The Blue Fish Radio Show

Fishing is great, but not when you’re in pain. Just look at Big Jim McLaughlin for a fantastic example of how physical fitness can turn things around. In my case, I turned to Ottawa-area Dr. Pierre Brunet and head trainer Craig Adams at Studio One Personal Training. These gentlemen made fishing fun again. I’ve since learned of Travis Perret, owner of Exercise Therapy of Kansas City, who specialize...

Following the winter closure of the St. Lawrence Seaway to ships in December 2019 and a spell of mild temperatures across the Lake Ontario basin, the International Lake Ontario - St. Lawrence River Board took action and set Lake Ontario outflows at unprecedented levels. The volume of water passing through the St. Lawrence River reached up to 10,700 cubic meters per second, higher than has ever pre...

Henry Lickers is the first indigenous person to be named a Commissioner to the International Joint Commission. The IJC is responsible for the transboundary waters between Canada and the United States and has been successfully resolving water issues for over 100 years. Commissioner Lickers believes the IJC is committed to include the traditional knowledge of both indigenous nations and shoreline co...

One of the leading proponents of transferring fish farms from the ocean to land, Eric Hobson has worked tirelessly to finance and build the Kuterra land-based closed-containment salmon farm in partnership with the Vancouver Island Namgis Nation. Hobson founded the Save Our Salmon Society and is a Director with the Watershed Watch Salmon Society. He’s personally raised many thousands of dollars for...

Thousands of abandoned unnecessary dams are responsible for the overall deterioration of fish habitat across Canada. Add fish stocking to the equation, and it’s no wonder wild trout and other fish species are under pressure. Is it possible to go back in time to the way it was? What do anglers and fish biologists think about the idea of putting the wild back in our streams, creeks and rivers? Link...

The Great Lakes have experienced far more than their fair share of toxic chemicals over the past 100-plus years. Persistent substances such as DDT, PCB and Mercury nearly killed several of the lakes in the 1980’s. Just when you think things are improving, you start hearing about new chemical threats. Link below to hear John Jackson, Co-Chair of the Binational Toxic-Free Great Lakes Network, in con...

Ned Kehde is a retired university archivist, fishing guide and long-time outdoor writer who has helped fine-tune a phenomenal fish-catching system known today as the Ned Rig. Connecting hundreds of anglers across the continent, Ned’s online Finesse News Network features some of the most detailed fishing reports ever written. Link to hear Ned share his 80 years of fishing wisdom with Lawrence Gunth...

On June 21, 2019 Canada modernized the Fisheries Act. Find out what it means for Canada’s recreational anglers. Chad Ziai is the Director of Engagement, Partnerships and Integrated Planning at Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Link below to hear Chad discuss recreational fishing with Lawrence Gunther this week on Blue Fish Radio: For more about the changes to the Fisheries Act link below: https://www.d...

Ever wonder what data smartphone recreational fishing apps can collect automatically, or why they still include options for entering data manually? How are these apps changing the way we fish, now, and in the future? Link below to here Lawrence Gunther in conversation with Paul Venturelli, one of the world’s leading experts on recreational fishing data collection, as they discuss the future of ang...

Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s have teamed up with the YMCA and National Wildlife Federation to launch a new program “Outdoor Adventurers”. Geared towards kids from kindergarten to grade five, and focusing on city youth, the initiative will serve an important role in shaping the next generation of conservation-minded outdoor enthusiasts. Link below to hear Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the Nati...

Mr. Bob Izumi is one of Canada’s giants in the sport of fishing. His TV and radio shows, magazine, seminars, and endless dedication and support for youth fishing events has made him a true icon in the world of fishing. Link below to hear Bob reflect on how his meteoric fishing career came about on this second of a 2-part conversation with Lawrence Gunther on Blue Fish Radio

Canada’s premier fishing giant Bob Izumi has captained Team Canada in previous Pan Am tournaments held in other countries, and led Canada to victory last month on Lake St. Francis . Twenty to twenty-five pound five fish limits are common on this fertile section of the St. Lawrence River. Link below to hear Bob Izumi speak with Lawrence Gunther about how he Captained the Canadian team to victory du...

