05-23-2016, 12:40 AM
[quote gmwahl] I know that I haven't been too tempted to drive all the way to a given body of water just to keep six 8-10" smallmouths. If I'm there already fishing for other species I might keep some, but if it is only me or one of my kids fishing with me there just isn't enough meat off of a 6 fish limit of dinky smallmouths. I would need to have the opportunity to fish for them like I'm fishing for perch to entice me to visit the water and start keeping them. In other words, if I could keep 50 I probably would not only go there just to fish for them, but I would keep all I caught, but if I can only keep 6 it just isn't worth it to me.
This is just my opinion and I have no scientific evidence for what I think, but I remember at flaming gorge the smallmouth limit was increased to 10 and it still didn't encourage too many anglers to keep them. It DID however encourage me and my sons to keep a limit because between the 3 of us we could keep 30 and it made the effort to fillet them worth it.....that, and we were already fishing there for other species.
Mike[/quote]
I believe your sentiments are very similar to others and myself. For me, 8-10 10 inchers is the perfect meal. It usually isn't an issue as I'll keep a jumbo perch or two plus the bass to get a meals worth. Regardless, if the DWR was serious about more harvest there, then they should change the regs to allow it to happen (10 or 12 small bass limit). And IMO, what was proposed in the survey won't do it. Crawdad posted what was written by the DWR biologist Mr. Gustaveson about lake Powell. He is highly respected both inside and outside the division. I just don't understand the reluctance by the DWR to adopt these same principles in the management of the Northern smallie fisheries.
By the way, Jordanelle just went over 70% of full pool. It was 60% 6 days ago. Runoff is far from over. It might be a good year up there.
[signature]
This is just my opinion and I have no scientific evidence for what I think, but I remember at flaming gorge the smallmouth limit was increased to 10 and it still didn't encourage too many anglers to keep them. It DID however encourage me and my sons to keep a limit because between the 3 of us we could keep 30 and it made the effort to fillet them worth it.....that, and we were already fishing there for other species.
Mike[/quote]
I believe your sentiments are very similar to others and myself. For me, 8-10 10 inchers is the perfect meal. It usually isn't an issue as I'll keep a jumbo perch or two plus the bass to get a meals worth. Regardless, if the DWR was serious about more harvest there, then they should change the regs to allow it to happen (10 or 12 small bass limit). And IMO, what was proposed in the survey won't do it. Crawdad posted what was written by the DWR biologist Mr. Gustaveson about lake Powell. He is highly respected both inside and outside the division. I just don't understand the reluctance by the DWR to adopt these same principles in the management of the Northern smallie fisheries.
By the way, Jordanelle just went over 70% of full pool. It was 60% 6 days ago. Runoff is far from over. It might be a good year up there.
[signature]