Dinner or Release

[wjhfish]

I keep reading on here that we all should practice "catch and release" which I do unless I have one that did not make it, then it becomes dinner. What is soooo wrong for a person taking home fish for his family? We all have been to a fish fry sometime in our life, why should we value one type of fish over another. I have eaten crappie, bluegil, catfish, and bass. To be honest, the bass was the best in my opinion. Actually I like them all, but the bass was the best. I will stay with catch and release, it really is a good practice, but I will never tell a person they are wrong to keep the fish. Just a thought.

 

[churly]

drink another one.

 

[Buoy-Master]

Beer goes GREAT with fish!

 

[Strato-G]

BEER BATTERED emoFish emoHungry .............. emoGeezer emoUSA

 

[Oldman]

drink two

 

[Liveliner]

Good point. There is a limit. Period. That limit is set to where you can take home that amount and not harm the population of that fish. (Imagine that) Any fish we as fishermen are trying to assist in numbers and size like Smallmouth bass in certain areas are released by me. I practice both Dinner and C&R. To me Largemouths are a bit too bitter in summer months. I have never "Keeled" a Smallie so therefore I have never tastes one .... Well except for her fishy lips just before I released her. However Spot Bass, they are awesome as food. I personally love the taste and the texture even more than the Crappie. I have stated that to many. True Bass ... Take them or leave then... I am not overly joyed by the taste. As far as Catfish and Panfish you are not likely to hurt that population. Shellcrackers have a limit and as I mentioned above, there for a reason. Now I have just decided to go to Riverpark for about Ten Fat Spats... Yummy...

 

[MrWiskers]

Tonight I ate some Rock Bass I kept on Friday. Very, very good. Much more tender than spots, maybe even more so than crappie. NO fishy taste at all. Probably the cleanest tasting fish I ever ate. AND, there are millons of them and you get a 20 fish limit. Probably keep some more next time I am out.

 

[MadBomber]

Catch & release came about because of tournament fishing. Local folks didn't like 100 bass fishermen descending on their home lake killing hundreds of bass while trying to win some money. In my opinion, a better approach is "selective harvest". For instance, below Chickamauga dam, there is an overabundance of small spotted bass compared to Largemouth and smallmouth. A few years ago, with the help of several CFF members and the TWRA, we managed to get the limit changed from the Dam to the mouth of South Chickamauga Creek to 15 spots/day/angler. Downstream of the creek, the limit remains 5 black bass/day.</p>

I spoke with the TWRA Biologist last year about extending the 15/day limit further downstream and he told me about some folks complaining about the change. The complaint was that the change would "reduce the chance of having a pleasurable day of fishing". What a bunch of BS!! Those few folks that complained were afraid that someone might eat a 12" spot that they could use to fill out a limit and maybe win a few bucks!! Again, it's about the "Benjamins", not the bass. The spotted bass is the #1 predator of Largemouth and smallmouth.</p>

If you want to improve the quality of bass fishing, Eat more spots!!</p>

 

[MrWiskers]

MB, the commerical netters took care of spots at the bend, at least our catch rates this year say so. They have been netting the bend this spring for the first time I have seen. They had nets about every 50 yards all along the interstate.

 

[sprestwood]

All species must be managed according to how well that species thrives in a particular environment. Some species can take a little more harvest pressure and everything will be fine if not better. Some species are pressured a bit too much, sometimes that's just opinion, sometimes I wonder what is the breaking point for tough new regulation is. I rarely tell people that a species can endure more harvest pressure if I like eating it.

 

[Gator]

What liveliner said!
There's a simple answer. If you want to keep some for dinner, just keep them if it's legal size and not over the legal limit in numbers. There's plenty released and no danger of a shortage.

 

[rsimms]

Bill Dance said it best (and has been saying it for years)... "Keep what you can use and release the rest."

