Peterborough Examiner Negative Angling Article & Poll

[Michael_Brown]

I was reading the Peterborough Examiner tonight and found two articles about ice fishing in the Kawartha's.

The first was very negative from a member of the Rice Lake cottage association, (approx 35 members). Several inaccurate facts were quoted about the numbers of panfish, fishory advisory council recommendations and ice safety. They also attended a local county council meeting.

The second article was positive and correct in it's information.

In typical style the negative article is on Page 2 and the positive article is on page 18.

 

However the did post an online poll looking for feedback.

 

 

http://www.peterboroughexaminer.com/

 

(poll info about halfway down main page)

 

So if you are enjoying the angling oppourtunities in zone 17 or just like seeing anglers getting out and enjoying their time with family and friends please take a minute and complete the poll.

 

I personally will be responding to the negative article and to the county council which I think has been feed some incorrect information.

 

I'm not a big fan of a small interest group speaking like they represent an entire lake community.

Edited January 22, 2010 by Michael Brown

[Guest ThisPlaceSucks]

the scariest part of living near the kawarthas was being exposed to cottager/homeowner protectionism to that extent. they don't care about the fish, they care about the traffic on their piece of serenity.

[Jer]

75% to the good side so far...

[MuskyGreenHorn]

Typical... People think they own the water, when all they own is a piece of land beside it. The way I see it, anyone who paid for a valid fishing license has more rights and say about what happens on the water anyway, heck we are the ones paying the people who manage the resource. I fully respect MNR guidlines and private property owner rights. Being a fisheries biologist myself, I know they don't pull regs out of the thin air. If the MNR has opened the season for panfish, then they think I take the extra pressure. I do agree that their are not enough CO's (conservation officers). Does she really want more of these? I know I do, but keep reading to find out why she doesn't... As for safety... Give me a break... People have been driving their sleds and trucks all over Rice lake for as Long as I can remember anyway. Its a fact, going on the ice anywhere poses a risk, but it won't ever stop people, Irving-Cogar is just fear mongering. She also claims that ice fishing will be bad for the lake and then states that there hasn't been ice fishing on the lake in 90 years.... So if there hasn't been ice fishing in 90 years, where does the evidence that it is bad come from.... 2+2=4 not 3. And as for resorts being winterised... What has that got to do with anything???? I mean seriously? If you want to miss out on potential winter business that's your problem Susan. Besides Rice lake is close to a lot of people (read: GTA, peterborough, cobourg, port hope). So day trips are very reasonable for a heck of a lot of Ontarion's, we don't need anywhere to stay. I grew up on a major cottage route 10 minutes from Bewdley. There has anyways been traffic, all four seasons, going to Rice Lake and the surroundung area, so it won't be a like there is a noticable traffic increase. I mean how can local business's complain about more customers coming to an area that could use a boost in the winter the months. I just reread the article. Maybe Irving-Cogar should do some basic research..... Panfish are an invasive species??? WOW, that is just plain dumb. I will give her that crappie are not native to Rice, that is not the same thing as invasive. Besides what problem do crappie pose? The are additional angling opportunity and a tasty one at that. She has a problem with an open season but also a problem with limiting panfish... Hmmm kind of contradtictory. I mean who needs more than 300 sunfish, 30 Crappie, and 50 perch in a day? Something sound Fishy with her arguements... Haha I worked "fishy" into this. Anywho back to the rant. I will tell you who wants higher limits but only during the open water season... The resorts... The resorts on Rice Lake typically cater to guests from south of the boarder, no offense to them, but I have whitnessed it first hand and have I have met droves of em' over the years who rant and rave about coming every year as family tradition since the 50's and 60's. They come strickly to slay panfish and they take boat loads home every season. And for some reason Asian people get picked on when we should be picking on Resorts who cater to non-resident anglers, who freeze insane amounts of fish year after year. These limits are set for the entire management area and not just rice lake, so she has no ground to stand on. Basically she wants higher limts so her guests can keep more fish in the summer. While lower daily limits spread evenly over the "ENTIRE" year are just better management practice, she could actually care less, like she wants everyone to believe. You gotta love when someone with no idea on a topic attacks the professionals who study and work in the fish science field for a living... Her Organization represents the resorts, not the general public as Micheal Brown pointed out. I am glad this issue and article was brought to my attention. I don't blame the person who wrote it, its actually good reporting. As her Organization represents 30 some odd resorts, she can take this this number to council and it has some weight. Now if we start a petition for people lving within zone 17 and get a few thousand signatures and give that to council... Well i rest my case, Susan and Other "seasonal" business owners can stay where ever it is they stay during the "off" season, while the local small business owners who welcome happy anglers in all seasons come spend some money in our rural area during the hard, long and cold months of the year. As you can tell, this article and women has got my blood boiling, but I thought the truth needed to be heard so here it is.

