The Blue Fish Radio Show

David Brown received the highest honor Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans can bestow to a recreational angler for his work on restoring West Coast salmon. Now Dave has taken it to the next level with his formation of the Public Fishery Alliance and a protest in front of DFO’s Vancouver office. Link below to hear David in Conversation with Lawrence Gunther immediately following the protest...

David Chong is one of Canada’s top professional bass anglers fishing upwards of 50 tournaments a year. He’s one of a very few that is actually making a living in the fishing industry through tournament wins, sponsorships, and as a representative of leading tackle companies. We check in with Dave to find out the highs and lows of professional angling during the pandemic on Blue Fish Radio.

Scottie Martin is the host and driving force behind the wildly successful Canadian Fishing Network. With close to 11,000 followers on Facebook, and another successful edition of the national fishing “Fish-Off” tournament led by Michael Consul now under their belts, the virtual fishing platform shows no signs of slowing. It truly is a grass-roots Phenomenon. Scottie and Mike join Lawrence Gunther o...

Across southern Ontario bass fishing seasons are beginning to open up. Bass anglers look forward to this moment all year, especially those who are hooked on fishing tournaments. The Ontario B.A.S.S. Nation is one of the biggest competitive bass tournament organizations in Ontario with over 800 members, and their executive have been working overtime to figure out how to hold bass fishing tournament...

Blue Fish Radio reached out to the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission’s Bob Lambe, Executive Director, and Marc Gaden, Communications Director and Legislative Liaison, to hear first-hand about their experience as one of the five “collaborators” with the Great Lakes and St Lawrence Collaborative. The Collaborative just released its ten-year action plan focusing on addressing shoreline erosion, outdat...

n 2017 Blue Fish Canada organized a half-day focus on fish health and fish consumption as part of the St. Lawrence River Institute for Environmental Studies Annual research and policy symposium. In attendance was Dr. Laurie Chan, Canadian co-chair of the IJC Health Professionals Advisory Board, and a University of Ottawa Professor and Canada Research Chair in Toxicology and Environmental Health. G...

Westslope Cut Throat Trout, bull trout and Athabasca rainbow trout are native trout species found in Alberta that now need our help. Protecting these native species and the diversity they represent is crucial if we are to avoid a country populated solely with the same non-native trout species introduced through fish stocking programs during the 1900’s. The Alberta Conservation Association get’s th...

Stephen Hume has fished and written professionally about fishing, fish and Canada’s west coast for 27 years with the Vancouver Sun and much more than that. He’s not shy to call things the way he sees them, and made a good living for well over 30 years putting his words on paper and teaching others to do the same. . Link below to hear Stephen Hume in conversation with Lawrence Gunther on this episo...

In this final installment of our interview with Jeremy Wade from the River Monster series, we dive deeper into what it takes to produce the magical moments Jeremy has been creating to inform and entertain mainstream TV viewers for over 15 years. We also explore Jeremy’s books and his role as an international fish art competition judge. Find out what makes Jeremy tick, and why anglers – and especia...

Jeremy Wade is UK’s “Sherlock Holmes” of angling. His magical blend of solving underwater mysteries through careful planning, local knowledge and a hook-and-line has been capturing the imagination of viewers for over 15 years starting with his world renowned series “River Monsters”. It’s a return to the origins of the true spirit of angling that’s inspiring the next generation of curious and conse...

Once again St. Lawrence River Muskie are in decline. Research conducted on 200 known Muskie spawning beds located throughout the St. Lawrence have failed to come up with any “young of the year” Muskie, and Northern Pike are faring no better. Ottawa River Muskie Factory owner and guide John Anderson recently published an article summarizing what we know from anglers and scientists, and has put out...

In June 2019 a landslide struck a remote rugged canyon of the Fraser River north of Lillooet BC. Huge pieces of rock and significant debris sheared off a 125-meter cliff, crashing into the river and creating a 5 meter high waterfall. The magnitude of the obstruction impeded migrating salmon from reaching their spawning beds. What’s been happening since may go down as one of the greatest emergency...

