hwy 1 bridge at jumping pound creek
 

I'm thinking of popping out for an hour or two fishing tomorrow, and I've heard a few people mention the bridge on hwy 1 over the jumping pound creek SW of cochrane.

whats the fishing like there right now? where do you park?
i'd go further afield but i don't have much spare time tomorrow. and i don't have the equipment to just wade up the jumping pound in cochrane itself.

A few years back I used to love this stream just down stream of where you are talking well a couple km down stream had some really good evenings catching some nice Bows and a few brookies in some beautiful runs and holes at cliffs and sharp bends.

Then one day I went to my stretch on a weekend and I started fishing after a while this truck came speeding down a hill with a man and his wife in the cab and 2 young boys in the box ... the lady jumped out of the truck and stormed towards me and started screaming at me get the F&#$ off my land trespasser.

When I calmly introduced my self too her she says ... I don't give a F&#$ who you are get the hell off my land ... so I proceed to tell her that I'm not on her land that I'm not on anyones land I'm standing in the river ... she cuts me off and says the river is on her land and I say well legally I have a right to be within the high water mark ... she then says oh no you don't I own this creek I have the mineral rights on this land so the creek is mine ... as I am trying to explain to her that she does not own the creek her husband gets out of the truck and tells me I better leave if I don't want to go to jail.

He then tells me that this creek is on Coppithorne land and asks if I know what that means, I say no what does it mean he says it means the deed to the land pre dates the province of alberta and because of that they actually own the stream bed the creek and the fish in it and I had better leave now.

I tell him that I had never heard of such a thing but that I respected landowners and that I had not crossed his land to gain access that I had waded in from the bridge which was true I told him that I was catch and release and that I respected the environment and asked if he minded if I continued fishing in the water ... he then says very aggressively that I was a trespasser and I wasn't taking one more cast.

So I decided to not let the situation escalate any more and I told him I would head back along the creek to the bridge and that I would investigate his claims and be in contact with him ... he then said the hell you are ... your going to head straight across this field to the nearest road and we are following you off our property.

They then marched me off the land following me in the truck when I got to the gate they opened it and said we are Coppithorne this is our land you are trespassing don't ever come back ... then as the truck drives away the young kids in the back are waving their slingshots and shouting stay off our land trespasser ... right out of the movies .... I felt sick to my stomach.

The next day I called Fish and wildlife and told the story they told me as long as I never crossed the private land and I stayed within the high water mark that I was good to go.

So I did some investigating and got a phone number for the gentleman that I had the altercation with .... I gave him a call and told him what the fish and wildlife told me and asked if there would be a problem if I came back and fished the creek ... he exploded on me and said he did not care who I talked to and that if I stepped foot on that creek again it would not end as peacefully as the other day and I would end up in jail ... just before he hung up on me he said call your fish and wildlife back and tell him we are Coppithornes.

So the next day I call the f&w again and tell them what he said they then ask me where the creek was exactly when I tell them they get me to call the Cochrane office so I do and I tell the whole story again this time the officer tells me he is going to check into this and get back to me.

The next day I get a call and they explain to me that the Jumping pound creek between highway 1 and the bow river runs through Coppithorne land and that the land title does indeed predate the province and that the land owner does indeed own the land including the creek in this area. However only certain portions of the land were owned pre 1905 and much of the land was purchased later and did not fall under these weird rules so if I knew exactly where to go I could still fish many of these stretches of creek but I would need to find out from county maps which sections of the coppithorne land was pre 1905 and post 1905. But I needed to be careful where I fished because the coppithornes are very hard on trespassers.

Well that sick feeling in my stomach came back and I never fished again that year anywhere I was very upset with the whole thing .... but eventually I got over it now I occasionally fish the JP in this area but I park further upstream walk down stream as far as I dare and fish my way back upstream to my vehichle most likely crossing over a few sections of coppithorne land on my way and catching some of the coppithornes fish too I imagine.

