Once upon I time I was told that three days after the canal shuts down Cutty is the place to be. I'm just sayin'.

Unfortunately most of the canal fish did not escape.
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seems to many are being dragged up

👍 They can't just blame the commercial's for this massacre. I don't think people let anything go anymore.
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Prof M did they ever ????/

Ever what ?
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Ever what ?
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Let anything go,,, post #4

Mike, I answered for u, no charge $ :)

If that was his question I probably let at least 50 plus commercial size fish go this week. I sold my allotted amount. I could have sold many many many more.
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that,s you paul , but from the beginnig of time , people fished for food . then money , then bragging rights &&&&&&&&&&&&&&& nothing went back .....YES there is more conservation now ..but to offset that .. there is the , internet , &&&&&&&&& FACEBOOK ................ but above all of that >> as a marine speaker told a group of fisherman of all kinds at a marine seminar .............. the fish don,t stand a chance ..................... there are a million more fisherman & just not enough fish ><>
I have fished once since RI commercial striper fishing ended at the end of JUNE ><>& not missing it :fishin:

My hope is that people are spoiled by so many easy quality fish and lose interest in working for 'em.

Mike the price of the lb is what really fueled the frenzy this time around plus the fact the boat guys were having a hard go of it. I saw so many die hard boat guys at the canal this week. If the price was very low I doubt the amount of guys fishing around the clock would have been way less. It is very true George. Spoiled is an understatement. This past week will go down in the books. I was hoping it would end by Wednesday and has slowed down but the crowds are still there. Once it ends it will be a ghost town. The internet has fueled the mass histeria. Saw so many out of state plates. 10 years ago that was a very strange occurrence. I am looking forward to a long lonely walk on the shore catching maybe one fish to slap me back to reality
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Mike the price of the lb is what really fueled the frenzy this time around plus the fact the boat guys were having a hard go of it. I saw so many die hard boat guys at the canal this week. If the price was very low I doubt the amount of guys fishing around the clock would have been way less. It is very true George. Spoiled is an understatement. This past week will go down in the books. I was hoping it would end by Wednesday and has slowed down but the crowds are still there. Once it ends it will be a ghost town. The internet has fueled the mass histeria. Saw so many out of state plates. 10 years ago that was a very strange occurrence. I am looking forward to a long lonely walk on the shore catching maybe one fish to slap me back to reality
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paul, I was on vaca all week down there, it was one for the record books for sure. Matt fair

Hey Matt. Best I have ever seen in 30 years there
for size and quantity. The crowds were not that bad if you did not go to the easy access spots. A bike cured all issues.
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Hey Matt. Best I have ever seen in 30 years there
for size and quantity. The crowds were not that bad if you did not go to the easy access spots. A bike cured all issues.
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I stayed put all week. Across from the mass maritime beach, my grams house. No crowds at all.

Yeah I was west myself. Only ventured east enough to the rink last few days. It was good though out but much less crowded west.
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My hope is that people are spoiled by so many easy quality fish and lose interest in working for 'em.

I am certain that is what will happen.

My hope is that people are spoiled by so many easy quality fish and lose interest in working for 'em.

had a guy a couple of Sundays ago stop in when he was in town with his daughters and his friend asking where to go fishing on the island etc....conversation went like this.."we got big fish at the canal, I catch a lotta big fish, where are the big fish around here?"...me- well, I can suggest a few nice spots where you can take the girls....."you don't got big fish around here?...tell me where the big fish are and what do I gotta use to catch them?" me-thinking- is this a joke?...is there a hidden camera somewhere? "the girls wanna catch scup, what do you use for that and I wanna catch a big bass so tell me where we can go???"

he was irritated that I couldn't/wouldn't tell him exactly where he could go and exactly what to use, I was a little dumbfounded

it went like that....it was 1pm on a sunny Sunday afternoon....about the time that most big bass are usually caught locally by day trippers with little girls in tow from the shore :confused:

I passed on it- totally hate crowds and carnage. Of course I should of thought it out better and joined bruce at night...

