Residents along Quilcene River prepare for fishing season frenzy
http://www.ptleader.com/news/020807residentsalongqui520.htm By Helen Hollister
Leader Staff Writer
Last year's fishing season left many property owners along the Big Quilcene River upset, as fishermen trespassed on private property, littered and refused to abide by catch limits and other fishing laws.
In hopes of preventing more habitat abuse, local residents are posting "no trespassing signs" throughout their properties. Fishing season begins Aug. 16, and many riverside residents are dreading the day.
Dora Whittaker, whose home overlooks the river, said the habitat damage she has seen in the last year is worse than the past 20 years combined.
"It was certainly frustrating to have beer cans and garbage everywhere," she said.
This week a crew from the Washington Conservation Corps and representatives of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife began work on the existing trail along the Big Quilcene River in preparation for fishing season. The goal for the trail work is to make the path more defined for visitors to follow and stay within the boundaries.
Fish and Wildlife has stepped in to raise awareness of the guidelines for use of the river to protect the habitat and prevent trespassing.
On July 31, a group of officials from Fish and Wildlife and a representative from the Skokomish Tribe walked along the river with local landowners, pointing out problem areas and discussing possible solutions.
The area of the river under scrutiny is the north bank stretch from the Quilcene National Fish Hatchery, downstream under the U.S. Highway 101 bridge about one mile, to Rodgers Street in Quilcene. Last year the coho salmon run brought in fishermen from across the state.
"One day I counted 113 people on one side of the river," said riverside resident Rose Ann Nowak.
Her husband, Ron, said the fish were stacked in the water so thick that the river bottom was not visible. With the catch limit increase going from two fish per person to four fish, the banks of the river were inundated with anglers.
Although Fish and Wildlife designated an easement of one mile along the north shore of the river for the anglers to gain access to the river, many fishermen traveled beyond the easement onto private property, destroying vegetation and prompting erosion.
Along with the coho salmon, the Big Quilcene River is also home to summer chum, which have been protected by the Endangered Species Act since March 1999. During fishing season, the river is one big honeymoon suite for the chum, with spawning beds located around every bend.
"The first couple of weeks after the eggs are in the gravel, they're very sensitive," said Fish and Wildlife biologist Thom Johnson. "If you go out and walk on the eggs during the critical time, they are killed. You can imagine if you have 100 people walking along there's going to be some damage."
One of the group's main goals is to get the fishermen to stay along the easement to prevent destruction of the summer chum. Johnson said many other rivers in the area are closed off completely from fishing because of the presence of summer chum.
Enforcement
Along with the four-fish limit, Fish and Wildlife has instated selective gear rules which prohibit the use of bait and limit fishing methods to include only single, barbless hooks. These rules were set up, in part, to make it easier to release the fish if it happens to be a chum.
Phillip Henry of Port Townsend, a Fish and Wildlife enforcement officer, carries sole responsibility for enforcing the laws for fishing along area rivers. He wrote 97 violations along the Big Quil during last year's fishing season. The most common violation he dealt with was snagging - trying to foul-hook the fish - which is a gross misdemeanor with a $500 fine. Other violations include failing to record the fish ($75), littering ($95), fishing without a license ($100), failing to submit catch for inspection ($500), possession of closed-season fish such as the chum ($100 per fish) and fishing in a closed area ($100).
Although people have always fished up and down along the river, he said it was never a big problem until recent years, when the river has had really big runs. More and more people come and leave their garbage behind. While the fines for violating the fishing laws are hefty, Henry said many fishermen know the laws and continue to break them.
"A lot of these guys are fairly contrite when you contact them," Henry said.
Although it is not technically against the law to fish on private property, it becomes illegal when "no trespassing" signs are posted.
One of the group's goals is to have all concerned residents in the area clearly post "no trespassing" signs around their riverside properties.
"Virtually all of the property from Highway 101 to Rodgers Street is private property," Henry said. "They'll have no excuse when they see those signs."
The only method local landowners have for deterring fishermen from trespassing is posting "boundary" and "no trespassing" signs. This leaves many residents concerned and weary for the upcoming fishing season.
Landowner woes
While the number of anglers breaking the laws may be small, the impact they had on local property owners was substantial.
Rose Ann Nowak said when she confronted a fisherman who was trespassing on her property, he yelled obscenities at her and flipped her off.
"He told me it was his river and he could do whatever he wanted," she said.
Some residents said people defecated in their yards.
"It was a big surprise for us," Ron Nowak said. "It's the sports fishermen. It's the beer drinkers who come down and take load after load up from the river with no respect for anything."
Property owner Mark Baclawski said what he didn't appreciate was the callousness of many fishermen. On his land they left a substantial amount of garbage and trampled vegetation, left fish hooks lying around and tore down fencing on his property to gain access to the river.
"Ultimately the biggest thing is the garbage," Baclawski said. "We picked up bags and bags of garbage last year. It was shocking. We all want to use the resource, but when we abuse it, it gets trashed."
Whittaker put a dumpster on her property specifically for the fishermen to use, but she said they didn't really take advantage of it.
"My first concern is the habitat of the river," Whittaker said. "The habitat is critical to the salmon. I'm a tree hugger. I like to see the salmon. I like to see the beavers. I like to see the eagles. Last year these things were not here because of the people."
She said that in past years she saw as many as 14 eagles, whereas last year she only saw three.
Solutions
Along with making the boundaries for the public trail easier to identify, the group that met last week intends to post a 4-by-4-foot sign with educational information, maps and rules for fishing where people access the river from Highway 101. They also plan to post warnings about the fish eggs in the gravel on smaller signs along the river.
The Skokomish Tribe's Salmon Recovery Funding Board Project, a program dedicated to providing aid to areas with endangered salmon stock, has offered to cover the cost of building the large sign, estimated at $1,500 to $2,000. As a long-term goal, the group would like to reach out to local schools to educate children about the importance of salmon. The group also plans to install a Sani-Can along the river to prevent the defecation that occurred last season.
"We're trying to form a partnership between the agency, the tribal governments and the local landowners," Johnson said. "It comes down to the awareness of the fishermen and stewardship on the part of the community. We need to get the word out. We'd really like to get the Quilcene community plugged in to the issue."
He said one potential outcome of the problems with the fishermen is the possible reduction in hatchery use. Johnson said this would have a negative impact on Quilcene's economy, as the fishing season brings in a lot of business to the community.
Fish and Wildlife Regional Director Sue Patnude said the plans the group has made will take awhile to get going.
"The signs probably won't happen until next year," Patnude said. "For now, we're going to try to get more emphasis on enforcement."
Johnson said this year's salmon run will be as good or better than last year.
"As soon as they have word that there are fish in the river, people will be down here, sometime between Aug. 16 and Sept. 1," Johnson said.
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