ON THE WATER FOR FEBRUARY (2008)

ON THE WATER FOR FEBRUARY         (2008)

 

Hello Pard, it’s good to see you …. Come on in, sit down & help yourself to a cup of coffee & get warm.  JANUARY has sure been a tricky weather month … First it Rained >> Then Blew >> Then it Freiz >> Then it Snew  !!!!!  I am still trying to get warm after viewing First Lady Dudley’s PIX of a recent, in the snow, Schooner Creek Trap Run. Don’t you know, the start of the month was so bad, that General Hudson had to cancel our first scheduled Fish Along at Big Creek Res.  We are going to try & reschedule it for next month, but I wouldn’t hold your breath !!!!

 

We did have a fun Breakfast Meeting, which resulted in Kevin McCarthy & Dave Dinsmoor being anointed as our “Salmon Catcher Champs” for 2007. We also anointed Linda Reed as our 1^st New Club Member for 2008 … Welcome aboard Linda !!!  Our January guest speaker, Phil Hager, gave us a bunch of good/scary information about waterborne Invasive Species that can be found throughout our state & some things we can all do slow these Bad Boys down.  

 

Special Thanks to Hank Bryson & All of You Stalwart Fish Trappers for keeping our trap servicing operations going. Our friends at ODFW sure appreciate you all getting out there with them on those cold mornings. Your reports seem to indicate that fish action has slowed down … probably the cold temperatures have something to do with the low migratory fish counts ??

 

There is “1” early positive sign of Spring >><< ODFW has begun it’s Rainbow Trout Stocking Program for 2008. We will be publishing the schedule for our local waters in the Clubs Monthly Meeting & Event Schedule. Hope you fine this helpful >><< Speaking of helpful, Mike Rosiga has been pitching in to help the Creek Mister Dinsmoor with SOLV Bag Servicing on Big Creek (Thanks a Bunch Mike) …. The guys tell me, that the Big Challenge they are facing with the bags is not with the Anglers, but with the Raccoons that are tearing the bottoms out of the bags to get at the trash goodies !!!       >><< We are very receptive to any Good Ideas you may have to mitigate this problem >><<   

 

Help yourself to some more coffee & let’s take a look at what FEBRUARY has in store for our Club Members …… On the 1^st of Feb….. You don’t want to miss our Annual Shop Along at the Eugene Boat & Sportsman’s Show. I could not go last year, but several of the guys who went said it was a really fun day & so we are planning on making a run over there again this year …. Yes you can still get in a car pool, but you better get in touch with Big Fish … PRONTO !!!!  

 

We got some recent Good News … Casey Deckard is back in harness after conducting a big ODFW study regarding our Off Shore Tuna Fisheries. He will be attending our breakfast meeting to give us the highlights of his study findings. We will continue working closely with Casey on Fish Trap Servicing & he will also be involved in a Special ODFW “Monofilament Line Recycling Station” Project that Surveyor Dudley will be coordinating with Casey. The Surveyor will be coming out with more information regarding this Special Project & how all Club Members can get involved in the Building & Installation of these valuable MLR Stations, which are intended to help keep used/abandoned mono line out of the environment.  

 

It seemed like a Perfect Fit, what with it being so cold, for us to get some good information on HYPOTHERMIA …. Several of our members   recommended a Guest Speaker who “Really Knows His Stuff” regarding this topic >><< Chief Tom Mc Adams is a retired USCG Master Chief who has spent his career rescuing boaters who have pushed their luck a bit to far & ended up in the cold waters off of our coast. Chief Mc Adams is a very dynamic speaker who tells it like it is …his is the kind of information that You Can Take to the Bank + It could just Save Your Life some day !!!  

 

Weather permitting; we will be conducting our 1st Beverly Beach Litter Patrol, for 2008, at 11 AM on 28 February. It is our commitment to Oregon Shores to conduct a minimum of 1 Beach Litter Patrol each Quarter. If passed experience is any indication, this is a fun way to get some great exercise, on our 1 mile of beach, with a bunch of Club Members. You would be surprised at the amount & kind of stuff we find on our patrols.

 

In closing, let me give you a Web Site that will allow you to stay current on the Marine Reserves Issue:              

                (www.seagrant.oregonstate.edu/outreach/reserve.html)   

 

This site is being mastered by on organization called SEA GRANT & they will be holding outreach meetings to gather feedback from  Coastal Communities, Commercial / Sport Anglers & All Citizens who have a Stake in the ultimate designation of the Governors Plans for Oregon Coastal Marine Reserves. Sea Grant will solicit, compile & present all of the feedback they collect to the Oregon Policy Advisory Council. OPAC is the body that will ultimately report & make recommendations to the Governor regarding the number & designation of Marine Reserve Sites off of our coast. All of this activity needs to be accomplished by EOM April …. There is an effort to try & slow down this process, but that remains to be seen. Hence, it is important that we all stay informed. (See a current proposed site posted on THE WALL in the Club House) If this is done right, it may very well have great value for our grandchildren … If it turns into another hasty, cobbled government program …. It may very well look like a CAMEL !!!!     It seems to me, with Marine Reserves >><< We either ALL Hang Together or We will ALL Hang Separate !!!!

 

Well …. That’s the Top of the News as it looks from here >><< Hope to see you “On the Water” ………..   THE HOOK