2020/04/09

Outdoor Foraging

My last post talked about the current mania over COVID19. At the end, I mentioned the possibility of my going out to hunt and harvest wild game. Squirrels, rabbits and the like.

I read an article from MeatEater about how outdoor folk are a bit better prepared to weather isolation from society. It talked about how they can, and do, stock up on wild forage. Not just meats, but plant based stuff like mushrooms, fiddle-heads, etc.

What got me thinking was fishing. Even as I plan my video excursions for my Youtube channel, "Fishing Ottawa with Greybeard", and this self-isolate brouhaha going on, I think back to times I fished Deschenes Lookout along the Western Parkway (now called the Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway).

I remember seeing families fishing there. Mom, pop, 3 or 4 or more kids... all fishing and  keeping every damned fish they caught. From 4" sunfish or channel catfish to out of season musky, they kept it all. Not only that, but bugged other fisher-folk for their catches. It makes me think that local fisheries are going to very hard hit from people who may try to take advantage of a slow to renew resource.

Me, I still plan to do my spring catfish trips, as I do almost every year. For meat, not for fun. I never catch & keep more than the law allows (12 channel cats max, either on hand and/or in the freezer). It allows me enough protein to last a year. 

But, when I think back to those dimwits intentionally over-culling fish during plentiful times, well... I certainly hope that MNR officers will be out & about in the coming weeks to help protect this fishing resource from excessive human predation. I hope...

Keep The Faith*

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