I tell my friends the canal is just shooting fish in a barrel .. aside from the poachers its a 1 fish limit .. I see the concern but dont really understand it ... to me its a Commercial day crowds with all the madness with one big difference.. you see the carnage in open view on the banks and parking lots and it can be ugly.

I am not against Commercial guys I would prefer to see a slot system to protect breeding size fish and the same for rec guys a slot system

You know, when I read this thread, part of me is disappointed I missed this bite....but I am not a canal fisher, except 30 years ago when I was at MMA. And just got home, not wetting a line this year yet but.......

The other side of me is saying some of you guys are acting like snobs. It is too easy, the fish are too big, too many people keeping fish. It gets old fast. So let me see, if one of you guys went to your favorite spot at o dark thirty, all alone and bang a 30# on your first cast, and then a 33 #er and on your third cast a 34 #er do you say, oh it it too easy tonight and the size ave is too big, I like to make 50 casts for every fish I catch, I am going home and will come back tomorrow, I don't think so.......geeeeeez. You'd probably hit 400 mil of the lottery and be pissed you had to share it with 2 other people........just saying.

so when did the three day "clock" start? Thursday?

You know, when I read this thread, part of me is disappointed I missed this bite....but I am not a canal fisher, except 30 years ago when I was at MMA. And just got home, not wetting a line this year yet but.......

The other side of me is saying some of you guys are acting like snobs. It is too easy, the fish are too big, too many people keeping fish. It gets old fast. So let me see, if one of you guys went to your favorite spot at o dark thirty, all alone and bang a 30# on your first cast, and then a 33 #er and on your third cast a 34 #er do you say, oh it it too easy tonight and the size ave is too big, I like to make 50 casts for every fish I catch, I am going home and will come back tomorrow, I don't think so.......geeeeeez. You'd probably hit 400 mil of the lottery and be pissed you had to share it with 2 other people........just saying.

Seriously, a bunch of women on this site. Isn't the point of fishing to catch fish? Sure, 75% of the fun is the hunt and connecting the dots but man, with some of these responses you guys should go work for PETA. You guys bitch when there are no fish around and then bitch when there are fish around?
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so when did the three day "clock" start? Thursday?
Next month Bob
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You know, when I read this thread, part of me is disappointed I missed this bite....but I am not a canal fisher, except 30 years ago when I was at MMA. And just got home, not wetting a line this year yet but.......

The other side of me is saying some of you guys are acting like snobs. It is too easy, the fish are too big, too many people keeping fish. It gets old fast. So let me see, if one of you guys went to your favorite spot at o dark thirty, all alone and bang a 30# on your first cast, and then a 33 #er and on your third cast a 34 #er do you say, oh it it too easy tonight and the size ave is too big, I like to make 50 casts for every fish I catch, I am going home and will come back tomorrow, I don't think so.......geeeeeez. You'd probably hit 400 mil of the lottery and be pissed you had to share it with 2 other people........just saying.

