Spring fishing for legal species

[moxie]

15 hours ago, BillM said:

I'd like to see tournaments go live release, no moving fish 10 of miles from where they were caught.   

Exactly. That goes for the wknd warriors (there are many) ferrying around a stuffed livewell for 6-8 hrs so they can take the wannabe Big Man Tourney Pro pics holding a stringer of fish at the end of the day also has to stop. 

 

[Walltrout]

Actually ALL tournaments should be outlawed as they are nothing more then another form of commercial fishing.

[Garnet]

How did spring fishing turn into tournament fishing discussion.

I'm a 100% user of the fishing resource.

I don't think fishing will be outlawed, it makes me proud every time I see kids show up on the eastern ditches. I was the guy that went to dozens of meeting until the law was changed to all year fishing below CN tracks on all creeks.

[moxie]

1 hour ago, Garnet said:

How did spring fishing turn into tournament fishing discussion.

I'm a 100% user of the fishing resource.

I don't think fishing will be outlawed, it makes me proud every time I see kids show up on the eastern ditches. I was the guy that went to dozens of meeting until the law was changed to all year fishing below CN tracks on all creeks.

When a seconds quick picture or measurement of a an OOS fish is against the law while other real and concerning practices are allowed and deemed legal ( Multiple Tourneys &  Non Regulated Native Fish harvest) it turns into whatever it turns into. 

[Terry]

Not releasing OOS fish is illegal 

tournaments are not

peoples moral compass has nothing to do with it and shouldn’t have anything to do with it

lets stick with science and the law 

[Garnet]

So you just generally hate all fishing unless it fit your narrow mind.

Enjoy your hate of me. I fish to eat, I fish for enjoyment , I fish to improve skills, I fish derby's, I fish tournaments.

All within the law. 100% Fisherman.  

[12 Volt Man]

11 hours ago, Walltrout said:

Actually ALL tournaments should be outlawed as they are nothing more then another form of commercial fishing.

completely wrong. commercial fishing is harvesting fish for human consumption.

tournaments are always catch and release. 

[Walltrout]

Since someone is always making money via a fishing tournament it's a commercial enterprise if you like it or not.

And by stating tournaments are catch and release ignores the mortality of the released fish that is sometimes as high as 50% but usually around 25%. Please explain to me how this style of commercial fishing is good for the fish population.

Trust me, I'm not a tree hugger and I have no plans to gather some of those nut cases to protest at your tournament. I am just trying to open your eyes to what they really are. Would you support a small gill netting operation on your favorite lakes so Fresh Water Fillets of North America can make some easy money while the netting is good and then move on to the next lake that hasn't been netted out YET. Have you ever noticed the organizers for fishing tournaments never go to almost sterile lakes to hold their money making scheme. 

https://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2009/08/02/In-catch-and-release-angling-competitions-freed-bass-still-face-risk/stories/200908020169

[Garnet]

Sometimes, could be and most laughable money making schemes.

[AKRISONER]

You're right, cancel the entire sport, the fish are better left alone in entirety. Im sure the fishing and boating industry can survive off of people that fish 1 weekend a year during their vacation, that own one rod and fish with a bobber and a worm lol

The money spent by tournament anglers doesnt help the local economy or generate tax revenue at all so lets just cancel everything. 

The tri-lakes are really short on numbers of largemouth. 🙄

 

You live in Canada...if you want to fish world class bass populations that see 0 angling pressure...drive 2.5 hours and fish them?

Edited February 10, 2020 by AKRISONER

[SirCranksalot]

On 1/16/2020 at 10:44 PM, BoneAmie said:

 

I was sincerely looking for fishing advice, yet being challenged like I'm a scofflaw and certainly not getting the benefit of the doubt. I thought this would be a place to get help from more experienced fishermen.

And that's the sad part of this whole thread!!

