Port alberni Inlet massacre

Plenty o' fish for everyone based on the updated escapement numbers. The escapement was updated to 27,717, with 89,596 fishery removals. All the escapement worry warts like me can rest easier. The estimated run size range looks like 122K to 129K at this point. There are still fish in the lower river coming in.
 
Impressive amount of fish around, glad everyone at the round table got good action this year again.

More for FN now since hatchery got their number? Or what is done with the excess pieces coming and to the hatchery?
 
A few FN FSC fisheries planned, but not a ton of interest from what I saw on the river.
 
More FN fisheries, nice. Any idea how many summer run steelhead got killed during the slaughter this year, or are we not allowed to talk about that.
No apparently that is a well kept secret.....so sad and disgusting what has happened to those forgotten runs.
 
FN and DFO both consider steelhead as a nuisance fish that has no food or commercial value, thus making them expendable. They have been treated this way for the past 100 years and nothing has changed, or will change, as they continue to be managed into extinction everywhere.
 
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Stuff like this shouldn't happen, but it was an easy way to throw fish to the commercial sector (commercial = method versus ethnic background). This is probably the way of the future as terminal fisheries on strong runs are viewed as less impact on endangered runs. Use of proper net mesh size for gills & proper release techniques for seines SHOULD lessen the by-catch impact. All fishing methods, sport included have by-catch impacts. Down in WA about the only break sporties get from the commies is that the commie openings are USUALLY the first days after a weekend. I started planning my fishing trips based on commie openings 35 years ago.
 
Oct.01 up date

Area 23 and Somass River ESCAPEMENT ESTIMATES Table 1. Cumulative 2020 Somass escapement of all five Pacific salmon species to 29 September. Species Stamp falls escapement Sproat river escapement* 7-day range in daily counts Total Escapement target† Chinook 27,717 40 3–3,192 27,757 21,000 jack 1,626 25 1–96 1,651 – Coho 10,034 2,943 22–468 12,976 – jack 1,881 994 4–54 2,874 – Chum 5 1 0 6 – Pink 3 2 0 5 – Sockeye 108,959 129,369 0–18 238,328 250,000 jack 31,007 39,949 0–18 70,956 – *Counts for Sproat Lake are up to 25 September and have been interpolated for the 26–29 September. †Based on the most current run size estimate. CHINOOK TOTAL RUN SIZE On 30 September, Tsu-ma-uss First Nations took 447 Chinook in an economic opportunity fishery, bringing the 2020 total catch of Area 23 Chinook up to 89,569. Table 2. Total accounting for Area 23 Chinook in 2020. Total catch 89,596 Adult escapement 27,717 Lower river estimate 6,900 (5,000–12,000) Inlet abundance estimate No data available Total 124,213 (122,313–129,313)
 
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More FN fisheries, nice. Any idea how many summer run steelhead got killed during the slaughter this year, or are we not allowed to talk about that.
By-catch of steelhead depends to an extent on mesh size used. If they are fishing larger mesh for Chinook, way less likely to have steelhead. Coho nets (smaller mesh) a whole other story. That said, yes there is by-catch of steelhead and that data is available - from what I recall, its a small number.
 
By-catch of steelhead depends to an extent on mesh size used. If they are fishing larger mesh for Chinook, way less likely to have steelhead. Coho nets (smaller mesh) a whole other story. That said, yes there is by-catch of steelhead and that data is available - from what I recall, its a small number.
You know how when you leave Costco you need to show them your reciept. Why not have actual monitors on the FN and Commercial vessels to count by-catch and get an accurate number.
 
By-catch of steelhead depends to an extent on mesh size used. If they are fishing larger mesh for Chinook, way less likely to have steelhead. Coho nets (smaller mesh) a whole other story. That said, yes there is by-catch of steelhead and that data is available - from what I recall, its a small number.

Think Sockeye, mesh size and drift nets.
And think "Reported by-catch numbers".
The real numbers are not nearly as small as you have been lead to believe.

Nog
 
By-catch of steelhead depends to an extent on mesh size used. If they are fishing larger mesh for Chinook, way less likely to have steelhead. Coho nets (smaller mesh) a whole other story. That said, yes there is by-catch of steelhead and that data is available - from what I recall, its a small number.
It is not a small number. I have a contact that is involved in the FN somass fishery. Many, many steelhead are caught and sadly discarded. An observer onboard would be the only way to monitor this fishery. Sadly, an observer onboard every fn boat in the somass during an opening is not possible; nor will it ever be. The steelhead don't stand a chance.
Pastafarian
 
I could be wrong here but I think the issue most guys have is that some groups went ahead and overfished during their openings. This likely resulted in poorer fishing during a few of the busiest rec fishing weekends which left even more quota for someone else to fish afterwards. This resulted in a terrible couple weeks of fishing at the end of August including the derby weekend for most guys because 25k springs or so were pulled out of the inlet the week before. It’s not all about the derby but that derby does bring a lot of money and people to the area so it would be nice if the inlet wasn’t completely cleaned out the week before in my opinion .
I totally agree and cleaning out the inlet in the 10 or so days prior to the derby has happened for most of the last 15 years that I have been actively fishing the area. Since we are not achieving our quota I feel strongly that the Nahminht to Hocking point should be open for Chinook retention. Currently it is closed from August 1 to September 30
 
Oh of course Nog there are all wild native strains in the Nahmint ;)

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Certainly...
 
Latest updated escapement of Chinook is 38,316 above stamp falls, total run was 128,232 (that is escapement plus removals by all fisheries).
 
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