WATCH: A group of outdoor enthusiasts wants public access to lakes located on a massive cattle ranch in BC’s south central interior. Ted Chernecki explains why the outdoorsmen feel they have every right to be on that land.
In the Nicola Valley, there are increasing tensions between those who have hunted and fished on the land for years, and those who now own it.
“You used to be able to drive anywhere in this country,” says Paul Komonoski of the Nicola Valley Fish and Game Club. “Slowly it’s gone. The roads are all being blocked off and gated.”
The small club has been in a long-running battle with U.S. billionaire Stanley Kroenke, who owns the 514,000-acre Douglas Lake Ranch east of Merritt. At issue is previously public roads that lead to popular lakes and hunting grounds being locked and gated because they’re now on private property. The case is currently before the B.C. Supreme Court.
Some of the Fish and Game Club members were among 13 people who were arrested by the RCMP last week at Corbett Lake. They were protesting the fact that the lake has no trespassing signs around it.
– With files from Ted Chernecki
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