Egg Collection 2014

Page Updated: April 22, 2014

2014 egg collection efforts started at 8am this morning. As the egg collection program, I will record the numbers I am given from Grant McAlpine to this post.

Please note: Egg collection is dependent on water clarity, temperature, weather and water flow conditions. We will be posting egg collection notices on our Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Next Scheduled Lift

Next lift is unknown. The rising water conditions will be evaluated tomorrow morning.

Tuesday – April 22, 2014

  • Morning: 301 Steelhead Trout Lifted
  • Afternoon: 234 Steelhead Trout Lifted

Eggs Collected: 46.5k (morning) + 30k (afternoon) eggs for Wiarton Club Trout. Steelhead sperm was collected as well.

Three tankers were trucked and released fish upriver on the Saugeen River both morning and afternoon. Each tank held over 40 steelhead rainbow trout.

Monday – April 21, 2014

  • Morning Test Lift: 391 trout released via tube above Dennys Dam.

Gear Swap Coming Soon

Steelhead Trout Gear Swap Should you have some old fishing equipment just lying around and wish to sell it, we have decided to open a gear swap section on the website. We will provide a place for you to list and sell your used fishing tackle, fishing rods, fly reels, float reels, neoprene and breathable waders, camping gear and more. This new section will allow you to list your equipment but you will be responsible will working directly with the interested party to meet at a location (or on the river) and complete your transaction.

We are looking to release this enhancement on the website in May 2014. More on the upcoming release of the gear swap section on the website coming soon.

Notice of Election

Election on Sun. June 8, 2014 at AGM Meeting

Attached, you will find a list of leadership positions within our organization as well as a brief description of the roles and responsibilities involved. Each position is in bold type and marked with an asterisk. Any member can either self-nominate, or be nominated by another member for any of the listed positions. Nominations MUST be submitted by May 16, 2014. No nominations will be considered after this date. Please send all nominations by mail to the P.O. Box listed above or E-mail them to: contact@steelheaders.ca

Candidates & nominees will have the opportunity to represent themselves or may be represented in absentia, by an OS member at the election ceremony. Voters will have the opportunity to vote in advance polls by mail or by E-mail prior to the election date as well as in-person during the AGM on June 8, 2014 between the hours of 1:00 – 2:00 PM.

To be eligible to vote, you MUST be a member in good standing with dues paid in full. The majority of the membership cards expire in May of 2014. Only one vote per person and any family memberships are only permitted one vote as a whole. All results will be verified by a team of members for authenticity.

Join the team!

Please note that your commitment will involve traveling in order to attend BOD meetings. The bank account and PO Box will remain in Brantford and as such if you are planning on running for the position of Secretary/Treasurer you will have to make yourself available to access the bank and PO Box. As a collective BOD we are required to make decisions that affect all of our projects in a democratic way. Computer literacy is a definite asset. 

Positions Available for Nominations


PRESIDENT

  • Principal Spokesperson & Public Representative of the Ontario Steelheaders, and its members.
  • Oversee all executives and volunteers within the organization.
  • Meet with board of directors and other executives to determine if club is in accordance with goals and policies.
  • Oversee budgets.
  • Oversee election of board members.
  • Directs the clubs financial goals, objectives and budgets.
  • Implement the clubs guidelines on a day-to-day basis.
  • Develop and implement strategies and set the overall direction of a certain area of the club.
  • Oversee the investment of funds and manage associated risks, supervise cash management activities and acquisitions.
  • Provide visionary and strategic leadership for the organization.
  • Collaborate with the board of directors to develop the policies and direction of the organization.
  • Ensure members of the Board of Directors have the information necessary to perform their fiduciary duties and other governance responsibilities.
  • Develop and maintain relationships with other associations and government officials that are in the best interest of the club.
  • Provide adequate and timely information to the Board to enable it to effectively execute its oversight role.

Karl Redin standing President will be running in this election for this position.



MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR

Main person responsible for membership administration and promotion. Keeps an accurate and up to date membership roster and distributes to BOD. Maintains a log of volunteers and organizes groups on an as needed basis. Required to administer our Face Book site. Required to administer our website any inquiries from the public. Receives all communications from membership inquiries from the website and responds in a timely fashion. Sends out notices to membership as needed. Administers the PayPal site. Computer literacy is a definite asset.

Madeline Walker standing Membership Director will be running in this election for this position.



MERCHANDISE DIRECTOR

Chief person responsible for ordering, selling and creating club branded merchandise. This requires contact with various suppliers to order merchandise. Must be capable of keeping accurate records. Computer skills a definite asset, as we will be launching an on-line store. Carlo Baldassarra standing Merchandise Director will be running in this election for this position.



