Navigable waters
 

Trapping on navigable waters in Alberta, Well today I finally got it from the horses mouth . My question was , as a resident trapper in Alberta and regarding navigable waters NOT LAKES or SLOUGHS , but on flowing water creeks and rivers . Do I as a resident trapper have the right to trap beaver through the ice or open water to which I have access either by road allowance or landowners permission ?
The answer was , You may trap on said waters BUT you must have permission via the resident trappers permission slip from the landowner who,s side the beaver are that you are hunting . The landowner has FIRST dibs BUT ONLY to the center of the creek or river , the other half may belong to a neighbor , SO YES you may BUT you have to have permission from the landowner nearest the bank the beaver are colonized on !
So the answer to this dilemma is IF you are a proficient beaver trapper AND you have permission on the opposite side of the waterway , YOU may trap till your hair falls out!! to the CENTER of said creek or river LOL

I was told the land between river and high water mark is crown land. To trap there i would need pics of damage done to get a damage control permit from fish and wildlife aswell.:)

The information above comes directly from the top in Edmonton and was also corroborated by the ATA president yesterday .
So yes it is crown land BUT the landowner whose side the colony is on has the FIRST rights , wanted or not, and subsequent to his not wanting to trap, a resident trapper who has the proper form signed by said landowner , may trap there , and further has permission ONLY to the center of said stream , IF someone else owns the opposite side , then the same rule applies .
Otherwise any other activity with the exception of trapping , is fine ie: sleds , fishing , swimming etc.

Parfleche, I assume by your description your are trapping nav river with titled land on both sides. If in area of RFMA,s Nav rivers are usually not included in either RFMA (both sides of river). Smaller rivers like Berland, Kakwa etc the RFMA will include the river. Hope this helps.

Big Yes I understand , I for one would never trap any waters within a RFMA , it just does not sit right with me . Thanks

Hey par could you email me or post this letter on the forum I would like to have a printed copy of this. Especially since some wildlife offices have a different interpretation of the rules.

Bill

No letter Bill , just a call from Rob in rotten monkey house a F&W guy who called Edmonton and they told him that , also you can phone our president at the ATA and she will tell you the same thing , You see it all falls under the trapping rules , I have to say I was a bit surprised , But after telling me it falls under trapping regulations I can understand , I dont like it But I cant do zip

This goes against (partially) what I have been told by a CO. I had an innocent a few years ago where I was trapping beavers on a creek, different land owner on each side. Long and short, trapping a crossing on the creek (accessed from permission side) lady from across the way fires my traps....She is the one that got in trouble. As long as I don't touch ground, I can trap the water. This is really evident in an RFMA that has flowing water and private land on it. You best not trap those beavers without a damage permit, or you are going to be getting a fine.

Spruce

The law used to be written on the back of the old trapping licences. Too bad such a law isn't written into the regs. Gotta hate it when folks that are supposed to be upholding the law, don't have a clue as to what the law actually is.

That is when you are to ask, "officer, could you please give me your badge number and the name of your supervisor?"

Always double check when the information you are given seems questionable, or is hoak-ey. Just about everybody in government is supposed to have a boss.

I do hate it tho the discretionary powers they are given where the law is questionable. I like the b&w version of things much better... as in "Yes you can" or "No you cannot" because it is written into law. I don't believe officers should be able to create law in the field or otherwise... ever! It should either be the law, or not the law.

But, if you don't do anything wrong, then you never have to worry about anything. But you do need to know the law. That way, if you know the law and they don't, then you call in their higher up buddies.

So you better NEVER cross that centre line, as well on large watercourses, there is a limit as to how far you may go out and trap, unless that has changed from 30 years ago, which is possible, but unlikely.

Yes damage permit OR permission in WRITING from the good owners side . its the form we all get as resident trappers to have signed by a landowner.