But the fishing has never been as good as it was that summer that I originally crossed paths with the mighty slingshot swinging Coppithornes.

So if your hiking north from Highway one beware ... those little slingshot swinging brats probably own shotguns by now.

Cheers
Diddy

P.S I wish I was making The New Wave Angler videos back then ... that would have been one hell of an episode.

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e3...ps1910f1bb.png

I've heard many tales of the copithornes. And long story short they better bring more than sling shots if they don't want to be outgunned by a lot of the friends I fish and hunt with. Lol. As ex police myself most of my hunting friends will gladly drag their ass to jail for tricks like that.
Ok enough joking about those with elevated delusions of grandeur.
But in all seriousness if the fishing isn't that great there right now anyway I'll maybe just head out to sibbald where those pools in the creek are. Assuming there's anything left after the flood.

Had many a run in with the C's back in the late 90's...slingshots a new one, pointed a shotgun at me one time and set his dog on me another, ended being pretty friendly never saw the mutt again!

Same goes for hunting on their provincially owned hunting leases. Do everything they can within and outside the rules to keep you out. Oh except for the outfitter who doesn't have to conform with the same rules.

Haha love the story, almost worth going for a laugh.

Good story, heard similar ones throughout the years but never told so well! IMHO, the fishing is not nearly good enough for me to chance it anymore. There is much better fishing in other parts.

Not sure if they now have their land posted with a copy of this so-called land title, but they should bloody well have to if they are going to threaten violence and jail to unsuspecting trespassers. Seems to me this has become a sort of family outing for them. Real quality family time, hillbilly style haha

Good on ya for looking into it, I never had the patience to do it myself.

Great, if a bit sad, story. Couple of times in a stretch further north than the hwy 1 bridge i got a truck driving through the fields to come and tell me i was on their property. They must have had an eye out as i made sure i was under the high water mark. All was polite but still quite an unpleasant experience...

Crazy story... I actually know their daughter my sister was friends with her, megan copithorne .And havr met her many times. Also use to do work hauling water and septics for the movies they filmed on their ranch just south/west of hwy 1 for a local company that has ties with the Copithorne's. They are a huge name out here in Cochrane and they own substantial land on the jumping pound creek and parts that the town of Cochrane are built on were sold by them.

As for stories about them chasing people off with guns, that's insane, thought force such as that wasn't allowed in Canada, be it private property or not. People arnt allowed to take matters into their own hands like in the USA.... am I wrong about that?

Glad that wasn't me they pointed the gun at amd threatened my life. I wouldn't gave been so nice.
I do fish parts of that creek and continue to till this day. Was out there with the kids and family the other day.

Good fishing to be had off Gorge Creek road where the bridge goes over jumoing pound creek. Best where the creek enters the bow river

I've been there a few times. By the bridge the water is fairly shallow and clear and could see there were no fish. But maybe my issue is I was fishing from the bank as I don't have waders.

I've never been able to find good access to the point where the creek joins the main river. Maybe I'm just blind or maybe it's because I'm trying to find bank access.

Edit: having looked at google maps I now realise I'm an idiot and the creek splits and I've been trying to get access to the minor part not the main creek. Forgive me, I've only lived here for 8 years, how could I possibly know??!!?!! Yeh I'm an idiot.

Right under the bridge over the creek there is a decent hole that hold some nice white fish and a few brook trout. Oh dont forget the hundreds of sucker fish. That call under the brige a nursery. Some decent sized fish under the bridge. Also some nice holes just yp stream of the gorge fox bridge.

Just follow the west side of the creek by Crawford ranch (subdivision) north to where the creek enters the bow.
If you follow the other side of the creek the bike path will lead down the other side channel (usually dry) but at the end of the channel where it enters the bow there are a few nice holes.

Creek gets fished pretty hard during the summer though and check your regulations for closures.

It is running clear this morning. Water flow a little high, it has fished well this year: over visited though.

How about South of Hwy 1?
 

