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#67609 - 02/14/07 12:02 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: Ghostcat78]
WyoBob Offline
member

Registered: 05/04/04
Posts: 204
Loc: Buffalo, WY
Quote:
Your right, there aren't many places to fish around Kearney. But since I moved to Idaho Falls Idaho there are more places than I have time <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> I have a cabelas 3 forks 2 piece 6#. I have to say I prefer my sage anyday over the 3-forks. I have a few trips planned for this summer/fall where i'll be doing some backpacking fishing trips.

Doug


Idaho Falls = better than Keaney.

A fishing buddy bought the 3 forks 6 wt because he liked the 3 wt so much. He didn't like the 6 wt at all.

I've cast a few Sage rods. They're really nice but a bit out of my price range, epecially since I have 6 rods already <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

WyoBob

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#67610 - 02/14/07 04:37 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: Brokenmoped]
hootyhoo Offline
member

Registered: 12/14/06
Posts: 686
Loc: Cyberspace
State your opinions, even in the face of adversity. You may take one on the chin every now again, but you can be proud that you are an individual with your own opinions.

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#67611 - 02/15/07 05:37 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: Jimshaw]
TerribleTom Offline
member

Registered: 04/12/06
Posts: 85
Loc: Tillamook, OR
Quote:
However if you are seeking some reverse feedback... I had some relatives call me a sadist for torturing poor little fishies by making them fight for their lives with a nasty sharp hook in their mouths and the worst part of it was that I ENJOYED <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> feeling them struggle on the end of my line as they fought for their lives. AND to top it all off - instead of eating them I released them - meaning that I didn't even do it because I needed food, catch and release is a terrible thing... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />


You say this tongue-in-cheek, but in much of Europe the logic is precisely that: C&R is illegal due to it's cruel nature. All fishing (where permitted) is catch & eat.

Strange, eh?
Tom

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#67612 - 02/16/07 06:51 AM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: Brokenmoped]
alaskageoff Offline
newbie

Registered: 02/07/07
Posts: 2
Loc: Michigan
Hi,
I'm an older backpacker/fisherman, and have changed my opinion on fishing over the years. There is no question in my mind fishing pressure from regular folks can and does hurt the resource. My philosophy now is "Catch only what you are going to eat, then stop. Catch and release is playing with your food."
Good luck, and enjoy the outdoors!
_________________________
alaskageoff

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#67613 - 02/17/07 07:52 AM re: fish guts [Re: aimless]
cbert Offline
member

Registered: 05/24/05
Posts: 121
In some instances, LNT might not be best. Ralph Cutter actually argues that the fish remains should be returned to the water in granite bound lakes above treeline where bio contents are sparse because the nutrients in those remains are so needed there.

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#67614 - 02/17/07 08:39 AM Re: re: fish guts [Re: cbert]
aimless Online   content
Moderator

Registered: 02/05/03
Posts: 3292
Loc: Portland, OR
That may be a reasonable argument, but my first reaction is that if the nvironment is that biologically impoverished, one ought not to deplete its resources at all by fishing it. This is the same argument as would apply to not building fires in high alpine areas, where trees grow too slowly to replace the fuel you burn.

In these cases the trace you should not leave is the unfillable void you would be making by removing the resource.

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#67615 - 02/17/07 09:46 AM Re: re: fish guts [Re: aimless]
cbert Offline
member

Registered: 05/24/05
Posts: 121
there are certainly places i won't fish because of what you refer to, but keep in mind that almost all the high sierra lakes with fish were fishless originally - the fish are there because of planting and for catching (even in those that are no longer stocked).

a good example would be a place like Bishop Lake just below Bishop Pass. Hard rock, crystaline water, little biomass. it is filled with brook trout - even with short food supply, they will continue to propagate, but they will be stunted (and the strain of brookies there and in most sierra waters mature sexually faster than normal fish) - you end up with a lake filled with 5" - 9" starving fish. it is possible to catch 50 fish in 75 casts should someone desire it - because they are ravenous.

but in other places i'm thinking of, the fishing pressure is low due to remoteness. large lakes with self sustaining populations and very little mineral feeding from runoff only (no resident inflow streams). taking a fish or two there won't ruin the fishery, but returning the nutrients of the unused remains is practical for the bio content. and of course the lake would naturally have been fishless. i think these are the types of lake cutter was referencing.

i think the key is to be aware of impacts and address each situation uniquely according to the location and its needs/capabilities.

below treeline fish waste should almost always be buried though, and well away from running water.

