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Posts: 101
Location: Liberty, IN (OKI Tri-State) | Doing some research for an article and while looking around I ran across this on the Ohio fish & Game site. Makes me think back to an earlier post this month from a small group , the Volunteer Musky Club if I recall correctly.
http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/community/showthread.php?p=1148694#p...
Thanks to those of you who offered support to the group from TN in their upcoming efforts to help supplement the minnow feeding program for that states Musky stocking program.
WOW, can you imagine how hard it must be for those working in support of Musky in her most southern ranges? You have really gotta believe in what you are doing and be dedicated to fighting-the-good-fight. Lots of honest hard work going on down there for sure and it certainly looks as though some of it is paying off - in spades!
Just saying.....
Bob
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| I watched that fish being caught from about 40 yards away. They were definitely not set up to handle that fish, as so, so many aren't who are often there catching them. Trying to put a 45" fish in a nylon panfish net is not a good idea. I threw the tm on high and we tried to run over and net the fish for them before they hurt the fish or themselves and then they threw the jaw clamp on it and dragged it in.
The stocking efforts are definitely paying off, but the protection and education efforts are still fairly far behind.
Ryan
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Posts: 101
Location: Liberty, IN (OKI Tri-State) | Good morning Ryan,
Thanks for your eyewitness report. Your observations and comment are right on point and one of the reasons this sort of story is so darned important. The folks working to make the Tennessee muskellunge fishery something to be proud of are fighting a major uphill battle.... but are actually making some darn good headway.
The releasing angler, Jeff from Ohio, readily commented that attempts to net this hefty mamma were like trying to get your foot into a size 5 shoe. Also that they were very unprepared and probably looked like a circus act or something to the many anglers witnessing their "good fortune"..
One of the very first things I looked for in the good quality photo accompanying the post I read were the fins, skin condition and head/gills area. The anglers very candid account of the event from strike-to-release would make one think there was very likely to be another mishandled, profusely bleeding, split-finned and mangled "incidental catch" victim in the "Grip-n-Grin"... but look at her.
Sure, there are plenty of negative critiques that could and/or should likely be mentioned in a 20/20 hindsight examination. I would rather offer a modicum of positive reinforcement for those things done well and hope that by his example that afternoon... maybe one or more of those witnessing Jeff's personal choice to release ALIVE this true TN trophy... will begin to see the wisdom of respecting the entire resource.
Could you tell me Ryan what others in the areas thoughts might have been? You sound as though you are a bit more savvy regarding esox... but what of others near this spot? Were the majority targeting Musky or are the stripers or other species their primary attraction?
My BIGGER question: What is the generally accepted practice here when someone brings one of these big girls in? Are these"killing fields" similar to a couple of places I have visited where multiple big fish are dragged away to awaiting truck beds, or even worse, a "slit-throat" release? Or is there a growing sense of respect for the kind of actions, ( good intentions count big-time in Karma ) taken by Jeff and his boat partners before this crowd on that wonderful afternoon?
38 states with fishable populations of Musky! Arguably one of the most elusive and treasured trophies in all of freshwater. Hard water and closed seasons do not make the many issues surrounding this fragile resource any less important. Look around; keep informed; help if/where you can.
Thank you
Bob
(Ryan, maybe PM or e-mail me if you have time to talk or are not comfy posting particulars. Very interested in local feelings & practices.)
Fishing is a living legacy ... lets work together in passing it on!
JOIN MUSKIES INC. .... THE FUTURE OF MUSKY FISHING DEPENDS ON YOU!
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| The boat I was in was real close to them too . We ended up netting and releasing two fish for bankies . One was a fat 40 " that was hooked deep . Lucky we had a grab it tool and popped the hook out easily . The guy didnt even want to touch the fish . He would have cut the line for sure. The other was purposly snagged in the tail . They guy handed me his rod after the fish ran down to the creek and he couldnt go any further . We ended up netting this one and getting the hook from the tail......This one was a 49 incher on 8 lb test snagged in the tail . This place needs some regs . I can't imagine how many fish are being killed on a daily basis . |
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| Bob,
Are you aware release of a 45" fish there wasn't a "personal choice" ? With a 50" size limit in place a guide isn't going to allow a 45 to be kept. |
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Location: Liberty, IN (OKI Tri-State) | Thank-you for your help in making that clear for everyone Larry.  You are of course 100% correct sir! One of the things that surprised me, sort of reaches out and grabs you by the lapels really, is in fact that limit being in place down there while so many are fighting still a 30-inch two fish bag limit in nearby states.... not to mention myriad battles for Trophy slots/water designation, etc., etc. in areas way more accustom to dealing with these things!?!
A better choice of words would have made that much clearer and would also have helped to highlight my concern for the cavalier, often deadly, disregard of proper handling & release techniques (regardless the reasons given) often displayed in areas that concentrate piscatorial predators such as this... especially in an historically negative/anti-musky angling community.
Thanks for helping to set the record straight Larry; much appreciated.
Fin-Addict
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Location: Knoxville, TN | I'm not going to rant and rave about using live bait in Bull Run, but I consider it a threat to the fishery and it should be outlawed. Catching that fish on a skipjack is not much of an accomplishment in my opinion.
Edited by BDavis 1/31/2011 10:20 AM
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| Bob,
I have very mixed feelings and opinions on this fishery, as there some really good things happening there, but unfortunately some awful bad stuff as well. The thoughts of other anglers in the area is mixed as well from the throat-slitting slaughterhouse guys to some who won’t even fish in the discharge area because it is too unfair an advantage over the fish and put undue pressure on them. You are right in pointing out that this angler’s encounter was a positive one with minimal harm done to the fish despite being so ill prepared for it. Many ill prepared encounters do not fare as well on the fish.
