Originally Posted by Dunit35 (Post 12714603)

Um...Yeah. my grandpa says Brown are stocked but I sure didn't see any brown on that trout. I'll upload a pic when my dad sends texts me it.

Used a spinning rod/reel with four pound mono. It felt like a much bigger fish so it did fight some. Didn't notice any difference from other lake fish.

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12714592)

What kind, brook, rainbow?

I've never went trout fishing, its something I'd really like to try... are they good fighters?

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo (Post 12730600)

Do you fly fish loochy?

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo (Post 12730595)

I just don't think it's fair to have to pay extra for a trout stamp when I already pay for a fishing license.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12730610)

that's really the only way I fish nowdays

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo (Post 12730621)

That's cool.

I wish I got the hang of it growing up but it didn't last. I'm not sure where to go good trout fishing anyways in Kansas I'd rather be in Co to trout fish in the mountains. Back in Kansas I'm happy with cat, bass and anything that I catch but I hate mother ****ing turtle ass wipes.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12730627)

I taught myself as a teenager from reading books and just going out and doing it. Don't forget that you can fly fish for anything, not just trout.

From KS youd probably head west to Colorado or southeast to south Missouri or north Arkansas. Maybe northeast OK on Lower Illinois River, but that's not really the best place.

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo (Post 12730631)

Hmmm I'm wanting to try different techniques this year and use crickets or things I don't normally do so that kind helps give me ideas. I didn't think about it that way.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12730640)

Fly fishing may not work WELL for, say, catfish...since they are primarily scent feeders and tend to live on the bottom. I have caught a couple of cats by accident though.

Lately, fly fishing for carp has become a big thing.

Originally Posted by KC Tattoo (Post 12730680)

I'm not big on carp but a fish is a fish. I wasn't even thinking about cats but maybe drum or a striper may take a hit on a fly. I don't like little hooks though. I don't want them swallow just get it by the lip so it's easier to remove.

Originally Posted by mr. tegu (Post 12730846)

I can guarantee you that if you fish off the damn at John Redmond this spring, almost any time from late March to May, you will catch white bass and I am sure you could do so fly fishing. They are there on the damn at pretty much all times but during that period they are extra plentiful and super aggressive.

And white bass there are legitimate fighters and a consistently good size. 3 lbs is not uncommon. I don't keep them but it is really fun catching them on basically anything you throw out. I typically use some traditional hard baits or jigs with a steady retrieve.

Originally Posted by BDj23 (Post 12731126)

Just spent $40 at wally world re-stocking my crappie/white bass tackle box today.

Supposed to be 70° on Saturday, might have to get my license and give the new gear a practice run.

Originally Posted by BDj23 (Post 12731126)

Just spent $40 at wally world re-stocking my crappie/white bass tackle box today.

Supposed to be 70° on Saturday, might have to get my license and give the new gear a practice run.

Originally Posted by Dunit35 (Post 12731492)

I checked our local weather earlier today. 89 degrees on Saturday. WTF?

I turned down fishing to make $50/hr working security for an oil well site. Easy $400.

It's always tough turning down fishing though.

Originally Posted by Demonpenz (Post 12731507)

You don't need a job to fish, in fact that is how poor people live. I should have gotten my lic today but I didn't it definately needs to be done. Hopefully this week.

Originally Posted by Scooter LaCanforno (Post 12752707)

My Brother in Law keeps sending me photo's of 10-11 lb bass he's catching at Lake Toho in Kissimmee. He's catching 3-4 that size every day for the last month.

Originally Posted by JASONSAUTO (Post 12738312)

Here's a picture of a picture from several years ago but I think you get the point.

Couple hours work
http://i.imgur.com/2TObDs2.jpg

Originally Posted by HonestChieffan (Post 12752658)

Boys the pond bass are on. I fished a 1/4 ox black and blue jig with a motor oil lizard today and the big fish were all over it. Been a couple years since i caught big fish like today. 1 would go 6 plus. One over 5 and 3 in the 3 pond range. Then a single blade chartruse spinnerbait fished slow on downed trees an hammered em agai. One good fish but bunches of 12-15 in fish

Good day for sure!

Originally Posted by Iowanian (Post 12752681)

It's obviously unseasonably warm here this year(thanks #global warming)...I took one of my daughters down to the pond a couple of days ago and threw some plastic worms into open water...in Feb....In Iowa....Awesome.

The water was crisp clear and we could see where the fish were and weren't, which has only resulted in my desire to build some additional structure to sink....

Anyway, she managed to winch in our first fish of the year which was a respectable bass.

Entering year 4 of my pond and I'm thinking this is the first summer where I might have a legit shot at a 5lb bass in the pond. My guess is 4 will stop them this year....but there is a chance which is exciting. Catching a 7lb bass from the pond I built will be one of my best days.

