Folks just don't get it. One thing I liked about the pond was that it had some nice-sized Grass Carp....and they are a challenge and thrill to try and catch on a fly rod. I saw no fewer than 4 of them left dead up on the shorelines. I guarantee they did not die of natural causes. I fished my way around the entire pond, and came across a few fish in just a few spots. For a pond where NO HARVEST should be occurring, there is a noticeable lack of fish, a stark contrast to previous years.
I ended up catching 2 Largemouth Bass, 2 Crappies, 2 Hybrid Sunfish, and 9 Bluegills in a little less than 2 hours of fishing. The fish I landed were mostly decent fish, including one sunfish that measured 10". I probably won't revisit this pond this year.
Don't get me wrong, I still managed to have fun. And a weird thing happened. I somehow managed to lasso a Cliff Swallow (bird) during my backcast! I thought I had snagged a tree behind me at first. The bird flew around for a bit, but calmed down and let me untangle it. It flew away just fine.
Hey, Dave, just lamenting with your purpose of this post. We have a similar problem on a pond here in Northern Colorado. It is all a good idea to have catch and release and build a quality fishery only if the powers to be are going to monitor the ponds and enforce the rules. Otherwise, gone ...................
ReplyDeleteThis particular pond is owned/managed by a community college. What those who selfishly disobey the rules do not understand is... the privilege that allows the public to fish the pond can be revoked. Then NOBODY will be able to enjoy it. Do some folks really have THAT STRONG of a NEED to harvest fish illegally? There are other places to fish nearby that aren't posted as Catch & Release Only. Why ruin this pond?
DeleteMy first thought is, "Man is his own worst enemy".
DeleteWhen I had not small pond in my house; I went to public fish ponds to amuse. Then my friend suggested me to built pond. I built it 3 years ago and still it is waterproof by the application of pond liner.
ReplyDelete