Edited January 22, 2010 by MuskyGreenHorn

[MuskyGreenHorn]

I writing the author of this article with a modified version of thsi post.

[BillM]

Not trying to be an ass, but make sure your reply to the author is in paragraph form.. that was tough on the brain to read...

[GBW]

not that long ago 4 mile lake msg board has a post about the new regs so I joined (as this is the lake my family lives on) and commented on all the plus sides to the $ being spent in town and how to keep it clean out there. Well, wouldn't ya know the next day I was banned (LOL) and my post deleted. Only post on "how bad this is" were kept... Either way, to me it's the fools that post the bad news about the new zone 17 regs and we all know, bad news spreads faster then good news...

Edited January 22, 2010 by GBW

[waterwolf]

interesting take from an informed resident . sometimes these small groups get their point heard and it gets a nod from others who just go along with a well-written complaint. great post here , poses a few questions for me . how much does this actually sway the kill limits and do these town cryers even care if the fishery suffers due to overharvest? ahhhh ,not !

Edited January 22, 2010 by waterwolf

[MuskyGreenHorn]

Noted Bill. Since this is just a forum, I went off on a rant. Hopefully people read the actual article and they will easily see where I am coming from. My letter to the article's author was a much more honed version of the "rant" version. LOL.

 

GLW. I like your take on this. Still though I think its good to inform the general public that a "private" interest group is trying to present themselves as us. Sneaky, Sneaky... and Shame on them. And the women in question made her group sound rather ignorant and uninformed...

[fish_fishburn]

Well said Musky.

[GregF2]

I think your post is typical of misclassification of many of the US Anglers and is very disappointing. We have been coming to Rice Lake for about 40 years and always purchased the conservation license and practiced catch and release. I know some US folks and I know some Canadian folks who do take too many panfish. I have seen both sides doing this. I get so tired of hearing the below. I feel like my family is half Canadian (and proud of it) for as much as we go to Canada. We absolutely love the beauty and people of Canada. We are also for all of the new fish limits, but are against ice fishing in Rice Lake, because of the fact that it will be extremely hard to enforce the ice fishing rules and many walleye and bass will be accidentally caught. (This is coming from someone who loves ice fishing). I have already seen pictures on the net with bass being caught and then let go. That can not be healthy for the fish.

 

 

 

 

