[StriperChaser1]

Two years ago we were catching 22" to 25" stripers and saying how great the fishing would be in another year or so when the fish would be 30". Now after two days of fishing and catching a lot of fish we're still catching those same 22" to 25" fish. This is not just myself but most friends and people you talk to on the lake. Only three boats at the BISC tournament had legal fish to weigh in.

With all those fish being stocked for the last five years, why have they not grown as was hoped when the size limit was increased to 26"?

The BISC has over 300 listed members. On a beautiful November 1 Saturday afternoon when the lake was full of striper fishermen and the fish are biting there were only (12) boats fishing the BISC tournament. Back when the club was much smaller we would have 20 to 25 boats. Other striper clubs in the southeast USA seem to have a much greater turn out.

Why the lack of participation in the club tournaments by BISC members?

 

[lannyp]

Thanks Buddy for asking a GREAT question. According to the length, weight and age table given to BISC by Vic Dicenzo, it takes 5 yrs to grow a striper 27"-28", 8yrs for 32" and after that it takes 4 more yrs for the fish to grow just 2" more and it takes a whopping 16 yrs to grow a 18lb/ 35" fish. At our age we may never see fish that big in Buggs Island again. In short it takes 6.85 yrs for a fish to grow to 30" long.
They estimate that each year the lake is stocked, half of the fingerlings die from predation and I forget how many more die the next year but I will try to find the figures and post them as well. 351,279 were stocked in 2008 and only half will live the first year. It doesn't take long with all the fishermen after them to catch those that do survive. I would like to see a super stocking program like they did at SML.
Participation in the fall and winter tournaments has steadily declined. A lot of club members deer hunt this time of year and for that reason participation is always slack. I did not fish it because I was working both before and after the tournament. We are starting the sanctuary at First Baptist Church in Creedmoor on Monday and I had loose ends to tie before Monday gets here. At the club meeting on November 15th part of our discussion is going to be on viability of the December tournament. There will be more of the club members fishing in Chesapeake than at Kerr and it will also be suggested having a tournament up there each year. Upon accepting the position of President of the club I made everyone aware that I will be in Chesapeake every December fishing tournaments there with Ramrod and Yogi and other members as well and would not be able to attend the BISC tournament here. Randy Green(vice president) will also be up there during the December tournament so we will be limited to help and participation in that tournament.
I'm like you though buddy, with 300 members you would think participation would be better. Thanks again for a good question and I am looking forward to reading the responses to this one.:yes:
P.S. Were you and Diane at the weigh in? If so you should have come up and hit me or something. I hate I haven't gotten to me the both of you yet. I don't live that far from you so don't be surprized if I stop by and introduce myself.

Two years ago we were catching 22" to 25" stripers and saying how great the fishing would be in another year or so when the fish would be 30". Now after two days of fishing and catching a lot of fish we're still catching those same 22" to 25" fish. This is not just myself but most friends and people you talk to on the lake. Only three boats at the BISC tournament had legal fish to weigh in.

With all those fish being stocked for the last five years, why have they not grown as was hoped when the size limit was increased to 26"?

The BISC has over 300 listed members. On a beautiful November 1 Saturday afternoon when the lake was full of striper fishermen and the fish are biting there were only (12) boats fishing the BISC tournament. Back when the club was much smaller we would have 20 to 25 boats. Other striper clubs in the southeast USA seem to have a much greater turn out.

Why the lack of participation in the club tournaments by BISC members?

 

[StriperChaser1]

Better call ahead, my dogs bite.

 

[lannyp]

I'll be sure to do that. So did ya'll catch fish and were ya'll at weigh in? Oh, you gonna be able to make the meeting on the 15th?

Better call ahead, my dogs bite.

 

[Ramrod2]

IMHO There has always been a low particapation in the fall tX. It would be fine with ne if we just cancel all fall tx. If you think about it it also will save more fish to grow up. Even though it would not be very many.\
My thoughts only, what do you other guys think about it.

Ramrod

 

[StriperChaser1]

Fall Tournaments

11/9/02
28 boats entered, 38 fish weighed for 322 lbs, big fish Rick Ellington 12.13 lbs

10/26/03
31 boats entered, 27 fished wieghed for 201 lbs, big fish Bud Jacobson 10.2 lbs

10/23/04
25 boats entered, no results available

 

[Joy Hansen]

Participation in the fall and winter tournaments has steadily declined. . . . . . There will be more of the club members fishing in Chesapeake than at Kerr and it will also be suggested having a tournament up there each year. . . . .

