If you want to get in your say about culling mountain goats in Olympic National Park, Tuesday is your best opportunity to be heard.
Olympic National Park is taking public input in Port Angeles at the park’s visitor center at 3002 Mount Angeles Road. The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
There will be a 15-minute staff presentation and then there will be an open house where staff will answer questions from the public.
The National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service are considering four options that include relocating Olympic Park goats to areas of the northern Cascades, culling mountain goats through lethal means, doing both or taking no action. For more information read here.
The population of mountain goats in the Olympics has grown an average of 8 percent annually from 2004-2016, according to the Park Service. An NPS press release states that mountain goats are not native to the Olympic Mountains and that they do create safety risks to the public (A Port Angeles man, Robert H. Boardman, was gored to death by a mountain goat in 2010.).
If you can’t comment in person, written comments will be taken by the Park Service at 600 East Park Avenue, Port Angeles WA 98362.
Ediz bites
Both the shrimp and the salmon were biting out on Ediz Hook this week. Dave Croonquist reported that he and his son-in-law brought in a nice haul, including a 26-inch and 28-inch salmon between the U.S. Coast Guard hangar and the end of the hook, on a 100-foot wire in 180 to 200 feet of water.
On the way in back to town, they pulled their shrimp pot and ended up with nearly two pounds of shrimp tails.
Elwha Restoration
If you haven’t already seen it, be sure to give a read to today’s A1 story by Jesse Major on the restoration of the salmon habitat in the Elwha River since the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams were removed in 2014. The river and the salmon fishery are making an amazing and quick comeback. In some ways, the restoration is well ahead of schedule with fish moving much farther up the river than expected by wildlife officials. Fish have been found in the upper reaches of the Elwha deep into Olympic National Park.
Abandoned Gear
Lost and abandoned fishing gear will be the main topic at the next monthly meeting of Puget Sound Anglers-North Olympic Peninsula Chapter will be held Aug. 17.
The speaker will be Jason Morgan, marine projects Manager for the Northwest Straits Foundation (NWSF). He has spent the last decade working with programs to manage and promote sustainable fisheries management and he now manages the NWSF’s Derelict Fishing Gear Program, working to eliminate harm from derelict fishing gear in Puget Sound.
The problem of lost and abandoned fishing gear in Puget Sound was identified as a priority by the Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative (NWSI) in 1999. Derelict fishing gear in Puget Sound mostly consists of gillnets and shellfish pots which continue to trap and kill marine organisms and degrade critical marine habitat.
Through an aggressive campaign of removal, research, outreach and education, the NWSI has removed more than 5,700 derelict nets and 4,800 crab pots and has restored 830 acres of marine habitat and saving thousands of marine organisms each year. Morgan will discuss the problems, challenges and solutions of dealing with derelict fishing gear in Puget Sound and what people can do to help.
The evening begins at 6:30 p.m. for viewing the raffle prizes and fish stories. A short club business meeting begins at 7 p.m. and includes fishing reports from members and the guest speaker follows. The club meets at Trinity United Methodist Church, 100 S. Blake Ave. in Sequim. Also on tap are refreshments, an always popular raffle for great fishing gear and the $50 membership drawing (which people must be present to win). The public is welcome.
Squid jigging
Ward Norden of Quilcene reports that squid jigging after dark is in full swing around the North Olympic Peninsula this week. Anglers at Port Angeles piers as well as a private dock at Discovery Bay are doing well now that the squid have fattened up considerably. There is even a report that the squid are in under the lights at Port Townsend’s boat haven.
The most interesting report last week came from the private dock on Discovery Bay. Apparently, a school of dogfish had been driving the squid up to the surface for a couple nights and squid anglers were able to use smelt nets to scoop them up instead of squid jigs.
Outdoor Recreation Plan
The state of Washington is seeking public comment on its outdoor recreation plan.
The Washington State Recreation and Conservation Funding Board wants to know what the public’s priorities are when it comes to outdoor recreation.
The board has a draft statewide recreation and conservation plan that is meant to be a guide for when staff and legislators prioritize outdoor recreation needs of Washington residents. The public can view the draft plan at www.rco.wa.gov/StateRecPlans. Comments can be submitted directly from the website or by emailing policychanges@rco.wa.gov or by mailing them to the Recreation and Conservation Office, P.O. Box 40917, Olympia, WA 98504.
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Sports Editor Pierre LaBossiere can be contacted at 360-417-3525 or plabossiere@peninsuladailynews.com.