Well said. I took my 2 teenage sons there 3 times this week. I'd like to apologize on their behalf for catching personal bests and many others that were all released. They didn't deserve to catch them as they have yet to put their time in, for that they have brought shame on our family.
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One of the saddest things I heard about the Canal this week from a reliable source is that a commercial boat angler hung around outside the land cut at the west end and managed to get his 15 fish limit by netting floaters.
I agree with Paul that you can't blame this all on the commercial - ahem, recremercials - but I do that some boat guys have been getting their 15 fish limit inside the Ditch by catching them and transporting them to the box on their boat. I've even heard some say that it is legal and there is one of these clowns who picked up over 450-pounds at Block Island when the price was high.
It just seems that there is an imbalance in terms of enforcement when it comes to what is going on in the Canal and what the boat guys do. Extra loads of 15 fish go missing and unreported when certain people get caught. As long as some of the EPO's are friends with rule breakers, then the system is corrupt. But then what in Massachusetts isn't?
As for stuffing extra fish in the rocks and bushes, it won't stop until there are laws with some teeth, in other words consequences, and they are enforced without interference from the courts. I need to do more research about how fishing violations are handled in other states, but a minimal fine just doesn't cut it.
Ultimately, if you're going to make laws and rules but not enforce them, then don't waste anyone's time making the laws.
As for it being too easy, I don't get it. Catching a personal best is something to be celebrated, but if that fish is killed and then wasted, as in going around looking for someone to take fish off your hands, well that's another thing. I will never say anything about it being too easy; looking back to when I started as a kid, I sure would have liked it to be easier since it took me a long time to catch my first schoolie.
Ultimately, what people should be concerned about is that there is such a large concentration of fish being harvested and poached, as well as released after being out of the water for five minutes for photos and videos or guthooked due to carelessness. Keeping a fish is not criminal; wasting one is.
And without tagging, I can't prove this, but I find it hard to believe that these schools aren't the same ones that are off P'town in the spring and used to in the bay around Sandwich and Barnstable, but are now in the Canal because that's where the bait is.
Does anyone remember when Gay Head had a fleet? Wasque? Cuttyhunk?
Fish aren't magically replaceable, period. Put enough pressure on any local population and watch is disappear.
And, please, oh please, don't mention the EEZ! I have enough of a headache as it is.

It's kinda like when they used to shoot Buffalo from trains.
I spent 4 days there this week, an anomaly of bittersweet fishing.

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I am sure all fish are being released properly....hahahahaha.

Jump to 2:40....I think we call that the bear hug then bar of soap release. Textbook.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z30gCCustEE

"the girls wanna catch scup, what do you use for that and I wanna catch a big bass so tell me where we can go???"

he was irritated that I couldn't/wouldn't tell him exactly where he could go and exactly what to use, I was a little dumbfounded


Hahaha....Scott, you need to change with the times of entitlement. Don't be surprised if after you hook him up with the spots, he comes back to the shop expecting you to clean his fish for him.

What an amazing fisherman he is....you can tell him.

One of the saddest things I heard about the Canal this week from a reliable source is that a commercial boat angler hung around outside the land cut at the west end and managed to get his 15 fish limit by netting floaters.
.

Why would this sadden you? I think that is great. What would have been a waste is now going to the quota and being used by someone. No one likes seeing all those floaters go to waste. Like off chatham when the trawlers dump there bycatch.

This is the main reason I believe they changed the rules to 2 fish commercially by land. When this happens at the canal the market would have been flooded and the price would be $1 a pound. Sure there is always going to be some shenanigans going on but you'll never stop that.

You know, when I read this thread, part of me is disappointed I missed this bite....but I am not a canal fisher, except 30 years ago when I was at MMA. And just got home, not wetting a line this year yet but.......

The other side of me is saying some of you guys are acting like snobs. It is too easy, the fish are too big, too many people keeping fish. It gets old fast. So let me see, if one of you guys went to your favorite spot at o dark thirty, all alone and bang a 30# on your first cast, and then a 33 #er and on your third cast a 34 #er do you say, oh it it too easy tonight and the size ave is too big, I like to make 50 casts for every fish I catch, I am going home and will come back tomorrow, I don't think so.......geeeeeez. You'd probably hit 400 mil of the lottery and be pissed you had to share it with 2 other
people........just saying.

to each his own buddy.

I am certain that is what will happen.

So am I. In the mid 1980s you could float a live herring under a balloon, and walk it all the way down past the cribbin on a west tide, without ever seeing another fisherman. Get back to the run and your herring basket would be undisturbed. You could throw jigs and skins all night in some of the most popular spots, and the only thing that would annoy you were the bluefish who ripped up your skins. On the rare occasions when there was a morning plug bite, you might get 20 guys spread from the Sag to pole 160. All locals.

It's coming again. No doubt in my mind. :(

so when did the three day "clock" start? Thursday?

