.3L.%0Od- DOWN STREAM CREEL CENSUS OLDMAN RIVER DAM PROVINCIAL RECREATION AREA Data Prepared for Environmental Protection Natural Resources by Jeff Wainman PROJECT DURATION: July 7, 1996 TO August 30, 1996 I I I I I TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract Page 1 Acknowledgements Page 2 List of figures, tables Page 3 List of photos Page 4 Area Map - Oldman River Dam P.R.A Page 5 Table 1 - Provincial limits Page 6 Introduction, study area Page 7 Methods Page 10 Results Page 13 Census statistical forms Page 1 8 Spreadsheets Page 20 Discussion Page 33 I I I I 1 ABSTRACT A recreational use demographical creel survey was conducted on the Oldman River, downstream of the Oldman River Dam from July 12, 1996 to August 19, 1996. A total of 254 anglers were surveyed. Alberta residents accounted for 95% of anglers surveyed of which 74% were local residents (Albertans residing within 100 km), 21% were non-local residents (Albertans residing farther than 100 km) and 5% were non-provincial. Males accounted for 83% of the anglers surveyed, and approximately 69% were licenced sport anglers (16 to 64 years old). Of 236 rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) caught by anglers, 18 were harvested which ranged from 27cm - 49cm in nose to fork length (average 36.7 cm), weighed from 275g - 1 150g (average 574g), and ranged from 15.5cm - 25cm in girth (average 19.4cm). A pair of osprey (Pandion haliaetus) was frequently observed along the stretch of the Oldman River between Cottonwood campground and the Summerview bridge, which is a good barometer of a healthy fishery. Page 1 I I I I ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author would like to extend sincere thanks to the following parties involved in providing the opportunity to conduct this study. The Oldman Monitoring Committee for funding the study and making it possible. Martin Paetz, Ranger in Charge, Oldman River Dam Provincial Recreation Area, for providing accommodations closely situated to the study area in Cottonwood Campground, and equipment required to conduct the study. Thanks is also extended to the staff of the Oldman River Dam Provincial Recreation Area and the Oldman Reservoir Office for providing assistance with orientation to the study area, for the use of reference materials and word processing equipment. Page 2 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/downstreamcreelcOOwain LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 . Location of study area LIST OF TABLES Table 1 . 1 996 Sportfishing Regulations for the Oldman River within the study LIST OF PHOTOS 1 . WBR access road 2. EBR access road 3. CBL 4. Cottonwood Campground 5. CDU 6. ORP 7. NE shore of Summerview Bridge 8. SE shore of Summerview Bridge 9. NE and SE shore of 6th Avenue bridge in Fort Macleod 10. NW shore of Monarch bridge Page 4 Photo 1. WRB access road Photo 2. EBR access road I I I I Photo Cottonwood Campground I Photo 5. CDU Photo h. ORP I I Photo Phot Table 1 . 1996 Sportfishing Regulations for the Oldman River within the study area (adapted from Alberta Guide to Sportfishing, 1996) Province Wide Limits • 5 trout and Arctic grayling combined, of which none may be Bull trout (Dolly Varden) • 10 Mountain whitefish • 3 Walleye and sauger combined 10 Northern Pike lOGoldeye Fish Management Area 1 NOTE: Province-wide sportfishing regulations apply, with the following exceptions: • Waters are open to fishing all year. • 1 1 Bull trout (Dolly Varden) must be released. If no black, put it back (dorsal fin). • Walleye and Sauger combined limit is 3. All walleye populations in FMA1 are classified as Vulnerable (minimum size 50 cm.) All walleye shorter than 50 cm. in total length must be released. • Bait Fish - the use of bait fish and the collection of bait fish are allowed. • Exempt from Bait Ban. Fish Management Area 2 NOTE: Province- wide sportfishing regulations apply, with the following exceptions: • 1 1 Bull Trout (Dolly Varden) must be released. If no black, put it back (dorsal fin). • All Rainbow and Cutthroat Trout shorter than 25 cm. In length taken from any flowing waters, except from portions of the Crowsnest River must be released.. • Walleye and Sauger combined limit is 3. All walleye populations in FMA2 are classified as Vulnerable (minimum size 50 cm.). All walleye shorter than 50 cm in total length must be released. • Bait fish - the use of bait fish and the collection of bait fish are prohibited in all waters. • The portion between the Oldman Reservoir and the first bridge down stream located in SE1 6-7-29- W4, open all year: bait ban. Page 6 INTRODUCTION From what I was able to ascertain, a previous creel survey has not been conducted on the Oldman River downstream of the Oldman River Dam. This study began with orientation to the study area to determine access points used by anglers. 