Smalma,

I in no way intended that statement to only run in one direction...two years ago when the push for WSR resulted in the current 1 per day, 5 per year limit there were lots of anti's who were claiming victory over us "elitists" and I was much more gracious in making my responses to that than I've seen this time.

However, your comment is taken to heart...I have strived to keep facts and logic foremost in my arguments, but in such a contentious issue it may be hard to do it 100% of the time. I think I've done pretty good?

SSF,

Good point about the commercial fishery on the Columbia. There is no sport harvest of wild steelhead there, nor has there been for a while, due to multiple ESA listings.

When the commercials, along with both Columbia River harvest managers from WDFW and ODFW, proposed the 300% increase in ESA steelhead bycatch, I was one of the first ones here to jump all over it. I put as much info on the BB as I could over the three days before the hearing, and I even offered rides to anyone who wanted to go to Olympia with me in my van to take place in the testimony.

Not one person took me up on the offer.

Now I realize that it is hard to make plans for that on only three day's notice, but I did, and so did several others that I met there.

That battle is ongoing...and it looks like it will be for a bit more. Last I heard NOAA Fisheries had asked ODFW/WDFW for more information, again, to help them to justify their newest Biological Assessment justifying the increase.

Go to this thread WSC Letter re: Steelhead Bycatch to see the letter that I wrote, and the thread about it, to see what sportsmen are doing on that angle.

The fact that the harvest managers are asking for that increase, whether they get it or not, shouldn't be a reason why we can't also take other actions on behalf of steelhead, should it?

We all as sportsmen have lots to do...habitat, hatchery issues, hydro/water issues, and harvest are all important.

Fish on...

Todd