Francis and Joe,

Thanks for the time you've put in. It's was hard for me to speak up with much authority at the meeting because I have not spent the time with the data as you two have. Nor do I have a good understanding of the realties of any one proposed season because it's been you two having discussions with WDFW personnel and I don't have any idea what was thrown around privately. (Well, a little better idea now)

You guys didn't propose anything I had a problem with. Most of it sounded pretty skookum.

Yet, I came away from the meeting with the feeling I usually do at these.....a bit of frustration that what needs to change isn't going to. Granted, they were open enough to recording and acknowledging our(your) proposals and they seemed willing enough to listen to some ideas about boundary changes and such but when the discussion turned to management philosophy and the need to get a grip on numbers and netting they seemed to want to move the meeting along and be done.

What I need to see and hear from them is some passion about some of, hell, even one of the ideas we bring up that gets more fish on the gravel but doesn't necessarily mimic their way of doing business. We see what's happening continuously in the field. They don't because they rely on paper fish and "indexes" to reflect numbers; what's being caught and what's not. We get the "nod" as they listen, little to no acknowledgement that we have a point (but they'll make a note to look into it.....ever heard that one before?) and the meeting progresses to a hasty conclusion.

Frankly, The management of this basin is so fragmented with players, rules, artificial numbers, processes, "rights" and beuracracy I don't know that the fish will ever have a chance or that we can look forward to routine over-escapements as long as things are done as they currently are. It's a mess and needs a solution now. Sadly, I don't see a solution happening soon and the meeting did nothing to change that.

Good seeing Francis, Joe, Fish4brains, DrifterWA and Casting Pearls.

Eric out.......head'n to the river.