what so you guys think about the current health of the striper population.. I mean, do you think that there are as many fish around as there was say 3 or 5 years ago?? Personally I think we're fooling ourselves thinking that all is well with the striped bass.. Over fishing, polution, lack of menhaden in the chesapeake all spell trouble for the bass...

I am starting to think the same thing Eben.....based on all that has happened, or not happened this season!:huh:

i concure, no need for sunglasses.

I haven't posted much lately but I did fish my favorite spots using my tried and true methods this past season. This season was different than the last 10 or so years, for the time I put in, I caught less fish. I did get some fish all season long but at least 50% of the times I went, I'd fish the tide and get maybe 1 or 2 fish and about 25% it was 1 bite, 1 fish. I think I'll fish to the first or second week of November, the next 2 weeks should still have fish in the canal, hopefully some biggies will come through..I never give up. I just think the water never really got warm this year. I think 6 or 7 more trips before I hang it up.

Oh, I did catch more smooth dogfish this year than I ever did before.

all i know is the last 2 seasons, including this one, have been the only 2 where i havent had a "best season"

i think its been the weather, and i HOPE its just weather.:(

going back to a 1 fish limit will help. the weather this year has been very wierd i think the pogies did not get the water temp signal to invade the cape. this winter is supposed to be VERY BAD

They say every year that "this winter is supposed to be real bad"!!!!!! When was the last time they never said that?:smash:

bigfish, 3yrs ago i think. :smash: we had a mild one.
same year we got TONS of BUNKER

last winter was a bitch one of the coldest in new england history the farmers almanac in 89% correct. NOAA even said this winter temps were going to be very below average. all these tropical storms dont help eather the waters getting torn up every week

I haven't seen a bunker of any age class on Brenton Reef in a month and a 1/2, maybe longer. And of course because of that bass have been almost non-existent there.

There's been some solid schools of bunker south of us as well as in the bay, but a month long drought just seems odd.

At this point, especially with reports coming in to the shop every day from Maine to Rhode Island from people fishing and hoping for fall runs that don't seem to be happening, I'm pretty convinced something is wrong.

Either we have a problem with the baitfish, or we have a problem with the stripers. Or both.

Striper man!!!! Nice to see your back! Your front is fugley!

I'm glad to hear i'm not alone on this.. the question is, how much more killing will have to happen before the regulations get changed??? I wasnt fishing in the 70's right before the bass crash, but from what i read it happened pretty quickly. Now 30 years later, imagine how many more people are fishing for bass. A crash could be happening right under our noses and the next thing we know, there will be no bass around agian.

makes you wonder doesnt it:huh:

i heard we are going back to a 1 fish limit next year.

who realy needs to keep 2 fish anyways. i would like to see a slot limit allmost all other states have one for stripedbass

so far this year i have done better than the past few years, i put it a lot more time and would like to think im just getting better. last year at this time there seemed to be a LOT more fish. maybe it is just a late migratio. I have yet to see any adult bunker, they really need to address that or alot of the fisheries are going to take a big hit.

What about all the talk that the boat guys did well this year and that the fish stayed farther off shore?

-spence

Originally posted by spence
What about all the talk that the boat guys did well this year and that the fish stayed farther off shore?

-spence

I'm thinking that was just the "reports" that were spread around. It sounds good, and it's an easy excuse as to why most us are doing so poorly from shore. I'm real tired of fishing for 6 hours and catching 2 big blues and a twinkie bass. Admittedly I'm lazy and I don't like to leave Aquidneck Island, but it doesn't sound like there's any good reason to take a drive south anyways.

Also several of the boat guys I know (although they are only targeting BIG fish) didn't have that great a year.

I think most concerning at this point is the lack of big schools of 15" to 32" fish. Where are they? Of the fish I've heard about being caught in the past month or so as many have been over 20 pounds as under.

Hopefully I'm wrong and things are going to start happening around here in the next couple of weeks. Looks like the weather is going to be a bit unsettled mid-week, maybe a fall run will develop. Water temps have taken a serious tumble in the past week as well.

Originally posted by Pete_G
Either we have a problem with the baitfish, or we have a problem with the stripers. Or both.

You're right, Pete - and I've been thinking it's both for a while.

I just recently read an article that said fisheries scientists are starting to believe that there is a problem somewhere in the striped bass stocks.

