Gillnetting in October, when coho are the species of concern.... quality management right there. Of course, if the Cowboys didn't get those three days, the QIN would have taken four....
I'd really like to see a plan for in-season management, where we only get to fish after wild coho escapements are assured, but we know that won't happen, because it would all but assure no NT gillnet fishery would be allowed. With that, I think we should think carefully about whether we want to fish at all past September (assuming we wouldn't be shut down by then anyway). It seems very likely that, between WDFW's welfare fishery and the QIN's perennial slaughter, coho will miss escapement again this year. That would make 2 years in a row, leaving only one strike for the next three years before the GHMP penalty box comes into play, prolonging our inability to harvest wild coho for several more years. I don't think we want to afford the co-managers any way to lump sport fishers in as one of the user groups doing their share of the damage. Personally, I'd rather sit this one out and focus on a massive PR smearing of the Tribe and the NT gillnetters, who would be the only entities harvesting fish in a year of tremendous peril, and therefore in a rather indefensible position, should coho miss escapement again. It's time for the gloves to come off. We'd have to take the first punch on the chin, and it would hurt, but it's time we stopped giving the liars and cheats who manage our fisheries an out when THEY screw the fish over.
I say, let's get after hatchery kings early, then get the heck off the water before whatever wild coho are coming show up in earnest. If coho show in the numbers expected, fishing will suck, big time, so we won't be missing much. Let the other guys handle the abusive, irresponsible $hit, and make them pay in public perception.