I recently received a rather strident phone call from a man contesting the Parks' legal position in collecting "access fees".  He stated that as he was a California citizen who paid taxes and that since the property is now owned by the State, that he felt he was being forced to pay for something he already should have full access to.  Before I directly address this, please note that the same situation exists for National Parks, many State Parks, and even many municipal and county parks.  So this is really not unique nor isolated. Arriving at the gate of Yosemite and trying to make the same point as to why you shouldn't pay and be allowed in because you are American would not get you very far.  The specific answer is that the State put up the recently acquired Moen property here on the river for a management bid. Falcontail Enterprises was awarded the contract.  Falcontail Enterprises thus has a Concessionaire type of agreement with the State to manage and operate this area in order to provide and maintain public access. Falcontail Enterprises PAYS the State monthly. Falcontail Enterprises operates under the domain and constraints of the awarding State agency, the San Joaquin River Conservancy. (The San Joaquin River Parkway is a separate non-profit business which also works with the SJRC) It is the same sort of arrangement a marina would have on a lake. The marina does not own the lake. This is done because the public demands access AND the State does not have the funds or wherewithal to handle day-to-day management. So why should you pay for access?  That is simply how it is done.  Nothing is really "free". Those who question this should visit a "free" access site, take a good look around, check out the grounds, the restrooms, the litter - and then come here!

Well it looks like it finally happened. Last Wednesday it occurred to me that I didn't see the usual 10-30 cars on the other side of the river.  So when in town on Thursday I went and had a peek.  A big yellow gate was locked across the roadway with all kinds of signage.  It seems driving down to the river from Palm and Nees is OVER. Walking and bicycling though is still fine.

Some have accused ME of being behind "locking them out" from river access and "forcing" them to pay a fee to access the river.  Not so.  It is Fresno City's gate and signs.  What led to the gate being put up was months and months (actually 3 years) of complaints from bluff home owners, Fresno Fire Dept, FPD, FSO regarding the traffic, noise, litter, vandalism, illegal dumping, 4-wheeling and even the burning down of three homes.  So although I had no say in the matter, I will say that if one of you reading this feels slighted and deprived because you can no longer indulge in the above activites, that I am a bit shy on empathy!  Indeed I have often wondered why Fresno let it continue another 9 months even after the homes were burnt down.  Good Lord, what does it take to make someone care if an 18 acre fire can't do it?  Anyway, last week marks the passage of the Pinedale-Pismo Recreational Area into a much calmer future..........

March, April and May are generally the preferred season for bass to lay they eggs.  With the influx of colder water due to the higher releases from the dam, the season - called the spawning season - has been pushed back.  The idea behind "catch and release" is to preserve the fish and insure good fishing for future years.  A spawning bass is a pregnant bass. It should be obvious that if you take a large female bass with 5,000 eggs out of the water and EAT it, those eggs are not going to hatch. Hence, each time this is done, the fishing gets worse the following year.

 

 "Can you tell me where the fish are? It is my son's first time and I just want him to catch a fish....."  These folks generally fish for a couple hours and come back and complain that the area is "fished out".  They want to know when "they" are going to stock it back up, translation, when can they come in and catch their limit in an hour.!

 

Now consider this, as a park operator, does this mean I know where the fish are? And if I did AND I told you, would that be good for business and improve fishing?  It is the same as walking in a casino and asking the doorman which tables are hot....the answer is about the same.....the one where you win at. The answer I prefer is "they are in the water - hiding "  Unbelievably, some people actually face me down and beligerently demand that I disclose where I personally fish.  No kidding!.  I am quite certain I have never given an honest answer.

They are driving off of the end of West Nees behind George Brown's Gym. There are considerable problems associated with that.  While it is true that a pre-existing access to a State river can not be blocked from the public domain, the landowners on either side of the road are being trampled by that very public, tearing down fences, 4-wheeling new and diverse erosion channels into the bluff, and building campsites and "hooches" below the rich folks homes. Some have even decided that it is a free hunting zone and come down with everything from paintball guns to semi-automatic rifles.  Most of this activity we watch with amusement from our side of the river.  However, the Fresno PD, Fresno Sheriff's Dept, DFG, and Fresno Fire Dept have urged us to call in these activities.  As we don't want to be a nuissance to the dispatcher, we only call in when there is an instance of gunshots or fires.  Mostly, Eagle 1 (the chopper) does a fly-over once or twice a day during the weekends and scopes it out from the air.  Legally, you cannot get into any trouble if you leave your vehicle on the paved road and proceed by foot from there.  Keep in mind that the property owners on either side of the road have liability issues and are motivated to NOT have you on their land.  Also, if you drive off the pavement and get stuck in the sand, the tow truck that comes to rescue you may be accompanied by an officer! Now you have a tow bill, a fine for "will-full destruction of riparian habitat", and possible tresspass - hard to get out of when your vehicle is stuck in the guilty position - en flagratto, so to speak. Also,there is a small cadre of river-istas that routinely tear down signs and repaired fences in the name of "free access" and liberation. Another small cadre of folk that put up the signs and repair the fences.  These two groups do not get along!  And then there are the ones I really dislike who consider the end of the road a "free dumping zone".  We can read license plates from our side and these folks DO get reported forthwith.  Efforts are underway to block the access entirely so vehicles CAN NOT drive beyond the pavement.  This is entirely due to public access becoming "public nuissance".  Our concern as management of the Sycamore Island Park is in stopping the vandalism and miscreants from speading across the river into the Park, and nothing more.  Personally, I enjoy the entertainment aspect of all the activity over there.  We have nick-named it the Pinedale-Pismo Recreation Area.