Typical... People think they own the water, when all they own is a piece of land beside it. The way I see it, anyone who paid for a valid fishing license has more rights and say about what happens on the water anyway, heck we are the ones paying the people who manage the resource. I fully respect MNR guidlines and private property owner rights. Being a fisheries biologist myself, I know they don't pull regs out of the thin air. If the MNR has opened the season for panfish, then they think I take the extra pressure. I do agree that their are not enough CO's (conservation officers). Does she really want more of these? I know I do, but keep reading to find out why she doesn't... As for safety... Give me a break... People have been driving their sleds and trucks all over Rice lake for as Long as I can remember anyway. Its a fact, going on the ice anywhere poses a risk, but it won't ever stop people, Irving-Cogar is just fear mongering. She also claims that ice fishing will be bad for the lake and then states that there hasn't been ice fishing on the lake in 90 years.... So if there hasn't been ice fishing in 90 years, where does the evidence that it is bad come from.... 2+2=4 not 3. And as for resorts being winterised... What has that got to do with anything???? I mean seriously? If you want to miss out on potential winter business that's your problem Susan. Besides Rice lake is close to a lot of people (read: GTA, peterborough, cobourg, port hope). So day trips are very reasonable for a heck of a lot of Ontarion's, we don't need anywhere to stay. I grew up on a major cottage route 10 minutes from Bewdley. There has anyways been traffic, all four seasons, going to Rice Lake and the surroundung area, so it won't be a like there is a noticable traffic increase. I mean how can local business's complain about more customers coming to an area that could use a boost in the winter the months. I just reread the article. Maybe Irving-Cogar should do some basic research..... Panfish are an invasive species??? WOW, that is just plain dumb. I will give her that crappie are not native to Rice, that is not the same thing as invasive. Besides what problem do crappie pose? The are additional angling opportunity and a tasty one at that. She has a problem with an open season but also a problem with limiting panfish... Hmmm kind of contradtictory. I mean who needs more than 300 sunfish, 30 Crappie, and 50 perch in a day? Something sound Fishy with her arguements... Haha I worked "fishy" into this. Anywho back to the rant. I will tell you who wants higher limits but only during the open water season... The resorts... The resorts on Rice Lake typically cater to guests from south of the boarder, no offense to them, but I have whitnessed it first hand and have I have met droves of em' over the years who rant and rave about coming every year as family tradition since the 50's and 60's. They come strickly to slay panfish and they take boat loads home every season. And for some reason Asian people get picked on when we should be picking on Resorts who cater to non-resident anglers, who freeze insane amounts of fish year after year. These limits are set for the entire management area and not just rice lake, so she has no ground to stand on. Basically she wants higher limts so her guests can keep more fish in the summer. While lower daily limits spread evenly over the "ENTIRE" year are just better management practice, she could actually care less, like she wants everyone to believe. You gotta love when someone with no idea on a topic attacks the professionals who study and work in the fish science field for a living... Her Organization represents the resorts, not the general public as Micheal Brown pointed out. I am glad this issue and article was brought to my attention. I don't blame the person who wrote it, its actually good reporting. As her Organization represents 30 some odd resorts, she can take this this number to council and it has some weight. Now if we start a petition for people lving within zone 17 and get a few thousand signatures and give that to council... Well i rest my case, Susan and Other "seasonal" business owners can stay where ever it is they stay during the "off" season, while the local small business owners who welcome happy anglers in all seasons come spend some money in our rural area during the hard, long and cold months of the year. As you can tell, this article and women has got my blood boiling, but I thought the truth needed to be heard so here it is.

[Jer]

I think your post is typical of misclassification of many of the US Anglers and is very disappointing. We have been coming to Rice Lake for about 40 years and always purchased the conservation license and practiced catch and release. I know some US folks and I know some Canadian folks who do take too many panfish. I have seen both sides doing this. I get so tired of hearing the below. I feel like my family is half Canadian (and proud of it) for as much as we go to Canada. We absolutely love the beauty and people of Canada. We are also for all of the new fish limits, but are against ice fishing in Rice Lake, because of the fact that it will be extremely hard to enforce the ice fishing rules and many walleye and bass will be accidentally caught. (This is coming from someone who loves ice fishing). I have already seen pictures on the net with bass being caught and then let go. That can not be healthy for the fish.

 

 

I understand that not all non-resident anglers are taking boat-loads of panfish every trip. However, I was at the FMZ-17 meeting last year in Peterborough and there were a couple representatives from the association in question present. There largest concern was that the proposed (at the time) 300 fish limit on sunfish, as well as the size restrictions were going to seriously affect many of their US visitors desire to visit. They just wouldn't be able to take enough fish home. To me 300 fish each is plenty for anyone. The lake isn't meant to be a grocery store to fill the freezer.

 

As far as the ice fishing goes, I don't really understand why they care. They should look at as a long term business opportunity. I've driven around most of the Rice Lake in the last week and, besides around Bewdely where the ice is very safe, there really are hardly any people fishing. Granted, this may change over the years. I've been mostly on Chemong, and although it looks pretty busy, there are probably less than 40 or 50 fisherman on the lake any given Saturday. I live and have fished on Buckhorn a couple times so far, and there is virtually nobody fishing this lake at all. Hardly the raping and pillaging that was feared. As long as everybody follows the rules, and those that don't are dealt with harshly, plays safe on the ice as most do everywhere else in the province, we should all have a good time.

 

The association on Rice Lake had the opportunity to voice their opinion, which they did, and I'm sure the MNR gave their concerns proper consideration. But in the end, with good bio research to validate their decision, they decided the way they did. Now the association has sour grapes. So far, since the new regs came into effect, I've spent almost $700 on ice fishing equipment because now I can do it at home.

