Your Fastest Derby Limit

[Guest csfishinfool]

The Missouri Department of Conservation says

LMBV fact page

The effects of LMBV appear to be short term, with bass populations recovering after even a large kill in two to three years.

The effects you are feeling on Table Rock Lake are more likely from the effect of mortality rates with catch and release. With increased Tournament pressure and more people spending longer hours fishing on Table Rock Lake even with catch and release, the mortality rates are more likely the cause of the effect that you are feeling rather than a fish kill 10 or 11 years ago.

The effects that you feel are the fact that there is such a volume of water in the lake that the fish mostly live their lives out in the deep timber. I don't know if the lmbv didn't actually help the sm spot populations at the begining of the decade. What percentage of 3 lbs plus fish are caught and weighed in each year? I'm sure that if you scuba dive in that lake it would humble us all. We all know that when their up and biting it can seem like their every where, come back on the weekend and struggle to get 5 bites.

[3inonegod]

This whole catch and release is crazy...

You all have your heads in the sand. There is a significant mortality rate with C&R. If you think that this is incorrect your silly. The reason that the Rock is more difficult to fish is due to all the tournaments in the last decade. Thousands of fish are caught, hauled in boats all day, and they DIE!!!!

Any one that thinks the bass kill from over a decade ago is why, needs mental help.

[Gary Lange]

I don't Tourney Fish except for a monthly club outing. That said one needs to look at where Bass Fishing, Bass or Fish management would be if some guy hadn't thought about having a Bass Tourney or a Walleye Tourney. I suspect Forest wood would be making runabouts, and your tackle would be nothing more than a cane pole. Why would we have any of the advances in tackle, Boats, Fish Management if it weren't for the Big Money that can be made by having them. This brought interest in Bass fishing, created Fisheries Management jobs, Boat Builders and Tackle shops. If it weren't for all this then nobody would have put boat ramps on Table Rock because it would be all pleasure craft set in by crane. Look in your tackle box and think about the fact that interest brought on by competitive Bass fishing is what spawned the innovations in tackle you see. Without that it would be Nightcrawlers fished on a cane pole.

[denjac]

This whole catch and release is crazy...

You all have your heads in the sand. There is a significant mortality rate with C&R. If you think that this is incorrect your silly. The reason that the Rock is more difficult to fish is due to all the tournaments in the last decade. Thousands of fish are caught, hauled in boats all day, and they DIE!!!!

Any one that thinks the bass kill from over a decade ago is why, needs mental help.

Catch and release is crazy as opposed to what? Got news for you buddy ,there are lot of catch and release fisherman that dont fish tournaments. There is hardly any mortality rates in catch and release. Now tournaments is a differant story. Guess what, we had alot more tournaments 20 years ago than we have now. I think your the one that needs mental help.

[Phil Lilley]

This whole catch and release is crazy...

You all have your heads in the sand. There is a significant mortality rate with C&R. If you think that this is incorrect your silly. The reason that the Rock is more difficult to fish is due to all the tournaments in the last decade. Thousands of fish are caught, hauled in boats all day, and they DIE!!!!

Any one that thinks the bass kill from over a decade ago is why, needs mental help.

I know there's been all kinds of posts here on this subject and this isn't the first post of it's kind but this discussion isn't going to go anyplace with post like this one.

You don't have to be condescending to state your opinion. Plus if you think the mortality rate is high when releasing fish, then present a study and stats proving it.

This only adds to polarizing the two sides.

Let's ALL try a little harder to be civil.

[Flysmallie]

I know there's been all kinds of posts here on this subject and this isn't the first post of it's kind but this discussion isn't going to go anyplace with post like this one.

You don't have to be condescending to state your opinion. Plus if you think the mortality rate is high when releasing fish, then present a study and stats proving it.

This only adds to polarizing the two sides.

Let's ALL try a little harder to be civil.

You are right on Phil. But this should have been post #6. Everyone should play by the same rules.

[eric1978]

I don't Tourney Fish except for a monthly club outing. That said one needs to look at where Bass Fishing, Bass or Fish management would be if some guy hadn't thought about having a Bass Tourney or a Walleye Tourney. I suspect Forest wood would be making runabouts, and your tackle would be nothing more than a cane pole. Why would we have any of the advances in tackle, Boats, Fish Management if it weren't for the Big Money that can be made by having them. This brought interest in Bass fishing, created Fisheries Management jobs, Boat Builders and Tackle shops. If it weren't for all this then nobody would have put boat ramps on Table Rock because it would be all pleasure craft set in by crane. Look in your tackle box and think about the fact that interest brought on by competitive Bass fishing is what spawned the innovations in tackle you see. Without that it would be Nightcrawlers fished on a cane pole.

Respectfully, I have to disagree Gary. Fishing has been around much longer than tournaments, and innovative and passionate anglers would find a way to the water regardless of access, and would be out fishing with handmade rods and baits if they couldn't find them at a store. No doubt tournament fishing has ballooned interest and participation in the sport, and there are some arguments to be made about conservation awareness that has been borne out of its popularity, and that of course is a good thing. But as a whole I think we'd be better off without it.

I've never fished a tournament and I've never owned a boat with an outboard, and I'm just as passionate about angling as most guys that do. I was fishing before I knew tournaments even existed, and all it took to turn interest into obsession was a low-water bridge, a riffle and pool, and a fiesty smallmouth. It's human nature to turn everything into a competition that involves money (and don't get me wrong, I enjoy a gamble as well...I love playing poker). But to me, tournaments are more about man vs. man than man vs. fish, which is all I really care about. And there are enough other people who feel the same way with enough entrepreneurial spirit who would have made equipment accessible to like-minded individuals, even if it wasn't a multi-billion dollar industry.

[rainbow]

WOW with oil spills, the world economic crisis, political turmoil in Washington, war, terrorism, hunger and crime going on it looks like we have another global issue to debate and deal with right here at TR.

[Gary Lange]

Eric, You can agree or disagree all you want because there is and never will be a way to prove either one of us right or wrong. The fact remains that most of the tackle and fishing innovations have come about since Tournament or should I say competitive Bass Fishing. Sure guys liked to fish and if nobody had ever done anything to improve the water quality or habitat would he still have a place to fish that the fish were actually eatable. The argument could go on for years and this thread could go on forever because all it is is opinion generated by how one feels about fishing.

I see all this debate about this guy keeping a few big bass but when I post that I am having a meeting of the Southwestern Chapter of the Missouri Smallmouth Alliance nobody says anything and nobody shows up. What this tells me is that nobody really and truly gives a rats butt about Conservation or the environment except to post there views on a web site in a meaningless thread that is going nowhere and will solve nothing.

[Sam]

Just to state the obvious, the fish survival rate for catch-and-release fishing is a WHOLE lot better than the survival rate for catch-and-eat fishing.

Hey, while we were looking for goggleye beds out on Point 7 this Tuesday, my partner caught a fat 17" smallmouth! He caught it on his little wimpy 5' crappie rod with 4-lb. test on a swimming minnow and 1/16th oz. jighead. Since partner weighs about 100 lbs. dripping wet, it was fun to kick back and watch that fish take him around the boat a couple of times, and to hear the colorful language every time it tried to spool him.

I lipped the fish, unhooked the little gold wire hook, and brought it in the boat just long enough to lay it on the ruler. That smallmouth was hooked in the lip, released in about half a minute, and within probably 25 feet of its nest. You can't tell me that one didn't survive - and it's sure good to see a beautiful fish like that in there and know it's still swimming!