The PCR Dilemma

[chubbdarter]

I have never fished the Resevoir but read alot of posts.
Are the fish starving?
Are fish cropping their off spring to a zero factor?
With the consumption warnings on the fish...whats the solution?

What the solution?

[WayneChristie]

bored too eh? I dont think in any case the government would allow keepers in PCR, since they have a consumption warning for the mercury, would it not open up liability issues? Then again, you can keep pike and burbs there, and Twin Valley and they have a mercury warning as well.

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by WayneChristie

bored too eh? I dont think in any case the government would allow keepers in PCR, since they have a consumption warning for the mercury, would it not open up liability issues? Then again, you can keep pike and burbs there, and Twin Valley and they have a mercury warning as well.

If walleyes were netted and transferred to another body of water would their mercury content lessen?

[BeeGuy]

The bioassay results are available online.

Burbot have higher Hg levels than the walleye. However, there is a wide range of Hg reported for all of the assayed species, and I suspect this is due to an insufficient sample size.

All of the fish in PCR are within the range of commercially available store bought fish.

The fish are 8 years old, and average 15-17". They are lean and muscular little torpedoes.

PCR seems fine the way it is. IMO

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by BeeGuy

The bioassay results are available online.

Burbot have higher Hg levels than the walleye. However, there is a wide range of Hg reported for all of the assayed species, and I suspect this is due to an insufficient sample size.

All of the fish in PCR are within the range of commercially available store bought fish.

The fish are 8 years old, and average 15-17". They are lean and muscular little torpedoes.

PCR seems fine the way it is. IMO

So there is recruitment?

[happyfisher]

i didnt know there was a warning for merc......booooooo but if u want to catch fish guaranteed.....its the place to go.....

happy

[WayneChristie]

I really have no idea, but that would be a good solution if it did, actually why dont they net a couple million of them and ship them up to Wab, its already full of tainted fish anyways

[Daceminnow]

Originally Posted by WayneChristie

bored too eh? I dont think in any case the government would allow keepers in PCR, since they have a consumption warning for the mercury, would it not open up liability issues? Then again, you can keep pike and burbs there, and Twin Valley and they have a mercury warning as well.

lots of bodies of water in the province open to keeping your catch with merc warnings. liabilities, i don't think so wayne.

this is in the alberta regs.

http://www.albertaregulations.ca/fis...n-advisory.pdf


you want answers and solutions chub? try explaining to the kids catching as many fish as you want all day long, most days you venture out. year to year the same deal. help me answer some of these questions."daddy why are they all the same size? why aren't they growing from year to year? if there's so many, why can't we keep a couple? they're must be starving, we're catching them on everything."

Dace

[chubbdarter]

So if opened to harvest would you guys fish and chip some?

[wildman]

Thisll be calling lake in a year or two as well

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by wildman

Thisll be calling lake in a year or two as well

Wild.....explain furthur please

[slivers86]

I say keep it as it is. Its a great place for families to go, within distance of both lethbridge, calgary, okotoks, highriver and surrounding areas. You can camp overnight, catch plenty of fish from shore (for those who cannot afford a boat). I've seen plenty of happy faces when children catch fish there non-stop.

Keep it C&R, and leave it as the lone place other than a couple of ponds where a 3 yr old kid can sit on the dock, and be guaranteed he'll catch his first fish, like most of us, under a bobber with grandpa at his side

[happyfisher]

so if i go this sunday....just bring long rods?

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by slivers86

I say keep it as it is. Its a great place for families to go, within distance of both lethbridge, calgary, okotoks, highriver and surrounding areas. You can camp overnight, catch plenty of fish from shore (for those who cannot afford a boat). I've seen plenty of happy faces when children catch fish there non-stop.

Keep it C&R, and leave it as the lone place other than a couple of ponds where a 3 yr old kid can sit on the dock, and be guaranteed he'll catch his first fish, like most of us, under a bobber with grandpa at his side

Sliver...without recruitment is the lake not on a one way road to........?
A self cropping population is doom

[freeones]

Originally Posted by slivers86

I say keep it as it is. Its a great place for families to go, within distance of both lethbridge, calgary, okotoks, highriver and surrounding areas. You can camp overnight, catch plenty of fish from shore (for those who cannot afford a boat). I've seen plenty of happy faces when children catch fish there non-stop.

