My family's ranch is a 30 minute drive to the headwater tribs of the Elk. I've only fished the BC side once. Never had the urge to go over there and deal with the crowds on the Elk. I am not upset about how much more expensive it will be... Except for one thing.

High prices in eastern BC mean more pressure on the mis-managed, cheap, easy accessible fishing in South East Alberta. Alberta only has 400 fishable waterbodies!! This will mean more people hoppin' my fences, more garbage, more drift boats, etc. Even BC guides will be bringing over more clients.

I don't care about all those that have enough money to have a cabin/summer home in BC (Vancouver got rated as the 3rd best City in the world to live in)... they (people from Alberta with BC homes) have the money to fish elswhere, I'm sure. SE BC has survived booms and busts in the resource industry since the turn of the century, this is nothing like a mine getting shut down. And they have all those great ski hills, and skidoo trails for tourism in the winter anyways. They won't lose too much $.

What about us poor folk that can't afford to go anywhere else to fish? What happens when all the displaced anglers come our way?


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Paul H.

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"A dry fly on the rise is the beauty mark of a lovely river."