Props to MLF On Not Giving Out DQ's For Breaking Irrelevant MN Laws

 

MN has a law making it illegal for a fisherman to use two lines simultaneously. We also have a law that limits the number of hooks that can be used depending on the rigging method. The motivation behind those laws is so the unwashed masses and slobs don't end up killing fish. Professional bass fisherman on the Major League Fishing Bass Pro tour doing their craft is about as far from a slob fisherman as it gets. The law shouldn't be applied against fishermen that are the least likely to kill their catch by virtue of the fisherman's skill combined with instant catch and release format. But the Online Game Wardens had their hackles up this week because a few MLF Anglers were on camera this week with two lines in the water, and another angler had an illegal two Fluke rig set up. Those who were angered by this saw to it that citations were issued by the DNR. But that isn't good enough for some Online Wardens; they want to be able to put  Wheelers Angler Of The Year Trophy on their mantle by way of disqualification.

One of the reasons why the Pros broke away from BASS was its ham-fisted manner of leveling penalties that didn't fit the infraction. Major League Fishing is angler owned, so they make the rules. Their collective wisdom decided that a DQ would not be the proper punishment in this case. I 100% stand behind Major League Fishings' decision in this case. Wheeler earned that Trophy, and it should not be taken away for breaking a law that has no business being applied to a Professional Bass Fisherman in the first place, so says the Bass Pundit.       

WI Goes to Year Round Bass Fishing

Wisconsin is now the latest state to do away with a totally closed season for bass.  Congratulations WI bassheads for getting it done.  Hopefully, MN gets with the program and follows suit in the next couple of years.

Update: This change isn't official yet. 

What I Really Want To Know Is...

Dennis Anderson wrote a column for today's Star Tribune on the early catch and release bass season.  You can tell Dennis is not a dedicated bass fishermen by his closing question;  "If bass won’t be hurt by an early two-week catch-and-release season, could they also sustain a two-week harvest season at that time, which would mean opening bass fishing each year in Minnesota with the northern pike and walleye seasons?"

I know of very few bass fishermen that would have asked that as a closing question.  We don't want bass season opened up to catch and keep with the walleye and pike.  The thought of limit's of bass going home with meat fishermen out for panfish, walleye, and pike is enough to make some of us want to toss our cookies (and maybe a few bricks) in Dennis Anderson's general direction.    

What I really want to know is why it is ever illegal in MN to fish for bass with catch and immediate release?  If your unfamiliar with MN fishing regulations than you might not know that bass have three season; closed to all fishing, immediate catch and release, and open to be kept.  That is right, in MN there is a season in which we are forbidden by law from intentionally attempting to catch bass so we can immediately release them.  Michigan was once like MN is now, with the three seasons.  They experimented with an immediate catch and release season and just this year passed a law making the closed season always open to catch and immediate release fishing (CIR).   My hope is that in a year or two we will follow Michigan's lead and no longer make catch and release fishing for bass illegal for part of the year. Immediate catch and release fishing for bass should always be legal, except in waters with a smallmouth bass population that needs protection.

Mille Lacs Regs This Year

DNR Officially Announces Bass Catch & Release Season for 2015

Yes, I have known about this for some time, but the official announcement was made today

From today's DNR press release:

MN DNR Proposing Radical Pike Regulation Change- Let's Go

One of the many many small pike I caught last year

The MN DNR's proposal for our lakes in the north-central zone:

The DNR’s proposal would eliminate the statewide northern bag limit of three fish, with one over 30 inches, and replace it with regulations that would differ depending on three new northern pike management zones: south, north-central and northeast. The biggest changes would occur in the north-central region — roughly north of Hwy. 55 and west of Hwy. 53 — where most of the lakes with an overabundance of small northerns are located.

There, the northern bag limit would be 10 fish under 22 inches, with two over 26 inches allowed in the 10-fish bag. All northerns 22 to 26 inches would have to be released

I am all for it making the 10 fish limit, but think the protected slot should go from 23 to 28 inches and be only one 1 fish allowed above that.

