I have taken some heat for my discussion of Crab Creek today and want to point out a couple of things.
First of all, we have discussed Crab Creek on the list several times in the last two years without an uproar. I am not sure what the problem is today. Second, when it comes to discussing fishing destinations on a public forum, I always use the public information factor. That is, I use the guideline that if I can call a local fly shop and get detailed information about a body of water, pick up an issue of Fishing and Hunting News and read tips on how to fish it or read about it in the fishing reports in the newspaper then it certainly is not a secret and deserves public discussion. Crab Creek appears in Fishing and Hunting News on a regular basis, as do reports about the public access section in question. Our local fishing reporter usually mentions it several times a year and any fly shop in Spokane can give you detailed information, maps, hot patterns etc to get you going. I know of at least two that have the creek listed on their fishing boards in the front of the store. There are plenty of places I don't share with people on this list because they don't meet the above criteria. My final point is that most of you know I grew up in Okanogan County. From about the mid 80's on, outside outfitters and hunting and fishing clubs took advantage of the poor economy of the area and bought off the private land owners along the prime creek fishing and hunting regions. As a result, you can't access these places without paying membership in these clubs even if you have known the rancher your whole life. It is an exclusive contract. This is what is essentially starting to happen to Crab Creek. The only way to minimize this is for MORE fly fisherman to go knocking on doors and show the land owners the value of allowing public access. Some land owners will still sell out but many more will not grant exclusive club rights once they understand the value of the fishing in the creek and the public interest in it. If they don't know we as fisherman are interested in the creek then they may not understand what granting exclusive access will do to the common guy trying to enjoy a day fly fishing. Being aware of the attributes and the negatives of our public waters can only help better the fishing in the long run. You may have never heard of Crab Creek in your life but today you learned that it has some big fish, public access is getting harder to come by and that the regulations currently in place don't encourage a long term, quality fishery. Next time the DFW asks for public input for rule changes, you now know a bit about the creek to maybe suggest a C&R section or a 1 fish limit be put in place. In my opinion, that is a positive contribution and is what this list is designed for. Mike Wilson Spangle, WA