[Beans]

Does anyone have a copy of the articles they could post?

 

The url above takes us to todays paper (Friday 22 Jan 2010)...

 

Story of my life...A day late or a buck short...

[Michael_Brown]

We absolutely love the beauty and people of Canada. We are also for all of the new fish limits, but are against ice fishing in Rice Lake, because of the fact that it will be extremely hard to enforce the ice fishing rules and many walleye and bass will be accidentally caught. (This is coming from someone who loves ice fishing). I have already seen pictures on the net with bass being caught and then let go. That can not be healthy for the fish.

 

 

 

Hi GregF2:

 

Don't read this the wrong way, we are not against americans coming to fish here, buying a license, spending time with your family. That's what we love as well. This is about looking after our resource and offering increased angling oppourtunities when possible to encourage more people to get out and enjoy the quality time that you and I both enjoy.

Ice fishing is not harder to enforce than open water seasons and actually may be easier. We have the same number of CO's here in the winter as we do in the summer and in fact anglers have been reporting being checked fairly often. Many out of season fish are caught and released in the open water months, if done properly it is not an issue.

 

Like anywhere else, a few cause problems for the many.

 

 

 

The above posted poll has now closed so the link doesn't work anymore.

Glad to see I'm not the only one annoyed by this.

[BillM]

So the people that come to Rice in the summer are worried that the icefishermen are somehow going to wipe out the panfish population?

 

What about other lakes that allow ice fishing throughout the winter, are their fish populations decimated by the time the ice melts?

 

I think people are overreacting a bit....

[Ron]

Here is the Poll (closed now)

 

<h1 style="margin-top: 0pt;"> Rice Lake ice fishing problems feared </h1>

<h4 class="grey">Posted By BRENDAN WEDLEY , EXAMINER MUNICIPAL WRITER </h4> <h5 class="grey">Posted 1 day ago</h5>Allowing ice fishing on Rice Lake and limiting the number of panfish caught from the lake will cause problems, a local tourist association representative says. Susan Irving-Cogar, the owner of Sunshine Cove Cottage Resort and a Rice Lake Tourist Association member, urged county council Wednesday to complain about the new fishing regulations to the provincial government.

 

Council plans to raise the issue with newly appointed Natural Resources Minister Linda Jeffrey at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association conference that runs from Feb. 21-24 in Toronto.

 

A panel put in place three years before the regulation changes to research the fishing situation and make recommendations found there should be a 500-panfish limit, Irving-Cogar said.

 

"Overbreeding of this invasive species is something that will happen," she said, "Overbreeding is a serious concern."

 

Previously, there wasn't a limit on the number of panfish a person could catch, Irving-Cogar said.

 

A panfish is a small fish that generally can fit in a frying pan. Examples of species of panfish include sunfish, crappie and perch.

 

With the new regulations, the limits are 300 sunfish with only 30 more than 18 centimetres long with a sport licence or 15 sunfish of any size with a conservation licence; 30 crappie with a sport licence or 10 with a conservation licence; 50 perch with a sport licence or 25 with a conservation licence.

 

The Ministry of Natural Resources brought in various new fishing regulations across the province on Jan. 1.

 

Among the regulation changes, the fishing season for sunfish, yellow perch, black crappie and northern park has been extended to year-round; the catch limit for walleye between 35 and 50 centimetres is four with a sport licence and one with a conservation licence; and the bass, muskie and walleye season is extended to Dec. 15.

 

There has been no winter fishery on Rice Lake in more than 90 years, Irving-Cogar said.

 

fctAdTag("doublebanner",MyGenericTagVar,1); "Ice fishing brings a lot of problems with it," she said.

 

Irving-Cogar listed problems such as Rice Lake's reputation for unstable ice, the current in the lake with inflow from the Otonabee River and outflow at Hastings into the Trent River, putting emergency staff at peril if they need to rescue people fishing on the like in the winter, walleye poaching and the lack of conservation officers.

 

Irving-Cogar asked council to push the Ministry of Natural Resources to create special area for Rice Lake with its own set of regulations.

 

The bulk of resorts around the lake aren't winterized, Irving-Cogar said.

 

"We are seasonal and quite frankly we don't have funds to make ourselves a year-round business and quite frankly we don't want to," she said.