Platte/Sullivan had liberalized limits with some kind of protected slot for northern pike when we first bought a cabin on these lakes .  I believe the change started working slowly, but then they switched back to normal state regulations about 10 years ago and the lakes are now reverting back to a hammer handle factories.  I firmly believe we need to protect the bigger pike and cull out more of the smaller one's on many of the north-central lakes.

What I believe the 10 fish limit does is essentially turn small pike into panfish for the meat hunters.  It's true that some people will refuse to keep pike in the 22 and under range, but I think having the 10 fish limit for those who will keep them can more than make up for those who won't keep them.

Full Star-Trib Article on the proposed changes
MN DNR's PDF on the issue.

A Lotta Stuff (Ice Progress, GOMH Report, Closed Bass Season)

"GET ME TO THE LAKE"- The MNDNR has recorded 9 more lakes ice-free today and yesterday. I was hoping the ice would be out in my area lakes by today, but that was not to be. I checked Bulldog, Rock, Long, and Platte/Sullivan.

Bulldog-The public access had an acre and a half of open water.

Rock-Had some places where the ice had pulled away from shore, and it looked like there was a huge (15 feet wide) open crack just out from the Public Access running SE for at least 100 yards.

Long- The ice seemed to pull away from shore about 10 yards on the North and West sides.

Platte/Sullivan- Ice was pulling away from shore on the North Side of Platte. At the Grumpy Old Man Hole (GOMH), there was an astonishing amount of open water on the Platte Side. It was open to the small island and half of Channel Inn Bay. On the Sullivan side, it looked like the entire widened area of the Platte River Outlet (PRO) was wide open.

It will be at least 2 days before ice is off any of the area lakes.

Fishing Report- I brought a couple of rods and gave the GOMH a shot. When I first started fishing, a strong S wind blew 15-25mph straight in, and the water was flowing at a steady clip back into Platte Lake. I don't think I have ever caught fish when that is happening. The current of water moving from Platte into Sullivan is the big draw of fish at the GOMH. I fished both sides of the GOMH and got nothing but drifting weeds. No Grumpy Old Men sightings. With all that open water, fish could move into the GOMH anytime.

Cyberfish and Bake hit Pool 4&5 on Saturday and Pool 2 on Sunday for a little multi-species action.

Josh Douglas is prefishing the St. Jude Bass Classic on Pools 4&5...

Rite of Spring: It happens annually right about the time the ice goes out; The self-righteous self-appointed guardians of sportsmanship ethics, law, and largemouth bass go ballistic at FishingMinnesota.com about others they perceive as intentionally fishing for bass in the closed season. There was a new wrinkle this year in that the closed-season cops complained about people fishing for walleye in a river. Apparently, the "violation" occurred on a river containing nice crappies. So that makes yet another case where the violators would be indistinguishable from people that are fishing legally. A jig and a minnow or twister tail grub will catch just as many walleyes as crappies.

The FishingMinnesota.com bass forum got in on the action last Sunday with the thread: Does Turn In Poachers Work?. The BP (as in Bowfin Pro) is referenced in the 13th post in a not-so-unusual plot twist. Much to my delight, a well-reasoned defense of the BP is given in post #25 by Ricqik. Yes, I do intentionally fish for Dogfish, and tomorrow I plan to blog about fishing for Dogfish. We learn in one post that the BP should be labeled a "sociopath." (Does that make me a Bonafide Path?)

One person comes up with a bright idea for enforcing the most ludicrous fish regulation in the book:

If they (DNR) would let some of us volunteer to ticket these people, they would not have to cover so much of the area. Plus i think it would keep more people honest, seeings how no one would know if you have a ticket book in your pocket.

That's just what we need, more citations for an infraction that does absolutely no harm to the resource and for which enforcement is merely a notion in the eye of the beholder. Meanwhile, as usual, the closed-season cops are silent about admonishing people who are actually doing some harm to the resource. You know, the people fishing for panfish just can't resist the temptation to keep the bass they catch because they think they will never get caught. Or what about the people that catch a dogfish in the spring while fishing for panfish from shore and throw the doggy up on the bank to die? I witnessed an infraction of wanton waste twice last spring, in the case linked, I got the Dogfish back into the water while it was still alive.