Lobster/Fish Pot Bouys in Surf Fishing Areas - An Update

[Swimmer]

I believe what is meant is that so many people are setting single pots with a single buoy, and those persons are most likely recreational lobstermen. I believe the intent here is to have those people set two and three pot lines, which would at the very least spread out the distance between pots if its a two pot set, maybe not though if the pots are tied with about 50 feet of cord. Obviously if the recreational lobster guy is setting ten pots in very close proximity and there are ten buoys, one for each pot, the area is very buoy congested. If that same person sets three pots lines then he'll eliminate three bouys for every ten pots. Most recreational guys pull by hand, so the likelihood of these people doing things differently isn't likely to happen. Very few recreational guys have hydraulic whinches on the boats. Their are other conflicts in this regard also, such as: what direction the local commercial guys lay their lines out. If they usually put out a string north south and now comes a recreational guy who cuts and reties his singles into traps into three and four pot lines and lays the line out east west then I think everyone can figure what will happen next. And what would happen next might be the solution the jetty fishermen are looking for. The commercial guys will haul up inadvertantly the misset lines of pots and be very pissed off at the extra work and cut the lines to the pots and lines sending them to the bottom. I have seen it happen.

I applaud the effort here by one the member of th S-B.com community negotiating on the shore fishermens behalf.

[Pete_G]

I'll be watching closely and I'm excited at the possibility of fishing spots that have been futile to fish over the past few weeks and also on and off over the past few years.

As of the night before last, there is a buoy that I can reach out and whack with my rod tip in one spot. WAY too close...

Thanks Dennis!

[MakoMike]

DZ,
Congrats to you and Geroge for trying to work this whole thing out amicably, I was at the RIMFAC meeting when this whole thing first came up.

[In The Surf]

Dennis, thanks for the continued effort to find some mutual ground and regain some fishing access. Things seemed to get out of hand the last two months or so with many of the best spots congested with pots and buoys. Hope this is something they address relatively soon and not just consider for next year.

[basswipe]

Its definitely a good start.

[Johnny C]

if I catch a large lobster while chunking can I keep it?

[NIB]

I witnessed the ruination of fishing spots first hand in RI this weekend.This is no joke.
Good Luck DZ

[basswipe]

Welcome NIB.

Nah it ain't no joke.