SECRETARY-TREASURER

Chief administrator and finance controller for club operations. Reports finances to membership and organizes permits, services, supplies, merchandise etc… Maintains minutes for meetings and prepares agenda for such. Is required to access the bank account and PO Box in order to pay any bills.

Harold Curtis standing Secretary/Treasurer will not be running in this election for this position.



FUNDRAISING DIRECTOR

Main person responsible to oversee, supervise, promote and report fundraising activities. Is responsible for obtaining sponsorship from community at large – Decal program, etc.

Don Power standing Fundraising Director will not be running in this election for this position.



Other Positions

Please note that the positions of Derby Chairperson/Social Events Coordinator and that of the News and Media Director are NOT up for nomination as these positions were just recently appointed.


*** Please direct questions, comments or concerns regarding this memo to the P.O Box on the front page or e-mail: contact@steelheaders.ca

Notice of AGM 2014

Our first AGM will be held on Sunday, June 8, 2014 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Cambridge. Address is 333 Speedsville Road, Cambridge, ON N3H 5A9. The AGM is scheduled to start at 10:00 AM.

This is RSVP only and anyone planning on attending MUST reply by May 16, 2014. We are making arrangements for lunch and as such require a head count and no RSVP’s will be accepted after this date. Please send all RSVP’s by mail to the P.O. Box listed above or E-mail them to: contact@steelheaders.ca

The day’s events are as follows:

10:00 am to 12:00 noon – we have two guest speakers, Jodi Scheifly from the MNR and the second, to be announced but topic is Steelheading in the Grand. Both presenters will offer a brief opportunity for questions.

12:00 noon – 1:00 PM – Lunch will be available. Additionally during this time we will be hosting a swap meet/sale. If anyone has any fishing related equipment ONLY can either bring to AGM in hopes of swapping or may donate to Ontario Steelheaders, where we will have a table up for display of goods for sale. Anyone interested in donating items for sale of have items that they are interested in potentially swapping must notify us by May 16, 2014 so that preparations can be made in advance of the AGM.

1:00 – 2:00 PM – voting will take place for the positions available.

2:00 – 4:00 PM – BOD will make any necessary announcements and then the floor is open to the general membership for Q&A.

Don Power our Fundraising Director will be hosting a raffle for a $100.00 gift certificate from the LCBO. Tickets will be sold 3 (three) for $5.00. Additionally, Ontario Steelheader merchandise will be available for sale.

4:00 PM – cash bar will open. WE ASK THAT EVERYONE DRINK RESPONSIBLY AND ARRANGE FOR A DESIGNATED DRIVER.

Please note that memberships WILL NOT be sold during the AGM but application forms will be available as a take away.

The BOD as gone to great lengths to organize the AGM; however, as this is our first AGM, we are anticipating a few hiccups, please be patient and respectful. We are hoping to see as many of you there and look forward to a successful AGM.

*** Please direct questions, comments or concerns regarding this memo to the P.O Box on the front page or e-mail: contact@steelheaders.ca

Presidents Report Spring 2014

Well folks it’s that time of year again were I have to bring you all up to speed on the affairs of your Ontario Steelheaders. Where to begin lots has happened since we last talked.

The fall transfer went well but it cost me a case of beer to Mr. Choronzey as we had a side bet that we would or wouldn’t get our 500 adults transferred my side was that we would and his was that we wouldn’t as mother nature was closing in on us. He must have a hand on her pulse as the weather shut us down and we fell short by twenty some odd fish but hey the way I look at it some is better than none and Grant McAlpine and his crew did a great job as usual so I don’t mind losing to Mr. C. We also did a stocking of advanced fall fingerlings which is an added bonus as we’ve only done this once before in 2012 when the LHFC had another banner crop of little guys and so we had to lehttp://www.steelheaders.ca/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=paget some go early to make room in the hatchery.

Speaking of the weather are you all as tired of this winter as I am my back still aches when I see snow flakes. It certainly has been a brutal winter for snow and cold but it is Canada and we all will get through it. If your and ice fisherman or snowmobiler you sure had a awesome winter for it. The down side of all of this is if we get a quick thaw we could be facing some bad flooding in numerous places and this could delay our time spent this spring chasing our favorite fish.

The club has all it’s paper work in order for the spring transfer of adults and now we sit and wait for the weather to break, we have three transfer tankers now so as long as we have tow vehicles available we should this year finish in record time. We will again be doing the transfer of our yearlings from LHFC hatchery. The little guys were all clipped back in February so they are eating and growing waiting for their new home in Saugeen later this spring.

