Table Rock Lake Fishing Report June 5Th. 2011

[Guest]

Someone smarter than me may be able to elaborate on this a little better than me, but one trick I have done in recent years is to clip weights on their pelvic fins and keep them in the livewell with chemicals and ice. After losing a few tournament fish I found that if I could keep them off their side and upright their survival rate increased dramatically. Fish that were borderline dead would come back and be full of pep by the time weigh in rolled around. I haven't lost one since I started doing this. All you need are some lead weights with small alligator clips attached. Clip them on the pelvic fins and it will work. I've even released a few fish with the weights still attached. I don't believe it hurts them and that they'll eventually throw them off once they regain their strength( I hope they do anyways). Like I said, someone may have something more than can add or this may have been posted before and old news. Just thought I'd pass it along.

Never tried that trick, maybe this weekend I can experiment with small fish.

Can you post a pic of your rig clipped to the fish?

[skeeter]

I've said it before and I'll keep saying it...best thing for tournaments after water exceeds 65 degrees is to measure, photograph and release at the side of the boat. One of the local Bass clubs does this and it works just fine. Avoids high Bass mortality and stops the removal of fish from their "home" waters where they never return.

Mortality such as Bill describes is unavoidable and you can tell how it disturbed him but this continued business of trying to keep fish alive with chemicals, ice, aerated live-wells etc. and then hauling them miles and miles away from the catch area in the heat has got to stop. You guys are only giving yourselves really bad reputations and leading yourselves down the road to much stricter Government regulation of derbys if you don't start realizing how the non-tournament anglers and boating public resents and comments on the floating dead Bass.

The rest of you who feel the same way( and there are plenty out there )should start speaking up.

I am fed-up with this waste...and for what? Bragging rights or a check ? If a check is involved maybe the MDC and Water Patrol should begin charging $10,000 minimum or $1000 per boat fee for regatta/tournament permits since the promoters are using a public resource to line their pockets !!!

[Tfsh4bass]

I've said it before and I'll keep saying it...best thing for tournaments after water exceeds 65 degrees is to measure, photograph and release at the side of the boat. One of the local Bass clubs does this and it works just fine. Avoids high Bass mortality and stops the removal of fish from their "home" waters where they never return.

Mortality such as Bill describes is unavoidable and you can tell how it disturbed him but this continued business of trying to keep fish alive with chemicals, ice, aerated live-wells etc. and then hauling them miles and miles away from the catch area in the heat has got to stop. You guys are only giving yourselves really bad reputations and leading yourselves down the road to much stricter Government regulation of derbys if you don't start realizing how the non-tournament anglers and boating public resents and comments on the floating dead Bass.

The rest of you who feel the same way( and there are plenty out there )should start speaking up.

I am fed-up with this waste...and for what? Bragging rights or a check ? If a check is involved maybe the MDC and Water Patrol should begin charging $10,000 minimum or $1000 per boat fee for regatta/tournament permits since the promoters are using a public resource to line their pockets !!!

I agree to a point and have always wanted tournaments to be from Oct-April for the most part around here. I also wanted May to be a catch-n-release only time so the fish could spawn without being bothered that much but that is another debate. One thing I will say is plenty of non-tournament people kill fish as well and make up a higher percentage of fisherman on the lake on a given weekend. It is just a lot more obvious when it happens at a tournament and for the most part tournament fisherman do all they can to keep fish alive because it is about the money.

[nwaoutdoorsman]

TrophyFishR,

Here's a website where you can buy them. I just make my own. Mine aren't as fancy, but they work. I also read that they reccommend attaching them to the anal fin. I always put mine on the pelvic fins. I attached an anatomy pic of a bass just to be clear on where to attach them. Hope this helps.

http://www.flipclipfishing.com/index.html

[Guest]

TrophyFishR,

Here's a website where you can buy them. I just make my own. Mine aren't as fancy, but they work. I also read that they reccommend attaching them to the anal fin. I always put mine on the pelvic fins. I attached an anatomy pic of a bass just to be clear on where to attach them. Hope this helps.

http://www.flipclipfishing.com/index.html

Can you explain your setup?

the amount of weight and type of sinker

how did you attach the sinker to the clip?

thanks

[nwaoutdoorsman]

Can you explain your setup?

the amount of weight and type of sinker

how did you attach the sinker to the clip?

thanks

I just use some light wire to tie an alligator clip to a bell sinker. Nothing fancy. I usually use a 1/2oz weight, sometimes 3/4oz. It doesn't take much weight to keep them upright. Cheap to make and I just keep them in my hook box. You can buy the clips at parts or hardware stores.

[getfished]

I just use some light wire to tie an alligator clip to a bell sinker. Nothing fancy. I usually use a 1/2oz weight, sometimes 3/4oz. It doesn't take much weight to keep them upright. Cheap to make and I just keep them in my hook box. You can buy the clips at parts or hardware stores.

This is really interesting. I'll definitely rig me a few of those and give em a try. Do you only attach it to the ones who are struggling?

[Bill Babler]

The tenique discribed has been around for 40 years. I first saw an example of this used by Ralph Lambert, the owner of Kings Harbor Resort at Shell Knob. He would have deep caught Kentuck's swimming in his minnow tank with weights on their fins. That was in the mid-80's and he had been doiing it for years. It is 90 percent used for deep caught fish in lue of fizzing with a needle. It allows the fish to maintain an upright attitude being able to breath from both gills while the swim bladder reduces to its normal size.

Do not know the application as far as just stressed fish, or deep hooked fish that bleed. If they are on their sides in the well however, I'm one for trying anything. Thanks for the info.

[powerdive]

Good explanation, Bill!

Walleye guys use the technique as well, for fish caught out of warm water. They use snap weights (a trolling aid), which have non-injurious pinch pads rather than alligator clip teeth. Most of the time, in a recirculating livewell, the fish recover and are swimming upright within 15 minutes, so you can remove the weights. If you're going to use alligator clips, I'd strongly suggest using rubber snubbers on the jaws to cut down on possible fin injury.

[powerdive]

Of course, as mentioned, the best solution (this is the approach used in most of walleye country) is not to allow tournaments when water temps are high. Good luck with that one around here!