Lack of suitable forage I feel is first and foremost. Check out Omega Protein on Google sometime and think about it's impact on menhaden coast-wide.

Lack of proper nutrition will lead to health problems in any organism.

And I also feel that ASMFC was waaaay too premature in declaring a full recovery and the size and take limits were not at all appropriate for the maintainance of a healthy population.

There's just been a lot of pressure on the stock since the "recovery" and I believe the result might just be becoming evident now.

You know, if it turns out that we're all relying on anecdotal information and our fears are unfounded...well...personally, I'd much rather err on the side of caution if a number of steps have to be taken to insure a sustainable striped bass fishery.

I believe the problem first and foremost is the lack of bait available..I have not seen as much as in previous years. I am all for going back to a 1 fish limit as well...as long as the commercial guys take a reduction.

Late August/Early Sept. had lots of peanut bunker around and then there was nothing.The few bass and blues I've caught over the past few weeks all seem to be feeding on silversides.

I'm no biologist but the lack of baitfish seems to coincide with the lack of bass.

Go talk to a lobsterman how he is doing this year. He will tell you he is having one of his poorest years in his memory. In fact, if you go down to teh co-op docks in gallilee, you'll notice that most of teh lobster boats are not going out. There was an article in the projo a few weeks ago about the lobster crash and they eluded to the fact that there are lots of stripers around. Then you have the winter flounder problems. I'm nto a scientist but I do know that the baby winter flounders are headed down narragansett bay right around the time that the bass start making their selves known in the spring... We dont want bass eating lobsters and flounder..... we want them eating menhaden.

We need to get the menhaden back. i believe that they are the base to the food pyramid not just here, but most importantly in the chesapeake, when the bass are there for the winter. Crafty is right, Omega Protien is the problem, and you can be sure that they are big enough to have lobbiests pushing for a higher Catch every year.
As for me, I cant remember the last time I kept 2 bass a day. in fact, i probably keep about 10% of the keepers i catch each year.

I would love to know the numbers of people fishing before the moritoriam in the 80's and the number of people fishing now... I would not be surprised if there was at least 10 times the number of guys wetting a line now.

Where is this rumor of one fish a day coming from?? I would love to see a one fish at 24" to 34" then release anything below or above. If we did that, and also saved the adult Menhaden, i believe things would be alot better.

Originally posted by Rappin Mikey
Striper man!!!! Nice to see your back! Your front is fugley!
I am not striperman, I am striprman:af:

I think the stripers basically got together and unionized. They're on strike until they get better forage. :hihi:

Funny, I think striprman nailed it - fewer fish for the hours put in.

And this is obvious - I'm noticing a correlation with poor fishing and lack of any visible bait, never mind pogies or peanuts or sand eels or even silversides.

I'm still enjoying myself on the water, but it's awful funny that I've been doing a lot better in the less scenic spots up in the Bay on little rat schoolies than out in the open (SC PJ or 'Gansett/J-Town/Nport). Was very disappointed with Brenton Reef this year.

My most productive trip this year was down in the OBX. :crying:

-WW

2 yrs ago NJ Banned the bunker reduction boats in NJ waters.the last 2 spring runs have had many huge inshore buner schools with thousands 30# an hundreds of 40# fish taken.Fishing the likes many old salts have never seen.The fishin from boat is automatic frequent inshore oppurtunities have yeilded many large fish for the surfcaster also with NJ's 2 fish(with a bonus tag) law many big bass where taken for the scales an photo's.primarily a summer flounder fishing Scene the whole rec. fleet became big bass men see it every week in the fishing weekly's.It's a catch 22 situation for me.I'am glad to have the oppurtunity for large fish but the #'s of large bass taken leave me wondering how the stocks will manage.From what I understand the large fish oppurtunities up north the last 2 yrs have been off.More than just a coincidence?????Ur guess is as good as mine an probably as good as the ones who figure these things out for us.:(

Does this mean I gotta fish NJ? :wave:

NIB you mention one downside to having lots of menhaden around.. the big bass will be on the bunker, so if you find the bunker you will find big bass... Its a tough call which is better for the bass.. when theres alot of scup around, the big ones are on the bottom, but with the pogies, they are on top, which makes them easier to find :smash:

Originally posted by Eben

Where is this rumor of one fish a day coming from?? I would love to see a one fish at 24" to 34" then release anything below or above. If we did that, and also saved the adult Menhaden, i believe things would be alot better. [/B]
I am with you on this Eben...I am all for it...