Hi Lannyp,

Well, I was on the lake for the past several days as well as today (leaving in a few minutes), because the weather is so beautiful as is the scenery. Too inexperienced to catch fish, but we do what we can until I get a trolling motor mounted along with the power source. I'm not a fill freezer type fisherman, just like to fish (just started at 72) and the release is OK.

All this said, it might be nice to fish Chesapeake in December, IF, there's information to be shared with a newbee? Maybe where to look in Tidelfish?

With regard to participation in any club activity, especially when retirees may mkae up the bulk of the participants, there must be a zillion interferrences. Mine ended on June 12 when my Mrs departed. Now, it's just my health concerns that interfere. So, it might be more to do with "the best laid plans . . ." not coming to fruition. Then, Joy T Brew come lately is often right, only to find later that he's mistaken!

Regards, JTB

 

[FIREBALL180]

I think we all know about what is the problem with the lack of fish. We went for years and we all took to many fish out. You could go out and see the same boats out there everyday getting their limit and maybe someone elses too. I don't know the answer but maybe not providing fish for the entire state would help. I know years ago we could catch fish and the next weekend people would bring new people and they would enjoy learning how to catch fish and then they would become regular people fishing every weekend too. I think as the sport grew for many years that the stocking programs were not doing enough and now we have a great amount of new people fishing and the lake just has to much preasure on it now. We also have new equipment (gps,new fish finders, and radios)to help us konw and be able to stay right on a school of fish. It is going to be up to everyone to cut back and for a few of the guys fishing to stop bragging on how many fish that they are catching. For some people they need to stop takin 2 limits. It is going to take everyone to work together and we may not see it get back the way it was before in our lifetime.

As for the tournaments there are lots of people in our club that don't care about any tournaments but are in the club for other reasons. We ask for new members but when we get lots of new members that increases more preasure on the lake. I don't know the answer unless the stocking problems can catch up with the preasure that is being put on the lake now. It is going to take everyone working together to help fix the problem.

 

[lannyp]

Joy,
If you want to go fishing in December we would love to have you fish with us. We figure our expenses to cost $125.00 per person per day. This merely helps with the expense of bait($1.50 each for eels)which we carry a dozen per fisherman on the boat, gas, oil, entry to boat parking, fees for crossing the CBBT, etc..... and we have a six pak fishing license which covers everyone one the boat. It is illegal to guide or charge for carrying someone fishing up there unless you have your Captains license. You can look on this section of the tidalfish message boardshttp://www.tidalfish.com/forums/chesapeake-angler-original-board-maryland-angler/ and see people posting threads for "HO"s wanted" for a specific date in the near future. HO's is short for help out's. These are people that are both looking for help outs and some are guiding under this guise because they don't have their Captains license.
I am really sorry to hear about your Mrs. I'm sure you and your daughter miss her terribly. Fishing has certainly been a source of release for me in the past when I lost loved ones and yet it also brings back memories of these same people now.
I would be happy to share my thimble full of knowledge with you any time I am fishing Kerr or Chesapeake (except during a tournament):hysterical: you know what I mean. Anyway, weather permitting we will be there from December 1st-31st with the exception of Christmas and bad weather. We are fishing a toys for tots tournament the 12th-14th and we are going to try to have any of our club members join in a tournament up there on the 6th when our club tournament is being held on Kerr.
Anyway stay in touch and we will get together. Thanks!
Lanny

Participation in the fall and winter tournaments has steadily declined. . . . . . There will be more of the club members fishing in Chesapeake than at Kerr and it will also be suggested having a tournament up there each year. . . . .

Hi Lannyp,

Well, I was on the lake for the past several days as well as today (leaving in a few minutes), because the weather is so beautiful as is the scenery. Too inexperienced to catch fish, but we do what we can until I get a trolling motor mounted along with the power source. I'm not a fill freezer type fisherman, just like to fish (just started at 72) and the release is OK.

