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VOLUME 25 NO. 7 September 2006
THE NEXT GENERAL MEETING, REMEMBER THE DATE, THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 14 TH , 7:30 PM, AT THE CLUB HOUSE, LINCOLN PARK ROAD, IN THE TOWNSHIP OF GEORGIAN BLUFFS. NOTE THE CHANGE IN MEETING DATE!! The speaker for the September general meeting will be Lloyd Mohr, a Biologist and Assistant Team Leader Assessment Unit with the Upper Great Lakes Fisheries Unit of the MNR. Lloyd will speak about the Predator/Prey issues in Lake Huron. Plan to attend and get up to date with the issues surrounding this important subject. DATES TO REMEMBER!! Social Committee Please mark your Calendar The SSA Social Committee Chair, Carol Barfoot has advised of the following dates for 2006. Thursday December 7, 2006 Wild Game Nibble Night Further details relating to each of these events will be provided in future newsletters. Carol Barfoot, Chairperson S S A Awards Reminder This is a reminder from your Awards Committee that we still need fish entries for 2006. If you are fishing in the Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular, we are planning to set up a table with awards applications right across from the Weigh in Station. After you weigh in your fish, you can complete an application for the S S A Awards program. (This is only open to S S A members.) Also the deer hunting season is just around the corner. We will put Best Buck applications at Watson ’ s Tackle House in time for the Archery Season, which begins on October 1. Again the award is only open to S S A members hunting in Grey and Bruce Counties. Take your rack into Drew and he will score it for you. Your awards committee is quite willing to do the work, but we need your fish and deer in order to rejuvenate the Awards Program. PLEASE HELP!!! John Ford, Jack Doherty, Brian Clements SSA Clubhouse issues It has been recently brought to the attention of the SSA Board of Directors that there are a number of use issues to be clarified with members using the clubhouse facilities. The back kitchen door and the basement entrance door, under the deck, have locking mechanisms that operate differently than other clubhouse entrance/exit doors. Persons entering these doors from the outside with a key must relock the exterior side of the door when departing the building or not exiting the building through this door. Once the door is unlocked with a key it will remain unlocked until relocked again by the appropriate key. Please, do not attempt to force entry through either of these doors as the locking mechanism is quite expensive to repair, if the door is locked and you don’t have the specific key either go to a door for which you have a key or find a member of the club with the appropriate key. It is believed an attempt at forced entry was made on the back kitchen door recently as the door handle has been almost ripped off. The cupboards in the kitchen are locked at all times to prevent unauthorized use and/or disappearance of dishes or utensils. Those club members authorized and wishing to access these cupboards will find the appropriate key in the lock box in the boardroom. It appears that a person/persons unknown recently pulled the front off one of the kitchen cupboard drawers trying to get into a locked drawer resulting in damage to the drawer and the cupboard front and the requiring the cleaning of all items that fell on the floor. Please have consideration as to the value of club assets. If you see someone undertaking inappropriate action in relation to club facilities, please ask them to stop and then advise a club director of the person(s) name(s), if known, and the time and date of the occurrence. If you encounter damage to club facilities, please advise a club director immediately. 2007 SSA dues The SSA Board of Directors recently found it necessary to increase membership dues for 2007 due to the increased costs of operating your club. The club continues to see costs increase for electricity, natural gas, gasoline, and diesel fuel as well as increased maintenance costs of club facilities. These are in addition to increased costs relating to the printing and mailing of the club newsletter, club day-to-day administration and memberships in the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (also incurring the same cost increases as the SSA). Efforts have been made to minimize these membership dues increases by reviewing and adjusting club expenses wherever possible. For the first time in the club’s history an initiation fee has been added to new memberships to assist in reducing future dues increases and to help pay for past club facilities improvements. Based on our informal review of other sportsmen/conservation club dues we are still among the lowest fees charged for membership with the faculties and member benefits offered. The fees for all membership categories for 2007 are as follows: Renewing members -
New members (*which include an additional initiation fee of $30.00 for the first year of membership only) –