2. STUDY AREA The study area consisted of the Oldman River from the Oldman River Dam approximately 10 kilometers north east of the town of Pincher Creek, downstream to the Highway #3 bridge over the Oldman River approximately 4 kilometers south west of the town of Monarch (Figure 1). The stretch of the Oldman River which flows through the Peigan First Nation Reservation was not studied in this survey. The study area was broken down into different reaches of the river which included: • Oldman River Dam to the first bridge down stream which this report will refer to as the Cottonwood bridge. • Cottonwood bridge to the east boundary of the Cottonwood Campground, which for the purposes of this study was considered the Day Use Area, which this report will refer to as the Cottonwood Day Use. Page 7 • East boundary of the Cottonwood Campground to the Summerview bridge which is the next bridge downstream of the Cottonwood bridge. • Summerview bridge to the west boundary of the Peigan First Nation Reservation. • East boundary of the Peigan First Nation Reservation to Highway #2. • Highway # 2 to the east boundary of the town of Fort Macleod, which for the purposes of the study was considered the Girl Guide Camp. • East boundary of Fort Macleod to the Highway #3 bridge over the Oldman River approximately 4 kilometers south west of the town of Monarch, which this report will refer to as the Monarch bridge. Eleven access sites to the river used by anglers were identified. Of these eight sites, six were within the Oldman River Dam PRA. These sites included: • West Boulder Run, where anglers parked their vehicles and walked to the river (Photo 1). • East Boulder Run, where anglers parked their vehicles and walked to the river (Photo 2). • Cottonwood Boat Launch, where anglers launched boats and parked vehicles (Photo 3). • Cottonwood Campground. Some anglers were camping overnight and walked to the river from their campsite, others parked in the campground while angling but did not stay overnight (Photo 4). • Cottonwood Day Use, where anglers parked their vehicles and walked to the river (Photo 5). Page 8 I 1 I • Oldman River Park. Some anglers were camping overnight and walked to the river from their campsite, others parked in the campground while angling but did not stay overnight (Photo 6). The five access points surveyed which were not within the Oldman River PRA included: • NE shore of Summerview bridge. A gravel access road allows anglers to park their vehicles next to the shore (Photo 7) .• SE shore of Summerview bridge. A gravel access road allows anglers to park their vehicles next to the shore. (Photo 8) • NE shore of 6th Avenue bridge in Fort Macleod. A gravel access road to a Girl Guide Camp provides anglers access to park their vehicles next to the shore (Photo 9). • SE shore of 6th Avenue bridge in Fort Macleod. A gravel access road allows anglers to park their vehicles next to the shore (Photo 9). • NW shore of Monarch bridge. A gravel access road allows anglers to park their vehicles next to the shore (Photo 10). The west shore is used by anglers to a maximum of approximately 50 meters up or down stream of the bridge. There is no vehicle access to the east shore nor evidence of angler use along it. The only public access points to the Oldman River discovered within the study area located outside the Oldman River Dam PRA are the Summerview bridge, within the town of Fort Macleod where the Oldman River passes through, and the Highway #3 bridge approximately 4 km west of the town of Monarch. Page 9 The study area lies within two Fish Management Areas which are FMA1 and FMA2 (Alberta Guide to Sportfishing, 1996). For the Oldman River, the boundary for FMA1 and FMA2 is Highway #2. FMA1 - includes the Oldman River within the study area between Highway #2 and the Monarch bridge. FMA2 - includes the Oldman River within the study area between the Oldman River Dam and Highway 2. A summary of the 1996 Sportfishing Regulations pertaining to the Oldman River within the study area is listed in Table 1 • The portion between the Oldman Reservoir and the first bridge down stream located in SE16-7-29-W4, open all year; Bait Ban 3. METHODS Upon orientation with the study area, a random roaming approach was best suited to the study considering the factors that only one person would be collecting field data, and the study area is very large. Direction was given to focus the field survey within the Oldman River Dam PRA and conduct random periodic surveys within the rest of the study area. A random periodic survey was conducted from the east boundary of the Peigan First Nation Reservation to the Monarch bridge one week day and one weekend day per week. Page 10 Since more angling occurred in the evening and on weekend days, an attempt was made to spend as much of that time as possible conducting surveys. Considering the purpose of a recreational use demographical creel survey and the expected activity within the study area, a field survey form was created to include the following data: • The date, to provide demographics as to angling pressure based on day of the week. • The time of day, to provide demographics as to the times of day that angling pressure is high and low. • The weather conditions, to provide the effects of weather on the angling pressure and success of anglers. • The river conditions (water turbidity, temperature, and flow rate), to provide the effects of river conditions on angling success. • The reach of the river within the study area, to provide demographics as to areas with low and high angling pressure. • Access point anglers use, to provide input for management planning of the Oldman River Dam PRA. • The type of angling equipment being used, to provide demographics as to the user groups of the Oldman River fishery. • The