DISGUSTED at the access Friday afternoon

[Gordie]

I came pulling up to the boat launch(not going to say which one but some of you know which one) Fridy for BPCL and noticed a boat coming up the the launch from the river and a kid was running up the launch say those guy got a big catfish well I went about my bussines and when they pulled up to secure boat to trailer I asked how big a cat it was and the guy replies Its in the boat and points his finger at it I looked over and it was a least 40-45lbs. there were three guys one guy still in the truck. so I said you guys should be releasing the big girl so she can spawn. 1 guy said what and then the guy jumps out of the truck and says there not spawning yet I cleaned one the other night and it didnt have any eggs in it. which I replied yea there not spawning yet BUT there going to and soon. then let them know that I had gotten on close to that the night before and released it so it could spawn and get bigger I smiled and went abotu my bussiness then one of the guys asked me how much do you think it weighs do you think it 45lbs and I said yes then asked if I could measure it they said yes so it was 45x30 give or take a inch cause it was flooping around in the bottom of there boat.

I know that leaglely that you can take one flat over 24 inches in your limit and you can only voice your opinon to guys that want to keep fish off that size. I would really like to see some law that would protect those fish like only one flathead under 30 inches in your bag limit or catch and release only until after spawn.I'm not saying that its right to keep a big fish after spawn but I feel that they are a little more difficult to catch. I'm not going to bash anyone that keeps fish like that btu come on think of old that fish is, how many babies does it make and thats that many that wont be in the river for the future. Just had to vent a little

[Whisker Warrior]

[PoorWordUsage] that sucks! Well at least you voiced your opinion and maybe one of the three will go home and think about what you said....

[riverrat56]

I really like to see the big flats get treated like Sturgeon do up on the Rainy, one a year over such and such length (preferably over say 45" or even bigger).

I really think more big flats are kept every year than we realize, lots of people out there treat the big girls like were down south fishing with jug lines.

[Gordie]

this was kind of Ironic because thursday night I ran into slowhand and we actually had a pretty good discusion on this very topic.

[riverrat56]

Rushing and I talked about it alot too on Thursday....

[Scott K]

This is very sad! If I find out who it was , I will let them know righ and wrong.

[Laska]

Thats too bad, nice fish with alot of years under its belt, I kept a 4 and a 8lber that I caught this year cuz I didnt have catfish in the freezer and one had eggs in it n i felt bad, but those r the only cats im keeping this year just like I do any other year but a fish of that magnitude which has lived that long has paid its dues to be thrown back right away.

[Heartman]

With the perspective you shared, maybe they'll think twice if the same situation presents itself. If it was their first big one, let's hope that 1) they have become better fisherman, and 2)will think twice about keeping another.

[Gordie]

well I dont think it was his first one because of his first reply. which was I cleaned one last week and it didnt have any eggs in it.

I really didnt want a confrintation over it so I tried to be as ethical and tried to show respect towards them but it wasnt easy. theirs only so much that you can do in that type of situation and I hope that it show some type of good stewardship towards the river and those magnificant fish we a love to chase.

[Dave S]

Curious question for you guys in the know.

Our local paper had a picture of a guy with a big cat that was around the 40 lb mark. He supposedly took the fish into town to get pictures and then returned the fish back to the river. I can't help but wonder how long that fish was out of water (half hour to 45 minutes maybe?)

4wanderingeyes might have seen the pic.

What are the odds of this big cat surviving?

[DTro]

they are pretty tough, and if it swam away, it was probably ok.

I don't see the need to keep these big fish, but its a tough cookie to crack to convince them not to keep it.

I agree with the Sturgeon thing, it sure would be nice.

[Gordie]

I guess it all depends on how he transported the fish,weather is a factor.they are a pretty tough fish as DTRO stated.

I think if he hauled it in some sort of tank or barrel filled with water it should have been alright but if it was handled roughly and in and out of the water a bunch of times hot temps list can go on .

and you probally can figure this out for you self, if it was just tossed in the back of a pickup truck and it was 85 plus degrees out and it wouldnt even have to be that hot picked up and handled shown to all the buddies at the bar then hauled back to were he got it. probally not good.

[Mike Steckelberg]

I don't agree with keeping any species of big fish either, but as you all know there are some people that just either don't understand the why or just don't care about the impact it has on fisheries when they harvest big fish. I myself will not keep any catfish over the 3 to 4lb mark and most the time I release everything I catch.

[rushing]

What gets me is that you can go out and catch bunches of little ones 5-15lbs, why not take home a couple of 10lbers instead of the one big fish? I dont eat fish but I cant fault someone for wanting too but why not keep a couple of smaller ones?

What REALLY P's me off is when I hear about people coming up from other states and catching and KEEPING as many big flats as they can catch.

[ec30_06]

I really like the one fish a year over X amount of inches Idea. Then again, how many people that keep big flats read the regs.

[2hounds]

I was also a lil hot over a situation on Pool 2 last night.

I saw a family pulling in about a half dozen NICE Cats.

They didnt intend to keep them and they werent intending to release them also. One of the members walked around asking if anyone wanted the fish in which I replied." Maybe you should just release them?".. So instead of just releasing them -they said maybe they would know somebody at home that would like them.

Thats a few more that wont be added to our spawning population.

What can ya do?..What a waste.

[Gordie]

only thing I could think off would be to call tip on a possible wanton waste act and hope it gets taken care of.

its about all you can do

[OIF_Veteran_21B]

Why didn't you offer to take them?

[Slowhand]

Well Elwood, kudos for trying to inform/enlighten others at the landing. I think we are ahead of the curve up here in Minnesota on conservation compared to most states when it comes to regs on flats, but it could definitely be looked at for improvement. One of the key aspects(Why I joined instead of lurking) to this FM site imho is the collective voice that we can generate for our beloved fishery.

[2hounds]

I would have offered to take them if there would have been a chance they would have survived. But after galavanting around with em for a while- there would have been no chance that they would have survived for me to release them.

And dont even get me started on the TIP line..I really want to believe it works. I know it works in some areas..It is a very good thing to have but in my own experiance with usiing it--I have been let down time and time again. We have a catch and release in this area on Pool 2.Kind of a sad situation to see our resources being abused..

[BuckKiller]

I am really getting tired of people trying to tell everyone what they can and cat keep. If the fish was legal leave the guy have it. Ive keep cat fish in the 40 pound range and they tasted great, never thought twice about it either. You keep the fish you want and ill keep the ones I want.

If you came and talked to me about it I would laughed as I threw it in my trunk.

[Slowhand]

If you came and talked to me about it I would laughed as I threw it in my trunk.

40plus flathead slowcooked in a trunk....yum.

[broken_line]

amen nothing like someone telling you what cant be kept even if its legal! grrrrr i fish for food and when i have enough food then i will c and r.. it kinda tickes me off when people are like why are you keeping that bass makes you kinda want to take a chunk out of the fish and be like this is why!

[Alagnak]

Ive keep cat fish in the 40 pound range and they tasted great, never thought twice about it either.

[Here-Kitty-Kitty]

I really didnt want a confrintation over it

Gordie next time call me. I will come down and take that fish out of the boat and put it back in the water without hesitation. I can not stand when I see a big fish coming up the ramp.

also for those that keep for food. PLEASE THATS B.S. WE ALL KNOW THAT WHOLE LINE IS A CROCK OF SH*T WHEN IT COMES TO BIG FISH. Take the little ones not the big ones