Membership renewals for 2007 will be available at the October General Meeting Shooting Sports ANNUAL TURKEY SHOOT .... will be held on Sunday September 17th. at 1.00 pm. Events will include Shotgun, .22 Rimfire (including open or scope sights), CowBoy Action events and various Novelty and "PIE" shoots. LUNCH will be available on site, and most important, EVERYONE is welcome !!! SYDENHAM SPORTSMEN’S ASSOCIATION SHOOTING RANGES GATE PROCEDURE The process for the operation of the entrance gates to the Shooting ranges are as follows: A TO USE THE SHOOTING RANGES 1. Open locked gate and leave in open position. 2. Flip sign down to show “DANGER SHOOTING RANGE IN USE” (red and white side) 3. Proceed with caution to shooting range. B WHEN LEAVING SHOOTING RANGE 1. If last one out (ensure to check), close and lock gate. 2. Flip sign back up to show “SHOOTING RANGE NOT IN USE” (green and white side) Bill Beamish, Shooting Sports Chairperson Youth Activities Program Our junior members will start meeting again on Sunday Sept. 17 at 1:00 pm at the clubhouse and we will continue to meet on the first and third Sunday of the month. Our last outing before the summer break was on the Father's day weekend and we canoed the Saugeen River from north of Walkerton to Saugeen Bluffs Conservation Area. The weather was great and we really appreciate the assistance of Ken Noble, Jim Hastie, Kim McNamara, and Jeff Bennett who helped make the event a success as well as Fred Geberdt for the loan of a canoe. This is an event we will likely repeat next year. Steve Lustig and myself have been organizing junior events but unfortunately Steve will no longer be able to be involved and we are looking for some assistance, if you are interested in this opportunity to help mentor our next generation of outdoors people please contact John McNamara at 519-369-3269 or jkmcnamara@persona.ca.We are also looking to increase the number of kids involved in our outings so if you have a child 8-18 that would like to become involved come out to the meeting in September or call John McNamara. Last year we had the opportunity to help with some projects and had club members spend time with the kids showing them how to shoot archery ,pellet guns, or tie flies .If you have any skills ,interests, or ideas for projects I would like to hear your suggestions. Youth Outdoors EXPO Our preparations for our first event for Sat. Sept. 9 are well under way and now we are looking for volunteers to help with the site and serving the kids that attend lunch, etc. If you are able to help, please call John McNamara at 369 3269. John McNamara , Youth Activities Chair THE PRESIDENTS CORNER It ’ s hard to believe but summer is three quarters over and September is just around the corner. By the time you read this newsletter the Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular will be well underway. Many of us will find ourselves out there on the water fishing for that big one or perhaps working hard at the site making this the best Derby yet. On behalf of all our members and the many people who enjoy this event I would like to thank the hundreds of hard working Sydenham Sportsman ’ s Association members, OSSS committee members, volunteers, sponsors, and media who work so diligently to make this such a special and enjoyable fall Festival. As I ’ m sure you know the financial success of this derby goes along way to help fund the many fish stocking and conservation projects the SSA undertakes every year. Your support is very much appreciated. We just received some good news in a media release from O.F.A.H. about the Purple Loosestrife control program. In celebration of Project Purple Week, August 1 to 7, the OFAH is pleased to declare that efforts to control purple loosestrife are working and wetlands are being saved. The battle against purple loosestrife, considered one of Canada ’ s most invasive plants, is being won thanks to a tiny leaf-eating beetle. “ After years of championing purple loosestrife control programs and public awareness campaigns, the O.F.A.H. and its conservation partners have become part of one of the most successful invasive species control programs in North America. ” said Francine MacDonald, O.F.A.H. Biologist. In many parts of the province, purple loosestrife is now coming under control and the native plant community in wetlands are once again flourishing thanks to the successful biocontrol project that has been ongoing since 1992. More detailed information is available on the O.F.A.H. website. Bill Douglas, President. NATIVE AFFAIRS ADVISORY COMMITTEE Our president, Bill Douglas, wrote MNR Minister Ramsay about the almost total lack of MNR enforcement capability relating to the local Indian commercial fishery. The issues were outlined and five very specific recommendations were made. The answer that came back to us was a masterpiece of smoke-and-mirrors spin doctoring. Not only were the main issues merely glossed over, but the recommendations were not even acknowledged. Our response pointing out the deficiencies will be in the mail very shortly. We were very happy to hear that the Freedom of Information Commissioner upheld the request for the release of the entire contents of the