Originally Posted by Scooter LaCanforno (Post 12752707)

My Brother in Law keeps sending me photo's of 10-11 lb bass he's catching at Lake Toho in Kissimmee. He's catching 3-4 that size every day for the last month.

Originally Posted by Iowanian (Post 12752681)

It's obviously unseasonably warm here this year(thanks #global warming)...I took one of my daughters down to the pond a couple of days ago and threw some plastic worms into open water...in Feb....In Iowa....Awesome.

The water was crisp clear and we could see where the fish were and weren't, which has only resulted in my desire to build some additional structure to sink....

Anyway, she managed to winch in our first fish of the year which was a respectable bass.

Entering year 4 of my pond and I'm thinking this is the first summer where I might have a legit shot at a 5lb bass in the pond. My guess is 4 will stop them this year....but there is a chance which is exciting. Catching a 7lb bass from the pond I built will be one of my best days.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12752724)

You sunk a truck in there right?

Originally Posted by Iowanian (Post 12752681)

It's obviously unseasonably warm here this year(thanks #global warming)...I took one of my daughters down to the pond a couple of days ago and threw some plastic worms into open water...in Feb....In Iowa....Awesome.

The water was crisp clear and we could see where the fish were and weren't, which has only resulted in my desire to build some additional structure to sink....

Anyway, she managed to winch in our first fish of the year which was a respectable bass.

Entering year 4 of my pond and I'm thinking this is the first summer where I might have a legit shot at a 5lb bass in the pond. My guess is 4 will stop them this year....but there is a chance which is exciting. Catching a 7lb bass from the pond I built will be one of my best days.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12752722)

We caught our limit on stripers at James A Reed today,good times. I even managed to pull in a (estimate) 9-10 lb Channel Cat

Originally Posted by mr. tegu (Post 12753347)

Really? How big? I have always wanted to go there but just haven't since I am on the KS side. Seems like a good place for my kayak. It's pretty heavily fished isn't it?

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12753382)

They were all under 4lbs but good fishing anyway. Yes it's always pretty crowded but there are 11 or 12 little ponds out there they call lakes. It's good fishing if the water is up and the spillways are working.

Originally Posted by BDj23 (Post 12759385)

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/out...134884674.html

Great article in the KC Star about Blue Catfish conservation.

I'd like to see the same thing with Flathead too.

Originally Posted by allen_kcCard (Post 12760511)

FYP...I looked forever in the article on how blues talk to each other.

Originally Posted by allen_kcCard (Post 12760511)

FYP...I looked forever in the article on how blues talk to each other.

Originally Posted by BDj23 (Post 12759385)

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/out...134884674.html

Great article in the KC Star about Blue Catfish conversation.

I'd like to see the same thing with Flathead too.

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12761403)

I see both sides of the catch and release/lets keep it argument

But at the end of the day, if someone wants to keep a biggie for eating I dont have a problem with it... they paid for their license like everyone else, theres no law against it, and there are always more where that one came from

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12761623)

I'm in the same camp with you. I'll catch and release if my freezer is full. But if I want some fish, I'm eating fish.

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12761403)

and there are always more where that one came from

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12761847)

No, there aren't.

That's why guys like me get involved with groups that lobby for tighter C&R regs and enforcement. Now, of course, if you are following the rules then I'm not mad or anything..I just want tighter rules so we can continue to enjoy quality fishing.

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12761854)

Help me understand your position here, are anglers no longer allowed to harvest what meets the limit?

Its no different than legally deer hunting for table meat IMO

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12761867)

You're fine... I want the limit changed (in certain circumstances).

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12761889)

No interest in being adversarial here, just curious about something that kinda seems to be an issue lately... what changes need to be made?

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12761889)

No interest in being adversarial here, just curious about something that kinda seems to be an issue lately... what changes need to be made?

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12761403)

and there are always more where that one came from

Originally Posted by Sofa King (Post 12763129)

Loochy nails this post. Keep one big one to mount and release the rest. Especially if it's a local fishing hole.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12763261)

I don't have a problem with catch and release at all. We do it most of the time we fish. But again, if I want to keep and eat the legal ones, that's what I'm going to do.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12763358)

That's why we lobby with the ODWC.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12763261)

I don't have a problem with catch and release at all. We do it most of the time we fish. But again, if I want to keep and eat the legal ones, that's what I'm going to do.

Originally Posted by Dunit35 (Post 12763471)

I haven't kept a fish in years. Always throw everything back.

