By Edward Gannon, Darby
I read with some humor, JC Howell’s letter opposing the new River Regulations. He starts by stating he has fished the Bitterroot for over 20 years, yet sees no need for any “restrictions”. I can only assume he is fishing a different river, as anyone who fishes it can see the tremendous increase in the float traffic, especially on the West Fork, over the past few years. At times, it resembles “bumper boats”. As a mostly wade fisherman, I have spent many a day watching this parade go by, and waiting for the fish to come back up.
The “small group of complainers” he mentions were numerous enough, and the situation dire enough, to have FWP install these regulations. Mr. Howell states “they don’t effectively address crowding.” Well, let me give you an eyewitness report… on one section after the rule went in effect, where I would see 25-30 boats go by, I saw a total of 6. On another section, on another day, I saw 4, and that was on a Sunday! Ironically, Mr. Howell, one couple I spoke with on a restricted section stated that they used to fish the Bitterroot 20 years ago, but quit because of the crowding. They were elated with the regulations, and planned more trips to the river because of it.
What Mr. Howell fails to recognize, is that at the very least, it gives the fish a day of respite from the constant pressure of being hooked, handled, release (hopefully) over and over again. The high number of fish I catch with hook scars and other damage tells me they need it.
As for his comment of “negative impact on outfitters”, etc, he is wrong. The guides I know and talk to have simply gone to a non-restricted section of the river on that one particular day. None have indicated a decrease in business. And none have voiced a strong objection to the new regulations. In case you didn’t know it, Mr. Howell, some of the Committee that recommended these regulations to the FWP were guides and outfitters. And most of them have enjoyed the best year yet of guiding on the Bitterroot. I would venture to guess that business is still booming at area hotels, restaurants, and fly shops.
As an avid fisher of the West Fork and main stem, I strongly disagree with your unsubstantiated assumption “it makes matters worse.” The regs have made things much, much better, at least for one day a week.