Not twenty minutes before witnessing this fish being caught, another bass angler hooked one and didn’t know how to land it so decided to beach his boat and drag the fish onto the rocks. Then the fish was carried up the bank and laid in the grass while the guy went back to get his camera. After lots of photos and mishandling we were trying to tell him in the most polite manner, without yelling at the guy, that if it wasn’t over 50” that he needed to get the fish back in the water. The fish was 49” and after over at least 5 minutes he finally carried the fish back to the water and it immediately went belly up. The guy stood there perplexed as to why the fish was apparently dying. We hollered over to him that he needed to upright the fish and work with it to revive it. Thankfully by this time there were at least a half dozen other guys around watch this and the angler realized the position he was in and stayed with the fish until it could swim under its own power.
It is great that a guy like this can have an experience with a four foot muskie in a place where a few years ago this wouldn’t have been the slightest bit possible, but experiences like that don’t need to include the over-stressing on the fish that so many of them do. It is certainly a matter of education, but too often down here guys think that they are above being educated by anyone.
I have seen muskies caught in that area in far more percentages than any other species. If you are fishing there then you are fishing for muskies whether you actually say you are, or not. The claim of ignorance of not being prepared to catch and handle a muskie when you are fishing there is no longer an acceptable excuse in my opinion. Much more needs to be done to protect these fish if MH is ever going to be the fishery it is capable of.
That isn’t including the discussion on the throat slitting and live bait gut hooking horrors that happen there all the time. Last night a friend of mine told me about a fish that was harvested undersized under the cover of darkness. I wish that either the TWRA had someone posted there pretty much every day; because any time they aren’t there bad things are happening. I know that is unrealistic to expect that, but otherwise I wish that other citizens and anglers had power beyond just calling in a reporting these instances.
On the other hand there are several young kids who’ve been taking out by members of our club, Billy here especially, and these kids have seen their first follows and landed their first muskies here. Where, in all likelihood these kids experiencing that wouldn’t be a reality without this area of the fishery. Unfortunately it doesn’t take very many bad seeds to kill and destroy the future of that continuing to be possible. And at this point the bad seeds outnumber the young anglers who are getting involved.
Ryan
Edited by Fishwizard 1/31/2011 10:50 AM
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| BTW, I have no idea how that picture got into my first post, because I sure didn't put it there. I saw it when I'd clicked on the link, but all I did was read the article and post my response.
Ryan
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Location: where the fish are... | im suprised there isnt an uproar about all the circle hooks in the pics |
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| I also saw a young kid throw an dead upper 30's fish from the railroad bridge....... It is a shame . |
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| He won't say so but Doug Johnson had a very positive influence with the DNR in regards to the 50" limit. Kudos to all that continue to watch over the MH fishery. |
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Location: Knoxville, TN | yeah these guys were actually on a guided striper trip when the guide decided to go into musky infested waters with 30 lb mono. I know and respect the guide that did this as he is well respected in the striper fishing community but to take a chance on guthooking a musky by not using quick strike rigs, does not sit well with me. I don't know if the fish was hooked in the throat but we find dead muskies all the time with hooks in their gullets. I have the capability to catch more muskies as I am well equipped to do the live bait thing but I respect the fish too much to allow myself to be tempted to use live bait. It wouldn't be musky fishing without the follows, figure 8's, and the acrobatics. We take great pride that we have a musky fishery here on Melton Hill and we put alot of effort into helping guys and the younger crowd to enjoy what we have. Muskies down here have alot of enemeies and one of them is the cost associated with raising them. They could easily do away with the musky fishery with all the uproar that comes with stocking such a predatory fish. We feel that we have to help protect the fish while they are in the plant because studies have shown that over 90% of the lakes fish use these 3 acres during the winter. Over years of watching guys that were not prepared to handle such a fish, I have realized that this place should be managed as a musky sanctuary. Fishing all over the lake has taken a dramatic hit due to the fact that anybody can take a trout, gizzard, skipjack, etc. and put it on a balloon and wait for a musky to engulf it. Numerous fish die premature deaths during the wintertime and I wish that something could be done. Its great that there are fish to be caught in the wintertime, but when does it come to a point that it gets fished out? If this was going on in MN or WI, that place would be shut down to fishing as you guys up north know how valuable muskies are. Over the last 3 weeks, I have seen a dozen fish over 45 inches caught by guys that had no business handling muskies. There are no telling how many cut lines and dead muskies are sitting at the bottom of the lake, we only see the ones that float. |
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| Agree with you on that Billy . I have only spent a few days fishing there and it is scary how many fish are going to get killed in that place. |
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Location: Missouri | Best solution IMO would be to make that hot hole a NO fishing area. |
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| riverrat,
That would probably be the best thing for the fishery, but I'm pretty sure that it would be a very unpopular decision with many of the area anglers and some of the TWRA guys. It is hard to imagine how good MH might be right now, if they'd done that several years ago. If they closed the discharge, then guys would fish as closed to it as possible without crossing whatever boundary they set up, but it would eliminate the bank liners instantly. I don't know if the new parking lot there had anything to do with fishing access, but it sure seems like they want as many people fishing in there as possible.
Dinver,
The number of fish that have already been killed in there is pretty sickening. Unfortunately some would think that that is a success.
Ryan
Edited by Fishwizard 2/1/2011 12:00 AM
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| Good news for the fish. The steam plant was shut down yesterday. |
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