I'm stuck at home today on call instead of fishing like most of you , so I have an excess of time to think of my "why" questions.
I live close to the Cedar and was very happy it opened even though it's catch and release. I really don't catch enough to want to release them but still enjoy it's closeness and it's a pretty area.
I talked to some fellows that said there's always nets in, Muckleshoots. Nets, I said, I thought it had been closed to everyone for 10 years. I guess I was naiive enogh to think that if a river was protected, it was protected from all fishing. It seems odd to me that one group would restrict fishing I assume to let the fish replenish, and another group would feel free to fish it because they could. It is still hard for me to grasp the fact that there are different rights for different people in this day. I realize there is another side to every story and have been reading up on some of the Native American sites. One ruling stated that even if you own private tidelands that the area tribe could still harvest shellfish off of it with notification. When I was to buy a house on the Peninsila , I did some tax id research and found the edge of the property on the water had a seperate tax number for it. Realtor could never explain why. I searched for the listed owner and called, was never called back. I always wondered if it was oyster rights or indian rights. Just wanted to know before I bought.
Ok, next thought. The fishing is barbless and baitless. I tried my best to find unscented worms, very hard. Some I already had had salt on them and I wondered outloud if that was scent. Yes, this fellow said. I am not sure if this is right, but I thought the no bait rule would be because they swallow them quicker. So, is a fake worm unscented that much better? Or a fly? No great need to worry as I wasn't catching and no else was either. I sat over a deep pool and watched several big trout aimlessly wander through. They were having just a great time teasing me and refused to even look at anything coming by. But, it was fun to have an eye into their underwater world for just a bit.