Keep it C&R, and leave it as the lone place other than a couple of ponds where a 3 yr old kid can sit on the dock, and be guaranteed he'll catch his first fish, like most of us, under a bobber with grandpa at his side

X2. There is no "Dilemma".

I hope people just leave well enough alone when it comes to PCR. There's no other place like it to take kids and new fisherman and introduce them to walleye fishing. The joy and passion for fishing I've seen in people, including my own kids, after a day on PCR is priceless. People get hooked on fishing by catching fish, not by spending all day on the shore or in a boat hoping to catch one or two big ones. (That comes later lol.) There are plenty of other lakes to go to if you're after trophy fish.

It's an amazing fishery, and unless it shows real signs of collapse, it should be left as is. In my opinion, it's plenty healthy, I've seen very few signs of disease or mutations (no more than any other lake I've fished a lot) after catching hundreds and hundreds of fish, and I'd say that 95%+ of them put up a good fight for their size and look very healthy. I think they'll hit just about anything, not because they're starving, but simply because competetion in the lake is fierce and you're dangling an easy meal in front of them.

Are all the fish nearly identical in size? Yeah. Is their recruitment? I don't know. I have seen some smaller fish (10-12") and I have seen some slightly bigger ones (18-20"), but they are few and far between. There are some big pike in there, and the odd hammerhandle too, so I would say the pike are self sustaining.

Regardless, I think PCR is a gem, and I would oppose any regulation changes to the lake in an attempt to "improve" it. Lots of people, myself included, have paid good money to fly into northern SK or AB to experience EXACTLY the kind of walleye fishing that PCR offers. No one is dreaming up reasons or ways to tinker with the regs on those lakes.

[WalleyeDeitz]

Originally Posted by slivers86

I say keep it as it is. Its a great place for families to go, within distance of both lethbridge, calgary, okotoks, highriver and surrounding areas. You can camp overnight, catch plenty of fish from shore (for those who cannot afford a boat). I've seen plenty of happy faces when children catch fish there non-stop.

Keep it C&R, and leave it as the lone place other than a couple of ponds where a 3 yr old kid can sit on the dock, and be guaranteed he'll catch his first fish, like most of us, under a bobber with grandpa at his side

This is well put and I agree 100%. It’s the one place I regularly take kids (and adults) in the boat that are new to fishing and know, and I mean know with 100% certainty, that we will have an amazing time fishing and the kids will be hooked for life. My 3 year old daughter caught about 20 in an hour amongst playing with everything else in the boat, all on her own, with the exception of unhooking them. My brothers 2 kids who are new to fishing together caught well over 100 fish in the same hour and spent the whole ride home gleaming about what a great day it was and now keep asking when I can take them fishing again. I must admit, sometimes I wonder if the fish are starving but I got to say, I absolutely love having this lake out the back door.

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by Daceminnow

lots of bodies of water in the province open to keeping your catch with merc warnings. liabilities, i don't think so wayne.

this is in the alberta regs.

http://www.albertaregulations.ca/fis...n-advisory.pdf


you want answers and solutions chub? try explaining to the kids catching as many fish as you want all day long, most days you venture out. year to year the same deal. help me answer some of these questions."daddy why are they all the same size? why aren't they growing from year to year? if there's so many, why can't we keep a couple? they're must be starving, we're catching them on everything."

Dace

Dace..... so just 1 year class?

[Daceminnow]

Originally Posted by chubbdarter

Dace..... so just 1 year class?

in the two seasons i've fished it, i've seen nothing to lead me to believe anything otherwise. same, same.

[Kim473]

Originally Posted by WayneChristie

bored too eh? I dont think in any case the government would allow keepers in PCR, since they have a consumption warning for the mercury, would it not open up liability issues? Then again, you can keep pike and burbs there, and Twin Valley and they have a mercury warning as well.

How many water bodies in Alberta don't have a mercury warning, 10% maybe. They sure must have done a lot of gold panning in the 1800s around here. LOL

[Crusty]

Maybe the plan is to make a monster more than trophy pike lake!!