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| Did anyone see the article in yesterday's Wis. State Journal - Outdoors Section about the 17 year old boy from Madison that caught 4 "trophies" last year. If I recall correctly, he caught 2 muskies, 35" & 38", a 36" northern and a 20-something bass. These "trophies" were caught in Lake Monona and Lake Wisconsin and all are now displayed on his bedroom wall.
I believe it is every fisherman's right to keep a legal fish. I don't blame the kid because he obviously doesn't have a good mentor. But I think it is deplorable that after all the work we do to promote CPR, the state's 2nd largest newspaper thinks it is ok to promote catch and kill of barely legal fish just to get a heartwarming story.
If anyone knows this kid or his grandfather, I hope they spend some time teaching them about CPR. More importantly, I hope someone will do an article in a future paper on the virtues of CPR.
It makes me sick to think that every legal fish I release has the potential of winding up on this kid's wall. Am I overreacting? | |
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| From the viewpoint of most serious C&R Muskie anglers, no.
From the perspective of nearly everyone else out there, probably.
There are few anglers, sportsmen, or once in a while outdoors people who accept the C&R ethic with totality as many of us do.
There are literally millions of anglers out there who have never caught a Muskie of any size. In my opinion, the ONLY way to protect the fish we feel badly need to be released is to get the size limit up to the point where in order to harvest a fish, it must by law be a true trophy by most any measure.
This issue has been literally turned every possible way here in the last few months. I am certain the young man in question is not as aware of the C&R ethic as we are, but if he continues to fish Muskies, he will be.
The paper didn't intend to publish a controversial article, I would bet. The writer probably is about as educated about the Muskie C&R ethic as the rest of the general public/non muskie anglers, which would be not at all or at the best, very poorly. | |
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4 "trophies" last year