I only get upset at the people who keep every fish they catch no matter the size.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12763102)

I'm not angry at you for keeping fish, and I don't want to do away with keeping fish, especially in particular bodies of water. Limits aren't really a one size fits all thing. For example, slot limits are particularly effective at preserving a healthy, spawning adult population. Barbless and artificial only regulations greatly reduce the kill rate in heavily pressured waters. The rules that should apply vary by situation.

My argument is against this mentality:



There aren't always more where that one came from. It can take 10 to 20 years to grow a fish that big, and that's assuming it has the genes, luck, and food sources to achieve that. Removing that huge fish now only undoes that 20 years it took to grow, but it removes the large fish genes from the pool.

Also, fishing out a body can happen rather rapidly. This may not apply so much to catfish or bass, but trout come to mind. Sure, a hatchery can continuously stock fish so people have something to catch. However, these stocked fish leave much to desire. They are dumb, having been raised in an environment that encourages gorging on any and all food that floats by. They are ugly, often missing fins from rubbing on the concrete raceways. They lack color due to living in a concrete ditch. They taste bad because of the ingredients in the hatchery food. It takes about a year of living away from the hatchery for a fish to become "wild". The wild fish are vastly superior in sporting terms. They are more selective, fight harder, and are prettier.

For example, starting in mid to late March, the family vacation crowd arrives in droves to Beavers Bend State Park in SE Oklahoma. Every mom, pop, and child want to go get their limit every day they are there. This is no problem, as these fresh fish are absolute suckers for Power Bait. A single family of four takes 5 fish each for of the 3 days they are there. That's 60 fish PER FAMILY. How many families are there? Hundreds. THOUSANDS of fish are harvested per week from March until school starts again in late August or September. The fish get harvested, the state plops several thousand back in and at the end of the season the river is full of "rubber" stockers again. By the time spring rolls around and the fish have started to gain a small foothold, the meat harvest starts up again. The population never has a chance to catch on so the whole thing becomes this artificially maintained subpar fishing experience. That's why I concern myself with fish limits.

Now maybe this doesn't happen so much with the warmwater species, but overharvesting of fish can happen remarkably fast and we are left with an inferior situation for enjoying fishing.

The state, which is generally in charge of managing the stocking of public waters, doesn't necessarily care about the quality of a fishery or the experience of fishing. They simply observe raw numbers and concern themselves with revenue generation through tourism and fishing licenses. It's a real battle to try to reason with them in this way for fishery preservation.

Once again, the rules are the rules and if you take fish that you are allowed to, then that's that. Just remember that every fish you take out can't reproduce and create more fish and it can't be caught again. There aren't always "more where that came from."

Does that make sense as to why I concern myself with this?

http://lmfrfoundation.org

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12763102)

I'm not angry at you for keeping fish, and I don't want to do away with keeping fish, especially in particular bodies of water. Limits aren't really a one size fits all thing. For example, slot limits are particularly effective at preserving a healthy, spawning adult population. Barbless and artificial only regulations greatly reduce the kill rate in heavily pressured waters. The rules that should apply vary by situation.

My argument is against this mentality:



There aren't always more where that one came from. It can take 10 to 20 years to grow a fish that big, and that's assuming it has the genes, luck, and food sources to achieve that. Removing that huge fish now only undoes that 20 years it took to grow, but it removes the large fish genes from the pool.

Also, fishing out a body can happen rather rapidly. This may not apply so much to catfish or bass, but trout come to mind. Sure, a hatchery can continuously stock fish so people have something to catch. However, these stocked fish leave much to desire. They are dumb, having been raised in an environment that encourages gorging on any and all food that floats by. They are ugly, often missing fins from rubbing on the concrete raceways. They lack color due to living in a concrete ditch. They taste bad because of the ingredients in the hatchery food. It takes about a year of living away from the hatchery for a fish to become "wild". The wild fish are vastly superior in sporting terms. They are more selective, fight harder, and are prettier.

For example, starting in mid to late March, the family vacation crowd arrives in droves to Beavers Bend State Park in SE Oklahoma. Every mom, pop, and child want to go get their limit every day they are there. This is no problem, as these fresh fish are absolute suckers for Power Bait. A single family of four takes 5 fish each for of the 3 days they are there. That's 60 fish PER FAMILY. How many families are there? Hundreds. THOUSANDS of fish are harvested per week from March until school starts again in late August or September. The fish get harvested, the state plops several thousand back in and at the end of the season the river is full of "rubber" stockers again. By the time spring rolls around and the fish have started to gain a small foothold, the meat harvest starts up again. The population never has a chance to catch on so the whole thing becomes this artificially maintained subpar fishing experience. That's why I concern myself with fish limits.

Now maybe this doesn't happen so much with the warmwater species, but overharvesting of fish can happen remarkably fast and we are left with an inferior situation for enjoying fishing.