Went thru E to W daybreak again today, nothing like yesterday, slower from what I seen..

Did see some piles out in the BB..... TICK TICK :spin:

Well I took the dog for a walk at the canal today on my way home from a week of the best fishing I have ever seen. I grab the rod and 1 plug and away we go. 100 yards down the canal and all hell breaks out at 11:30 in morning. 3 hours later and probably 30 fish I have a magic swimmer with no hooks left and a shredded leader. I proceeded to throw the hookless plug to numerous fish but throw in the towel. It was an insane ending to an insane vacation of fishing.
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Well I took the dog for a walk at the canal today on my way home from a week of the best fishing I have ever seen. I grab the rod and 1 plug and away we go. 100 yards down the canal and all hell breaks out at 11:30 in morning. 3 hours later and probably 30 fish I have a magic swimmer with no hooks left and a shredded leader. I proceeded to throw the hookless plug to numerous fish but throw in the towel. It was an insane ending to an insane vacation of fishing.
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that's crazy paul,

Why would this sadden you? I think that is great.
You don't really think it is great that there were so many floaters do you? I know that is what you wrote. Peros found it sad that there were so many floaters, not sad that a few were fortuitously picked up in a boat. You must of understood that is what he meant, right?
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Thank you for clarifying that Zimmy. The fact that there are floaters means there are more "clean releases" like the one in the video that Puppet posted. I wonder if you took someone and held him or her under water for three minutes if that would help him/her understand about keeping fish out of water for measurements, photos, and bear hugs? Probably not - because they would be dead!
Yeah, some fish die not matter what you do when practicing catch and release, but this kind of s*** is ridiculous!

Seems like the best was made of an unfortunate string of events. These dead fish most likely could not survive the release. If that makes you sad perhaps it is better to simply not fish thus preventing this type of situation. Maybe when they become seasoned at the art of release the mortality will level off.
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Sounds like Paul's dog got gyped out of a nice walk. My dog would have made my life miserable!
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Seems like the best was made of an unfortunate string of events. These dead fish most likely could not survive the release.
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I agree. These fish were going towards the commercial quota rather than floating out to sea.
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You don't really think it is great that there were so many floaters do you? I know that is what you wrote. Peros found it sad that there were so many floaters, not sad that a few were fortuitously picked up in a boat. You must of understood that is what he meant, right?
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Got it Zimmy, you're correct. When I read this the first time the part about the boat picking fish was the lead followed by the floaters. Just found it good that these were not going to waste.

the social media super hero bull#^&#^&#^&#^& has to end.

enjoy the fun easy fishing for what it is, but the "my crew killed it" "my lures killed it" "I'm the best fisherman in the world" just makes people look like the morons they truly are. the amount of dead fish was sad, one day people will realize how much damage they are doing to the population. when the ditch is void of big fish next year, they will wonder why ?

I was lucky enough to share some shoreline sunday AM before the flea market with an older white haired local named Jimmy, said he has been fishing the ditch for 40 yrs. super nice guy, we had a blast fishing next to each other! Don't know if he posts on the internet, but I wanted to say thanks for chatting with me about the tides/ structure, etc, i learned more in the hr listening to him then i would have all year long.

the social media super hero bull#^&#^&#^&#^& has to end.

enjoy the fun easy fishing for what it is, but the "my crew killed it" "my lures killed it" "I'm the best fisherman in the world" just makes people look like the morons they truly are. the amount of dead fish was sad, one day people will realize how much damage they are doing to the population. when the ditch is void of big fish next year, they will wonder why ?

I was lucky enough to share some shoreline sunday AM before the flea market with an older white haired local named Jimmy, said he has been fishing the ditch for 40 yrs. super nice guy, we had a blast fishing next to each other! Don't know if he posts on the internet, but I wanted to say thanks for chatting with me about the tides/ structure, etc, i learned more in the hr listening to him then i would have all year long.

sounds like a good time:gu: but the real question is , how many switched to a green Jig:bl:

the social media super hero bull#^&#^&#^&#^& has to end.

enjoy the fun easy fishing for what it is, but the "my crew killed it" "my lures killed it" "I'm the best fisherman in the world" just makes people look like the morons they truly are. the amount of dead fish was sad, one day people will realize how much damage they are doing to the population. when the ditch is void of big fish next year, they will wonder why ?

