may 1st this year. they can't even give us a month of fishing without the gillnets. i've allready lost a handfull of jigs to ghost gear

It is gonna get ugly and expensive out there. NMFS has no idea. I just dont get the logic.

Last year my best fishing was the first 2 weeks in May. June 1 came, nets went out and the fish got wiped off the top of the bank and you had to hit the deeper water to find the fish. Looks like I better take Friday off and work on the boat.

I'm not sure but I think the gill netters start June 1st and the draggers go May1st. With the new sectors the draggers will most likely be done after the 1st day. There is no discarding and with the abundance of pollock that should put a damper on the draggers. I could be wrong, we will see.

Going for a quick trip tomorrow morning, anyone else?

So the draggers can now tow over these precious spots that hold cod to 70lbs that are spawning? Talk about cutting off your nose despite your face.

The nets are not a big deal.
The draggers do more damage in one day than the nets do in a month !

Can anyone confirm two things for me? First, is it definatly May 1st that they can start dragging? Second, will the draggers be permitted to tow over the areas that the cod spawn in from about May 15th to June 7th or so?

The rolling closures are still in effect which limit the areas the draggers can work. But yes they can start dragging on May 1st.

Just a heads up for anyone going out there, the NWC was littered with nets on Wednesday. Stay away from the nets as in a few miles plus and its lock and load.

Just a heads up for anyone going out there, the NWC was littered with nets on Wednesday. Stay away from the nets as in a few miles plus and its lock and load.

Are the nets where everybody(over a hundred boats) was hooking a week ago?

The gillnetters look for a bunch of boats and sure enough the next day they will be where you were fishing.

A couple of us that fish together in separate boats always keep an eye open to the horizon and if a gillnetter is headed in our direction on their way home for the day we split up and make it look like we are crusing around looking for a spot to fish and once they are a distance away we go back to the spot we were fishing.

When the gillnetters see a cluster of boats they will be fishing in your spot in a day or two.

[QUOTE=Fly Rod;767780]Are the nets where everybody(over a hundred boats) was hooking a week ago?

Same place:fury:

......the rec/pin fluke fleet fish an area off the beach with moderate success(Thursday.....the next day five draggers are on the spot.(this Friday).......gotta luve it........:fury::smash:.....

Nets are doubled out there today impossible to jig
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I change my tune, these nets suck !
Much tough fishing now !
I was told by some commercial guys the net boats are allowed 800 lbs a day.
Lots of days they got their 800lbs then another 1000 - 2000 lbs gets hauled in and dumped back over, dead !:fury:

They step on their own #^&#^&#^&#^&s

They are on borrowed time. Their sector quota will be reached and the nets will disappear sooner then in past years.

When they have an obsever on board they will not be able to discard. All fish that they catch that day will have to be brought in and counted towards their quota. And if they max out on one species they are done for the season. Prices have been so high for cod and haddock that they will not be saving their quota for the winter fishing. If prices drop the oppsit will happen.

did some prospecting in a new area today and every hump and bump i wanted to fish is covered in nets. what a pia. i'm done w/ cod for awhile. a very sucky day of groundfishing. we should have fished closer to home. allright i'm done bitching for now

Like none of those net boats have a fishfinder on board?