Launched in May 2018, MyCatch is published by Angler’s Atlas, the producers of physical and digital fishing guides to Canadian and transboundary waters. The app is designed to collect valuable data about fish populations while also being useful to anglers. It covers the bulk of Canada, from coast to coast, as well as US waterways that connect to the transboundary region. Link below for more about...

Mr. Bob Izumi is one of Canada’s giants in the world of professional tournament bass fishing. Bob and his son Darren have represented Canada in Pan American fishing competitions throughout North and South America, and are now instrumental in bringing the tournament to Canada for the first time. None of it would have been possible without the support of the Canadian Sportfishing Industry Associatio...

The International Joint Commission’s Plan 2014 is meant to un-do a half century of economically focussed Great Lakes water level management. The health of one of the world’s largest freshwater ecosystems depends on the Plan’s implementation. Link below to hear Save the River’s CEO John Peach and the NGO’s Chair and our Captain Jeff Garnsey, speak with Lawrence Gunther live aboard Jeff’s 29-foot 19...

Finding efficient and safe ways to move migratory fish around and over natural and built barriers has been the un-doing of many ecosystems. Fish ladders were once hailed as the solution, but we now know introduce their own unique set of problems. Whooshh Innovations has been working tirelessly to solve many of these fish passage barriers. Their technologies are proving effective at safely and effi...

This past summer a giant rock slide introduced a massive waterfall into a remote stretch of British Columbia’s Fraser River. With spring and summer runs of Chinook and other species of Salmon and Steelhead cut off from their traditional spawning beds, governments were feeling the pressure to ensure fish could pass. Link below for this episode of Blue Fish Radio wherein Lawrence Gunther speaks with...

Conservation Visions’ Wild Harvest Initiative is the first serious effort to evaluate the combined economic, conservation, and social benefits of recreational wild animal harvests in the U.S. and Canada. The program is on track to apply a science-based approach to quantifying the harvesting rates of wild fish and game and just held a three-day meeting of its 35-partners, including companies such a...

Blue Fish Radio is always amazed and pleased to meet and present anglers who have dedicated huge chunks of their lives to stewarding the wild fish resources in their area. Dave Brown is another one of these local champions who may know more about the Thompson River and Chilcotin River Steelhead that run up the Fraser River on Canada’s west coast. His knowledge and advocacy were recently recognized...

Canada now has a national voice that speaks on behalf of over 375,000 outdoor enthusiasts from across Canada called the “National Fishing and Hunting Collaborative”. Mr. Matt DeMille, Manager of Fish and Wildlife Services with the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters is also a spokesperson for the newly formed Collaborative, and joins Lawrence Gunther on this episode of Blue Fish Radio. Link...

Michael Price is a doctoral student at Simon Fraser University and the lead author of a recently published article featuring newly discovered 100-year old Skeena River Sockeye salmon DNA. The extensive collection of early 20th century scale samples along with information about each fish’s weight, length, sex and the date caught is being used to rebuild baseline data that researchers are now using...

The Ontario B.A.S.S Nation recently announced the postponement and re-location of the 2019 Hank Gibson Provincial Qualifier. Their decisions were taken based on what made the most sense for the long-term sustainability of the fish and the future of sport fishing in Ontario. Link below to hear Jason Barnucz from the OBN speak with Lawrence Gunther on Blue Fish Radio as they discuss the reasons behi...

Tom Davis began salmon fishing along BC’s coast before he started elementary school, and has fished salmon as a recreational angler for the past six decades. From owning and operating a successful fishing tackle company, to advising all manner of governments on the state of Canada’s west coast public salmon fishery, there’s little Tom hasn’t witnessed. And, after all that, he’s still not walking a...

Mr. Phil Morlock, Vice-President of Advocacy & Government Affairs, Shimano North America, has been making sure competitive Fishing Events utilize Best conservation practices for years. He continues to encourage those anglers contemplating taking part in competitive fishing events to be informed and to carefully review how fish are handled and released before deciding to participate. Link below to...