The B.C. government and Fisheries and Oceans Canada have issued advisories to west coast anglers on how to stay safe during the Covid-19 pandemic. At the same time, for the second year in a row, most all Chinook salmon recreational fisheries are non-retention only throughout southern B.C. Link below to hear west coast angler Brian Braidwood discuss with Lawrence Gunther what anglers are doing to s...

Dr. Steven Cooke teaches Fish ecology and conservation at Carleton University and runs the Cooke Lab. He’s also now one of a handful of international representatives selected to develop a Freshwater action plan designed to reverse the world-wide decline in freshwater biodiversity now on track to be at “code red” in 10-15 years. Link below to hear Dr. Cooke in conversation with Lawrence Gunther abo...

Dr. Bruce Tufts is a leader in researching and conducting field studies of bass in Ontario. It’s because of his research the government of Ontario is now conducting consultations over whether to change some of the fundamental rules concerning the capture and harvest of both Smallmouth and Largemouth bass in Lake Ontario and the Upper St. Lawrence (FM Zone 20). Link below to learn about Dr. Tufts’...

Watersheds Canada’s Natural Edge Program has teamed up with Quinte Conservation to take on naturalizing one mighty long Bay of Quinte shoreline and related watershed. Their 3-year Natural Edge program goal is to naturalize the shores of farms, parks, cottages and homes. Link below to hear Lawrence Gunther in conversation with Chloe Lajoie, Natural Edge Program Manager for Watersheds Canada, and Ma...

Recently news broke about the full extent of the raw sewage releases occurring across Canada thanks to a new transparency initiative by Environment and Climate Change Canada and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. While the numbers may seem beyond be leaf, never mind comprehensible, there is evidence that this great big ship we call Canada is attempting to make a course correction. Link below to hear wha...

The Miramichi River Striped Bass Cup is now considered to be one of the largest competitive fishing events in Canada. It reached this level relatively quickly thanks to a rebounding Striped Bass population. Even though they are a native fish species, there are some who would rather have their numbers reduced significantly to protect Atlantic salmon, another native fish species only this one is not...

Salmon traditionally found in the Pacific ocean, such as Sockeye, Pink and Chum, (less-so Coho and Chinook), are now entering the Arctic Ocean in greater numbers each year. So much so that it’s triggered research by Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Salmon are now being caught and submitted by local fishers for examination by DFO researchers. So many samples were submitted in 2019 that...

As part of our “Giants in the Fishing Industry” series, we are pleased to present Italo Labignan. Italo has been a fixture in the fishing media for 35 years with his TV program Canadian Sportfishing, and has recently expanded his offerings to include even more ways of showcasing just how meaningful it is to connect with nature through fishing. Link below to hear Italo Labignan in conversation with...

While covering the 2-day Nature-based Climate Solutions Summit earlier this month, I sat in on the discussion on wetlands. Dr. David Brown from the Canadian Wildlife Federation, who we had as a guest on Blue Fish Radio before, was one of the panelists. Dr. Brown spoke about the important role shoreline and coastal wetlands play in providing habitat for fish. Naturally, I immediately added David to...

St. Lawrence River Muskie were hit hard by a virus that killed many of the large breeders in the mid-2000’s. Dr John Farrell and PhD candidate Anna Conklyn from the Thousand Islands Biological Station are part of a scientific research initiative that is exploring the link between Round Gobies and the spread of yet another virus that is impacting Muskie in areas of the St. Lawrence River yet again....

The America’s Conservation Enhancement (ACE) Act is moving closer to becoming law. What does it mean and how does it affect Canada such as keeping invasive carp out of the Great Lakes? What about lead fishing tackle? The American Sportfishing Association says the Act is a positive development for the U.S. $125 billion recreational fishing economy that supports over 800,000 jobs. The National Wildl...

FB: The Miramichi Salmon Association is one of several groups looking to eradicate invasive Smallmouth bass from the Miramichi Lake and River. This New Brunswick watershed was once home to world record runs of Atlantic Salmon, now considered to be well below conservation levels. The Smallmouth are viewed as a significant threat to the rebuilding efforts of Atlantic Salmon stocks. Link below to her...