Although the SJRC is aware of the need of repair and have indicated that funds may be available to grade and repair the road, no action towards actually repairing it have been taken.  I have been told that they are currently considering a feasibility and access study to determine how the roads here are used.  Does that mean the entrance will be graded in 2010? 

 

No firearms are allowed in the area.  This is essentially a game PRESERVE.  That means you are to LOOK ONLY.  No shooting of wildlife will be tolerated.  This includes bb guns, pellet guns, bow and arrow and paintballing. 

 

Quads and dirt bikes......Don't bring them.  This is not an off-road area.

 

The ramp to the river has been improved.  The pot holes and the drop off at the end has been fixed.  It is a concrete ramp.  Some have complained that it is too steep and needs to be completely re-done.  We agree!  That would be a major construction change and is outside of what Falcontail Enterprises is capable of doing.  As this property is owned by the State through the San Joaquin River Conservancy, state funds would have to be allocated for this.  It is certainly worth lobbying for.  Should money come our way, the first priority would be in bridging the channel for better access to the Island.  Second would be to excavate a small ditch to restore waterlevels to the ponds that are drying up and to the channel itself.  Third would be rebuilding the boat ramp.  Of course, most of the issues regarding this would be alleviated by simply having more water flowing down the river, a hotly contested issue that is in the news almost daily.  There is not much we can do about this here at the local level.  What we could do, we have done - repairing the existing ramp.

 

I get this more than anything.  The only answer is the obvious one and I don't mean to be flip.  They are in the water!

 

All the fish here are freshwater fish! What we mostly see caught are large-mouth bass, channel and bullhead catfish, perch, radar, bluegill, crappie and carp.  Only occasionally do we see any of the trout that are planted 15 river miles upstream below Friant Dam. I believe most of them are eaten by the bass, if indeed, they swim down the stream this far.  I have seen the occassional striped bass here, but that is a rarity.

 

Once upon a time......  In 1996 $8,000 of Florida Bass and crappie were planted.  But in January 1997 we had the huge discharge from the dam that destroyed the bridge at Highway 41 and flooded the entire area.  Most of the Florida Bass were washed downstream.  Nothing has been stocked here since.  Occassionally, the hatchery in Friant will have extra trout fingerlings and will put them in the river half a mile above the Island.  Very seldom are they seen or caught after that. That means that most of the fish are native and self-sustaining populations.

 

Crappie are in all the ponds.  Some catch them.  Some don't.

 

It is a reasonable fee. And it hasn't changed in 3 years.  Also, it discourages people who don't want to pay $9 from coming in.  We have discovered that when it was $6 people brought in more garbage and old tires than after we raised it to $9. I don't have a rational explanation for this.  I am actually considering raising the fee to $10 and including a garbage bag and then giving $2 back as folks bring me back a full-ish bag on their way out.  Is this do-able?

 

When people come in and pay at the bait shop they also sign a release of liability.  It also says that you are aware that you swim at your own risk.  This has been a fishing area for a long time and there are strange and mysterious rusty hooks and old illegal trot-lines underwater.  I am only aware of 3 drownings we have had here in 50 years as opposed to Skaggs Bridge with 1 per year and Avacado Lake with several every season.  We strongly discourage swimming, but it's up to you.

 

We don't condone, advocate or promote use of recreational drugs here or anywhere.  As for alcohol (and tobacco), it is not available at the baitshop.  Is it illegal to drink beer on State property or while in your boat on the river?  I am not sure.  I can say that drunken and disorderly conduct and annoying other patrons is not permitted.

 

Absolutely.  But again, ask when you arrive.  The conditions of the ramps are largely dependent on the water level in the river, i.e. the discharge from Millerton Dam.  All aluminum boats are doable at all the ramps if they can be carried or man-handled.  Beware of the sand and mud.

 

Yep.  The fee is for ACCESS, not for fishing.

 

Yes.  Because the water areas are not fully fenced in and access can be gained from the river.  In other words, the river runs through it.  The area is now all State owned.  Even formerly when it was private property, you needed a license.  The game warden had a saying I liked "It may be private property but it is still State water."  Best advise: buy a fishing license in January and carry it with you proudly.

 

We don't sell fishing licenses.  Closest place to get them is at John's Liquor in Pinedale. 

 

We are not set up for camping or long-term stays. No campfires are allowed.  Overnight fishing is permissible in the river as it is a State river. Barbeques and hibachi-type cooking is okay, but again, dumping your hot coals on the ground IS NOT OKAY.  Be prepared to douse your coals when done and pack them out with you.  We are working toward gaining and installing the park-style grills that you find cemented on poles, but we don't yet have clearance to proceed.