Scanout Magazine Issue #5

Destination: The Ekaluk River in Northern Canada.

Target: The huge artic char run.

Crew: Yngve Ask, Christer Sjoberg & Peter Huber.

Mighty Mo's trout are up - No word on the Pesca Blanca count

For the second consecutive year, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks fisheries survey on the Missouri found that the number of large rainbow and brown trout between Holter Dam and Cascade are up.

State biologists this fall found 3,458 rainbow trout longer than 10 inches near Craig. The long-term average of rainbows that size for that section is 2,917.

"The rainbows in the Craig section were remarkably high quality," said Grant Grisak, FWP fisheries biologist. "About 85 percent of the rainbows were 15 inches and larger, and fish in the 18-inch length group alone represented 24 percent of the total population."

The largest rainbow sampled was 4.8 pounds.

LINK (Via: The Great Falls Tribune)

Teton Canyon - A Wild Legacy at Risk

Watch the new video and see why Trout Unlimited is committed to protecting this national treasure for future generations. Or visit this TU site page to learn more.

If you're a non-resident Skeena lover, you have less than two weeks to voice opinion.

Is the sun setting on opportunities for non-resident Skeena anglers?  Cam Miller photo.

The British Columbia Ministry of Environment (MOE) has spent the last year digesting non-resident angler input and has just released the “Phase II Consultation Report” on the Angling Management Plan.

Recommendations from those drafting the plan still include guided-only rivers, limited entry lotteries, time restrictions, and increased fees.  Non-resident anglers have been given another narrow window of time in which to make themselves heard.  They have an opportunity to let the Ministry of Environment and Tourism know what they think of this plan.  

Generally speaking, the non-resident perspective on the AMP is this:

• Crowding is not a problem on the Skeena River System - the system is vast, and there are many options.  
• As it stands today, the quality of the angling experience is excellent.
• The current non-resident licenses are high.  For a non-resident to fish for a single day on a class 1 river, the license would cost $180.  To fish for a week on a Class 1 river, and a week on a Class 2 river would cost $560 for a non-resident and $76 for a resident.  To put this in perspective, a full fee commercial gillnet license costs $710.  
• If any of the suggestions of the draft AMP are imposed, non-resident anglers will spend less time and money in BC.

If you're a non-resident angler that values the Skeena experience, you can help make a difference by following the steps at Steelhead Paradise to contact Environment and Tourism Ministries and share your thoughts.  We understand that the decision will be made on November, 21st.

Send the MOE an email now

Cape Light

Before heading home from the Cape last week I had a chance to hang and do some fishing with my friend and artist extraordinaire Mike Savlen. I had not seen Mike since he and Donna Lee moved away from Port Townsend a couple of years ago, so it was a real treat to be able to spend a couple of days with him before heading back home to Seattle.

We fished, soaked up the sights, sounds and smells of the salt flats.... and even managed to catch a couple of fish.

Prior to heading out the last morning we grabbed some Dunkin Donuts and hit the beach at Paine's Creek for some classic morning Cape Light. Mike added some of his signature artistic touches to a couple of great shots that he took that morning.

The light on the Cape, and on the flats in particular, rapidly changes. Throw a little morning fog into the mix and the expanse of sand merges with the sky.

"I could have sworn the mouth of the creek was that way."

To top it all off Mike hand delivered one of the Bragging Rights portraits that I commissioned him to do for my Mom.

She liked it.

Every trip back home to the Cape is special, this one was no exception.

Another stellar Cape Cod day

Still no signs of Fat Albert but we lit up the stripers again today.