residence of the angler, to provide demographics as to the proximity of the users of the Oldman River fishery within the study area. • Whether the angler was staying overnight in the Oldman River Dam PRA or only day using, to provide input for management planning of the Oldman River Dam PRA. Page 1 1 If the angler was staying overnight in the Oldman River Dam PRA, which campground was being used, to provide input for management planning of the Oldman River Dam PRA. Whether the angler was angling from shore, wading in the river wearing angling waders, or using a boat; to provide demographics as to the user groups of the Oldman River fishery. Another consideration in collecting this data was the probable threat of the spread of whirling disease (Mvxobolus cerebralis) into the Oldman River from the United States through contaminated angler equipment. Whether the angler was alone or with other anglers, to provide demographics as to the user groups of the Oldman River fishery. The number of hours spent angling to use in calculating statististics on angling pressure (catch per unit effort) Number of fish caught (including released fish) and the number of fish kept, to provide demographics as to the angler harvest pressure. To simply provide data on angler awareness / understanding of the sportfishing regulations within the study area. Frequency of angling within the study area, to provide demographics as to the angling pressure. Angler harvest practices, to provide demographics as to the angling pressure within the study area. Page 12 Data on the fish kept by anglers including: species, fork length, weight, girth, and scale sample. Data was only collected on Rainbow Trout based on direction received that data was not necessary for Mountain Whitefish and Goldeye which were the only other species anglers possessed. Incidentally, most Mountain Whitefish harvested were "gutted" immediately and the only data which would have been meaningful would have been a fork length. Unless fish were kept by anglers, measurement statistics and scale samples were not obtained. • Gender of the angler, to provide demographics as to the user groups. • Age group of the angler, to provide demographics as to the user groups. The age groups used included youth (less than 16 years old), adult (16-64 years old), and senior (65 years old or older) since these are the age groupings in the Sportfishing Regulations pertaining to sportfishing licence requirements. All persons except youths under 16 years old and Alberta residents 65 years and older sportfishing in Alberta are required to hold a sportfishing licence (Alberta Guide to Sportfishing, 1996). 4. RESULTS It was determined through angler surveys and two days spent assisting with an electro-fishing project to transport Bull Trout (Salvelinus confluentus) to suitable spawning habitat that the sportfish present in the Oldman River within the study area comprised of the following species: Page 13 • Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mvkiss) • Mountain Whiteflsh (Prosopium williamsoni) • Brown Trout (Salmo trutta) • Bull Trout (Salvelinus confluentus) • Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus clarki) • Northern Pike (Esox lucius) • Goldeye (Hiodon alosoides) Other non-sportfish recorded included the following species: • Burbot (Lota lota) • Longnose sucker (Catastomus catastomus) • White Sucker (Catastomus commersoni) All anglers staying overnight in the proximity of Cottonwood Campground stay in Cottonwood Campground or Chinook R.V. Park. Those staying overnight in the proximity of Oldman River Park stay at Oldman River Park. None of the anglers interviewed were staying overnight in any of the other camping areas within the Oldman River Dam PRA such as Island View. Many anglers staying overnight in the PRA fish periodically throughout the day. Weekend days and evenings were the busiest times, however, this is not reflected in the number of surveys conducted each day since all potential anglers could not be surveyed during busy periods. Page 14 Most anglers are aware of the sportfishing regulations pertaining to Bull Trout. Many who catch and release are only moderately aware of the sportfishing regulations, claiming that if you do not fish with bait and you release all the fish you catch you do not need to concern yourself with sportfishing regulations. Few anglers are confident they are aware of all sportfishing regulations pertaining to the area they are in. Many anglers have a perception that the sportfishing regulations are complicated and intimidating so they do not read the guide. They are, however, very receptive to having someone go over them with them since most anglers want to comply with the regulations and are supportive of regulations to protect the fishery. Some commented that they would like to see the limit on Rainbow Trout reduced from five to two, as a proactive step to assure a sustainable fishery as angling pressure increases. There is a misconception by some that the Rainbow Trout population in the Oldman River is enhanced. Some anglers release fish they believe are from wild populations but will keep fish that are enhanced "put and take" fishery. Flood damage reclamation projects took place during the study period which increased the turbidity of the water and deterred