limits on public resources ie trib trout

I was up fishing the tribs mon and tue. spent most of my time in ny (creeks full of stocked smolts) came back to pa and went to walnut to see if they got some freshies in with the rain. i got there about 3 on tue afternoon. there were some fish,fresh and old alike not tons but some . I walked up to the chutes noticing on the way guys with fish on ropes. i stood up there at the top end and watched obvious snagging and lifting techniques being used to put another on the rope. my point is when the snaggers catch them they hide where the fish is hooked by turning away from the crick and hurry and get the hook out of wherever it is and on the rope it goes. one guy was using a treble hooked spoon under a float!! HE DRIFTED IT DOWN INTO THE FISH AND GIVE IT A LITTLE JERK AND BINGO FISH ON. Where are the wardens?? there should be at least one at walnut all the time. to busy ? not enough manpower?its been going on for along time and doesnt ever get any better. My solution would be to decrease the limit to 1 fish per day that way the snaggers could only drag one down to the parking lot a day. they can hide where they hook it but alot harder to get them back to the car unnoticed. it would save tons of fish for everyone and also once they ripped one would probably go home thereby making more room for everyone to fish. im more than willing to accept a reduced limit so i could catch and release more cause i think most of us fish for sport not food. what do you think about my idea?

 

Back when Russell Station was still an operating power plant, before it was decommissioned and torn down, it was one of the winter hot spots on the LO South Shore.  The warm water discharge drew large runs of salmonids all winter.  It was not uncommon during those runs to watch the more shady of the "anglers" rope a limit and return to their vehicles, drive off for coffee, then return, sometimes multiple times per day, to load up again.  All they had to do was change their coats.  If someone is enough of a low life to snag, why do you think that a one fish limit will actually stop their poaching.  It may complicate it somewhat, but until enough people call every time they observe offenses, LE will never get the job done.

Does anyone have an idea as to how to get the limit reduced to one per day? a petition maybe?I would really like to pursue this and try to make the trib fishing better for everyone. If the i gotta keep 3 crowd dont like it I say good. Noone needs 3, 5 to 10 pound fish for a meal or the smoker. i think most of the fish kept get filleted put in the freezer and thrown out next year. i also know of trappers keeping limits for trapping bait.I heard of one guy that takes all he can get to grind up and mixes with water for fertilizer in his GARDEN!!These fish are a treasure and i feel very fortunate to catch them. Everyone should stop saying Oh Well Whatever ,somthing needs to be done by us THE FISHERMAN before it gets worse and it surely will. I would really like to hear what you guys think about all this.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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I've been fishing for Finger Lakes Rainbows for 55 years, Lake Ontario Rainbows for 40+ years, and when I started out most if the guys you met were out and out snaggers (lifters in local parlance).  I feel your pain, but the poachers are going to be poaching regardless of what you make the limit.  You have to follow the guy with three fish over the bank, get a plate number and call it in.  If you are not willing to do that, no one will ever get caught, except once in a blue moon when they don't see the Official Vehicle until it is too late.

thanks for the replies . as far as a put and take fishery, the commish isnt putting enough and the ropers are taking too many . and 13 as stated earlier a 1 fish limit wont stop all the poaching but it will definatly cut it down by 2/3 the amount because the ole boys that gotta catch their  "limit" will be only   keeping 1 instead of 3. im not saying by any means that all kept fish are FOUL hooked just some of them. if the guy snags a fish and keeps it at any trib just about any good spot others will be there and he wouldnt chance taking more than one. It would be pretty ballsy to try to get back to the car with more than 1 pretty hard to hide an 8 pound trout. Now i know that my suggestion isnt a cure all but with the restricted acsess to the cricks and the diminished returns its gotta help . Less Limit More Fish For Everybody. I got a chance to go to alaska for  ocean run steelhead in  2014. we fished down on the Kenai penn in small streams about walnut size . 
The regs said that you werent supposed to take them out of the water at all because the commish up there was trying to get them solidly reastablished and they are succeding due to their rules and ENFORCEMENT policys. this is where i ran into a fisherman/Warden , i would never of guessed that the guy was a warden until another guy showed up and caught a nice 12 pounder by the looks of it and proceeded to take it out of the water onto the gravel for a pic ,WELL that didnt fly the "fisherman " below me walked up and showed the perp his badge and was still writing when i left that pool. more deputies for enforcement would also help no doubt IMO. gonna try talking to sombody with the commish to get their reasons for not lowering the limit and im gonna say that its prob. license sales which equals MONEY. mismanagement of the millions we as trout and trib fishermen pay every year.WE ALL DESERVE BETTER.

phone in car DUH my bad.