[Sinker]

1 hour ago, AKRISONER said:

 

The tri-lakes are really short on numbers of largemouth. 🙄

 

 

You didn't fish the tri lakes 10-20-30 years ago. The bass fishing, and all other species, is garbage compared to what it was then. Also, there is a lot more tourneys, with a lot more anglers fishing them. Hmmmm....

Tournaments are just a way for someone to get rich. Not the anglers, but someone is making a lot of money somewhere. 

As for spring fishing, just go fish. If you catch something out of season, release it. Its really that simple. Don't target out of season fish, and you are fine. 

 

 

S. 

[AKRISONER]

20 hours ago, Sinker said:

You didn't fish the tri lakes 10-20 years ago. 

🤔

 

 

 

the fishing decline Couldn’t have anything to do with the population of southern Ontario increasing by 35%? Theres so many factors at play here specifically in the kawarthas, and that’s why you see other municipalities enforcing laws for the purposes of protecting shorelines and water quality.

every cottage on the lakes basically has a giant retaining wall and have destroyed the majority of the natural shoreline on those lakes. The lakes are full of algae, The water levels are absolutely all over the place, Invasive species, guys running seadoos right over top of bedded fish non stop, increased fishing pressure etc etc

the number 1 factor? Humans...humans are negatively impacting the lakes. The more humans, the more the lakes will suffer.

im not saying Tournament fishing doesn’t have a negative effect on bass populations, anything that disturbs the fish does, but saying it’s all because of tournaments is basically pointing fingers. As far as I’m aware, everything done in tournaments is within the confines of the law and furthermore extreme care is taken to try to lower unintentional kills.

i guess ya we could all go back to the methods of the 70’s...and kill every single fish we see and eat it. Musky is delicious.

 

[Sinker]

On 2/11/2020 at 6:59 AM, AKRISONER said:

🤔

 

 

 

the fishing decline Couldn’t have anything to do with the population of southern Ontario increasing by 35%? Theres so many factors at play here specifically in the kawarthas, and that’s why you see other municipalities enforcing laws for the purposes of protecting shorelines and water quality.

every cottage on the lakes basically has a giant retaining wall and have destroyed the majority of the natural shoreline on those lakes. The lakes are full of algae, The water levels are absolutely all over the place, Invasive species, guys running seadoos right over top of bedded fish non stop, increased fishing pressure etc etc

the number 1 factor? Humans...humans are negatively impacting the lakes. The more humans, the more the lakes will suffer.

im not saying Tournament fishing doesn’t have a negative effect on bass populations, anything that disturbs the fish does, but saying it’s all because of tournaments is basically pointing fingers. As far as I’m aware, everything done in tournaments is within the confines of the law and furthermore extreme care is taken to try to lower unintentional kills.

i guess ya we could all go back to the methods of the 70’s...and kill every single fish we see and eat it. Musky is delicious.

 

Lets hear the benefits of bass tournaments. 

 

S. 

[Terry]

Tournaments were the catalyst for modern fishing boats, motors,  electronics ,tackle , rods and reels and made a lot of people better fishermen and maybe even the odd fisherwoman

[Sinker]

1 hour ago, Terry said:

Tournaments were the catalyst for modern fishing boats, motors,  electronics ,tackle , rods and reels and made a lot of people better fishermen and maybe even the odd fisherwoman

Yeah, but how does that benefit the fishery? 

 

[OhioFisherman]

I recall Pointe Au Baril in the 60's and 70's, every camp we stayed at there seemed to designate one evening for a " fish fry " a non participant myself, but due to the lack of walleye at that time smallmouth bass and panfish filled the menu. Things like that certainly didn't benefit the fishery?

[Terry]

37 minutes ago, Sinker said:

Yeah, but how does that benefit the fishery? 

 

Part of every entry fee went back to the fishery and they hired biologists to do studies on fish and fish habitat

And  you typed let’s hear the benefits 

not benefits to the fishery 

unless I misunderstood 

 

Edited February 20, 2020 by Terry

[AKRISONER]

7 hours ago, Sinker said:

Yeah, but how does that benefit the fishery? 

