Federal Fisheries Policy Needs Face-to-Face Discussion I recently had the pleasure of presenting to our Eugene Chapter of The Association of Northwest Steelheaders, highlighting the different campaigns we’re engaged in at headquarters. It’s always great getting out to these chapter meetings to hear what our members have to say about the work we’re doing on […]
Category Archives: Stories
Gulf Council Hears Anglers’ Voices — Will They Listen?
In late January, I had the pleasure of attending my first meeting of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. The meeting, held Jan. 25-28 in Orange Beach, Alabama, drew hundreds of anglers and other concerned citizens and stakeholders from across the Gulf. On the agenda were important fishery issues, such as electronic reporting for […]
Counting Fish Together
Cooperative Fisheries Research Can Transform Fishermen And Management A ways back, I was hired to help a tech diver named Kerry Dillon monitor artificial reefs off Martin and St. Lucie counties, along Florida’s Treasure Coast. At the time, I was running inshore and nearshore charters on the Indian River Lagoon, and captaining a 36-foot Venture […]
What Will You Change, or Not?
Photo: Super Steelheader’s volunteer, Stevie Parsons, with a southern Oregon Coast lingcod from October 1, 2015 Eating Wild Fish May Be Better for the Planet Yes, I do it, too; make New Year’s Resolutions that typically don’t stick around too long, easing myself back into routine, much more comforting, much easier to adhere to. It’s […]
Shark Discovery! [Part One]
Lemon Shark Photo by Walt Stearns Cooperative research off Palm Beach County, Florida yields important information about a vulnerable species On January 11th, 2001, I chanced upon something that had never been recorded in the waters off Florida’s southeast coast, near Palm Beach. On sand bottom, at a depth 87 feet were 40 — perhaps […]
We Aren’t Really Getting Anywhere, Are We?
Working Together to Protect Fish and Wildlife Habitat I just got done reading an incredible story of a hunter in Montana who had a very good year; he harvested a mountain lion, a black bear and a 360 bull elk, all in one season. That’s quite an accomplishment, and even though I only know a […]
MSA Flexibility & How Subprime Lending Failed Gulf of Maine Cod
Avoiding Past Mistakes and Keeping The Debate over MSA Reauthorization Focused on the Future On December 7, 2015 the US House of Representatives’ Committee on Natural Resources held what is called an “oversight hearing” titled, “Restoring Atlantic Fisheries and Protecting the Regional Seafood Economy.” Instead of being held in Washington DC, this was a “field” […]
All Politics is Local (Even the Fishy Politics)
I had to look up who said that and learned it was Tip O’ Neill, former Speaker of the House. Not that it makes any difference, but I thought I’d provide a brief history lesson while I’m in Washington D.C. I find Washington, DC pretty far removed from my more natural habitat on the water. […]