If your trying to change the limit to 1 so you can catch more fish sounds like you can’t catch fish. As I find plenty of trout to catch. The fish commission does its studies and 3 is the limit for a reason. They are a invasive fish doing more harm to the lake than good anyways or that’s what they say about invasive fish. Just imagine if they were stocked and not kept. Good bye to the native fish. There’s a reason for it to be a put and take fishery. As for snaggers never going to stop it.

You guys are really something , im talking about more fish for everyone to catch after whatever numbers return to the cricks . its simple math if 5 guys keep 3 thats 15 ,if 5 guys keep one thats 5 leaving 10 for continued oppurtunitys for C,R. We cant change the walleye predation .we cant help the sick smolts we dont even know about . we, as a group could lobby for a limit of one to help make better 
CATCHING, numbers wise, a possibility. Captain Hook Ive always enjoyed and respected your posts on here as ive been reading them for years BUT im not talkin about lower limits for better returns next season. Im talkin about no matter what the returns are,  reducing the limit Will make "this" season more fun for all concerned. common sense. Lone wolf you are so wacked "Invasive species"?? in the 60s erie was called the dead sea NO FISH AT ALL. all the fish in there were reestablished after the lake was cleaned up.DUH!!! and as far as me not being able to catch em ive caught a couple during the last40 plus years and i dont bottom dredge a 2 fly rig to do it. Now im gonna go nap cause younse wear me out.PS 13 FIELD CITATIONS ONLY 
PAY THE FINE OR GET ARRESTED .Whos gonna come back here from " wherever" to go to court ???. AAAND the wardens aint suppossed to "make the call" they are charged with ENFORCING the LAW and the chips lay where they fall.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CURRENT LAWS

15ftstcroix
Lone wolf you are so wacked "Invasive species"?? in the 60s erie was called the dead sea NO FISH AT ALL. all the fish in there were reestablished after the lake was cleaned up.

http://www.invasivespecie...tive.com/rainbow-trout

Yes they are invasive. Meaning they are not native. Only here because we put them here, regardless if they were zero fish left in Lake Erie in the 60s. Walleye were present, small mouth were present, perch were present for like thousands of years.... steel head 50 years or so. They didn’t naturally swim here and set up shop

Do you know how many people complain to the fish commission. How are you going to start your petition to them. There are not enough trout for me to catch lol. You dont see the scientific fact on it but complain about numbers. Like captain even said different facts can all pose a threat to these fish cause they are invasive. A lot more invasive species in Erie that are even hurting them. If stocking is not done, they do not spawn very well. So you can put the two together I hope. Bash all you want I got a good laugh out of that.
I like to know if you even know the native trout to PA.

CAPTAIN HOOK
Why the insults added Luck 13 and why the political harassment or bashing on fishing forums ? Hearing a person out is what forums are about . We may not agree ,but maybe we can share and resolve some issues, or maybe not . I see his point after his last post.

Sorry, Hook, but I thought I got the first shot taken at me, just throwing one back.

always been an advocate to close fishing once smolts get stocked.... 
 
maybe close certain sections?  makes you wonder how many get hooked deep or bashed around on rocks that don't survive
 
 
 
 

15ftstcroix
thanx capt. you get me . the rest of the boys dont really . ill go back too just wishin things could be better instead of triing to rally some support to make a difference. Lucky 13 theres no point in talking to you or replying to the crap you spout.

Takes a spouter to know a spouter.  I got sick of the taste of "neophyte pie in the sky" here in NY before PA and Ohio even discovered steelhead.   I'm not saying it wouldn't be nice to find 40 undisturbed fish in every pool, but unless YOU make the calls and write the letters, it ain't going to happen for you..... And die in a fire!  

Don't think the boat guys would like the proposal of one fish per day.

Do you want the guys gut hooking fish at the mouths on powerbait throwing back fish after fish after they keep one or stopping after 3? Same with the boat guys who do go out?

I doubt lowering the limit would have a positive impact on the local economy as well. How many people are going to take a charter or their boat out for one fish per day? How many guys that make a couple trips a year up to get a box of fish are going to stop buying an Erie permit, renting hotel rooms, eating at restaurants and getting smoked fish? Most people who don't care about a one fish limit are going to fish no matter if it's three or one fish.

How many locations in the world are there that below average to average fishermen can tangle with multiple steelhead on a daily basis? There are still plenty of fish and will be more next year and the year after, etc.

Moses Guthrie
Don't think the boat guys would like the proposal of one fish per day.

Do you want the guys gut hooking fish at the mouths on powerbait throwing back fish after fish after they keep one or stopping after 3? Same with the boat guys who do go out?

That’s the other thing how good is catch and release if people don’t properly do it. I’ve seen trout sit up on rocks and kicked back to the waters with no hope of surviving. Good point.