrollers were straight up telling people that there is no fishing and enforcing non-existent rules in areas that were out of their jurisdiction. It is an offence under the Wildlife Act to interfere with a legal hunt or fish (section 80), you would think that park rangers and patrollers would know better. Sounds like they’re basically back pedalling to “use common sense” which goes for just about everything in life…
 
nani-te said:
I was recently approached by a Park Ranger at Cates Park who informed me that fishing along the Cates Park coast is a grey area for fishing and crabbing (not the dock there). I asked if there were any spots in North Van that I would be able to fish and he said that I can't fish anywhere.

This was my first time attempting to fish. I just got my license and I thought I went through all the regulations to make sure I was following the rules and the fishing regulation website for BC does state that Cates Park is in Region 28-11/28-12 and places in North Van like Rice Lake and Capilano River are open to fishing.

Is there a definitive source for these types of regulations in North Van? Is it really true that fishing is not allowed in the district, and the coast is a 'grey area'? I'm not really sure what that means. I really want to follow the rules.

I do see videos on Youtube of people fishing the Capilano River and such, but I also don't want to be confronted by a Ranger again for a mistake I was not aware of as it kind of took the wind out of my sails.
Click to expand...
Few years ago, I had lines cut on my crab traps about 1/2 mile west of Cates park by Native Enforcer riding a zodiac. He was wearing some sort of uniform , B-ast-ard cut our lines right in front of our boat. “No fishing or crabbing zone “ he claimed.
 
Forza said:
Thanks for following through and your detailed write up nani-te! Super weird that rangers and patrollers were straight up telling people that there is no fishing and enforcing non-existent rules in areas that were out of their jurisdiction. It is an offence under the Wildlife Act to interfere with a legal hunt or fish (section 80), you would think that park rangers and patrollers would know better. Sounds like they’re basically back pedalling to “use common sense” which goes for just about everything in life…
Click to expand...
Power tripping,Authority abusing 🤬
 
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