New endangered species: Oregon hunters, anglers
Chances are you don't hunt or fish. Fewer than one in 10 Oregonians hunt. Less than one in five of us fish. Those who do are vanishing faster here than almost anywhere else.
Your chances of being a hunter/angler are better if you read this blog because you are clearly better than the average Oregonian.
So what? you might say. Fewer wild animals are getting killed.
But hunters and anglers foot much of the bill for wildlife in Oregon, paying through their license fees to buy and restore wildlife habitat and for biologists to undertake duties such as dealing with bats infiltrating your attic.
"Frequently the people who want help are not hunters," said Ron Anglin, head of the wildlife division at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. "People have the mistaken notion that they're paying for the agency through their tax dollars, and that's generally not the case."
Instead, "the hunter carries the burden for all these other people who enjoy our wildlife."
PETA does not protect the animals in Oregon, the Sierra Club does not protect the environment in Oregon, Tre Arrow doesn't save Oregon's forests, it's the true conservationists who do that!
The people who enjoy our woods, lakes and rivers. The people who know that a trout or a turkey can be a worthy opponent. They manage the environment because they appreciate it. And it does need managing rather than "protecting."
This Fishwrapper article is written from the enviro-wackalist point of view but the fact that this tradition is dying out should be a concern to us.
It's a new year, go get your license(s) and take your kids hunting or fishing.
http://cabelas.com/
http://www.dfw.state.or.us/
4 comments:
What the fishwrap fails to discuss is exactly why the numbers of hunters and fisherfolk have declined. I don't hunt, but I used to buy a license and do fishing trips every year. I don't any more.
Why?
All of my favorite fishing haunts have been closed. West fork of Hood River - wonderful for trout. Closed. Salmonberry River: closed.
Every place where I used to be able to go and fish in solitude has been shut down by the government to "protect the salmon".
I'm a fly fisherman, using barbless hooks and generally employed catch-and-release. Sure, I'd occasionally cook a trout, but more often than not, I'd slack up the line and let them toss the hook.
Now, the choices are pretty much limited to lakes and stocked fish, or to other places where you pretty much need to pack an AK-47 in and sweep the rocks down if you have any hope for a quiet fishing experience.
Why bother?
I do think that sometimes we are discouraged from outdoor sports. The regs are so complicated that you can read them back to front every day for a month and still go out into the field with a violation.
But I'm actually in the mood to go fishing next weekend. Anyone know a good lake close to Sherwood?
The pacific?
Get over and support the effort at
IFish
http://ifish.net/
You can get a free account - and then post on the discussion boards -
besides the good useful information like helping each other to fish ... there is info on the political side of things.
Some months ago Lars had some misinfo on Ifish - due to a caller providing the poor info - so if that is all you have heard about the site, I encourage you to check it out.
Speaking of Fishing - check out the Kings for Kids Tournament = I think in May this year.
Daniel - I think it is out of season for Trout - The Tualitin River is not a bad place to fish for other species. Otherwise you might be driving a bit. Slip over to iFish - You may even wrangle a partner.
Post a Comment