I was lucky enough to share some shoreline sunday AM before the flea market with an older white haired local named Jimmy, said he has been fishing the ditch for 40 yrs. super nice guy, we had a blast fishing next to each other! Don't know if he posts on the internet, but I wanted to say thanks for chatting with me about the tides/ structure, etc, i learned more in the hr listening to him then i would have all year long.Dave I hear you the internet and all the pro staffers and want to be prostaffers sending there pics to a rod company bc without their rod none of this would be possible.lol yea ok ...This helped fuel the mad rush Its sad guys rather take a 2 hr car ride to get a chance to catch a good fish easily instead of putting in long but enjoyable rewarding hrs learning their home waters where they could maybe consistently catch good fish year in and year out. Every time I looked at face book a certain rod company had a picture of some talented pro staffer (lol) with a decent fish,not even a fish that would get a second look by most . Its this type of practice that has the newer guys running after any info they hear of for a chance to selfie it up with a good fish and hashtag the crap out of their photos . We stayed local and experienced a damn strong bite.I watched a friend land a true trophy largest bass I've personally seen. That's also the other part of the problem you do have to put in an unreal amount of time to find good fish. I remember when any good spot held some bass but now a lot of spots that should have some life are void or damn close to it that unless you can fish a ton to find those small isolated schools of good fish you have to follow the main body of fish when they pop up in the canal ,block , lis, or nj. Guys in the past followed the fish to the back beaches and block island in the past for a paycheck now it's for 5min of internet fame maybe 15 min if you get pro staff. The only positive thing I can see in this current blitz and the new culture of surfcaster is that all these product whores want is a photo and then they release the fish hopefully they survive. rant over Jason
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I honestly have left areas where it was too easy in the past- just because I didn't want to hook all the fish and come back the next night and catch a few more.... unfortunately the fish just moved out by the next night

Dave I hear you the internet and all the pro staffers and want to be prostaffers sending there pics to a rod company bc without their rod none of this would be possible.lol yea ok ...This helped fuel the mad rush Its sad guys rather take a 2 hr car ride to get a chance to catch a good fish easily instead of putting in long but enjoyable rewarding hrs learning their home waters where they could maybe consistently catch good fish year in and year out. Every time I looked at face book a certain rod company had a picture of some talented pro staffer (lol) with a decent fish,not even a fish that would get a second look by most . Its this type of practice that has the newer guys running after any info they hear of for a chance to selfie it up with a good fish and hashtag the crap out of their photos . We stayed local and experienced a damn strong bite.I watched a friend land a true trophy largest bass I've personally seen. That's also the other part of the problem you do have to put in an unreal amount of time to find good fish. I remember when any good spot held some bass but now a lot of spots that should have some life are void or damn close to it that unless you can fish a ton to find those small isolated schools of good fish you have to follow the main body of fish when they pop up in the canal ,block , lis, or nj. Guys in the past followed the fish to the back beaches and block island in the past for a paycheck now it's for 5min of internet fame maybe 15 min if you get pro staff. The only positive thing I can see in this current blitz and the new culture of surfcaster is that all these product whores want is a photo and then they release the fish hopefully they survive. rant over Jason
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I sure hope you're right- the reported massacre was tough to take.... I feel sorry for the fish sometimes

I sure hope you're right- the reported massacre was tough to take.... I feel sorry for the fish sometimes

everyone has their arms up in the air about the last week in the canal, but in reality these fish are f@cuked every which way they turn.

yes probably hundreds of breeders were killed at the canal last week.

but what do you think happens ever year everywhere else?

