Occupy Skagit

[Smalma]

Nelly -
Some of us are getting there at 9 but I'm sure there will be folks arriving all morning with plans to stay into the afternoon. I think the "official" hours are 9 to 1 but I would not be surprised that some folks will be hanging around for a visit/remembrance of what the Skagit once was and what we hope it to be in the future.

I plan on bring some smoked kokanee; while not up to your lofty standards they still might make a tasty snack.

Curt

[_WW_]

Heck man! Some guys are already there!
I plan on showing up around 6:30 am and staying until midday Sunday.

[Robbo]

Nelly and I both towed our boats up to Rockport for the Occupy Skagit outing at Howard Miller Steelhead Park today to show our support for the movement to re-open the Skagit's popular catch and release spring steelhead season. My absolute all time favorite fishery has been closed in recent years because of low steelhead returns and there is nothing in the current plan to re-open the Skagit no matter how many fish return. The folks that attended the Occupy Skagit event today wanted to let WDFW and the Feds (NOAA) know that that is unacceptable.

Nelly parked "Big Red" front and center in the parking lot. How many hundreds of days have we spent at this launch over the last 20 years

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Since we had to do the Outdoor Line radio show this morning we were a little late getting to Rockport. There were still quite a few people at the launch though and apparently there was over 100 people there just before we got there. Like me...these guys just want to go fishing

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You get the message

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Flyfishing legend Dec Hogan flew all the way from Utah to attend the Occupy Skagit event today and he spent quite a bit of time instructing some of the spey-rodders in front of the park. This used to be a regular scene on the Skagit and now it's just a memory.

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I took one of our new game wardens and a few other friends for a jet boat ride up the Sauk river. So many memories on this river system. It's awful tough to have the Skagit closed this time of year

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I made sure to gas up at the Rockport store owned by my good friend Dave Hambright. Dave is an avid Skagit steelheader and says the closure has hit him hard. Not only has the store been slow the catch and release season was his favorite time of year. Dave fished nearly ever single day in March and April when the river was open.

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My hats off to Salmo G, WW, and Curt Kraemer for all the time they've spent working on this. Despite talking to Curt quite a bit on the phone I hadn't seen him in 15 years and didn't even recognize him today...probably because he looked so darned young. I guess I need to get out more

These three guys will be speaking to the Commission this coming weekend to drum up support and get an idea of where to go from here. They are right...leaving not only the Skagit but all the other Puget Sound rivers closed to catch and release steelhead fishing for good is simply unacceptable. We'll keep you posted on their progress

[_WW_]

A big thank you to The Outdoor Line for all your support and help.
This "first salvo" was a huge success!

A few photos of the Meet an Greet:







Next Saturday is the "second salvo", we make a formal presentation to the WDFW Commissioners. This will be during the public comment period on Saturday morning and take up only about 45 minutes of your time. The room holds about thirty chairs. It would be nice if it were standing room only!:)

[_WW_]

...and we made top story in the local paper!
http://www.goskagit.com/all_access/catc ... ba3a0.html

[Nelly]

I was pleasantly surprised with the number of anglers and media that showed up!

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Sgt Rich Philips reminds Robbo that this will be an orderly "simulated fishing" event

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"Nelly, will you pull my truck out and park it?" Robbo had just stepped in over his boots and was trying to get me to fill my boots up as well...

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It was great to see a couple of sleds launching at Rockport again, even if it was just a boat ride.

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Driving back down the Skagit valley on my way home, I couldn't help but think of all the fish and great times with friends and family that I experienced on this wonderful river.

I sincerely hope that Occupy Skagit allows a new generation to experience spring steelheading on the Skagit!

[DuckDog]

That is awesome

[_WW_]

We came, we sat down, and we talked.
I get the feeling that they understand the logic behind our message and would like to restore our opportunity. They also know that it's a complicated process that has to be done step by step through proper channels. It is after all a federal agency that we have to ultimately deal with - and the burden of that process falls directly on the WDFW

Once again I want to thank everyone that showed up in Rockport. Because of that event and the coverage it received they knew we were coming and wanted to hear our comments. Twice we were congratulated by individual commissioners on our 'style' and I was personally thanked by one before the meeting for our efforts.

More radio on the Outdoor Line. We got a mention by the WDFW director near the end of his segment and about a ten minute host discussion towards the end of their show. You can hear both of them here:
http://theoutdoorline.com/podcasts/

At some point yesterday's meeting can be listened to here:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/commission/meetings/2013/
I don't know how long it takes them to get it posted up, so maybe check it in a few days.

And last but for sure not the least a big thank you to The Outdoor Line Show and the personal time you guys have given to our cause!

You can cross the first step off the list!