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#67616 - 02/17/07 01:04 PM Re: re: fish guts [Re: cbert]
Salish Offline
member

Registered: 01/06/02
Posts: 129
Loc: Seattle, Washington
The Alpine lakes where I hike and fish, in Washington's Cascades, were mostly void of fish prior to stocking efforts first occurring in the early 20th century. The Washington Cascade high lakes are very carefully stocked and managed as a public fishery and there is no problem with taking a fish or two for dinner. This site may be of help to some of you interested in fishing high lakes and stocking/management issues: http://watrailblazers.org/ Also, the site I mentioned earlier in this thread has a very helpful science module: http://hilakers.org/

Cliff

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#67617 - 02/17/07 06:21 PM Re: re: fish guts [Re: cbert]
aimless Online   content
Moderator

Registered: 02/05/03
Posts: 3292
Loc: Portland, OR
In the situations you describe it sounds like local knowledge is the key to understanding the desirability of fishing a lake or stream. If one is pig-ignorant of such local conditions, then I would suggest that discretion would be the better course, and refraining from tampering with a situation where one does not know the consequences.


Edited by aimless (02/18/07 10:10 AM)

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#67618 - 02/17/07 08:22 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: Jimshaw]
lonewolf Offline
member

Registered: 01/23/05
Posts: 292
Loc: Oregon USA
You mean "harass and release"? Unless the fish is too small, wrong species or has three heads it is going to be my supper. To spend money, time and effort to catch it and let it go makes as much sence as golfing, ie hit the ball, look for it and when you find it,whack it again.

Fishermen are good friends of the outdoors. They are for the most part, good stewards of the land. They put a lot of time money and effort into keeping the wild, "wild". Having a few fish and fishermen in the wilderness areas, is a small price to pay for their support.

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#67619 - 02/17/07 11:51 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: lonewolf]
NiytOwl Offline
member

Registered: 11/06/04
Posts: 501
Loc: California
"...fish is too small..."

What I really hate to see is a "shaker" (that's an undersized fish) on the end of my line that is gut hooked. How many of these have I removed the hook, thrown them back, and seen their milky-eyed carcasses floating around a few hours later?

One day on the Delta I personally caught over 50 baby stripers - and my buddies each caught more than I did! There must have been 20 dead ones floating around when we were done; all gut or gill hooked.

As for catch and release - sometimes I think that people need to LOOK at what they're releasing before they throw it back. I've caught some catfish whose mouths were all torn up - they looked pathetically thin because they couldn't feed properly. Once I caught a striper blind in BOTH eyes because of being hooked through them. Why would someone throw a blind fish back in the water?

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#67620 - 02/19/07 03:19 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: Brokenmoped]
hootyhoo Offline
member

Registered: 12/14/06
Posts: 686
Loc: Cyberspace
If God did'nt want us to eat fish, then why did he make them out of meat?

Hahahaha. Just joshin'.

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#67621 - 02/19/07 06:59 PM Re: Phishing? Worse than phires? You da judge. [Re: Brokenmoped]
kevonionia Offline
member

Registered: 04/17/06
Posts: 1322
Loc: Dallas, TX
Quote:

If a lot of you think phires are unethical, you will surely loathe me for even mentioning the diabolical practice of phishing!