MNR/Saugeen Ojibway commercial fishing agreement. The Ministry has until August 31st to appeal this decision. If there is no appeal, the decision must be released to the public by September 5th. We owe a lot of thanks to MPP Bill Murdoch, MP Larry Miller and to the Lake Huron Fishing Club's president Jim Beange for their well-stated appeals to the freedom of information people. Also, we are grateful to the OFAH for keeping the pressure on the MNR and for working in close co-operation with Mr. Beange on his application for release of the information. The Caledonia/Six Nations incident is bringing a great deal of attention to Indian land claims. It highlights the often unreasonable actions of the natives. More importantly, it is bringing the general public up to speed 0D the unequal application of this country's laws. It is interesting that some members of the Iroquois are disputing the Melancthon Wind Farm development. These Indians claim that they "own" the wind and never gave it to us. Such claims are so far out that even the great urban bastion of political correctness might actually sense that something is wrong here. Blake Smith, Chairman, Native Affairs Advisory Committee . WILDLIFE ADVISORY COMMITTEE Our intrepid bluebird men, Lorne Smith and Gerry Powers, along with their new helper Bob Hunt, say that this is- their best year yet lots and lots of bluebirds and tree swallows hatched out. These individuals do our club a tremendous service with all the wonderful PR we get from" their efforts. The club owes them a great, big "thank you". Our president received a letter from the Minister of Natural Resources regarding cormorants. The letter in question was a little disturbing. Minister Ramsay implied that cormorant controls only in those local waters where scientific studies indicated demonstrable problems could be carried out. Since we know that nothing will happen because the Ministry has no staff or funds, we realize that our concerns about cormorants in our waters will not be considered by the Ministry. We know that the Ministry will not be investigating every stretch of water where common sense dictates that cormorants are a problem. Our president will be responding to the Minister indicating our grave concerns and frustration with the MNR approach. The Ministry is doing something right. The stewardship rangers just finished up doing a terrific job for us this year. They planted brush blanketed and mulched low-growing shrubs in front of the snake rail fence running along our club entranceway. This was done in order to keep the grass down in the fence's V-notches and to enhance the appearance of Lloyd Jackson's beautiful fence. As you know, the snake rail fence not only provides a very attractive entranceway to the clubhouse, but in and of itself is a very valuable addition to wildlife habitat. A worn-out 75-year-old basket case like myself can barely remember what it was like to have all that energy, stamina and get-up-and-go that those l7-year-old rangers have. Our club owes them a big "thank you". Here goes with some off-the-top wildlife predictions: GEESE.....Very plentiful, but the very early grain harvest might make hunting a little difficult during the early season. Also, high gas prices will cut into scouting efforts. DUCKS.....Our local mallard and blue-wing teal broods appear to be smaller than normal and wood ducks are not as plentiful. The word is that the diver population in the northwest is fairly good and should come through in good numbers later on. There may be a shortfall of scaup. GROUSE....Very, very, very poor. WOODCOCK....Local breeders appear scarce and we will have to rely on later migrants. RABBIT & HARE.....Very poor - almost none seen in the bush and very few roadkills have been observed. DEER..... All signs indicate another banner year for whitetails. Blake Smith, Co-Chairman, Wildlife Advisory Committee . Fisheries Advisory Committee Our brown trout are the only fish we are nurturing in the hatchery these days and seem to be responding to all the attention. This is a good time to only have one batch of fish as we still have to do some construction work at the hatchery concerning the Industrial Sewage Upgrade. With the help of our local M.O.E. office we were able to reduce our original permit fee of $10,400 down to $4,400 and hopefully were not finished yet. The M.N.R. junior ranger program helped us clean up some of the holding tanks in the hatchery and did some stream touch up rehab work replacing and raking over the brown trout spawning bed at the Issac Johnson property in Sullivan township. New S.S.A. and private property partnership signs were put up to replace the older ones. To continue with improvements at the hatchery we have been having discussions with the Weavers and Grey County roads department to help reduce the spring silt run off and we certainly appreciate the ideas and co-operation we have received. Mike Prevost Fisheries Advisory Chairman Archery Committee: Our second Archery Tournament of the season was held on Sunday May 28/06. It was a Traditional only 3D shoot with two rounds of twenty targets. The