Al Agnew Posted July 3, 2020 Posted July 3, 2020 On 6/21/2020 at 3:26 AM, Jerry Rapp said: there were a lot of hours of building brush piles behind those big limits. Unlike others who are known to be moochers off other folks work, those two guys have put many hours into being very good fishermen. They make their own luck. You know, that's kinda food for thought. So you think those guys built a whole lot of brushpiles, and then reaped the harvest of those brushpiles catching those fish? I know that kind of thing goes on. Question is, in a tournament situation, how ethical is it? Another question...do you think that building brushpiles actually improves the bass population, or population structure, or does it just concentrate some big fish in places the average angler has no idea how to find or fish? Note...I'm not saying it's wrong, just musing and wondering what others think.
Mitch f Posted July 3, 2020 Author Posted July 3, 2020 I know guys who cut down trees 🌲 on the bank then take a can of spray paint and paint the tiny stump up on the bank in order to hide the fact that it was chopped down. Because many times the brush pile won’t be far from its place of birth and those brush pile guys know it! 😂 obviously with these new high tech electronics, it’s so easy to find a brush pile now...heck, it’s easy to see a fish in a brush pile now! The other thing I’ve noticed is that fish who aren’t in the brush pile won’t be far away. I always thoroughly work over a brush pile, and also work about a 10 yard perimeter around it. "Honor is a man's gift to himself" Rob Roy McGregor
nomolites Posted July 3, 2020 Posted July 3, 2020 I have fished LOZ most of my life; strategically located brush holds the good fish - not just bass, but more importantly desirable fish like walleye. The very best brush is on spots the average Joe overlooks or can’t reach - when you locate/place enough of those, that equals a nice milk run and a chance at a really good day every time out. You also need to be able to place your bait in them cleanly, and that is why skipping, pitching, flipping, and shooting rule on LOZ. Ethical? Yes. Much more so than fishing PB2. Mike Mitch f 1
fishinwrench Posted July 3, 2020 Posted July 3, 2020 Being a relatively shallow water guy I prefer rock piles over brush. A rockpile under a dock walkway or directly under a cable is MONEY 9 months out of the year. Deep brush is typically only good for a season or two unless you continually add to it, but I'm still catching fish off relatively shallow rockpiles that I built 15+ years ago. I can pull up to one and drop a bait right in the sweet spot on the first try. A deep brush pile is gonna take several casts even if I know exactly where it is, and they always seem to break down, spread apart and move around. If I made my living fishing/guiding I'd definitely do alot more brush sinking, but that's way too much hard work for a guy that just fishes for fun. 3 hours ago, nomolites said: Ethical? Yes. Much more so than fishing PB2. Several of the leading tournament anglers on LO spend alot of time sinking brush (or paying others to) within 2 miles of there. I used to know a pair of old retired guys that would drop a sizable brush pile from the dam to the 6mm and send you the GPS coordinate for 40.00 and when you think about the work involved.....that ain't a bad deal at all. I'm sure there's someone with an old pontoon doing a similar side-gig in the Glaize arm. I know I'd rather pay someone 250.00 to sink 6 big piles than to do it myself.
