If you head up north to fish (NH)

[FishermanTim]

Make sure you follow the rules (that means ALL the rules.

I was fishing up at my brother's neck of the woods this past weekend, and although I knew the rules, I let a momentary lapse of judgement get me in trouble.

I was fishing on Winnipesaukee Sunday on a remote corner of northern-most corner of the lake. I "forgot" that it's a 2 trap only lake (due to its trout fisheries designation) and I had two traps and was jigging for perch.
I didn't screw around with the F&G officer when he came over on his sled, and was VERY polite.
Apparently "on the water" offenses (year round activities) present the state with a "goose that lays golden eggs" when they have a huge tourist based income.

Bottom line is THEY DO NOT GIVE WARNINGS....EVER!!!!
I got a NH kiss to the back pocket for $86.60 (Love those odd number fine amounts).

Just be aware that they are out there and they will be watching!!!

My complaint is not so much about the fine, since I did break the rules and should have known better, but with the fact that they had designated the entire lake as a trout fishery but I have NEVER seen or heard of anyone catching a trout (any species) from that section of the lake.
To get to Moultonborough Bay from ANY place where they stock the trout would require the fish to pretty much grow legs and walk there!

OK, maybe my anger is fueled by the serious lack of ice!!!!!

[Raven]

Catch any TROUT?

(by the way the property values
coincide with the ticket prices)

[Rockfish9]

N.H. is very specfic on what you can and cannot do...at times their rules can be a bit confusing because of the designation of what is a trout pond or regulated for Salmon and lake trout... it's all in print right down to discription of what a hook is. by how many points it has.. at times it takes some digging to find it...still a hard lesson...I hope the day improved for you from there...

you are lucky it was not Vermont... they would have confiscated your gear( possibly even your vehicle)... you would have had a day in court and after the fine from the kangaroo court.. they would have taken your license away for a year to boot...

I know of a group of guy's that had exactly that happen to them... the violation was for leaving tip ups unattened...

because they were staying in a camper( the camper was parked off ice and snow macines were used to transport) ... they left the ( unbaited) tip ups in place overnight to keep the spools from freezing (I have removable spools for this very reason)burrying them in snow or placing them in a cooler would have been smarter IMHO....be that as it may... someone turned them into the F&G( most likely a local that wanted that spot)... the officer spent a good deal of the night waiting for the anglers to come back.. at day break.. when the guy's returned to chop out their tip ups... the lone( very cold and angry ) F&G officer promptly ARRESTED them and confiscated their gear... they had to be bailed out of jail and return the following Tuesday for a hearing.. they were fined $25 per incedent ( 25 tip ups each) and then lost their license for the remaider of that calender year and the next year as well... expensive lesson ... I wasn't there that day... I missed the trip because of the flu... sometimes you just get lucky I guess.

I know of several other incedents in Vermont.. those boys ( and girls) are serious about what they do... commitiing "crimes" no matter how trivial against the F&W is a bigger offence than comitting murder it seems.

[The Dad Fisherman]

Maine is no walk in the Park either......

[RIROCKHOUND]

Originally Posted by The Dad Fisherman

Maine is no walk in the Park either......

I fish Maine FW for 2 or 3 days a summer the last half dozen years..

I've been checked more there than I have in the rest of my life fishing saltwater in RI.... a lot more than those few days in Maine....

[The Dad Fisherman]

I got popped for Fishing without a license for taking a cast with a kiddie snoopy rod on a friends dock. $125 fine and I had to drive back up there for a court date......

I'm Still Sour About It

[JohnnyD]

Sucks that you got the fine and fortunately it wasn't too excessive, but at least some states are doing it right. We complain about the EP not enforcing the striper regs at the canal. If the Mass EP were half as active as some other states, the canal and many other popular local spots would be a completely different game.

My in-laws have some undeveloped land way up in Maine on a lake. First thing I do when we enter the state is get my license. I'm still dumbfounded when they ask me "what time do you want your license to start?" But I've heard of people getting fines for fishing without a license because they were a few hours after their 3-day expired.

[Rockfish9]

Originally Posted by The Dad Fisherman

I got popped for Fishing without a license for taking a cast with a kiddie snoopy rod on a friends dock. $125 fine and I had to drive back up there for a court date......

I'm Still Sour About It

Roy Leveya landed some impressive stripers and blues with a snoopy rod.. no Excuses kevin.... or was it sponge Bob....

[Piscator]

Originally Posted by The Dad Fisherman

Maine is no walk in the Park either......

