The Campbell River Tyee Club is celebrating its 100th year in the community.
"People had been fishing at the mouth of Campbell River for many years before 1924 when the Tyee Club was founded," says Roger Gage, the club president. "The three founding members of the club met in an old famous hotel club called the Willows Hotel in downtown Campbell River, and they formed the Tyee Club. They wanted to form a club that would be a sporting, respectful way of dealing with the big Chinook salmon that deserves to be treated with respect in a sporting way."
The right way of fishing, according to the club, is to catch a Chinook around 30 pounds or more from a non-motorized boat with lightweight tackle and bait restrictions. All of this must be done in Campbell River's Tyee Pool.
"The guys who founded the club way back in 1924 were probably true sportsmen and wanted to respect the fish and wanted a challenging way to catch fish," says Gage, also adding that this was probably the normal way to fish due to the lack of technology and gadgets available to anglers these days.
Gage says the club isn't about filling the boat with fish. He says it's more about the experience of angling in a prime-time fishing area.
The club is also involved in the community, helping organize estuary clean-ups.
"The Campbell River estuaries have had many, many years, decades, of not just fishing boats going up and down, but some other industrial uses and over time some debris does collect on the river bottom," Gage says.
Other organizations help the Tyee Club clean up the debris, which Gage says is mainly tires.
Due to the clean-ups over the years, people using the river for whatever purpose have noticed the abundance of eel grass that has taken over the bottom of the river in the last 10 to 15 years.
"It's prime habitat for not just Chinook Salmon but for all the young salmon that might be coming down the river and migrating out to sea," Gage explains. "It gives them coverage and safe habitat."
The Tyee Club also helps the River Spirit Dragon Boat team during the team's regatta. The Tyee Club gives them usage of the wharf and helps with parking. In turn, the Dragon Boat team will help with snacks, coffee and other ways during the Tyee Club's functions.
"The last couple of years we've had a very popular war veteran/PTSD recognition night, where we reach out to get not just war vets but first responders who are suffering from PTSD from the nature of their work, and we round up a bunch of guides to take them out for an evening of fishing at the Tyee Pool," says Gage.
This year's night is likely to be at the end of the month or early September.
The Tyee Club has its own clubhouse. Its location is on the Spit.
Gage and his four brothers got into the club when he was 11 or twelve due to his father in the 1970s. He has been the president of the club for five years.
During the earlier years, the Tyee Club was more of an international club, as opposed to a community club. It has famous visitors like John Wayne, John Candy, and Goldie Hawn. Even Prajadhipok (or Rama VII), the King of Siam, visited the club in 1931. The king was unable to catch a fish.
"As fishing times have changed and global economies changed, more and more of the mix of the Tyee Club is 90 to 95 per cent is locals that keep the club afloat," says Gage. "There is less and less fish to be caught. I think, before there was more recreational or guided salmon fishing that was happening in Campbell River. There's less of that, so those people are fishing over on the west coast of the Island or up in the north end of Vancouver Island."
The club will have a small celebration for its 100th year. Gage says there were initially some plans but says they are traditionally a low-key club run by volunteers.
"Less is best," he says. "We're going to have our AGM on Aug. 17, which is tradition."
They will also have a potluck dinner (4:30 to 6 p.m.) at the clubhouse and a commemorative photo shoot (6:30) with as many rowboats along the beach as possible. The club's flag will fly at Spirit Square during the club's annual fishing tournament on Sep. 15.