The state, which is generally in charge of managing the stocking of public waters, doesn't necessarily care about the quality of a fishery or the experience of fishing. They simply observe raw numbers and concern themselves with revenue generation through tourism and fishing licenses. It's a real battle to try to reason with them in this way for fishery preservation.

Once again, the rules are the rules and if you take fish that you are allowed to, then that's that. Just remember that every fish you take out can't reproduce and create more fish and it can't be caught again. There aren't always "more where that came from."

Does that make sense as to why I concern myself with this?

http://lmfrfoundation.org

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12763702)

I see your point, it does sound like a bit of a different situation with regard to the trout fishing in your area... pulling a bunch of dumb "rubber" trout out of a stream could be a boring, and less tasty, experience

I'm not aware of any trout fishing near me, I'm talking bass and catfish

Honestly, I throw back 80% of what I catch, but there are those days when I'm getting some nice ones and start dreaming about a fish fry... in the past that has included 30 or so pound blues and flatheads

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12763722)

Yeah, the situation is accentuated by the limited waters in which trout can thrive, combined with them being rather fragile fish to begin with.

I do know that there was a time when bass populations suffered from overfishing before catch and release became so popular.

Whenever I go, I always say that I'll bring home a few for dinner and I never do. It's a pain in the ass to carry them around on a stringer all day, it's a pain in the ass to clean them, and I don't really think they taste all that good anyway.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12763725)

I've never had trout, never even fished for them but I could eat catfish twice a week and never get tired of it.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12763736)

I've never been a fan of catfish either. I always roll my eyes when someone I'm with wants to go to a catfish place.

I do, however, enjoy ocean fare. The best fish I've ever had was some yellowfin that I caught in Hawaii and ate a couple of hours later.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12763488)

I really can't stand people who have a total disregard for the effect they have on the planet, the ecosystem or other people. I'm no tree hugger but goddamn people have to understand their behavior has consequences.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12763750)

What about walleye? On my last trip I picked off a few that had washed out from the dam being open. I told some fellow fishermen I ran into that I threw them back. They thought I was nuts and they said walleye were delicious.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12763740)

I never could get into eating fish at restaurants, especially fried fish, breaded in some factory and bagged for 6 months. No thanks, I'll just have a greasy burger if I'm going to do something like that.

Originally Posted by JASONSAUTO (Post 12763774)

We fish the **** out of crappie, we only keep legal fish.


But we also are active in keeping them a habitat. It grows every year, my fil had even had divers go down to place stuff

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12763722)

It's a pain in the ass to carry them around on a stringer all day, it's a pain in the ass to clean them, and I don't really think they taste all that good anyway.

Originally Posted by raybec 4 (Post 12763725)

I've never had trout, never even fished for them but I could eat catfish twice a week and never get tired of it.

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12765236)

This is exactly why I release far more often than keep, half the time I'm too sauced to wanna come home and clean a bunch of fish :D



I'd love to try trout, lotsa people seem to love it... I'm always seeing pics in outdoors magazines etc of people cooking them in hobo packets over a campfire with butter, lemon, and an herb or two... it always looks quite tasty

Originally Posted by Easy 6 (Post 12765236)

This is exactly why I release far more often than keep, half the time I'm too sauced to wanna come home and clean a bunch of fish :D



I'd love to try trout, lotsa people seem to love it... I'm always seeing pics in outdoors magazines etc of people cooking them in hobo packets over a campfire with butter, lemon, and an herb or two... it always looks quite tasty

Originally Posted by beach tribe (Post 12765227)

I haven't chimed in here in a while because I am on a serious drought in the SF lake. I don't know WTF is going on.
I know I go through this every year, but damn.
Things have been slow. I don't even see the peacock running around?
Anybody else fish down here?

Originally Posted by beach tribe (Post 12765246)

I've had some good and some bad.

Don't know enough about it to know why, though.

Best fish Ive ever had was cooked literally straight off the hook.

It was Sea Bass and it was ungodly good.
I don't think it had more than butter and pepper on it.

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12765251)

Trout has these tiny little bones all throughout...they are about the size and consistency of 50 lb test monofilament...it's really hard to eat trout without getting a few of them.

Originally Posted by beach tribe (Post 12765246)

I've had some good and some bad.

Don't know enough about it to know why, though.

Best fish Ive ever had was cooked literally straight off the hook.

It was Sea Bass and it was ungodly good.
I don't think it had more than butter and pepper on it.

Originally Posted by Radar Chief (Post 12765035)

You're killin me loochy.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UE6GrJr6oVg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Originally Posted by loochy (Post 12765258)

When is your spawn down there? I bet it has something to do with changed behaviors related to that.