weather this year co-operated, much better than forecast or hoped for. The results of this Tournament are as follows: Category Winner Men ’ s Recurve First Rick Marchand Men ’ s Recurve Second John Van Loo Men ’ s Long Bow First Ron Hoffman Ladies Recurve First Eleanor Nuttall Juniors Recurve First James Forrest Bantam Recurve First Stephen Nuttall I would like to thank everyone who attended and helped in this tournament. A good time was had by all, see you again next time. Bill Douglas, Chairperson Archery Committee S S A Adult Fishing Trophies In our last newsletter, I indicated that I would provide more information on the different parts of our Awards system. First, I want to clarify the senior wording on some trophies. These were before we had a Senior Citizen membership. At one time, you were either a Junior or a Senior member. Now the Adult classification applies to Adults, Seniors and Spouses. The Adult section of the Fishing Trophies includes the following: 1.Small mouth Bass Trophy--donated by the Sydenham Sportsmen ’ s Association 2 Chinook Salmon Trophy — donated by John Campbell 3 Rainbow Trout Trophy — donated by Cliff Clark 4Speckled Trout Trophy — donated by Joe Slemin 5 Lake Brown Trout Trophy — donated by S S A 6 River Brown Trout Trophy — donated by S S A 7.Cohoe Salmon Trophy — donated by John Eldred 8.Splake Trophy — donated by Robins Insurance Remember, you can help by entering your fish. We are planning to have a place near the Weigh in Station at the Salmon Spectacular for you to enter the S S A contest. We will have entry forms available. You need to measure the fork length and girth of your fish and fill out the entry form. The entry box is at Watson ’ s Tackle House and Drew would be happy to help if needed. If you choose to release your fish, you would need a photo showing the length on a tape measure. Brian Clements, Jack Doherty and myself are prepared to do the work to make our awards as successful as they once were. All we need are your entries. Thank-you in advance! John Ford Restarting our S S A Awards Program Many of you, particularly if you are fairly new S S A members, are probably unaware that we have an Awards Program. Jack Doherty, Brian Clements are myself have volunteered to try to activate this once important activity. Some members will remember our Awards Banquets, the last was held in 2004 for the year 2003. The awards are in a number of different categories. We plan to promote these each month, both in the newsletter and at the club meetings. First, we have a Big Fish Contest comprised of three categories. The Junior category is up and including age 12 while the Student category includes ages 13 to 16. Our Adult category starts at age 17 and goes up. Within each category we have trophies, which we plan to display at the May general meeting, for Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Brook (Speckled Trout), Bass, Lake Trout and Brown Trout. There is a special Perch Trophy for Juniors only. The fish are not weighed. All you need to do is to measure the fork length and girth. You will need a witness to verify the measurement or a picture showing the fish beside a tape to verify its length. If you choose to release the fish after measuring it, that is your option. We will provide fish contest entry forms in this newsletter (which we ask you to save), have a number at the club house on the bulletin board and have a number at Watson’s Tackle House where you will deposit the completed entries in our box. For 2005 we only have one fish entry, let’s all change this for 2006. A second component of our awards is the Big Turkey Contest. If you are a successful turkey hunter, you are aware that your bird must be registered. It happens that Watson’s Tackle House is a check station. Drew Watson will weigh your bird, measure the beard and spur and calculate a score. This score goes on the entry form, along with other pertinent information provided by you, and the information is verified by Drew. Dave Hartrick is building the trophy as you read this. You must tell Drew when you bring in your bird that you are a S S A member and want to enter it in our Turkey contest. Again the completed entry form goes in our Box. Another component of the Awards program is the Best Buck Contest. We will provide these entry forms in a future newsletter closer to the deer season and make them available at the clubhouse and at Watson’s Tackle House as well. You bring in your rack to Drew, who will measure it and provide a score to go on the Entry form. The completed form is placed in our Box. Other important awards include Handgun, Archery as well as Conservationist of the Year in Junior and Adult areas and High 5 Awards in the Student area. With your help, we can have many recipients for 2006 presented in 2007. We hope to present the 2005 awards at the June general meeting this year. Next month, we will provide a listing of the different trophies within each category. Thanks in advance for your help; John Ford, Jack Doherty, Brian Clements |
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© 2001, Sydenham Sportsmen's Association |