 

Same logic as ducks unlimited

people that don’t fish don’t give a damn about the fishery.

Ask some of the local businesses in bridgenorth if they like having the tournaments come through.

i don’t think anyone here is arguing that if we all just practiced occasional catch and release it would be better for the fish populations. But then you are literally proposing that the entire industry basically collapse. Bass fishing makes the freshwater fishing industry go round...it’s massive in the USA and is the reason we have big graphs, trolling motors etc etc on our boats. Much like F1 and tech that we have in our cars.

 

as long as it’s within the confines of the law then so be it. If the laws need to be changed then we should be advocating for it as such.

 

[Musky Plug]

On 1/16/2020 at 10:44 PM, BoneAmie said:

I was sincerely looking for fishing advice, yet being challenged like I'm a scofflaw and certainly not getting the benefit of the doubt. I thought this would be a place to get help from more experienced fishermen.

It is a good place for information however sometimes people can get bend out of shape when talking about topics like fishing OOS. I think your question while completely innocent rubbed a few the wrong way. 

[Musky Plug]

On 2/9/2020 at 10:04 AM, Walltrout said:

Actually ALL tournaments should be outlawed as they are nothing more then another form of commercial fishing.

I don't fish tournaments and have no ambition to but I disagree with this statement. Tournaments can be a good thing for a local economy. Bringing people who wouldn't normally visit the area to that specific area and spend money. 

On the flip side I understand I think tourney's should make the move to the MLF style format with the fish released immediately after caught to stop delayed mortality or fish dying in a heated box. However I can appreciate the "weigh in" portion of the tournaments can be a crowd draw too. I fish a few lakes in the Waubaushene area that I think that have been directly affected by tournaments. SMB and LMB are virtually none existent in a lake and some what in the connecting lakes that I go to that used to have them and you could catch them frequently. Some of the locals also seem to think this as well as very few participants of the tournaments used to fish the lakes but since the word got out more and more participants fish them during the tournaments and take the fish and they don't return. 

 

 

2 hours ago, AKRISONER said:

as long as it’s within the confines of the law then so be it. If the laws need to be changed then we should be advocating for it as such.

Agreed. 

Edited February 21, 2020 by Musky Plug

[Musky Plug]

9 hours ago, Terry said:

Part of every entry fee went back to the fishery and they hired biologists to do studies on fish and fish habitat

I like this idea but who knows the actual amount if any that makes it there. 

[Sinker]

11 hours ago, AKRISONER said:

Same logic as ducks unlimited

people that don’t fish don’t give a damn about the fishery.

Ask some of the local businesses in bridgenorth if they like having the tournaments come through.

i don’t think anyone here is arguing that if we all just practiced occasional catch and release it would be better for the fish populations. But then you are literally proposing that the entire industry basically collapse. Bass fishing makes the freshwater fishing industry go round...it’s massive in the USA and is the reason we have big graphs, trolling motors etc etc on our boats. Much like F1 and tech that we have in our cars.

 

as long as it’s within the confines of the law then so be it. If the laws need to be changed then we should be advocating for it as such.

 

Ducks unlimited maintains and creates habitat, so no, its not the same logic at all.  They don't even support hunters any more, its all about habitat. 

Bass tourneys do not benefit the fishery at all. Its all a cash grab. Glitter boats tearing up the lakes, and killing a lot of fish.  Sure, bring a few hundred people into any community it will generate revenue, but wheres the real benefit?? I value the actual fish, more than a few bucks in a small town. Without the fish, we are screwed. These guys should be doing more work to improve the fishing, not make it worse. 

Legal, yes. Ethical....I dont think so, personally. 

S. 

[Terry]

Bass clubs do habitat rehab , put 100s fof trees down to support fish ,every bass masters club is too organize lake clean ups  I spent a lot

of days removing tires and shopping carts and much more as directed by the tournament clubs 

they always give large numbers of rods reels and tackle to kids and charities. And have kid days out on the lakes and we have had disabled days on the water where we found ways to get them out to fish

a