regarding the new rockfish regs starting may 1st

When they say to port angeles do they have a specific boundry in mind. I plan on fishing for halibut saturday and i am going to put out in freshwater bay  and head west which is close to PA. just wondering what to do if i should happen on a good sized black rockfish in the process.

quote from email today from wdfw:
"To provide additional protection for these fish, WDFW recently closed fishing for all species of rockfish from southern Puget Sound north to the Canadian border and west to Port Angeles, effective May 1.  In addition, anglers fishing for other bottomfish in Puget Sound will be required to observe a 120-foot depth restriction.  This new measure is specifically designed to reduce mortality of rockfish incidentally intercepted in these fisheries.    

Good question.  I just found the rule change Sequim Salt is talking about.  It's buried in a memo about the protection of three species.  And it doesn't show up on the emergency rules page at all (yet.)  So does this mean no rockfish retention in the San Juans?  Looks that way to me.  Anybody have clarification on this?

DC

The proposed rule changes, and the actions taken at the February Commission meeting are here- http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/regs/rule_proposals/2010-12_ces.pdf

The rockfish rule changes are on page 12 of the document.

Effect: Rockfish closed in MAs 6-13.

thanks pisco,  Marine area 6 clarifies it for me. definately will have an effect. oh well, hooking a rockfish might really slow down my attempt for a halibut I think increasing the seal limit might have a bigger impact on the rockfish numbers. thanks again,

 

I almost broke my keyboard at my desk today when I read the email.  Classic Washington; put out some public notice with info everyone pretty much knows already and then put the real stinger at the very end.  I feel like NOAA and WDFW farted, walked out of the room, and locked us in behind them.

Thanks Pisco. 

Its the implementation that stinks here.  Three days before the opener, after we've all purchased our licenses and made plans.  And still its buried.  If I read the regulations and looked over the emergency rules, I'd be retaining a nice rockfish on Saturday, unknowingly breaking the rules.  No doubt they are downplaying this.  The fart in the room analogy hit the mark.   

 

I just had it out on the phone with the media contact for this press release at the WDFD.  He's extremely agitated because he's been inundated with phone calls.  The short answer is yes, rockfish retention is banned in areas 6-13.  My beef with him was more about the lack of advanced notice, and with the method of notice, not with the rule itself.  That's life under a bloated farting bureaucracy.

Bring on the lingcod.  Bring on ONE lingcod, as long as its between 26 and 36 inches. 

well we knew Wdfw was in bed with NOAA. now we know how closely.

So, if this was a foregone conclusion from the get go, why did they jold "public meetings"and why did we even waste Yak Monkey's time getting him to go.??

anyone else feel like they just had a proctoscopy with a beach umbrella?

I found the link, buried in the News section of the WDFW site. It's actually old news and went through a bunch of public process. I don't think they, or NOAA fisheries, are "springing" anything on us. It's all been coming for a long time.

I do think WDFW has fallen down on publicizing (and publishing) the news. There's no reason for it not be listed under the emergency rules, or to have a new electronic version of the new rules, front and center where people can find them, easily. The justification for waiting for publishing hard copies is that the North of Falcon (NOF) process had to occur before printing up the new rules. Fine- that doesn't mean that what is known, shouldn't be publicized.

Notice how sportsmen are being punished here, not commercial fishermen.  It's only due time until all bottomfishing is off limits in these MA's since fishing for lings and others is going to result in the same rockfish mortality rate due to bycatch.  This was either a token move or one to soften the upcoming blow.  I bet saltwater licenses will continue to increase in inverse proportion to the number of species and time available to fish for them too 

Yo, Yar.

I'm not aware of any non-treaty commercial fisheries for lings or rockfish, in these areas. In this case, I don't think the idea is to squeeze out the recreationals in preference for a commercial fishery.

The WDFW staff recommended closure of rec. fishing for rockfish in these areas because they had documented 13K annual catch by sports (with a 1 fish limit), and rockfish numbers were still declining.

The proposed rule changes, and the actions taken at the February Commission meeting are here- http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/regs/rule_proposals/2010-12_ces.pdf

The rockfish rule changes are on page 12 of the document.

Effect: Rockfish closed in MAs 6-13.

The whole thing is so vague...."Commission Action: Adopted as modified"...

Really a bummer.

So this also means that the max size for lings in the SJ's has gone from 40" to 36"?

I'll be doing lots of CP&R I guess.

J

I'm just venting and angry in general about this right now Pisco. 

New rules released.  Make sure you check the latest, at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/regs/2010/2010sportregs.pdf

Pamphlet includes new fishing rules
that take effect May 1 around the state

OLYMPIA - Anglers planning to fish in Washington past the end of the month should be aware that nearly a hundred new fishing rules will take effect starting May 1.

The new regulations, affecting everything from catch limits to fishing tackle, are included in the new Fishing in Washington rules pamphlet, published by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) for the 2010-11 season.

The free pamphlet will be available later this week at WDFW offices and more than 600 sporting goods stores and other license vendors statewide.  It is also posted on WDFW's website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations .

"We strongly advise anglers who have been using last year's fishing pamphlet to pick up a new one," said Craig Burley, WDFW fish division manager.  "While many regulations remain the same from year to year, some significant changes are about to take effect in fisheries throughout the state this season."

Those changes include nearly a hundred new rules adopted last February by the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission, a nine-member citizen panel that sets policy for WDFW.  Prior to taking action on those proposals, the commission conducted a series of public hearings and considered more than a thousand comments received from anglers and non-anglers throughout the state.

Key changes are summarized on page 11 of the new rules pamphlet.  For example:

    * All rivers, streams and beaver ponds in the Puget Sound area are closed to fishing, unless otherwise stated in the rules pamphlet. This approach allows fishery managers to provide greater protection for juvenile anadromous fish in many of the smaller unnamed streams.
    * Anglers can now purchase a two-pole endorsement, allowing them to use up to two lines when fishing in most lakes statewide.
    * Fishing for all species of rockfish will be closed in most areas of Puget Sound to protect declining populations.
    * Harvest of sea stars, shore crab and other "unclassified marine invertebrates" is prohibited to protect these beach dwellers.
    * Barbless hooks will be required during salmon fisheries in Grays Harbor and Willapa Bay to protect wild fish.

Burley recommends that anglers check the new pamphlet for any new rules that might apply to their favorite fishing spots.

One worth noting is Rattlesnake Lake in King County, which opened to trout fishing April 24 with a five-fish limit, but will switch to a catch-and-release fishery when the new rules take effect May 1.

"That's the kind of change that anglers need to know about," Burley said.  "By checking the new rules, they can avoid surprises in fisheries around the state."  

On last check, it's all in there.  It is, as usual, something that requires study and a notepad to get all of it understood.

Very roughly,in Puget Sound ( which is defined as half of area 4, and all of areas 5 - 13), no fishing below 120' (20 fathom rule), no fishing for or retaining rockfish.  Areas 4 and 5 can retain some rockfish, as an exception, so check these areas specifically.