Undersized and illegal!

[taxidermist]

We have fished seven times over the past two weeks and the size has not been as good. I think the tourist pressure has taken the river over.

We did a float from the dam to Cotter Sunday, I saw several guides and their clients with way over the limit!!! These are junior guides I think who are trying to build their rep. Many had undersized browns!!!

One was bold enough to have five undersized browns and cleaned them in full view at Cotter!!!! There was only two him and his client all day long as we saw them several times.

Just kinda burns me when people keep over the limit and undersized fish.

So if you younguns are reading this be aware, someone is watching and will be taking pictures!!

Is your reputation worth the risk?

We have caught a lot of fish but not the sizes and not near as many the last two weeks.

Its going to be slow I know with the high water from generation and plus for the next few weeks my schedule is busy, busy, busy. But we will hit the river. Sunday looks good I am already missing this weeks Wed. trip but work calls.

We finally have the 25hp on the boat, man it moves great, has enough power to idle and hold it own in the current. We had to build a transom extenion. to make it taller, some braces, a trip to Fenton Welding for a skeg guard. Uses less fuel than the 2 stroke but the four stroke is a bit heavier than I would like. The need for speed take hold and it will rip up river with three people. I went to a three gallon gas tank, which is about right for our normal trips, the electric start is sweet!!! I am to old and broke up from my miltiary days to pulling on a motor all day long.

Catch a big un

John

[outdoorarki]

I saw the same thing at the dam on the Norfork last weelend. To top it off, this guy, a young guy with his dad and brother, would move in on me every time I would move to another spot. He was fishing with a spinning rig with the trout on a stringer.when he got done, he went upstream from me about 50 feet to clean them in brod view of everyone. It was a shame to see him over limit and too small fish at that.

[brownieman]

>We did a float from the dam to Cotter Sunday, I saw several guides and their clients with way over the limit!!! These are junior guides I think who are trying to build their rep. Many had undersized browns!!!<

That is one fine howdoyado, totally ignorant!!...next time you see that give em a few choice words from me...real fine example...they need burnt big time for that!!

>One was bold enough to have five undersized browns and cleaned them in full view at Cotter!!!! There was only two him and his client all day long as we saw them several times.<

Someone should have got on the 'red' phone on that bs...if they are young guides someone needs to do something for 'their' name...like uh, undefined drag it through the mud!

>Just kinda burns me when people keep over the limit and undersized fish.<

undefined That would be an understatement to me...personally...I would be fried !!

[John Berry]

I observed some guys taking fish in the Rim Shoals Catch and Release Area a couple of days ago. I explained the laws to them and told them that I just saw Game and Fish a few minutes earlier checking barbs. They left quickly. There is a substantial amount of Poaching going on and it affects all of us.

[Thom]

What can you do? Call the hotline. Unfortunately by the time the warden gets there they are gone.

Only once at Benntet did I report a guy who was fillling his stringer with four, then his wifes, and then his 2 kids. That really got me hot. I quietly left the stream, got his plate #, and then reported him.

It make my day when the warden came. He denied everything but the Wardern made him go to his van where he found a cooler full.

He wrote a citation and took his gear and made him leave the stream.

I think this is the exception of making that good a bust. I am still going to take the time to first politelly tell the person and if there is no response call the game warden.

[Micheal Kyle]

Thats why I am strict on catch and release. So this YOUNG GUIDE will never have to worry about it.

I for one have seen this happening young and old I think that people just think that there above the law and think that there just fish that gets stocked so what does it matter.

TAXIDERMIST just don't single the young guys out I know that is easy to do and I know that everyone is entitled to there opinion but I think if you will pay attention you will see more than just the young guy breaking the law. I would lay money down that these people that you saw doing this where not even guides. Surly to goodness any one that is guide knows the laws and would not break them just for a little money. But who knows in this time and day.

Michael

[RiverRunner]

I think its safe to say that there is a significant poaching problem on Arkansas trout streams that is affecting the quality of the fishing. I had an interesting conversation with the game warden the last time I was checked (in a C&R area). I asked if their had been a lot of tickets written, and she said there had been. She also mentioned that they (the AGFC) hated to write people tickets because they ruined peoples vacations and fishing trips. I told her that I thought that most people deserved the tickets they got because they were breaking the law and stealing from me and everyone else that followed the law. She also said that she had chased down several poachers who had attempted to outrun her jet powered boat when she appeared (they were caught). I almost feel that poaching, especially in the C&R areas is so bad that an officer needs to work each area every day. Also, there is a small minority of bait guides who do not follow the law and will do anything to get a bigger tip. Several were busted in an AGFC sting operation a few years back, but local political pressure got the charges thrown out of court. Arkansas does need stronger regulations on guides. I really think that there are a lot of guides out there now that now how to drink beer and drive a boat and not much else, which I think hurts the profession of guiding as a whole.

I also think that we need better signage to say the least. The signs stating the regulations are too few in number and too vague for the average tourist to understand. Also, there needs to be signs in large letters at every public access that state POACHERS WILL BE PROSECUTED TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW!!!

John, what did the people at Rim say when you told them about the regulations, did they plead ignorance?

[The Caddis]

I've seen the same thing here in Oklahoma. I saw a guy leave with a stringer, only to show back up a few hours later for his late afternoon limit.

[John Berry]

Yes, they pleaded ignorance. I pointed the signs out and suggested that they read them. I carefully described the complete area covered by the C&R regulations. They left.

[ecce38]

Yep, it's happening on streams everywhere in Arkansas. I have to tell people every time I fish on Beaver tailwater what the slot limit, etc., is. More sadly is that there are those who know better and don't obey the law.