Clipping this year thanks to a big turn out of OS and LHFC members set a record number of little guys clipped in one day at just over twenty thousand great job guys well done.

The newsletter is later than usual for this we apologize but as the OS is a volunteer group life sometime gets in the way and things don’t go as planned. The group has had a number of personnel health and other issues so we are moving as best as we can and there will be a newsletter in a new and improved format. We are still working towards our Not For Profit status and also planning to have an AGM later this year, we will keep you informed as things progress so we ask for your patience and understanding.

The website as you all may or may not have seen looks and works great and is continuing to evolve for the better so visit it often and enjoy the labour of love from our web guy, Scott Kidwell. Thanks Scott, job well done.

Thirty five years ago the OS started with it’s upwelling boxes on the Beatty Saugeen and have been working on this system ever since. That is a long time and things have continued to move forward like the fixing of Walkerton the addition of the fishway at Maple hill and soon another at Maple hill, other projects are in the works but are still in the planning stages so stay tuned for these will be very exciting if all comes together.

Thank you to all the people and MNR staff who over the years gave of themselves to the improvement of our beloved Saugeen and continue to do so without these selfless individuals we wouldn’t be were we are today so keep up the hard work and thank you again.

Due to all this hard work our efforts this year came to the for front as the OS and LHFC jointly were recognized by the Canadian Fishing Hall of Fame as the Conservation Project of the Year a real feather in the hat of both organizations. The presentation took place at the Spring Boat and Fishing show with all the top people in the fishing world being present. Darryl Choronzey made a very heartfelt presentation to both groups of course with a few jabs during the presentation at his peers re various issues but we also have to thank him as we all know he’s worked just as hard to help the Saugeen get to were it is just like the OS and LHFC. Along with a beautiful plaque the group received a donation of One Thousand dollars of which the OS portion was donated to LHFC to assist in the cost of feeding our little guys. We hope to have the plaque on display in Steelheader Park at the bulletin board so come take a look.

Have a safe and great rest of 2014 and we’ll be in touch sometime later this fall but keep looking at the Website as things will be posted as they happen.

Best Regards,
Karl H. Redin
President

Spring 2014 Denny’s Dam Park Update

Saugeen River Park Damage Saugeen River Park Damage

After a long winter, we are all eager to begin enjoying the park amenities and spending time fishing the river for fresh steelhead.

Once the flood waters recede, we will begin pulling in trailers to the park as they are accessible; there is quite a bit of snow still in the farm field.

I must once again remind everyone to follow the park rules especially late night noise. It is part of our contract with the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority that we must control excessive noise at all times.

This year, we have another series of events going on at the park. Some of them include spring trout opener, spring derby, Canada Day party, fall derby and more. Stay tuned to our website for updates on events held at the park. You can find a map and more info about the park on our website: http://steelheaders.ca/dennys-dam-park

I have to bite my tongue and report to you all, that in January of this winter, an unauthorized driver of a motor vehicle equipped with a snow plow had blazed a trail from the turnaround into the park right up to the end by the fire pit. This act of stupidity and laziness will cost the club thousands of dollars to repair. Once the way was cleared, others followed as it is easier to drive to the river than park up top and walk to the park.

But as you can see in the picture, one person was not so lucky – right up to the axles – what was the cost to get the car towed out?

As a result of these actions caused by a few, we are now creating a plan to install a steel main gate at the turnaround thus preventing this from happening again. The gate will be closed at the end of November of each year and only reopened at the discretion of the park manager!

Dave Munro
Park Manager

Ontario Steelheaders Saves the Day

In 2013, Ontario Steelheaders came to the rescue when approximately 35k fish measuring 2-3 inches were scheduled to be killed as the hatchery operation had no room for them and were overstocked.

LHFC Hatchery Tank Pics 004

To save these little guys, the Ontario Steelheaders paid $1,500 to the Lake Huron Fishing Club trout hatchery for these fish and then we took it upon ourselves to transport and stock the fish into the upper headwaters of the Saugeen River. Each year, the trout hatchery can typically only house 60k steelhead yearlings and this year in particular, there was an abundant overstock. Why? The primary reason for the overstock numbers was due to a great hatch rate and less dead eggs/fry ratio. This is great news for the ecosystem and natural reproduction.

Thanks to all of our directors, members and supporters. We have created a club that can step in and take action when needed. This action is a result of our supporters. We turned a negative situation into a positive result and these fish wouldn’t have survived without the support from each and every one of you!