at the housy all year? all winter? the hudson? the delaware and Chesapeake Bays...

what about the commercial quota?

what about "by catch"

just because you don't see it on Facebook, doesn't mean it isn't happening. this past winter/ spring some stainers emptied the housy of future breeders by the hundreds...

striped bass are #^&#^&#^&#^&ED because people are @ssholes, plain and simple

Theses fish are taken every year by Cape cod Bay boat guys. You just don't see up close unless you are out there and those guys don't want you to see it cause it will cause these kinds of reactions but it has been going on for years. In one respect be glad it was only 2 fish for the comm guys instead of 15 or the blitz would have been over way sooner. The rec harvest was epic and did make up for the limited amount able to be kept by the comm guys.
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how many of those are being reported as part of the commercial quota?

None of the rec catches are recorded. The fact the season is still open shows how slow it has been
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None of the rec catches are recorded. The fact the season is still open shows how slow it has been
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yes- I realize theres no reporting of rec catches.

I was commenting on the fact that the comm guys are supposedly taking their fish outta the Canal this year- albeit 2 fish at a time. but theres reports of widespread poaching as well-
so- how many are getting on the catch reports? is the MEP doing bike checks?

Poaching does exist but the poached fish are then sold and go against the quota the same with all these floaters. No comm guy is going to let a sellable fish drift by him.
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Had an hour to kill midday yesterday and wanted to stretch some new line, what a difference from the usual cluster lately.

where's all the exam-glove wearin' bait guys???

No facebooking/internet heroes.
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So just think! If the powers that be ever pull their heads out of their collective asses and make Striped Bass a gamefish (i.e. no commercial sales) and that blitz took place, think of how many fish would have survived to become 50s, 60s and even 70s.

Florida did it many years ago with Tarpon and Snook and now have a world class fishery.

So just think! If the powers that be ever pull their heads out of their collective asses and make Striped Bass a gamefish (i.e. no commercial sales) and that blitz took place, think of how many fish would have survived to become 50s, 60s and even 70s.

Florida did it many years ago with Tarpon and Snook and now have a world class fishery.


So just think....If they banned ALL fishing off the banks of the canal how many of those fish.....................

Come on Piemma, it is pretty well established that most of the fishing during that bite was recreational since they have changed the rules from shore. This thread wasn't started on the Comm knock but just as a incredible bite.....

I agree the recs killed thousands more than the comm. during that week.
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So just think! If the powers that be ever pull their heads out of their collective asses and make Striped Bass a gamefish (i.e. no commercial sales) and that blitz took place, think of how many fish would have survived to become 50s, 60s and even 70s.

Florida did it many years ago with Tarpon and Snook and now have a world class fishery.

Paul the com sales is the only fish that gets reported,,, unless the com guy takes them home and doesn't report them which most likely wouldn't happen, historical count will help them down the road...

I think the MA DMF can petty much figure out the 2 com fish take from the ditch via buyers reports... The reports for Monday and Thursday should give a good idea me thinks

My guess is the com take didn't come close to what was taken by recs.

Any how... Gamefish would work for me but admit I'd miss com season...

Tog is another story...... Going to "by permit" only soon....
Did I tell you I'm good at clearing land, going to be looking for sumpton to do...:cheers2:

My hope is that people are spoiled by so many easy quality fish and lose interest in working for 'em.

I had the same thought....


I personally would rather fish 3 or 4 hours and catch one or two beauties than pull in a fish every 10 minutes. Kinda takes the sport out of it.

Well witnessed a whole bunch of boats that looked like a flotillia makin repeated drifts in the canal from keene st up to half way gate from about 1 -3 this mornin and heard quite a few fish hittin decks. Unbelievable that that that many had the cajones to say f it and get away with it. Disturbing that that many were able to get away with it that long with no patrol. Dumbfounding
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Well witnessed a whole bunch of boats that looked like a flotillia makin repeated drifts in the canal from keene st up to half way gate from about 1 -3 this mornin and heard quite a few fish hittin decks. Unbelievable that that that many had the cajones to say f it and get away with it. Disturbing that that many were able to get away with it that long with no patrol. Dumbfounding
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Are you joking, Mike? That's f'n ridiculous.
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Money always brings out the best in people.
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maybe they skipped on past the islands and landed at The End?

