The sun was shining and the fish were biting at the Mamquam River on Sunday as throngs of anglers lined the waterway’s banks hoping to reel in a whopper during the 2015 salmon run.
“This is insane. I’ve never seen this many people, not even in 2013” said Cortney Brown of the Trout Country Fishing Guides, who helped organize Angler Awareness Day along with representatives from the Squamish River Watershed Society and Squamish Streamkeepers Society. The group staffed a table on the river dike, chatting with anglers heading down to the water, and handing out information on area species, fishing regulations and proper handling of fish. The educational initiative was launched to help protect salmon and habitat following the previous salmon run in 2013, when many fishermen and women flouted rules, didn’t have licences and did not respect the environment.
“We’re trying to be proactive,” said Allan Chamberlain, in between handing out posters of the different species of salmon to curious anglers. “We want to teach people how to handle their fish… pack out what they pack in, and follow the proper regulations.”
It was a timely endeavour, as Sunday saw a higher than usual number of people casting their lines into the Mamquam, thanks to an overabundance of river closures throughout the province.
“Everywhere else is closed or under very tight restrictions,” said Chamberlain. “So they are all coming here, and potentially putting a lot more strain on an already strained ecosystem.”
Down at the water, nine-year-old Rier Robinson from Maple Ridge was reeling in another big fish.
“It’s my seventh so far,” he said after his father, Richard, helped him release it back into the water.
“We were all set to go fishing on the Fraser River,” his father said. “But we found out it was closed, so like a lot of people, I guess, we came to Squamish.”
A long-time angler and conservationist, Robinson said the Angler Awareness Day info booth was “awesome.”
“It’s great they are educating people before they can do much damage,” he said. “I saw a few new fishers on the other side of the river, and they were breaking a lot of rules. They [Angler Awareness Day representatives] went and spent a few minutes with them, educating them. It was great. But really, what we need is more enforcement.”
The group plans to have a similar Angler Awareness information booth at the upcoming Brackendale Fall Fair on Sept. 12.
To learn more about fishing techniques and licensing, go to gofishbc.com. For B.C. freshwater fishing regulations, go to www.env.gov.bc.ca/fw/fish/regulations/.