 

Concerns put forward at a public meeting on the regulation changes fell on deaf ears, Havelock-Belmont- Methuen Reeve Ron Gerow said.

 

"I share your concerns," he told Irving-Cogar. "I don't think that MNR actually listened to anybody."

 

[email protected]

 

Ice fishing:Read what anglers think about the joys of ice fishing. Page C1 - I am still hoping to get this article from the PTBO Examiner as this was not available on line.

 

 

 

 

Susan Irving-Cogar was the lovely female who I gave her all the time of day to discuss her opinion on the extended angling opportunities in zone 17. When she was done telling me her opinion, I started with my reply to her concerns and she just ranted not wanting to have anything to do with what is best for the fisheries. Susan along with a few others of the Rice Lake Tourists Ass. are only concerned for one thing... that is lining their own pockets for what is best for them. They don't don't see the great picture here. What would happen to their Resort once all the big fish are depleted out of the lake? Do you think the Tourist are going to still come to Rice if all they can harvest is 4 inch long Bluegills?

 

 

 

 

Suck it up Rice Lake Tourist Ass. You are not the only one who have special interest in Rice Lake! Just that some of us have interest in what IS best for the lake.

 

 

 

 

Cheers, Ron...

[Ron]

Sorry for posting a link to another forum but people who are interested in the fisheries should read these comments as well.

 

http://www.bountyfishing.com/thread/ridicu...fish-regulation

[Rice Laker]

As a resident on Rice Lake and a member of the local tourist association I want to correct a few errors and expand on some of the comments made above by MuskyGreenHorn and others.

Firstly, the impression in the newspaper article that the Rice Lake Tourist Association is against ice fishing is incorrect. The association is NOT against ice fishing and voted FOR it at the Zone 17 Council meetings. Like several other Council members, concerns were expressed for walleye being caught and kept and also the safety issue. Rice Lake has a constant water flow through most of the lake that causes open areas and pressure cracks. The 2 snowmobile clubs that monitor the lake are posting today “Rice Lake may be unsafe at this time” and “Closed”. We can only wait and see over the next couple of years how many need to be rescued in the early and latter parts of the ice fishing season.

One of the MNR’s mandates was “to increase fishing opportunities” and Zone 17 stuck out like a sore thumb as the only zone in the entire province without ice fishing (Scugog excepted). We do not disagre with this and some members have already put out huts.

Many MNR publications/presentations DO describe bluegills as an “invasive species”, so to say "WOW, that is just plain dumb" is NOT correct. Bluegills first appeared in Rice Lake in the mid-60s and the Department of Lands and Forests (predecessor of the MNR) expressed great concerns that the invasion would negatively impact other species. The biologists at the time strongly urged the Rice Lake resorts to encourage that bluegills be “fished hard”. I guess it is debatable if a species is still “invasive” after 45 years but that is the reason behind the “no limits” that were in place until this year.

Ontario anglers typically do not fish for bluegills and this is why the majority of bluegill anglers are from the US. Rice Lake is particularly suitable for bluegills, being shallow, long shore lines and warm. This is why the bluegill population is huge. Rice Lake is also notable in that there are very few public access fishing areas so even if locals did target bluegills, they would not be able to access them without a boat.

To write “I mean who needs more than 300 sunfish, 30 Crappie, and 50 perch in a day” is also incorrect. US anglers do not come for a day, they come for 1-2 weeks. The new 300 possession limit is per licence, not per day.

To write they “slay panfish and they take boat loads home every season” may have been true 15-20 years ago but is certainly not true now. Non-resident licence sales on Rice Lake are down more than 50% over the last 5 years and the majority of those no longer coming are bluegill fishermen in May and June. The net result of this is that there are even more bluegills in the lake than there were 5 years ago.

Many of us actually that live on Rice Lake are very concerned that the bluegill population will again explode to the detriment of other species and will also result in bluegill stunting. We have already seen indications of this in the last 3 years, with bluegills spawning in areas that they have never spawned in before. Dr John Casselman from Queens University has expressed concern that centrarchids (bluegills, bass) will “take over” lakes due to global warming.........

Rice Lake creel surveys are typically done every 4 years by the MNR and we have asked them to increase this to annually so that if there are drastic changes, this will be seen sooner rather than later. Our members are as concerned about the whole Rice Lake fishery as anyone else, maybe more so.

