Another weekend of...

[moguy1973]

13 hours ago, Chief Grey Bear said:

That's it exactly! 

And this does happen with  increasing regularity.  And yes I know it's legal and yes I know I have defended the leagality of it, but boy do I cringe when I see it! 

 With kayaks being the new trendy millennial watercraft,  days like these on our streams are becoming more and more common!  No stream is safe anymore!

 I do believe it is high time that we become more proactive to these situations instead of reactive! 

 I know that I still waffle on regulations but over the last few years I have become increasingly more aware that more stringent regulations on the streams of Missouri are going to have to be implemented! 

 

So you are saying decreasing populations of bass on streams is because more people are floating them in kayaks?!?  Kayaks and canoes have been on these streams for a long long time...

[ollie]

Moguy1973, I have to disagree on that one.  I have had a kayak since 2002 and I almost NEVER saw another yak on the stream while I was fishing.  Some canoes maybe, but never the floatilla that is possible to see now on the streams.  Back then you had to drop some cash on a boat, but shoot now you can get into the sport for chump change.  That is what I am seeing around here at least.  Just opens it up for more people to enjoy and fish more.

[Guest]

Deleted.

[fishinwrench]

I seldom if ever see kayak/canoe anglers with a stringer of bass or trout. Goggle-eye more often, but even that is rare.  Bank fishermen and guys in Jon boats are a whole nother story, as they often are toting a few.

I haven't spent much time in a yak (maybe 4 hours total) but I would think that keeping a mess of fish while yakking would be a pain in the butt.  Tried paddling back with 2 limits of white bass on stringers and it was like dragging an anchor, we finally had to just lay them inside the canoe so we could get back to camp.

[Mitch f]

1 hour ago, siusaluki said:

Now is the time to make your comments heard.  MDC is in the process of taking comments on all wildlife regulations.  Attend an open house and make yourself heard.

Been there done that....as a collective group,  and as an individual… And nothing will ever happen.

[Guest]

Deleted.

[Mitch f]

17 minutes ago, siusaluki said:

I have too, but nothing good comes easy.  Gotta keep after it or else the meat hogs and river rapers get whatever they want. Make sure your voice is heard.

You're absolutely right.

But just remember we've heard this all before..."This is the absolute last, final, we're not kidding this time" approach that we all perceived to be phony. But I suppose there's no point in complaining about it and it's best to just keep trying.

[fishinwrench]

Kinda like Musky fishing, ain't it ?

No it's worse.  At least when casting your arm off for a Muskie you might get a follow, some genuine interest in what you're trying to sell.  

With the MDC all you're likely to get, if you're lucky, is a pretentious refusal.

[bfishn]

As to the health of this particular stream...

As has happened many times in the past, the last flood washed a buttload of bass, catfish, and bream out of the BV lakes and into Little Sugar.  I was at the big lake when the rain quit. The first water over the dam was clear. The outflow rushed thru a narrow ditch for ~1/2 mile, then spread out and slowed on a low spot in the golf course. I saw a lot of fish milling that pool, and the only guy in the 'hood smart enough to be there with a rod caught a 50lb mess of cats (8 fish) in short work.  He surfed that stringer of cats right thru the flooded greens to his truck. In a couple hours the water was muddy, falling, and they were gone...

...down Little Sugar Creek.

[ollie]

I doubt highly that the smallmouth in that pic came out of any BV lake.