Wild Steelhead Sales - Fish4Fun - Seattle

While I was up in Seattle last weekend we toured Pike Street Market. All 3 fish shops had Oly Pen Indian gillnetted native steelhead, purchased for around a dollar per pound, on sale for $4 per pound. The one I'm holding up in the pic was about a 20 pounder. Lots of them were big nates! I talked to the owner/managers of all 3 shops to make a case for boycotting the buying/selling of wild steelhead. They ONLY care about the large profit margin. Area fishers should organize a protest march with TV news cams present!

Other things up there are much more positive! We took a floatplane flightsee - below is a photo of member Jim/Outlaw fishing for blackmouth Kings in his Fish4Fun boat in south Elliot Bay (around 12:30 pm Sat. - unless someone has an identical looking boat like his out there - when I realized it was F4F right below our plane I got the camera out but by then had to shoot back at them

Seattle Center below. The colorful architecture at the foot of the Space Needle is the new Experience Music Project rock museum - a must see!

We also took the ferry over to tour the Kitsap Peninsula. Highly recomend it! I saw a blackmouth fishing hot spot looking north from the Boedel Reserve called Jefferson Head. I glassed a few boats for a bit with no bent rods/nets. Poulsbo has close access to fishing Hoods Canal; and a nice view of the Olympic Mountains from the town's upper road. Port Townsend has some of the best fishing access around Puget Sound, and great scenery! A short ride over to Vancouver Island too. - RT

[ 03-30-2001: Message edited by: bigstew ]

[ 03-30-2001: Message edited by: RT ]

[Fuzzybutt & Angel]

Heres your picture RT.. Grrrr@Pike Place Fish Market!!
[img]images/icons/mad.gif[/img]
Would have been a nice buck to have seen swim away.

And heres your picture of the Space Needle.. You gotta learn to type the addy in correct [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]



Angel
Silent Approach Jigs

[ 03-30-2001: Message edited by: Fuzzybutt & Angel ]

Thanks Lynn [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] . I seem to forget things pretty quickly, eh? I will try to correct the addys above; if I can. ..... BTW, after springer season I am going to get after the summer steelhead with those great looking 1/8th oz. rabbit fur jigs you made for me. I already caught a winter on the Elochoman with a black and red one in gin clear water. Tight lines. - Steve

Edit: Bigstew came to my rescue and corrected the pic URL's - thanks. If we can reduce the market for these nates we are likely to reduce the amount of netting!

[ 03-30-2001: Message edited by: RT ]

This photo may be the most important picture ever posted on this board. This shows what the native runs of steelhead are up against. If you call yourself a sportsman then this picture should make your blood boil!!! I know it makes mine. Call your congressman and upload this photo to them. That's a very serious expression on Steve's face isn't it?

[ 03-30-2001: Message edited by: bigstew ]

Thanks 'Stew. You are correct about this issue being important. ... Gee, I didn't expect to ever hold three 20 pounders up in the same thread [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] . Can you edit only me and the fish into a pic with only a river in the background? [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] Nah. ... BTW, yes I was angry about the netted nates, but my facial expression was from how much junk my family was buying at the market place there. jk

[smilesforu]

Steve your suppose to catch those yourself before posing for pictures. For a mere $80 you can take a 20 lb steelhead home. This is only one fish...now times that by 3000+ for the Quilayute system alone. These fish are legal to sell and there is not much that can be done to stop it. Protests may help bring a awareness to the situation but it is still the indians right.....Only the wallet of the government can buy us out of this mess.
Tight Lines

[Fish4Fun]

Hey RT,

Guess ya caught us red handed in the bay Saturday [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] Funny thing was we were commenting to each other about the float plane when you went by us. Fishing was slow that day, we only got 1 fish that was 29". As you can see we had the place to ourselves most of the day. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[ 03-30-2001: Message edited by: Outlaw ]

[Jellyhead]

RT,

Keep those rabbit fur jigs HUSH, HUSH!!!!!

I didn't relize anyone else had thought of them. [img]images/icons/frown.gif[/img] Now someone is going to market them?!? Oh well, At least I still have my custom colors. (I've been tying the rabbit fur jigs for a couple of years now. I got the idea after seeing all of the rabbit fur steely flies) But those jigs don't work anyhow [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

Looks like you had a nice trip.

Aaron

[ 03-30-2001: Message edited by: ****** ]

We are luckier down here then you guys further north with the Indian netting going on all over up there. It's a terrible thing. The protest march is a great idea and us guys from this area should come up to help out too.

[ 10-24-2001: Message edited by: Hammerhead ]

I've emailed all three major network affiliates in Seattle about this issue, with none of them responding. Seems like no one cares unless there are hostages involved.

[ZaQ]

Steve, can I use this picture to make a page on my site?

[Chaps]

. . . same deal at the fancy seafood eateries around town Special Fresh Wild Steelhead at Chandlers on Lake Union, 8oz filet $17.95 (that is some mark-up!) I suppose if it was cheaper they would sell a lot more . . . boycott!

Sure Zaq. Anything to help wild steelhead runs. ... To that end guys, check out the Wild Steelhead Coalition. This group is finally a well organized and backed one that is already gaining some politiacl clout to help our fisheries. Of course their primary objective is to save dwindling stocks of native steelhead. They started by involvement with the Oly Pen steelhead spoken about above (Indian netting and sportfishing). But it's not only about that, it's about trying to keep all Washington and Oregon rivers to C&R fishing on wild steelies; at least until the runs are healthy enough to support a gradual return to harvest. Check their website (info below) and try to attend their next meeting this coming Wednesday (info below). ...

To access their site go to:
http://www.piscatorialpursuits.com/ubbcgi/Ultimate.cgi

and then click on Wild Steelhead Coalition. Anyone that wants to post opinions or ideas about wild steelhead issues ONLY can do so without registering. ...

Also, for those able to, please attend their next meeting at the Bothell American Legion Post, 19213 Bothell Way NE, Bothell, WA (near north Seattle between Kenmore and Woodinville. Thanks for caring and helping our wild runs of fish! - RT