You got my ire up on this one, Corey! I am phanatically opposed to phishing! Especially in the wilderness. Recently I took my laptop and broadband card with me on a wilderness hike down here in the Everglades and was checking my emails after I had set up camp and put up that electric grizzly fence around the perimeter (for crocs & gators, not bears.) I was surprised to see I’d gotten an email from [color:"red"]Big Skie[/color] since I had not bought a tent from them although I’ll admit I was responsible for an embarrassing number of the 8,659 views of their thread on this forum.

In their email they were asking for my immediate attention to an important matter of billing information before they could ship their product to me. Interesting, considering I hadn’t ordered a tent or windproof pullover or even a promo fleece beanie or beer cozy with their name plastered all over them. I will admit I really liked the specs on their tent, although I’m still leaning toward the Cloudburst 2 by a competitor.

They directed me to their web page where I needed to enter my credit card number, shoe size, SS #, color preference (I chose [color:"#666666"] dark stone[/color] cause of how it sounds) and bank account numbers and passcodes.

I had my wallet out and all my numbers and preferences written down to type in. I know this sounds crazy, doing whatever someone on the Internet tells you to do, but hey, did you see that 20/20 news report about the crank calls to McDonald’s managers where a guy posing as the police has the manager strip search a “suspect” employee in the office? And those idiots did it! Has happened several times across the country. And one can be pretty susceptible, too, sitting around camp in the wilderness wishing for a better tent and hoping a gator don't drag you under to his hidey hole.

But just as I had typed in the last passcode and was about to hit “enter” it caught my eye. There in bold print at the bottom they were telling me that they needed all this info before they would have my tent ready to process for “IMMEDIATE SHIPMENT!” This was not the [color:"red"]BS [/color] I’ve come to know and love. Sure they had an almost identical logo with the little graph above the name showing the stock price or number of tents shipped or whatever, but no way was this the [color:"red"]BS [/color] I’ve become so full of. I suppose calling their website [color:"red"] Big Skie [/color] should have given me a clue. Anyway, I knew immediately that I’d been “phished” out in the wild, been “brand-spoofed” by scammers and it’s not something I’d want anyone else to experience. The paranoia I felt that night in my old tent was worse than being at ridgeline and surrounded by a bunch of howling wolves.

No, I’m totally opposed to PHISHING in all its forms. No telling what would have happened if I had hit “enter” like those hackers wanted. I’d probably have helped finance the next Starbucks in Lagos before I made it down Anhinga Trail back to the Everglades NP Visitors Center.

Just Say No To Phishing! Especially in the wilderness.
_________________________
- kevon

(avatar: raptor, Lake Dillon)


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#67622 - 02/19/07 07:08 PM Re: Phishing? Worse than phires? You da judge. [Re: kevonionia]
Keith Offline
member

Registered: 01/04/02
Posts: 1667
Loc: Michigan's Upper Peninsula
<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

I was actually laughing by the time I got to the end. Thanks for the "light" touch!

--Keith
_________________________
Human Resources Memo: Floggings will continue until morale improves.

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#67623 - 02/19/07 08:58 PM Re: Phishing? Worse than phires? You da judge. [Re: Keith]
WyoBob Offline
member

Registered: 05/04/04
Posts: 204
Loc: Buffalo, WY
kevonionia,

You must be very, very careful which type of mushrooms you pick and eat on the trail <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Pretty funny.

WyoBob

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#67624 - 02/20/07 01:08 AM Re: Phishing? Worse than phires? You da judge. [Re: kevonionia]
Brokenmoped Offline
newbie

Registered: 02/11/07
Posts: 6
Loc: Southern California
kevonionia,

That has to be the most time and effort put into a single pun by anyone in the history of mankind.

Quote:
(Although some of the humor you will see here may take some getting used to.)


This must be what TomD was talking about...