On the enforcement side, this state (Massachusetts) should do the same thing, too many clowns out there that ruin it.

[The Dad Fisherman]

It was a Snoopy Rod....No Sponge Bob back then...20+ years ago...

and JD...... $125 and a day out of work was excessive back then.

[Rockfish9]

Originally Posted by The Dad Fisherman

It was a Snoopy Rod....No Sponge Bob back then...20+ years ago...

and JD...... $125 and a day out of work was excessive back then.

It's alot even by todays standards.. just think of the fishing gear you could buy..for me.. it's one tank of gas for my truck LMAO.

[Raven]

Originally Posted by The Dad Fisherman

I got popped for Fishing without a license for taking a cast with a kiddie snoopy rod

Did you get re-inflated ?

[The Dad Fisherman]

Felt pretty deflated after that

[Backbeach Jake]

I was fined in Maine 30 years ago for fishing with out a license and I wasn't fishing, I was watching. Standing around on last ice watching , feet soaked in work boots my bud said" let's go it;s dead here" . I picked up one freakin tilt to help and there stood a game warden. He was watching the whole time. Asked if when I pulled the trap there'd been a big trout on it what would I have done? I asked it was a trick question. 50 bucks. Maine owes me 50 bucks..

[iamskippy]

I have caught several rainbow and brownies in lake winni.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[Rockfish9]

Originally Posted by iamskippy

I have caught several rainbow and brownies in lake winni.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

No brown trout in Winni... people confuse salmon and brown trout there through the ice.. and it costs them...

[Mugz]

Just purchased a 3 day license for next weekend....Out of State, 3 day license......$30. Ouch....but at least I'm legal. Can't justify buying a full year license since I don't go up often.
Been going up to NH for 12 years icefishing the same weekend.....never been checked. But the one time I decide to try and go without one....is the time I get popped.

[FishermanTim]

Originally Posted by Raven

Catch any TROUT?

(by the way the property values
coincide with the ticket prices)

Now that's a good one!

I was fishing in an off-shoot of Moultonborough Bay.
The only trout I've seen there in all the years I have fished (summer) were brown land trout! Trout would have to literally jump throuigh hoops to make it to this remote part of the lake.

I "heard" of someone catching one there a few years back, but there wasn't any proof to back it up.

[FishermanTim]

I got back from a week away (kids school vacation) and got a follow up letter from the NH F&G "requesting" I send them my license, as it has been suspended for 6 months.
As pissed as I was about having to pay a fine AND lose the license for what most might consider a trivial offense, and as pissed as I was at myself for not paying attention to the letter of the law, I can't help but feel a little relief that since I can't fish in NH until August, I won't have to waste gas and money UP THERE until the fall.
You know, in a strange twisted sort of way, we both won.

(I'll just spend more time and money here in MA, and seek out some new kayak spots to explore.)

Don't get me wrong...I screwed up, and I have to deal with it in the best way I can.

SO....how long before the herring and shad show up (based more on the weather than on the calendar)?

[Pete F.]

Originally Posted by FishermanTim

I can't help but feel a little relief that since I can't fish in NH until August, I won't have to waste gas and money UP THERE until the fall.
You know, in a strange twisted sort of way, we both won.

(I'll just spend more time and money here in MA, and seek out some new kayak spots to explore.)

Makes you wonder about why some laws are enforced sometimes, they got a little money out of you. How much would they have gotten if you were going there fishing?
And yes I know he broke the rules.

[FishermanTim]

The way it has been explained to me is that since the lakes region is a big tourist area, they want to get as much from the tourist as possible before they leave. I'm not saying that they specifically target out-of-towners, but that since they can tend to be the biggest law breakers they impose the laws more strictly. The refreshing aspect of this is that they impose the laws just as (if not more) strictly for locals and NH residents.

My only real complaint is that after all is said and done, I still have NEVER caught or have seen caught in Moultonborough Bay a trout of any kind! The fishing rules for Winnipesaukee are due to it being a trout/salmon designated water. Well, if I have not seen nor caught a trout in some 10 years fishing that Bay, it makes me wonder if they were ever there to begin with.
With the way many of the fishing waters in the northeast are deteriorating they may want to re-think their procedures, policies and practices.

[Raven]

tim,
according to Marion Larson's newsletter
spring stocking in Massachusetts has never been better
what with the mild winter we've had and thousands of 14" tiger trout
being stocked this year.... allot of them by 3-15 thru 3-22