I don't think you should able to keep a fish that doesn't fit on a reasonably sized grill ;)

-spence

I got a late start this year. The first trip was to block in mid June and did great it was the best trip I ever had. 22 fish in 5 hours with 3 guys. I thought it was going to be a awesome season. I kept the boat in Newport this year and fished Brenton Reef and Cliffwalk, The Fountain, Beavertail, Fort Weterall, Second Beach and Narragansett. And I will tell you straight out the fishing was awfull. I got 14 fish the rest of the year. Brenton Reef was a grave yard. I caught one 12 pounder all season. Last time I went out the reef was holding scup and bluefish. I have not seen loads of bait like in past years. Either the weather or pollution of over fishing has hurt the stocks. I think next year will tell the tale. Unless the fall run starts soon. Surfrunner is going into hibernation until the spring. Go Redsox.:smash: :smash:

I’ve been reluctant to post on this topic but figured I can put my 2 cents in.
I remember catching 100+ bluefish over a two week period on the Cape when I was a kid and then the next season 5 bluefish. Was it because the population was suffering? Truthfully, I have no clue what it was, but it was not due to a decline in the fish.
Last year on this site I remember guys posting about all this fish they were getting in So Co. I was fishing hard and getting skunked. I abandoned my spots and began exploring new areas, soon I was into fish.
This year, the areas I abondoned last year have been producing a lot of fish. I have seen more bass blitzes this year than ever. Not huge fish, but consistent fish. I have not been skunked once since August and I fish 1-2 nights a week, that’s not a bad record. My Dad fished RI from 87-94 and I speak with him each week after fishing and my experiences are similar to his, except he put in many more hours than I do and he has a few 50+, I don’t have anything close. Just look at the number of bass caught this weekend for ten MDA tourney? Imagine how many were caught and not weighed in?
I think the factors affecting the fish are too numerous to mention. Weather, wind, currents, bait… Frank Daignult writing’s seem to downplay the existence of menhaden and states that the bass were doing well before the menhaden even arrived.

From this site, it appears some people have done very well this year, I just think its premature to think that you’re having a bad season thus the fish are in decline. I think the fish are there, you just may have to alter your strategy.

i've done well this year too, but i am also looking at the bass situation with open eyes... There is very little bait around, i havent seen but a few bird frenzys. Lots of guys are doing horribly. Sure if I was to base this discussion on my own catch ratios i would be saying things are great, but the deal is that things were better a few years ago.

I guess Im just not convinced. I read scientific evidence which says teh bass is doing well, iread evidence that says its declining....my own experience is that is doing well. Did you see Mike Laptews videos from Cuttyhink, I bleive they are from last year. There were hordes of fish.
As far as lack of bait, what explains the millions of blues? They wouldnt be here if there was no bait.

There is lots of peanut bunker, but no large bait for the bass to feed on (large, mature sand eels, adult pogies, etc..)

The ASMFC striped bass committee meets next month and they are due to recieve new numbers for cath rates, populations, etc. from the Technical commitee. Rumors have it tyhat the numbers are not good. We'll just have to wait a couple fo weeks and see what happens.

It is obvious the numbers are not good.. look at how hot newport was last year, and this year it is a dead zone. My logs are way off, and i am not alone. Then I read Mr Sandman's post, and i cant help but worry.

When you hear stories about a good sized fish with a couple of schoolies in it's belly like I heard this weekend, you have to believe something is wrong. In the summer, yes it happens...but when you hear of it in the fall, it should really set the alarm off.

I'm glad to hear i'm not alone on this.. the question is, how much more killing will have to happen before the regulations get changed??? I wasnt fishing in the 70's right before the bass crash, but from what i read it happened pretty quickly. Now 30 years later, imagine how many more people are fishing for bass. A crash could be happening right under our noses and the next thing we know, there will be no bass around agian.

makes you wonder doesnt it:huh:


:1poke::angel:

What about all the talk that the boat guys did well this year and that the fish stayed farther off shore?

-spence

Same discussion, 11 years ago.
:1poke::angel:
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

The wheels of Government...they turn very slowly!

Same discussion, 11 years ago.
:1poke::angel:
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device
Even a broken clock is right 2 times a day ;)
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Same discussion, 11 years ago.
:1poke::angel:
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device


No #^&#^&#^&#^& Mike !
They will be crying the same song in another 11 years from now.

i remember this post. i only wish todays fishing was 1/2 of what is was back then....