Jerry Rapp Posted July 3, 2020 Posted July 3, 2020 6 hours ago, Al Agnew said: You know, that's kinda food for thought. So you think those guys built a whole lot of brushpiles, and then reaped the harvest of those brushpiles catching those fish? I know that kind of thing goes on. Question is, in a tournament situation, how ethical is it? Another question...do you think that building brushpiles actually improves the bass population, or population structure, or does it just concentrate some big fish in places the average angler has no idea how to find or fish? Note...I'm not saying it's wrong, just musing and wondering what others think. I was a pile builder for many years. And at least one of those guys is a pile builder, learned from the same person I learned from. First one I "built" was at Lake Killarney back in the mid 70's. It produced bass and crappie at least until 1980. Is it ethical? Good question, but then MDC builds piles every year and provides the public coordinates, which just encourages the public to build their own. Does it help the fish population. Maybe a little overall, but MDC thinks so. They do concentrate the fish, making them more accessible. Here's a question for you and the others. Almost all tournaments are held on public waters, built with our tax money. Is it ethical for people(tournament organizations) to make money off of them? A lot of the other users of the lakes don't like tournaments at all. NASCAR, etc don't hold their events on public roads. I've been thinking about this quite a bit especially since I got out of the tournament thing. I know a small permit fee is required, but is that sufficient, especially when several organizations make their "living" off of public waters that we paid for? I personally don't know if it is right or wrong, just wondering if any others have thought about this. Daryk Campbell Sr 1
fishinwrench Posted July 3, 2020 Posted July 3, 2020 7 hours ago, Jerry Rapp said: I was a pile builder for many years. And at least one of those guys is a pile builder, learned from the same person I learned from. First one I "built" was at Lake Killarney back in the mid 70's. It produced bass and crappie at least until 1980. Is it ethical? Good question, but then MDC builds piles every year and provides the public coordinates, which just encourages the public to build their own. Does it help the fish population. Maybe a little overall, but MDC thinks so. They do concentrate the fish, making them more accessible. Here's a question for you and the others. Almost all tournaments are held on public waters, built with our tax money. Is it ethical for people(tournament organizations) to make money off of them? A lot of the other users of the lakes don't like tournaments at all. NASCAR, etc don't hold their events on public roads. I've been thinking about this quite a bit especially since I got out of the tournament thing. I know a small permit fee is required, but is that sufficient, especially when several organizations make their "living" off of public waters that we paid for? I personally don't know if it is right or wrong, just wondering if any others have thought about this. Yeah I've thought about it, but since I did it myself for quite awhile I try to not be hypocritical, and just pound the drum about immediate release. Although back when I did it there wasn't 50-70 tournaments per month on every body of water in the country. There was maybe 8-12 per month, so it didn't seem near as rediculous.
Daryk Campbell Sr Posted July 3, 2020 Posted July 3, 2020 I'm not a nascar fan. I'm not a tournament guy either. (Other than OA's One Bass.) I think tournaments are not doing anything the public can not do. Other than culling, they follow the same rules as the public. Ethics? I dont see the violation. Do I think they should be limited? I do, but I dont have a solution. I like some ideas, and others, not so much. They pay as do we. As long as they follow the same rules as we do, I cant argue. (Edit) Nascar is doing something the public is not allowed to do. Therefore they have built their own locations. Money is just ink and paper, worthless until it switches hands, and worthless again until the next transaction. (me) I am the master of my unspoken words, and the slave to those that should have remained unsaid. (unknown)
Quillback Posted July 4, 2020 Posted July 4, 2020 Not being much of a tourney fisherman myself, I'm fine with people putting out piles. Always have heard rumors as far as people baiting piles with something like dried dog food. As far as I know it it legal to do and I've never seen a tournament ruling that says you can't fish a baited pile. Curious if anyone has seen this or if it is just a rumor?
Jerry Rapp Posted July 4, 2020 Posted July 4, 2020 35 minutes ago, Quillback said: Not being much of a tourney fisherman myself, I'm fine with people putting out piles. Always have heard rumors as far as people baiting piles with something like dried dog food. As far as I know it it legal to do and I've never seen a tournament ruling that says you can't fish a baited pile. Curious if anyone has seen this or if it is just a rumor? ha ha. Put out a new pile once in a "secret" place that was going to be a killer spot. Sunk a bag of dog food in a potato sack 2 days before the tournament. First cast tournament day, 8 lb fish to the net. Flathead. Never caught a bass there, that day, or ever. Quillback and Daryk Campbell Sr 2
Mitch f Posted July 4, 2020 Author Posted July 4, 2020 I’ve also heard of dumping a bucket of crawfish in a brush pile a couple of days before. Quillback 1 "Honor is a man's gift to himself" Rob Roy McGregor
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