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#67625 - 02/20/07 06:09 AM Re: Phishing? Worse than phires? You da judge. [Re: Brokenmoped]
kevonionia Offline
member

Registered: 04/17/06
Posts: 1322
Loc: Dallas, TX
Yeah, I've never been accused of brevity. At least I went with that post and not my "fish rights" post, stating my belief that fishing should be allowed only without appurtenances (poles, line, hooks, spears, nets) practiced by people in distant pre-history and demonstrated by "Mullet Hands" in the recent movie "Hoot." BTW, still kidding.
_________________________
- kevon

(avatar: raptor, Lake Dillon)


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#67626 - 02/20/07 10:29 AM Re: Phishing? Worse than phires? You da judge. [Re: kevonionia]
dkramalc Offline
member

Registered: 09/19/03
Posts: 1070
Loc: California
Quote:
fishing should be allowed only without appurtenances


Hey, I've done that - many years ago when I didn't realize that the CA Fish and Game laws prohibited taking fish in manners other than hook and line, we were walking along a lake in the Siearra when I heard this wet "flop, flop" noise. Turns out this cutthroat trout (about 12") had swum up a little 1" deep rivulet that fed into the lake, eating tadpoles that were there, but beached himself when he tried to turn around in the shallow, narrow stream with his stomach all distended. I picked him up and had a brief moment of indecision: hmm, return him to the lake and let him have a long happy life and lots of little cutthroat descendants? or DINNER?

He was very tasty cooked with the wild onions we found growing nearby. But I suppose I should turn myself in for having caught him illegally.
_________________________
dk

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#67627 - 02/20/07 03:38 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: WyoBob]
crazyone Offline
member

Registered: 04/24/06
Posts: 111
Loc: Northern Panhandle Of West Vir...
I hunt and fish myself and have no problems with anybody,just as long they follow the rules and have some common sense toward other people. I was car camping last summer along a river(I call it a creek) and my next door car camper,liked to fish and stored the caught fish in a cooler,right alonged the river and between two tied up dogs. Of course the dogs barked and barked cause the owners weren't there and they heard the bear coming. I am very hard of hearing ,heared that bear,scrapped the side of the tent,while looking for the fish and that scared the heck out of me,especially since I was somewhat sleeping . I thought that bear was coming right in the tent with me and all I had was my small pack knife. Of course,I did scare him off,when I yelled at him. The owner,I thought should have put the fish somewhere else in a safer place to avoid a situation like that. It could have been pretty messy for me or his dogs or both.

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#67628 - 02/25/07 05:28 PM Re: Fishing? Worse than fires? You be the judge. [Re: WyoBob]
Anonymous
Unregistered


i tried a few extendable and segment type rods and was not happy with any of them. even though it is slightly heavier than some options i prefer a reasonable short, cheap, two piece rod from wal mart or the like with a regular small spinning reel. i love fishing and i can be happy with a cheap rod in a backpacking situation but gimmicky backpacking rods are not for me. im also not gonna strap a g loomis to my pack and subject it to backcountry hiking.

so i dont have any suggestions but i would just buy a cheap graphite rod that is two piece and a light spinning reel and it should work out fine and strap to the outside of your pack.

matt

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#67629 - 02/26/07 06:06 PM my favorite all around spinning rod right now
cbert Offline
member

Registered: 05/24/05
Posts: 121
is a 4 piece fiberglass cheapo rod by eagle claw (it's yellow and comes in a plastic tube - i think it was $20

good action, sensitive, packable

i think this one on ebay is the same:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Eagle-Claw-Trailmast...1QQcmdZViewItem

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#67630 - 03/01/07 01:11 AM Re: my favorite all around spinning rod right now [Re: cbert]
Anonymous
Unregistered


while im sure that would do the job jsut fine for my tastes a two piece rod has better action and is worth the extra hassle if you plan on doing very much fishing. if i was going to do a very little bit of fishing i may consider a 4 piece but if im planning on doing much fishing i just prefer the way a 2 piece feels and the action.

guess it kinda depends on how much fishing you will be doing and how important the action is to you (also i have no experience with that specific rod and the action may be great, just speaking generally about 4 piece rods).

one other question is what kind of tackle do you guys bring if you are planning on bass fishing. as im sure is true for everyone it depends on the trip but here are things i always bring.

a few various sized jigs
a small assortment of hooks/weights etc.
senkos (i hand pour my own and make the ones i take hiking a little less soft so i can get more life out of them.)
grubs to use a jig trailers and also to fish on plain jigheads for smallies

these always come along and there are usually a few spinnerbaits and such along as well depending on time of year and conditions expected. anyone else bass fish or are there mostly trout fisherman here?