Moderators... I have spoken. You can now "Freeze" this thread. emoBigsmile

<img src=http://www.bassfishingcourse.com/images/main_bill_dance.jpg>

 

[Gator]

I was told that Bill Dance now lives in Hixson Tenn.

 

[wiggles]

You must understand that people like Churly rely on that fish to be next to that same log come the bass tournament. If the fish is not there and he looses the tournament, then its simple people like you and me are frowned upon by people like Churly. So have three beers, eat the fish, and have sweet dreams-

 

[Buoy-Master]

I'm taking limits per person in my boat. With a huge fish fry coming this fall, I'm loading my freezer with keeper fish. Dosent matter what it is. I'm sure there will be plenty of beer too. Might even invite Ol Bill D !

 

[birdman]

Well said wiggles.

 

[captain belly]

I just posted a Largemouth Bass Marinade recipe to kill the gamey taste of bass in the recipe forum. Now I find bass very delicious. I catch a lot of bass...mostly in pits that have too many. I get tired of hearing the whole release thing. infact....I think it's bad management. let's catch and release deer too.
I say belly up to the dinner table and enjoy. (as long as they're legal keepers!)

 

[wjhfish]

I have a rub marinade that I put on bass and grill them. It is AWESOME!!! Like I said earlier, I do release most bass, but I do keep some when I want to. I am an avid outdoorsman, only shoot what I want to eat, so I fish for what I want to eat.

 

[churly]

wiggles - 5/8/2012 10:33 PM

You must understand that people like Churly rely on that fish to be next to that same log come the bass tournament. If the fish is not there and he looses the tournament, then its simple people like you and me are frowned upon by people like Churly. So have three beers, eat the fish, and have sweet dreams-

Its tournament anglers like me that stood up to fight TVA and the chemical assault on Chick. Its tournament anglers like me that put personal time in money into habitat restoration and conservation. And its not so I dont loose the tournament. Its so my daughters and your kids will have a river they can enjoy.

If you buy a license, you have every right to keep what you catch. As long as you obey the limits. I just think its bad taste to make posts that promote the killing and eating of bass. its one thing to do it but another thing to post about it. Its also stupid to make these posts just to stir up people's emotions. This post was a drunk post done late at night and meant to do just that.

You must understand that about the time I got old enough to be able to go to the lake TVA was in the process of killing the fishery. I remember years of terrible spawns, polluted water, and crappy fishing. In 7th grade my class helped on the cypress tree planting project around patton island. In 11th grade my aquatic biology class did a bunch of research and projects studying how to promote fish habitat and water quality. In college I came home to be part of the first stocking of fla strain bass in the lake, and donated money, which I didnt have, to help purchase that truckload of fingerlings. As an adult, after finishing college, I did everything I could to stay involved with conservation and preservation of this river. Much of that was facilitated through this forum. I helped to start the "crackerfest" which was meant to get kids and families more involved in the river. Since I became a CBA officer, I exploited my position to unite anglers to stand up to fight TVA and the spraying of chemicals in our lake. Now, CBA weigh-ins are used as sampling points for TWRA's research of the genetic make up of our black bass population. My point is, I have always been involved with conservation of this body of water and I do frown on people who brag about how many bass they keep and eat.

wiggles, you dont know me, and you dont know what I have done. So dont mention my name and dont type anything reffering to me unless you want to help promote and conserve the resources this river has to offer.

 

[SpurHunter]

Justin your right that some dont know what you may or may not have done to further bass conservation, water quality and habitat, using a thread like this one to educate others is a great tool for that. Likewise, I dont know if you know the poster you are calling "drunk" when he made the post, but that is not furthering your cause.

Bass are the number one target species for sport and consumption, this will not change with internet accusations and arguments.

I agree, making posts to stir the pot are not always helpfull, posts that stir thought about conserving the resource for the future are.
It hurts me just as much to see a 50lb catfish on a rope in a parking lot, as it hurts you to see a post showing a legal limit of bass going to someones freezer.