Finally, check out the following MNR website. This shows the importance that the MNR attaches to bluegills:

 

http://www.mnr.gov.on.ca/en/Business/LetsF...L02_165385.html

[BillM]

So within those 1-2 weeks that some of our US friends are up here fishing, are they not consuming any of the fish they catch? I would assume that's exactly what they'd be doing, so your concerns over the 300 fish possession limit really only applies when they pack up and go home no?

 

The whole 'global warming' argument is a bit far fetched...

[MuskyGreenHorn]

I did not want to offend anyone from the USA. I have family in the US and many american friends. Also I guide them up on LOTW. Up there though we strongly encourage catch and release and emphasis is put on having shore lunch. For anyone used to fishing walleye on the Kawarthas (i grew up doing it) LOTW would blow your mind. The walleye fishery there is the best I have ever experienced anywhere in teh province and I think it has a lot to do with respectful anglers. I am all for Americans coming to Rice Lake and fishing and taking fish home. I know many come and respect our waters, but it is the ones that come to the resorts to fill their freezers that tick us off. And trust me, it happens and that is exactly what Irving Cogar is catering to. My eveidence/ experience is on a personal level and thus anecdotal, but I knew that if I spoke up others would follow. As usual it's a couple of rotten apples spoiling it for the rest. I would also like to add that daily catch limits aren't the same as possession limits. 300 fish a day times a 5 days stay does not mean you can take 1500 fish home. It means you can take 300 home at the end of the week. if you can eat 300 a day for first 4 days be my guest.

 

About concerns of bass being caught through the ice. Catching a fish is a stressful situation for the animal. Even in teh best case senario, using barbless hooks, landing it quickly and releasing without removing it from the water, the fish still experience stress. All anglers accept we fish for fun and also many of for the table. I studied fish in University and College for six years. Here is the worst time of yar to catch a fish is actually in the heat of the summer. Since fish are cold blooded, their metabolism is at it's highest when the water is warmest. That equates to a much more unpleasent expeience. Ever notice how bass puke up their last couple of meals when you catch them in the summer? But bass are tough customers as they are great hunters and opportunists and studies show that post-release motality in the summer is low. Trust me, angling a bass through the ice, is not an issue for concern.

 

As for enforement concerns. We all share that concern, (I woudl love for Irving-Cogars freezers to get checked in the summer) and unfortunately its a big problem here in Ontario all four seasons. More poaching probably occues during the open water season as fish are actually actually more accessible to people. Ice fishing takes some serious skill and dedication. And it easier for a C/O to check on a few anglers on teh ice tahn the thosands of boats, docks, warfs and shorelines during the summer. The enforement issue is a whole other debate and comes down to politics here in Ontario. I will save it for another time and place.

[troutologist]

As someone who has and still does facilitate meetings across numerous special interest groups on issues of this type, I applaud the MNR and FMZ 17 council. Must have been a good one! Thankfully it goes up on the EBR and you have your chance to comment, I find articles of this nature odd, why didn't you take up your issues at the appropriate time?

 

As far as ice safety, people icefish much further south than rice lake, be it in the far north or rice lake, there will always be issues with ice safety. The lowest common denoninators seem to prefer to test first and last ice....

 

Bycatch during sport (or commercial) fishing is a toucy subject, worked on for many years. How do you prevent it? A good first step for easier handling would be mandotory barbless hooks (Province wide!) With increased instances of a fishery open for one species and not another, by catch related mortality can be mitigated through the use of barbless hooks.

 

Far be it for me to begrudge someone their limit of 300 pannies, I could never subscribe to that thinking personally a) just don't want to clean that many b ) I refuse to keep more fish than I can eat that day or the odd extra that I give my grandparents. Frozen fish doesn't taste as good.

 

Its unfortunate that the author of this letter was afforded such a forum for opinions that are less than veracious. Though I'm not a resort owner, I suspect a good business plan would be to jump on board for both the extra revenues during what was previously a down time and taking every step possible to reinvest into my product which in this case is the health and divesity of rice lake and its surrounding ecosystem for the future.