What ever happened to StriperMan

i remember this post. i only wish todays fishing was 1/2 of what is was back then....

I know. :smash:
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Ok now all of a sudden we all think there is a problem . Some of us have been being the harbingers of doom. All you kids have said we were full of it. Now you've finally seen what we've been talking about for years. AGAIN WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO TO FIX THINGS ? . Bob Pond Hit the nail on the head . GREEDY WILL BE GREEDY. So what do the rest of us do?
I make custom tackle. Many of you use my plugs and enjoy them. The money is what hurts the stripers. How do we deal with this issue. I'm a hippocrit in that i sell striper gear but I still preach conservation. I'm one of the old crowd.. Been on the band wagon since I helped Bob Pond wage the war in the early 70's . We all know what needs to be done so what are we going to do about it ? I'm retired and will do what ever I can to help. WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO DO TO HELP? Oh by the way --- you charters Capts-- Lets be real. I've been a Master Capt for 30 plus years. The future is what we releas/ e not the shack money we pocket. 30 plus yrs of Charters or a few yrs of commercial sales. MMMMM Let me think on this. MMMMM RON MCKEE ---- THE STRIPER MAINE _ IAC

i keep sayin
freshwater striper program for the bigger lakes
take the pressure off the salties...
sorry, i just have faith in Hatchery Science
and think trout are over rated distributionally (my word)

I'm a hippocrit in that i sell striper gear but I still preach conservation.


My exact thoughts when I walked by your booth at RI !





Ok now all of a sudden we all think there is a problem . Some of us have been being the harbingers of doom. All you kids have said we were full of it. Now you've finally seen what we've been talking about for years. AGAIN WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO TO FIX THINGS ? . Bob Pond Hit the nail on the head . GREEDY WILL BE GREEDY. So what do the rest of us do?
I make custom tackle. Many of you use my plugs and enjoy them. The money is what hurts the stripers. How do we deal with this issue. I'm a hippocrit in that i sell striper gear but I still preach conservation. I'm one of the old crowd.. Been on the band wagon since I helped Bob Pond wage the war in the early 70's . We all know what needs to be done so what are we going to do about it ? I'm retired and will do what ever I can to help. WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO DO TO HELP? Oh by the way --- you charters Capts-- Lets be real. I've been a Master Capt for 30 plus years. The future is what we releas/ e not the shack money we pocket. 30 plus yrs of Charters or a few yrs of commercial sales. MMMMM Let me think on this. MMMMM RON MCKEE ---- THE STRIPER MAINE _ IAC

2004 was slow, 2006 was great, 2007 pretty pretty good, but it started going downhill then and became very noticeable 2009+

2004 was a cornucopia of fish compared to today

I'm a hippocrit in that i sell striper gear but I still preach conservation.


My exact thoughts when I walked by your booth at RI !


How is that hypocrite? Sure, technically we are all a bit hypocrite in that we fish but also want to reduce pressure on the fish - well, 'cept for the kill 'em all sort. But we don't need to take every last one, or the next to every last one. I actually think it is a good thing that someone can profit from something AND be a steward of that resource. Stripers are certainly a case where two in the bush are worth more than one in the hand.

Custom plugs don't kill any fish ? Haven't seen 1 with rubber hooks.
And last I checked custom plugs are not being given away free, matter of fact lots sell for stupid $




How is that hypocrite? Sure, technically we are all a bit hypocrite in that we fish but also want to reduce pressure on the fish - well, 'cept for the kill 'em all sort. But we don't need to take every last one, or the next to every last one. I actually think it is a good thing that someone can profit from something AND be a steward of that resource. Stripers are certainly a case where two in the bush are worth more than one in the hand.[/QUOTE]