anglers. Following is a list of these projects as observed: • Monday, July 29 heavy equipment (excavators, loaders) was observed in the Oldman river down stream of the 6th Avenue bridge in Fort Macleod. This work continued through duration of study period. • Friday, August 16 observed, heavy equipment is also in the Oldman river up stream of the 6th Avenue bridge in Fort Macleod. Page 15 • Monday, August 1 2 heavy equipment was observed in the Oldman river between the Oldman Dam and the Cottonwood bridge for Boulder Run reclamation repairs. This work continued through duration of study period. Previous to today muddy water must be from work in the Crowsnest and Castle Rivers and heavy winds last week. Sunday, August 1 8 noticed signs erected at East Boulder Run stating , "NO PARKING" and "NO UNAUTHORIZED VEHICLES BEYOND THIS POINT". Monday, August 12 observed heavy equipment in Castle River just downstream of Cowley-Lundbreck Rodeo Grounds and in Crowsnest River downstream of Lundbreck Falls approximately 2 km upstream of Todd Creek Day Use Area. The consultant overseeing the work advised they are just finishing the repairs to fisheries habitat enhancement structures in the Crowsnest and Castle Rivers damaged by the flood of June 1995. They worked August 1, 2, and 6 to 10 inclusive. He advised he would be surprised if their work was having much impact on the turbidity of the Oldman River downstream of the Dam. They are next going to place the boulder piled on Leroy Oberton's property just upstream of the Summerview bridge, and that is all for this season. He doesn't know about Boulder Run work and Fort Macleod work. • Heavy equipment was also observed in the Oldman river just downstream of Cottonwood bridge the week of August 12. This work was done to replace an irrigation pump which had been lost in the flood of June 1995. Rainbow trout is the most abundant sportfish in the stretch of the Oldman River from the Oldman River Dam downstream to the west boundary of the Peigan First Nation Reservation, and is the most sought after species by anglers. Page 16 The second most abundant species is the Mountain Whitefish which some anglers specifically angle for. Other species caught and observed during electro-fishing in this stretch of the river include Bull Trout, Brown Trout, Northern Pike, Cutthroat Trout, Burbot, Longnose Sucker, and White Sucker. Based on fish caught by anglers downstream of the east boundary of the Peigan First Nation Reservation, the most abundant sportfish is the Brown Trout, which has been enhanced in the proximity of the ORP. Other species caught by anglers in this stretch of the river include Rainbow Trout and Goldeye. Other species probably present in the stretch of the river include Mountain Whitefish, Bull Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Northern Pike, Burbot, Longnose Sucker, and White Sucker. The study area is situated in a section which receives heavy winds periodically and deters anglers. Some anglers commented that there is inadequate access to the Oldman River outside the Oldman River PRA. No public access to the Oldman River was discovered between Fort Macleod and Monarch bridge. Some anglers expressed concern about the spread of whirling disease into the Oldman river which could potentially destroy the fishery. Angling is subject to so many variables: - angler skill level, weather and time of day Page 17 Oldman River Dam Provincial Recreation Area Down Stream Creel Census Date Weather Temperature. Interview Time: Start. Finish Water Temperature. - Sunny (3 - Partly Cloudy □ - Windy □ - Light Wind Flow Rate - Clearing □ - Cloudy □ - Calm River Conditions D - Muddy O - Clearing O - Clear O - Dam to Bridge O - Bridge to Cottonwood E. D - Cottonwood E. to Summerview O - Summerview to Reserve O - Reserve to Highway 2 D - Highway 2 to Fort MacLeod O - Fort MacLeod to Monarch ******* ***************** ************* Access Point Fishing equipment O - Fly fishing gear C3 - Spinning fishing gear □ - Fly □ - Bait □ - Lure LJ - Staying Overnight in PRA Which campground? Residence □ - Alberta Resident/Day Use Residence? d - Non-Alberta Resident/Day Use Residence? O - Fishing from shore O - Wading O - Boat O - Fishing Alone O - Fishing with others. Number in group. Number of hours fished Hours fished. NUMBER OF FISH CAUGHT (including released fish) JNBOW TROUT BROWN TROUT BULL TROUT MOUNTAIN WHITEFISH OTHER (SPECIFY) NUMBER OF FISH KEPT 4BOW TROUT BROWN TROUT BULL TROUT MOUNTAIN WHITEFISH OTHER (SPECIFY) Anglers estimate of length of fish released, Anaiers estimate of weight of fish released Aware of/understand fishing reas in area CJ - Definitely 01 - Moderately - Not at ail Fish the Oldman River O - Frequently O - Occasionally CJ - First Time Harvest Practices - Strictiv Catch and Release - Keeo One or Two C3 - KeeD Limit Anaiers Comments: Page 18 I I I I I Fish Statistics SPECIES FORK LENGTH (cm) WEIGHT (kg) GIRTH (cm) SCALE SAMPLE NUMBER KEPT RELEASED 1 ~ Interviewers Comments/Observations :. □ - Male □ - Female □ - Child □ - Adult □ - Senior 6 £ ill olS I I 2 2 to wl ZIZlZlZ DIDlDlD (OltOltOltO DiDlOiQ coicois 2 : z z:z ziz — — i— ii- h ih- i»- 1 IO OIO OlOlff Iff Iff < <l i i IN |<0|(0 rrH"*" I i OJ I CM I CM I i I I II I i 1 ! M I I I I I ill III I ! 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