Edited January 22, 2010 by troutologist

[Ron]

I think your post is typical of misclassification of many of the US Anglers and is very disappointing. We have been coming to Rice Lake for about 40 years and always purchased the conservation license and practiced catch and release. I know some US folks and I know some Canadian folks who do take too many panfish. I have seen both sides doing this. I get so tired of hearing the below. I feel like my family is half Canadian (and proud of it) for as much as we go to Canada. We absolutely love the beauty and people of Canada. We are also for all of the new fish limits, but are against ice fishing in Rice Lake, because of the fact that it will be extremely hard to enforce the ice fishing rules and many walleye and bass will be accidentally caught. (This is coming from someone who loves ice fishing). I have already seen pictures on the net with bass being caught and then let go. That can not be healthy for the fish.

 

Your right, Bass are only caught on Rice Lake. No other lake in Ontario catches incidental fish out of season...

[MuskyGreenHorn]

Wow Rice Laker.... Yes I said "WOW" again You are really just proving me even more right...

 

Did you notice that the MNR set the bluegill limits to 30 for larger specimens. This is to prevent stunting and ensure that teh larger ones are left to breed to ensure larger size stays in the gene pool.

 

So you think we should still fish hard for bluegills even though that idea is from the 1960's?

 

You say that there are more bluegills than ever in the last 5 years and that they are spawning in areas they never spawned before. To that I ask. Did you do your own lake wide study? Didn't think so. Leave the Science to the MNR. I wish they could check every lake every year as well, but its not going to happen. The lake is an ever changing ecosystem, faced with new challanges all the time. In the past 10 or so years zebra mussels have drastcally changed the lake. I am very familiar with Dr. Casselman and his work. What he is saying is that he believes there will be a shift in many lakes towards a warm water fishery from a cool water one. This means centracids (the sunfish family which includes bass and sunfish) will increase as the habitat will be more favorabel to them. Keeping more of them will not reverse the effects of global warming. If you want to stop that shift, stop global warming.

 

I understand that your business and others like it may be hurting in the past couple of years. I would like to ask if the economic downturn in the US may have some influence there. Also those new regs are infact "NEW" so they can't be to blame for the decrease in peole coming from south of the boarder. There is more to the issue. Maybe its an old trend/fad? I don't know why and I understand you have lost business. Are yoou seriously telling me that poeple need to take more 300 fish home each after they stay here for a week? I mean if a Family of 5 comes and tehy each get a license, that 1500 fish. that isn't enough?

 

You stated... "Rice Lake is also notable in that there are very few public access fishing areas so even if locals did target bluegills, they would not be able to access them without a boat." Hmmm, guess what the ice is good for? Do I even have to elaborate?

 

And lastly the safety concern. I stated that I agree ice fishing is risky. Most people recognize this. Every lake is unique and has areas that are potentially more hazardous and some people learn the hard way unfortunately, but to simply stay off the ice completely is unreasonable. I, like most anglers pay close attention to what local clubs/authorities and agencies have to say and only go out when its its safe.

 

I am really not sure what you are trying to say.

[Beans]

Its unfortunate that the author of this letter was afforded such a forum for opinions that are less than veracious. Though I'm not a resort owner, I suspect a good business plan would be to jump on board for both the extra revenues during what was previously a down time and taking every step possible to reinvest into my product which in this case is the health and divesity of rice lake and its surrounding ecosystem for the future.

 

What ???...and give up their time spent in the sunny climes of Florida, Mexico, Cuba, etc. during what used to be their off-season...get real...why do you think they nickle and dime the tourists (tax-free) as much as they can when they can...But, let those of us who are stuck up here in the cold a bit of enjoyment like fishing through the ice...heaven forbid !!!

 

There...I said it and I'm glad... (closest I could find to a raspberry)

 

Now...I'm going to go and spend a couple of hours chasing some of those finny critters...

Edited January 22, 2010 by Beans

[Michael_Brown]

Maybe the Rice Lake Cottage association would like an apology from the MNR for extending their business oppourtunities by five months.

 

It's always annoying when people use bits and pieces of material/research from over a long period of time to justify their agenda.

 

I would be willing to claim that if the Canadian dollar drops in value, the price of gas declines, they loosen security at the borders and we have no more outbreaks of significant disease. That the tourism around Rice lake and other local lakes will increase dramatically. Unfortunatley we will not hear about the good times.

The quality angling oppourtunities and good friendly Canadian hospitality, will be here waiting for them when they arrive.

Edited January 23, 2010 by Michael Brown