Question About Gigging/spearfishing?

[Chief Grey Bear]

No its a spot problem only.

Smallmouth are worm free. You can eat all you want.

Thats why everyone keeps them.

[jimithyashford]

Well, I didn't intend to launch a massive discussion on the topic, but still interesting to read.

I appreciate angling as a leisure activity, as a sport. But I also appreciate harvesting wild fish for the table as an objective. They are two distinct goals that can sometimes happen to coincide. I can also understand why casting a line feels adventurous and sporty to some folk, while getting on a snorkle and diving spear in hand feels adventurous and sporty to other folks.

What I am is a fella who likes to line fish (although I appear to be miserable at it) but who would also like to go out from time to time with a reasonable expectation of bringing something home for dinner. I am just looking for a way to actually enjoy fishing and sometimes bag a meal rather than spending countless hours impotently casting.

[Chief Grey Bear]

If you want to stick a fish or two, as long as you are within the law, then by all means be my guest.

[bfishn]

I appreciate angling as a leisure activity, as a sport. But I also appreciate harvesting wild fish for the table as an objective. They are two distinct goals that can sometimes happen to coincide...

Very well stated! I too enjoy the satisfaction of achieving the objective. Pursuing a sport without an objective seems pointless to me, but lots of folks do it, so who am I to complain.

So break it down. To excel at the sport, you merely need to enjoy doing it for the pure pleasure of the act. To excel at the objective you should become a commercial fisherman to maximize your investment/return. To do both requires something in between. For many of us, that means taking the skunk as entertaining and educational, something to be rectified the next time we get out.

[jimithyashford]

Yeah, taking the skunk as a lesson seems easy at first, but I am on my....gosh...lemme try to estimate without exagerrating here.....

I am on probably about my 20th skunk this year, broken only by one 3 hour trip that did net me one good Bass, and a 5 hour trip that got me one small rainbow trout. I mean....20(ish) trips, hundreds of miles driven, dozens of hours on the water, hundreds of casts....2 fish? I don't even wanna try and estimate how much money I've spent landing those two fish, I'd probably make myself feel ill if I did.

Stabbing the darn fish with a spear looks more and more attractive every day.

[KCRIVERRAT]

Have you tried asking them?

Saw Wheatie ask one once but all the fish could say was he'd found Happy Jesus...

[ozark trout fisher]

It wasn't an argument it was a simple question. You refuse to answer because you know the answer is nothing.

If you want to bring up how much you support something you need to be prepared to give a reason why.

I originally posted almost the exact same thing Mitch F did about the roundup on the Bourb, but deleted it.

I generally try to avoid mentioning the words "spotted" and "bass" consecutively on this forum. It's not a good idea. I think I spent a year arguing that and all the points/counterpoints are as dried up as the Bourbeuse in the drought of 2012.

Why you are badgering me about my support of an organization that I'm not even a part of has to rank right up there as one of the greatest mysteries on earth.

I mean, we're all posting here more or less to waste time, but that kind of takes it to a new level.

[Flysmallie]

Why you are badgering me about my support of an organization that I'm not even a part of has to rank right up there as one of the greatest mysteries on earth.

I mean, we're all posting here more or less to waste time, but that kind of takes it to a new level.

I wasn't the one that was badgering. You brought it up and I asked. Don't get me confused with chief. We are different people. But yes I do have a problem with people supporting causes with no idea why. But I guess we can't say that you really support them if you aren't a member. And truthfully I'm just looking for a reason to be a member.

You can say spotted bass to me all you want. I freaking love them. Caught a couple this afternoon. But on this side of the state there is nothing wrong with them.

So sorry if you thought I was badgering you. I was just trying to ask a simple question.

[Al Agnew]

Not arguing with Chief anymore on the gigging thing, just saying in conclusion that if he saw what we see on the Meramec he might have a different outlook. And I've been fishing the Meramec since the late 1960s so my observations are unscientific but first hand.

As for spotted bass, not getting into that one either, except to note that the Bourbeuse, along with Big River, IS pretty much the poster child for the spotted bass invasion. Both rivers have changed from having excellent populations of smallmouth (and zero spotted bass) from source to mouth, into streams where smallmouth are outnumbered by spots in the lower half and matched or nearly so by spotted bass all the way up to near their sources. Just (again) from my own observations, smallmouth numbers have dropped by more than 50% over the best parts of both streams...and that also means that numbers of BIG smallies have dropped by the same percentages, replaced by spotted bass that very seldom reach a length of more than 16 inches.

[Flysmallie]

As for spotted bass, not getting into that one either

That's good since there was nothing to get into in the first place.