Riparian Rights in Nova Scotia

Riparian rights is a term from British Common Law. It refers to the designation of a river or stream as an article of real property claimed by the owner of the lands through which it flows. In my last post, I mentioned fishing private water in the province of Quebec. Private water no longer exists in Nova Scotia, unless you count man-made trout ponds, or backyard swimming pools. The law states:

"As a resident of the province you have the right to go on foot along the banks of any river, stream or lake and upon and across any uncultivated lands and Crown lands to lawfully fish with rod and line in these rivers, streams or lakes; you also have the right to use a boat or canoe on or across any river, stream or lake." (The Angling Act)

I was surprised to learn that much of the Medway River and the right to fish from Bangs Falls to Poultice Falls was once owned by a man named Michael Dwyer. Compare the letter of the law with the tone of Mr. Dwyer's letter to Mr. McGinty dated June 02, 1909. (Click to enlarge.)

I can only surmise that Mr Dwyer had made agreements with all three men named in the letter. Mr. Dwyer mentions sharing the expense of keeping a guardian on the river. I believe Payzant and Silver were contributing financially to this effort and, as such, expected first rights when Dwyer was not on the river. Included with the letter was a hand-drawn map showing the location of Michael Dwyer's lands. (Click to enlarge.) On the map, there is mention of Dwyer having purchased land from McGinty. Perhaps a condition of the sale was that McGinty would be allowed to continue to fish the river. The matter was eventually resolved with the passing of The Water Act of 1919 which terminated all private riparian rights, and transferred them to the government of Nova Scotia.

If you're thinking that this legislation was created to provide equal access for all anglers, think again - equal and free access for anglers was only a fringe benefit. The driving force behind the Water Act was to expropriate the province's waterways for future hydroelectric development.
Good Luck and Good Fishin'!
-Random Phrump

Al's Amazing Catch

It was a perfect day, mid-August, 1999. We were fishing private water on the Old Fort River in Quebec, guests at Morgain's Salmon Camps. There were four of us on this trip: Dad, Alan, Dave and me. Dad had flown Al home from Alberta for his first taste of Atlantic Salmon fishing. Our daily routine was to travel in groups of three men - one guide with two sports. Dave and I went with Harvey Fequet, 8 miles by boat to fish Third Pool. A mile hike further on were Tag Pool and Fourth Pool. Dad and Al stayed closer to camp with Curry Fequet on First Pool and Second Pool.

At the foot of First Pool there is a wide sandbar where salmon congregate. Al had raised several fish there with a white Phentex bug, and even had hooked a couple briefly, but couldn't master the fine art of playing and landing a grilse. The air was thick with advice, "Keep your rod tip up!" "Keep the line tight - don't give him any slack!" "When he's taking line, let him go! When he tries to rest, reel like hell!"

It wasn't long before Al had another hookup on that Phentex bug. He followed Dad's and Curry's advice on playing a salmon and did his best to keep the rod tip up. The grilse cartwheeled through the air several times yet, in short order, the fish lay docile in the guide's net, whereupon the hook instantly fell out of its mouth!
When Curry examined the fly, he noticed there was no point on the hook - it had broken off! Alan, being a novice flyfisher, had experienced a close encounter of the rocky kind on a backcast. It had blunted his hook completely. He had been fishing the same fly for a couple of hours, had connected with several takers, but had been unable to achieve a solid hookup on any of the salmon. It was a minor miracle that he even hooked, let alone, landed that fish!

To illustrate today's post, I found a similar fly, put it in a vise, then snapped the business end off with a pair of pliers. The sketch in my journal, however, suggests that the remaining hook on Al's fly was, in fact, much shorter than my attempt to replicate it. (Click on the middle photo for a close-up view.) Landing that fish was quite an achievement for any angler, even more so for a newbie! So, here's to Al, the unsung angler, and his amazing catch!
Good Luck and Good Fishin'!
-Random Phrump

Photos by Random Phrump.