Was bob pond a hypocrite?
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I'm not ready to give the stripers Piping Plover status quite yet . For those that are predicting " no fish for our kids " and other extreme outlooks then yes you are hypocritical if you sell tackle or even run a web site that promotes the catching of striped bass . Telling others they are greedy for selling fish or the chance to catch a fish and then satisfying your own hobby isn't cool.
The resource can be managed as a renewable one and it will be .
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I'm not ready to give the stripers Piping Plover status quite yet . For those that are predicting " no fish for our kids " and other extreme outlooks then yes you are hypocritical if you sell tackle or even run a web site that promotes the catching of striped bass . Telling others they are greedy for selling fish or the chance to catch a fish and then satisfying your own hobby isn't cool.
The resource can be managed as a renewable one and it will be .
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Your logic is flawed. A person can release a fish and not take home or purposefully kill a fish for his entire life if he wanted to. Catch and release is conservation.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Ok now all of a sudden we all think there is a problem . Some of us have been being the harbingers of doom. All you kids have said we were full of it. Now you've finally seen what we've been talking about for years. AGAIN WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO TO FIX THINGS ? . Bob Pond Hit the nail on the head . GREEDY WILL BE GREEDY. So what do the rest of us do?
I make custom tackle. Many of you use my plugs and enjoy them. The money is what hurts the stripers. How do we deal with this issue. I'm a hippocrit in that i sell striper gear but I still preach conservation. I'm one of the old crowd.. Been on the band wagon since I helped Bob Pond wage the war in the early 70's . We all know what needs to be done so what are we going to do about it ? I'm retired and will do what ever I can to help. WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO DO TO HELP? Oh by the way --- you charters Capts-- Lets be real. I've been a Master Capt for 30 plus years. The future is what we releas/ e not the shack money we pocket. 30 plus yrs of Charters or a few yrs of commercial sales. MMMMM Let me think on this. MMMMM RON MCKEE ---- THE STRIPER MAINE _ IAC


What are we doing to help?

We just took a 50% reduction in our daily bag limit. As a charter operation, that had the potential to hurt our business, but we took what we felt was the long term approach to managing the future.

30+ pages bitching and complaining, Mass stood up, took a big reduction, and no one here even acknowledged it.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

2004 was slow, 2006 was great, 2007 pretty pretty good, but it started going downhill then and became very noticeable 2009+

2004 was a cornucopia of fish compared to today


This is what I remember and my logs indicate as well. Cheferson and I were crushing fish on eels all season long from 2004 up until 2007-2008ish. We would expect a 20# fish almost every outing. After that it started to go downhill fast. No big resident fish anymore, all dinks.

We had it good then. We had a #^&#^&#^&#^& ton of peanut bunker, too. Huge blues. Where the hell did they all go?!?

What I would give to go back to those days/nights....

[QUOTE=Raider Ronnie;1067155]Custom plugs don't kill any fish ? Haven't seen 1 with rubber hooks.
And last I checked custom plugs are not being given away free, matter of fact lots sell for stupid $


yup- money for nothing and chicks for free :). of course anyone who fishes will kill some fish, even the most skilled c@r will tell you this. the generally accepted kill rate for is 9%, compared to 100% for fish kept. most of my customers practice c&r for the most part with the occasional fish kept for the table. i believe it's possible to profit from this fishery and and promote conservation. i would think that anyone who profits from this fishery would want it to flourish for obvious reasons.

There is lots of peanut bunker, but no large bait for the bass to feed on (large, mature sand eels, adult pogies, etc..)

There is offshore
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Your logic is flawed. A person can release a fish and not take home or purposefully kill a fish for his entire life if he wanted to. Catch and release is conservation.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

So it's ok to kill some fish and profit from it if you are practicing your idea of conservation ? Would it be alright to drive the beaches if you only killed 9% of the plovers you drove over ?
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

No #^&#^&#^&#^& Mike !
They will be crying the same song in another 11 years from now.


better that than the fish be gone
time will tell

push them over the brink and it may be too late

you can be a gambler, I'll stay conservative

What are we doing to help?

We just took a 50% reduction in our daily bag limit. As a charter operation, that had the potential to hurt our business, but we took what we felt was the long term approach to managing the future.

30+ pages bitching and complaining, Mass stood up, took a big reduction, and no one here even acknowledged it.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

fishing freak acknowledged it

maybe you missed Patricks' thread

A man can only be responsible for his own actions.
I attended just about every dog and pony show regarding striped bass over the last 3 years. Very few people did. I took the time off from my job, at money lost to me. I would drive in Fn traffic up to 120 miles round trip as did a handful of other people. I know it meant nothing to how things are run but it mattered to me.
From my own fishing over the last 10 years maybe I've kept 20 bass from thousands caught. Plug trebles are replaced on most of my lures with crushed barb singles. Using eels or macs I hit the fish quick to reduce the gut hooking. I use heavy enough tackle to get the fish in without being near death from the experience.
Plenty of us have a lot of time and money invested in chasing this fish. Not just Captains and plug makers.
We are all invested.
Just one man being true to himself.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

What are we doing to help?

