Not about guns but fishing is a sort of hunting. Anybody here do any fishing? The lake I live on was loaded with bass, pike, and walleye maybe three years ago, but our wonderful lake association is made up of a bunch of water skiers and jet ski enthusiasts so they poisoned the lake with copper sulfate. It doesn't poison the fish, but it kills all the weeds where the fish eat, shelter, and live. I used to keep 10-20 walleye a year out of this lake. This year I'm retired and fishing harder than ever. Only kept four over then min. size limit far this year. The big northern pike are getting scarcer too. I'd rather fish the Gulf of Mexico. But I'll still fish this lake. It's just not what it used to be. Got to hunt harder.
Man, @Grey Matter nailed it. That sucks. There is a fine line between "fishing" and standing on the dock looking like an idiot. I tend towards the latter.
It's a 50 mile drive if I want to fish in the Gulf but there are brackish Waters nearby and though I haven't done much fishing in the last couple of years I used to catch bull sharks on a hand line with small tilapia as live bait typically weigh between 20 and 30 lb ( the sharks that is) perfect eating size. And after you gut them they are basically pure meat. My favorite form of fishing is slingbow fishing which is very similar to bowfishing but you fire the arrow with a slingshot with a string attached. That's really like hunting fish. Fish can have lockjaw all they want but if they're within 15 linear foot and a foot of the surface of the water.... Chances are they're going home with me.
Here is a hint on how not to be an idiot- at least in fresh water, here in Wisconsin.- People around here tend to fish on the wrong side of the boat in the summer time. They anchor on the drop off and cast towards the weed beds. They catch bass and bluegills and crappie and perch, but it isn't often a big walleye or pike eats way up near the weeds daylight time in the summer. The big fish spend the daylight hours on the deep side of the drop off where there is cooler water with more oxygen. Park on the deep side of the weeds and cast past the drop off. You'll be targeting bigger fish.
1. It is easier to catch and release a fish than it is a deer 2. Copper sulfate in generally added to keep algae levels down to a healthy level which helps fish and plants. They way did it wrong if it they killed off fish or the plant life other than the algae. Maybe it is possible the algae problem they were trying to address was the cause of the plant/fish declines in the pond and you are just now noticing a problem that was in the making before they ever added the chem. Since you said they didn't kill off the fish but their food supply, my guess is you are seeing the delayed consequence of an on-going problem that predates the treatment. IDK. 3. I am not a fan of copper sulfate. It gets overused. My gut instinct is that the real problem in your lake stems from overuse of fertilizers in the area, especially on lawns.
The fish were biting this morning. Went out and caught four small walleye and a small northern pike. The northern and one of the walleyes were caught on free lined 5" live suckers. The other three were caught on a plastic worm fished on the bottom in about 20' of water. Kept one walleye about 18-1/2" for lunch. Better than most days these days.
Just another example of "we know best" mentality... It usually ends badly. I remember when the nice folks in Colorado tried to eradicate competitive trout species from the Yampa river... Did not go well, and ultimately ended up hurting their tourism because the fishery service killed off the bait trout species.. Sometimes, you just have to allow nature to be nature. I would rather eat a tasty brook trout than get a trophy cutthroat every day of the week. Perhaps the real solution is not allowing folks to keep trophies, and require folks who fish and hunt to actually eat what they kill instead of "playing" with those fish or hunted prey species.. My rule is if you don't intend to eat it, don't try to kill it in the first place. If all you want are the horns, wait till they fall off in the winter and go find them....
Remember that jail is only temporary but memories of a great day poaching last forever I haven't done much fishing in the last couple of years so my license is expired and I should probably get one so the day I actually want to go fishing I don't have to go look for a license. Maybe come late October or early November I will get my very nice quality Seneca dragonfly 22 caliber pump up rifle and go do some squirrel hunting. That thing will put the smackdown on any squirrel within 70 ft easily.
I don't poach fish. Every little one you take out would have been a big one in just two more years. I only keep walleye between 18-24". I only keep northerns >30", not only because the smaller ones are harder to pick the bones out of, but also be cause those big pike eat a lot of walleye. There were a couple >40" northerns spawning in the river a few years back. I let a 36" go last year.
I agree about fish hunting. I do a little fly fishing. I went north to Michigan and great lakes area last spring. I was ill equipped to fish but talked to several about the area. You have walleye, and Pike! Wow! A fishermans paradise!