Well witnessed a whole bunch of boats that looked like a flotillia makin repeated drifts in the canal from keene st up to half way gate from about 1 -3 this mornin and heard quite a few fish hittin decks. Unbelievable that that that many had the cajones to say f it and get away with it. Disturbing that that many were able to get away with it that long with no patrol. Dumbfounding
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The canal cops don't come on til 7:30 or 8:00 AM
The EP boat only shows up at night for the Scorton bite
CG only on weekend safety checks.....

Carry on

4 trips from last Thursday to Monday got stopped by each on different days,,,
Had a stay out of jail card for the CG, boarded within the last 12 months.. :-)

4 trips in of 5 days and stopped 3 times,,, can't say what I really want to , but u can imagine,,, live free or die MF'r

Well witnessed a whole bunch of boats that looked like a flotillia makin repeated drifts in the canal from keene st up to half way gate from about 1 -3 this mornin and heard quite a few fish hittin decks. Unbelievable that that that many had the cajones to say f it and get away with it. Disturbing that that many were able to get away with it that long with no patrol. Dumbfounding
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I launched out of Sandwich just before 6am on Saturday morning and was shocked that at least 15 boats were within a stones throw of the Power plant, just outside the entrance of the Marina, drifting.... well within the end of the canal. They were there for over an hour with no sight of patrol. As I drove out I could hear some of the shore fisherman were not very happy and displayed their resentment, quite loudly I might add.

"80 per cent of us...cheat". He included himself.

...and I'm sure this will bring "hell on wheels" But 80% of the Comms have regular jobs and the bass money is "play money". Gas, eels, booze, whatever. Not needed to sustain their families.
I speak from experience. When I was a comm there wasn't one guy in our club who was comm and didn't have a regular, well paying job.

Am I wrong about this?

You are probably 100% right piemma. But there is 100% nothing wrong with that. Lots of people have second jobs and hobbies that they make money from for extra cash and they use that for anything they like weather for bills or fun. We have hashed this out before on the site.
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A lot of the shore cheating stemmed from the reduction of the shore guys take to 2 fish. All that change did was cause even more cheating cause most held a boat 15 fish limit and it was very easy to catch 25 commercial fish each day of that week.
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...and I'm sure this will bring "hell on wheels" But 80% of the Comms have regular jobs and the bass money is "play money". Gas, eels, booze, whatever. Not needed to sustain their families.
I speak from experience. When I was a comm there wasn't one guy in our club who was comm and didn't have a regular, well paying job.

Am I wrong about this?

It's time to call the "commercial" bass fishery what it is: a way for recs to defray the costs of their hobby and avoid paying sales tax on gear. The idea that 2 a day for a partial week, over 2 months, is the difference between staying afloat and going under, is laughable. Anyone who can afford the expense of owning and running a boat doesn't need to sell even 15 a day over an extremely short season. I'd estimate that only 10-15% of comm bass permit holders derive at least 50% of their income from the sale of fish. You want to have a commercial bass fishery? Fine, do what other states do. Require applicants for a bass endorsement to show their last 5 years of tax returns to pro that they earn at least 50% of their income from commercial fishing. The real commercials would enjoy a longer season, and maybe even be able to sell bass every day.