We just took a 50% reduction in our daily bag limit. As a charter operation, that had the potential to hurt our business, but we took what we felt was the long term approach to managing the future.

30+ pages bitching and complaining, Mass stood up, took a big reduction, and no one here even acknowledged it.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I will acknowledge it Jay. Step in the right direction. I know it
may hurt you and your dads biz a bit and glad your on board. A cut in the comm. take and a cut in the rec. take. All good and needed steps. So like you state we need to be happy measures are taking place. Some will say not enough and some will say too much but everyone will not be happy but at least the ball is rolling.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

fishing freak acknowledged it

maybe you missed Patricks' thread



maybe Patrick could come here and acknowledge he holds a commercial permit on his boat also
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Big jay. Thank you for your support ! I think some of us in Rhode Island have been hyper focused on only what is happening in Rhode Island.
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We are really all hypocrites unless you take all your fishing gear and lock it up for a number of years. Doesn't matter if your a rec, c&r, comm, charter, plug maker, tackle seller, interweb board member, club member.

The 9% release mortality rate does not discriminate, period.

Those of you that say you only keep a few a year for the table but c&r thousands have actually killed hundreds.....sorry, did I make you feel bad.....

Dead is dead.........it is called life and having fun.

When I think about it, I have killed allot of bass...........and so have you all.

So unless you pick up the golf clubs and sell all your fishing gear for 10 years we really talking about nothing.

Going to 1 @ 28 for a bit may be in the right direction to see where this is all headed. Unfortunatly, I don't think it will unless done ALL up and down the coast......and even this is a stretch. I put more of the blame on cyclical environmental conditions, gill nets, dragger bycatch, low inshore bait etc.

See you on the water.

No way you can make me feel bad about the C&R mortality, quite aware of it, price of business.
I agree that fishing kills no matter what you do, I just try to minimize what I can. I'd keep more bass if I liked eating them, I don't.





Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Blaming charter boats for lack of shore sucess is the new kool.
Boat fish don't count
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/BC858766-E575-42BE-A20E-B8A51B9BA7D6-6792-0000069D8DF12E67.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/BC858766-E575-42BE-A20E-B8A51B9BA7D6-6792-0000069D8DF12E67.jpg.html)
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/7D676FAB-C88B-4E2A-93A6-0E284B216F61-6792-0000069DA7BB40EF.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/7D676FAB-C88B-4E2A-93A6-0E284B216F61-6792-0000069DA7BB40EF.jpg.html)
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/5F5E9093-DC1E-48C1-8704-AA729EC4343F-6792-0000069DAEE7F6B1.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/5F5E9093-DC1E-48C1-8704-AA729EC4343F-6792-0000069DAEE7F6B1.jpg.html)
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/12693129-DD59-43DA-BFF0-4AE7A44DCDC1-6792-0000069DB3E51377.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/12693129-DD59-43DA-BFF0-4AE7A44DCDC1-6792-0000069DB3E51377.jpg.html)
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Actually saw one of those bags of puss on Wollaston beach just before it froze over 2 months ago.
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We are really all hypocrites unless you take all your fishing gear and lock it up for a number of years. Doesn't matter if your a rec, c&r, comm, charter, plug maker, tackle seller, interweb board member, club member.

The 9% release mortality rate does not discriminate, period.

Those of you that say you only keep a few a year for the table but c&r thousands have actually killed hundreds.....sorry, did I make you feel bad.....

Dead is dead.........it is called life and having fun.

When I think about it, I have killed allot of bass...........and so have you all.

So unless you pick up the golf clubs and sell all your fishing gear for 10 years we really talking about nothing.

Going to 1 @ 28 for a bit may be in the right direction to see where this is all headed. Unfortunatly, I don't think it will unless done ALL up and down the coast......and even this is a stretch. I put more of the blame on cyclical environmental conditions, gill nets, dragger bycatch, low inshore bait etc.

See you on the water.

I hung up my rods 2 years ago.
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BigJay - major Kudos to Mass for doing the responsible thing here.