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#67631 - 03/01/07 08:57 AM Re: my favorite all around spinning rod right now
Salish Offline
member

Registered: 01/06/02
Posts: 129
Loc: Seattle, Washington
I'm mostly a fly fisherman so I always bring my 4 piece Loomis 9ft, 5wt. I use a floating and intermediate line and that covers just about everything. I have never felt much, if any difference from this rod and my 2 piece fly rods. I usually fish from my ultralight raft so I have no problems with brush and backcasts or getting to most areas of a lake. I would like to get the Cabelas 7 piece Stowaway rod, which breaks down small enough to fit inside of my pack. I had a little Wright & McGill 7.5 ft Trailmaster spin/fly combo graphite rod, which I used for two seasons before my dog broke it. This was the model with the reversable handle. Contrary to all reviews I had heard, it was a great little rod, although a little short for my tastes. At $39.99 you wouldn't have a heart attack if it broke.

Telescoping rods: some of my aquaintences use those cheapo telescoping spinning rods for high lakes fishing. I always thought it was a silly idea because the rods are cheap, too short, and break easily. I couldn't imagine them having any decent action.
But then I did a kayaking trip on the Colorado River below Hoover Dam this summer, and when I found out these guys fished, I bought one of these cheap rod & reel combos (Shakespear, I think) at a Wal-Mart in Las Vegas. Since I'm not a purist fly fisherman I have no problems fishing with gear. The darn thing cast extremely well and I caught a ton of stripers on this rig, some fish up to 20" and 3 or 4 lbs. The rod did very well. I have since taken it on my high lakes fishing trips and it's really handy to have. I often find myself bushwhacking to small, brushy potholes while on my hike to my real destination lake, and it's very handy to have this little rig already setup with lure ready to go, stuck in the mesh pocket on my pack. If all I want to do it try a few casts and see if there are any fish in the lake I don't have to take my pack off, dig in my pack to retrieve my fly rod, set it up, and possibly set up my raft. It's cheaply made and I'm sure it will break before too long, but I like it.

Cliff
Seattle

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#67632 - 03/01/07 11:16 AM Re: Hiking and fishing [Re: Salish]
sienna Offline
member

Registered: 12/31/06
Posts: 69
Hiking and fishing--I can't imagine a better combination. I love to fish the local rivers for salmon and steelhead in season and have some excellent equipment for this. In a couple of short months when hubby and I take to the high country again after a 20+ year sabbatical, I will be taking fishing equipment with me. I just ordered from Bass Pro Shops a little IM6 graphite spinning pack rod (Micro Lite series) that is only 5'6" but breaks into three pieces and is very light both in action and weight. And combine that with a President ultra light spinning reel that weighs 6.4 oz rated for 4 lb line. What could be more fun that catching dinner from the shores of a pristine mountain lake? Don't have to pack it in and it's fresh. Fish always tastes better when you catch it yourself!


Edited by sienna (03/01/07 01:59 PM)

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#67633 - 03/01/07 01:38 PM Re: Hiking and fishing [Re: sienna]
Salish Offline
member

Registered: 01/06/02
Posts: 129
Loc: Seattle, Washington
Sienna, right on about high lakes fishing. I would still go into the mountains if there were no fish, but fishing high lakes is a passion I have that that means as almost as much to me as the mountains themselves. Please take a look at the two fishing links I provided earlier in this thread. You can pick up a lot of helpful info there.

I bought a Bass Pro Shops microlight rod for my brother and he loves it. It's the 7.5 ft spin/fly combo and it actually casts very well.

Steelhead & Salmon? are you in the pacific northwest?

Cliff

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