Thanks for the detailed story, Diddy. I've heard similar stories before but never explained so well. Does anyone know what the landowners just south/upstream of Hwy 1 are like? Are they, too, unfriendly Copithorne's? (I've been told some Copithornes are actually nice decent people, but definitely not all) Is the creek south of Hwy 1 on land owned before 1905?
(Feel free to PM me if you don't want to broadcast to the world.)

Very believable, I have had issues with landowners there as well. They all try to play the old title line.

All this chater about jumping pound had to hit it again today. So after seeing the snow on the way there my hopes were not high. Well wow what a day 2 18" cutthroat a couple 16",12". A real nice rainbow and a 13" brook trout. Which I must say was real tasty. To bad we released the rainbow only to find out that we could have kept him with my stewardship license. All in all a great day on dry flies with my little fishing buddy

Nice.
Where did you fish?

nice!!! Rycoma ..... I spent the day on yours and my favorite brown trout stream and the other one in the vicinity both were high and dirty and I got skunked .... I should of thought like you and went for some orange slashers .... that sounds like a nice mixed bag you got 2 - 18 inch slashers that's awesome for the JP and because they were slashers I'm guessing you were quite a ways up stream of the stretches we are talking about yeah???

Yeah above k country boundary

Really Rycoma
 

I was up in JP a few days ago and managed to caught some "big" ones... However I have really never thought 18 inches would be up there close to the mountains lol. My biggest catch in that area this year were a 15" cut. Fine I'll let you win on this one.

nice how did that dark brookie taste?

Yes sir this isn't the first time either. First time was 3 weeks ago at the same spot. A perfect hole that showed up after the flood. I caught two more around that size about 4 years ago. The big guys are in there. Maybe luck maybe skill. You keep catching all the brookies that I want and I keep catching the cutthroats. Here is a picture of one of the smaller guys 3 weeks ago

No!

I have the land title and they DO NOT have Streambed Rights!! They are full of s h I t!!

P

Über fly where and how did you locate this info. I want to hit that area just for ****s and giggles. I hate bullies and hate stupid mis informed bullies even more. :fighting0030:

Interesting statement Uber. I'd like to see that title myself.

If it is, in fact, fully open to the public I would like to see these guys taken to court just as the numerous people I've heard about who have had expensive court battles brought upon them for trespassing (often falsely accused). One recent one is a Cochrane resident.

If trespassing is illegal, so should barring public access to a public resource.

It is interesting how similar battles have been waged across the Western states in the past decade. I believe that protection of private property is important, but this ain't the way to do it.

Public info available online ($15)

It's copy righted so I cannot post. If you want to go for a coffee I can show it to you!

They also try to block a public bridge and have barbed wire over a navigable water way (illegal). Yes the JP is considered navigable.

Let me know if you want to connect.

Peter

*NB this is for one particular section.

So UberFly are you saying they don't hold streambed rights for this whole section? The stretch I used to enjoy fishing was from the bridge at 252 (point 1 on map)south to the oil lease about 3/4 of the way to highway 1 (point 2 on the map)
and where they "apprehended me" is point 3 on the map.


and do you carry that document with you and fish on "their land" and then shove it in their face when they mess with you??

here is the map
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?m...k.k-vlOuk3F0ME

The document I have is for the land just at the 252 bridge. Just north of Hwy 1 is a different owner. Haven't pulled the title for that land.

Yes I carry it with me. But since Ive attained the doc, I've not had to use it.

P

Man I hate people like them. Maybe this info should be given to the Cochrane F & W and the Cochrane RCMP, so that any anglers who are being bullied off the creek can contact the authorities when an incident happens.
Be fun to see their (landowners) face when the title is shown them as the RC's drive up in support of the angler.

So UberFly I checked out this page online

http://www.servicealberta.ca/LandTitles.cfm

is that where you got your document?
it seems like quite a process ... how did you get the land ID # ?
or did you use a different service?
I want to buy a copy of this title
can you let me know exactly how to go about it
thanks
Diddy