I'm not ready to give the stripers Piping Plover status quite yet . For those that are predicting " no fish for our kids " and other extreme outlooks then yes you are hypocritical if you sell tackle or even run a web site that promotes the catching of striped bass . Telling others they are greedy for selling fish or the chance to catch a fish and then satisfying your own hobby isn't cool.
The resource can be managed as a renewable one and it will be .
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

As do people that kill what they catch - the difference is in the degrees. Do RI Charters keeping 2 fish, which slightly elevates, the total take, take less per person than those fishing recreationally? No.

Some charters may decide to keep just one or even none but it is better than two. I release 99+% of what I catch. Do you?

What tremendous amounts of money I do make on this site (trust me, it is not tremendous ;) ), some goes back in to promote responsible fishing practices.

[QUOTE=Raider Ronnie;1067155]Custom plugs don't kill any fish ? Haven't seen 1 with rubber hooks.
And last I checked custom plugs are not being given away free, matter of fact lots sell for stupid $


yup- money for nothing and chicks for free :). of course anyone who fishes will kill some fish, even the most skilled c@r will tell you this. the generally accepted kill rate for is 9%, compared to 100% for fish kept. most of my customers practice c&r for the most part with the occasional fish kept for the table. i believe it's possible to profit from this fishery and and promote conservation. i would think that anyone who profits from this fishery would want it to flourish for obvious reasons.

And Ron - Charter Captains should be looking for a very healthy fishery as that benefits them as well.

A health fishery benefits EVERYONE that has an interest in stripers.

We are really all hypocrites unless you take all your fishing gear and lock it up for a number of years. Doesn't matter if your a rec, c&r, comm, charter, plug maker, tackle seller, interweb board member, club member.

The 9% release mortality rate does not discriminate, period.

Those of you that say you only keep a few a year for the table but c&r thousands have actually killed hundreds.....sorry, did I make you feel bad.....

Dead is dead.........it is called life and having fun.

When I think about it, I have killed allot of bass...........and so have you all.

So unless you pick up the golf clubs and sell all your fishing gear for 10 years we really talking about nothing.

Going to 1 @ 28 for a bit may be in the right direction to see where this is all headed. Unfortunatly, I don't think it will unless done ALL up and down the coast......and even this is a stretch. I put more of the blame on cyclical environmental conditions, gill nets, dragger bycatch, low inshore bait etc.

See you on the water.

Well said !
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Blaming charter boats for lack of shore sucess is the new kool.
Boat fish don't count
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/BC858766-E575-42BE-A20E-B8A51B9BA7D6-6792-0000069D8DF12E67.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/BC858766-E575-42BE-A20E-B8A51B9BA7D6-6792-0000069D8DF12E67.jpg.html)
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/7D676FAB-C88B-4E2A-93A6-0E284B216F61-6792-0000069DA7BB40EF.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/7D676FAB-C88B-4E2A-93A6-0E284B216F61-6792-0000069DA7BB40EF.jpg.html)
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/5F5E9093-DC1E-48C1-8704-AA729EC4343F-6792-0000069DAEE7F6B1.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/5F5E9093-DC1E-48C1-8704-AA729EC4343F-6792-0000069DAEE7F6B1.jpg.html)
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/thefishingfreak/12693129-DD59-43DA-BFF0-4AE7A44DCDC1-6792-0000069DB3E51377.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/thefishingfreak/media/12693129-DD59-43DA-BFF0-4AE7A44DCDC1-6792-0000069DB3E51377.jpg.html)
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

I didn't realize seals were a such a problem from NC to ME. I just assumed it was a lack of fish. I guess I am not seeing these seals storming the beaches here in CT; must be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Seals are way better fisherman than we. Any fish that had in their DNA to feed in shore has been wiped out. Cutting our numbers down will help the cause. We must do something about them! I haven't caught a dog fish, skate, fluke, flounder, sculpin, snagged a sand eel, seen a blue fish bliz from Shore , in years on the outer Cape since the seal crap happened. Just sayin

Trash fish used to be fun on a slow day for the kids on a hi-lo rig. No mas. Forget about getting a trophy on sand eels out there anymore. All those fish that used to hug the shore during the migration have been slaughtered.

And Ron - Charter Captains should be looking for a very healthy fishery as that benefits them as well.

A health fishery benefits EVERYONE that has an interest in stripers.[/QUOTE]



John,
Do you really think charter captains don't want a healthy fishery ?
This site is full of Hypocrites who say 1 thing and do another and there is lots here making $ off the fish.
This crap of guys are posting stuff like charters want 2 fish so they can sell them back door and we want to kill every fish possible is bull#^&#^&#^&#^&.