You are probably 100% right piemma. But there is 100% nothing wrong with that. Lots of people have second jobs and hobbies that they make money from for extra cash and they use that for anything they like weather for bills or fun. We have hashed this out before on the site.
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There's something majorly wrong with that: other second jobs aren't preventing some people from earning their living. Part time "commercials" are the reason for a short season and closed days, and really deprive true commercial fishermen from maximizing their earning potential. Making dog collars, and selling them on Etsy, isn't really hurting pet stores. The same is true of most other hobbies. Most aren't dealing with a very limited resource, and a extremely short sales window.

heres how it goes a lot now. Land 30lber. Run to tackle show. Weigh in for striper cup. Go back fishing. Catch 35 lber. Go to another tackle shop. As drive by dumpster tthrow 30 lber in dumpster. Go to different tackle shop weigh in 35lber.An on an on. Guys picking up dumpsters complaining of smell of several dead large stripers in many dumpsters around the Canal. See hats with several Striper Cup pins. MMMMM. Ad to this all the blue coolers placed along canal trail. No one owns them but they sure disappear quick when EPO comes around.
My point is catching big bass is fun. Catching and using them usefully is good ie feed family and friends. Catching for a pin then wasting them is a crime against the fish. yes the Canal was fun. Most have never seen anything like this season. Enjoy it but to some. STOP KILLI(NG THE DAMN FISH FOR A PIN OR A SELFY THEN WASTING THE FISH BY DUMPING THEM IN THE WOODS OR A DUMPSTER. Maybe is time for Striper Cup to go away. You know like the Scheafer tourney did.

Googan is as Googan does.
Can't fix stupid.
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heres how it goes a lot now. Land 30lber. Run to tackle show. Weigh in for striper cup. Go back fishing. Catch 35 lber. Go to another tackle shop. As drive by dumpster tthrow 30 lber in dumpster. Go to different tackle shop weigh in 35lber.An on an on. Guys picking up dumpsters complaining of smell of several dead large stripers in many dumpsters around the Canal. See hats with several Striper Cup pins. MMMMM. Ad to this all the blue coolers placed along canal trail. No one owns them but they sure disappear quick when EPO comes around.
My point is catching big bass is fun. Catching and using them usefully is good ie feed family and friends. Catching for a pin then wasting them is a crime against the fish. yes the Canal was fun. Most have never seen anything like this season. Enjoy it but to some. STOP KILLI(NG THE DAMN FISH FOR A PIN OR A SELFY THEN WASTING THE FISH BY DUMPING THEM IN THE WOODS OR A DUMPSTER. Maybe is time for Striper Cup to go away. You know like the Scheafer tourney did.

.....and that's why I stopped doing the Striper Cup in 2013. I personally know of a 60+ that was killed for the pin and then thrown away. The Cup is outdated like the Schaefer Tourney was.

Sure they have a C&R. How many guys do C&R as compared to the guys that kill and discard breeders. IF you are going to kill it, for Christ sake EAT IT!

Part 2 started yesterday.
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striper cup can eat s*#t... with the state of the fishery it should have been a wrap years ago.

striper cup can eat s*#t... with the state of the fishery it should have been a wrap years ago.

Couldn't agree more.
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what about the MV derby? Ive never fished it but was up there 2 years ago during it and the amount of #^&#^&#^&#^&ing googans kicking fish up the beach so they could quickly try to catch a bigger one was ridiculous. they claim those fish don't go to waste but thats totally bull#^&#^&#^&#^& no fish is edible after baking in the sun for 4 hrs.

striper cup can eat s*#t... with the state of the fishery it should have been a wrap years ago.

They will put out the occasional editors comment about the importance of catch and release to product a dwindling biomass, yet promote killing for sport by hosting a yearly tourney. Hypocrisy
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I keep saying this and no one replies to challenge what I say so I will keep on saying it.. there are so many people making money off the blood of striped bass that we will never see conservation minded behavior until there is no more money to be made.
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I keep saying this and no one replies to challenge what I say so I will keep on saying it.. there are so many people making money off the blood of striped bass that we will never see conservation minded behavior until there is no more money to be made.
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Can't argue with that
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Bob Pond said that as long as the bounty is on the fish there will never be real conservation.

Bob Pond said that as long as the bounty is on the fish there will never be real conservation.

A man before his time. Oh wait.. no..... a man that lived through a moratorium.
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