John,
Do you really think charter captains don't want a healthy fishery ?
This site is full of Hypocrites who say 1 thing and do another and there is lots here making $ off the fish.
This crap of guys are posting stuff like charters want 2 fish so they can sell them back door and we want to kill every fish possible is bull#^&#^&#^&#^&.

Ron - let me post this is in big and clear text.

Regardless if you make money off of them or not, whether you:

Commercially Fish for them
Sell the meat to others
Sell the Experience to others
Run a website
Sell tackle
Make tackle
Sell videos, Books, Artwork, jewelry or tattoos
Are a hardcore bass addict or you are a freickin beach bum with a passing interest in striped bass

The fishery benefits from having a better, thriving fishery with good numbers of fish distributed across all year classes.

As anglers, it behooves us to protect this fishery.

I am such a hypocrite that for 6-7 years now I have been an advocate for going back to pre-2006 Rec/Comm regulations, and then taking off another 33% of the take.

And yes, those numbers would require a closed season for recreational.


Do you really think charter captains don't want a healthy fishery ?


You seem to want every fish you can get your hands on - if not, then what do you want. What do YOU define as a healthy fishery?

Ron - let me post this is in big and clear text.

Regardless if you make money off of them or not, whether you:

Commercially Fish for them
Sell the meat to others
Sell the Experience to others
Run a website
Sell tackle
Make tackle
Sell videos, Books, Artwork, jewelry or tattoos
Are a hardcore bass addict or you are a freickin beach bum with a passing interest in striped bass

The fishery benefits from having a better, thriving fishery with good numbers of fish distributed across all year classes.

As anglers, it behooves us to protect this fishery.

I am such a hypocrite that for 6-7 years now I have been an advocate for going back to pre-2006 Rec/Comm regulations, and then taking off another 33% of the take.

And yes, those numbers would require a closed season for recreational.



You seem to want every fish you can get your hands on - if not, then what do you want. What do YOU define as a healthy fishery?

When was the last year you entered SB in the On the Water tournament?
That speaks , with volume...
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

When was the last year you entered SB in the On the Water tournament?
That speaks , with volume...
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

3-4 years ago?

There was increasing concern over the condition of the fishery. People from here brought it up one year, voiced concerns, and we stayed in - one last push with an option to go in or out the following year. The next year, we opted out and did not enter a team.

You understand that it contradicts your previous position about 6 or 7 years I hope.

Glad you decided not to endorse that tournament none the less.
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Blaming charter boats for lack of shore sucess is the new kool.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Why do a couple of you keep rerunning this :bs: line? I haven't seen one post solely blaming charter boats. Let me make it simple for you. We are all the problem and 2@ for charter boats is bs.

You understand that it contradicts your previous position about 6 or 7 years I hope.

Glad you decided not to endorse that tournament none the less.
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6-7 years ago we decided to fish the Cup but made a consious effort to enter less fish in the process of participating. As things continued to degrade, we chose not to field a team. Watch, modify, adapt.

You seem to want every fish you can get your hands on - if not, then what do you want. What do YOU define as a healthy fishery?[/QUOTE]



"Healthy fishery"
Recreational guys/girls retire all their fishing gear and take up golf as some here say they are planning. When they get tired of golf and feel the need to go fishing, they book a charter !
That would be healthy to me ! :laugha:

Quote:
Originally Posted by big jay View Post
What are we doing to help?

We just took a 50% reduction in our daily bag limit. As a charter operation, that had the potential to hurt our business, but we took what we felt was the long term approach to managing the future.

30+ pages bitching and complaining, Mass stood up, took a big reduction, and no one here even acknowledged it.
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I will acknowledge it Jay. Step in the right direction. I know it
may hurt you and your dads biz a bit and glad your on board. A cut in the comm. take and a cut in the rec. take. All good and needed steps. So like you state we need to be happy measures are taking place. Some will say not enough and some will say too much but everyone will not be happy but at least the ball is rolling.
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I believe that was huge...i was told by a member at of the Cape Cod Salties that when it was announced at their meeting that the CC Charterboat Ass. was supporting 1 fish all modes it drew a standing ovation :claps: and I believe it was probably the crucial component to Mass going 1 bass without all of the consternation that RI currently finds itself embroiled in....