All this said, it might be nice to fish Chesapeake in December, IF, there's information to be shared with a newbee? Maybe where to look in Tidelfish?

With regard to participation in any club activity, especially when retirees may mkae up the bulk of the participants, there must be a zillion interferrences. Mine ended on June 12 when my Mrs departed. Now, it's just my health concerns that interfere. So, it might be more to do with "the best laid plans . . ." not coming to fruition. Then, Joy T Brew come lately is often right, only to find later that he's mistaken!

Regards, JTB

 

[Rip N Drag]

Well I agree with Fireball for the most part. Until people realize or decide to give a **** about what there doing to the lake by taking so many fish, things will only get worse. It seems like every time I'm out all you ever hear people say is how many they did or didnt put in the cooler.I realize some people are going to keep some fish sometimes, but theres to many being kept.Not to mention the summertime slaughterfest that takes place every year. People fishing all summer long,several days a week, are just as to blame as others. The mortality rate during the summer is horrible and everybody knows it. The biggest problem is, the people who do this know what there doing, they just dont give a damn so I dont see things changing. JMO

 

[vikingbud]

Gadget and myself fished thursday, friday, and in the tourn. saturday. We caught 30 to 40 fish a day, with a total of 110. We had 6 keepers total. We did have 3 nice fish saturday, but we caught them at 2:30 to 3:00pm, and of coarse the tournament was over by then. I agree with striper chaser. We were catching these same size fish 2 years ago. The reason your not getting any entries is because people cant catch a keeper fish. After you spend $200 to $300 dollars fishing for a few days, it gets on you some. I love catching and releasing, but I believe if you change the regulations to 2 fish at 24", and 2 more if they are over 26" in the winter season. This would change my mind on comming up there. The fall tourneys are a great time to catch fish, and have a great time. Its time that the people that live bait fish get treated with the same courtesy as the trollers and jiggers in the summer. If people believe they have a chance to catch some fish that they can keep, you will see your participation go up. Whats with having a weigh in at 3pm, when you have to load your boat and drive for 15-30 minutes. We use to have it at 4pm. 6 hours of fishing isnt much time.

Shaky Jake

 

[ashman]

What is the goal?

I think that this dialog is very interesting. It poses some very good questions about the mission of the club. Is there a desire to just make the fishery at Buggs better at certain times of year? Are there real biological goals that be reached? I personally love to fish for stripers at Buggs. The fall and early winter offer some very enjoyable times for me personally. The pursuit and the catch of these fish are awesome. The tournaments have been fun, too. I have a couple of first place trophys that I cherish. But these new rules on the size and quantity limits do not really seem to be making a difference as Budman noted. If we are going to improve the fishery it is going to take more than the effort that has been put forth so far. I agree that the post about the slaughter of fish in the summer. It does not make sense that a 4 fish no size limit in the summer continue. You do not see dead stripers floating in the fall and winter. Doing the right thing is hard some times.

On the good news side, I did see the most smaller stripers (8-15") this year(later summer) than I have EVER seen. Maybe the rules need some more time to make a difference? Maybe the rules need to be changed? Or maybe some common sense can be practiced without the need for more official rules?

 

[vikingbud]

Gadget and myself fished thursday through saturday, and caught well over a 100 fish. We averaged 30-40 fish a day, and getting 1 to 2 keepers a day. I agree with striperchaser. We are catching the same size fish we did 2 years ago, and they are just under the size limit. We must have caught 50-60 24-25" fish. The reason people are not fishing in the tournaments is that they know they cant catch a keeper fish in 1 out of 10 trips. Who wants to spend the money and keep doing that. I have always backed catch and release, but the live baiters and casters need to be treated with the same courtesy as the trollers and jiggers in the summer time. The limit should be adjusted to allowing 2 fish of at least 22-24 inches, and the other 2 have to be over 26". This would give people some reward and something to look forward to. If you want tournament participation, there has to be some changes. We did catch two 30 inch fish, and one 28" fish saturday, but they were caught way too late in the day. We caught them between 2:30 pm and 3:00 pm, and we did not have to time to get to the weigh in.

shaky jake

 

[Rip N Drag]

"I have always backed catch and release, but the live baiters and casters need to be treated with the same courtesy as the trollers and jiggers in the summer time."

I have seen you write this a couple of times now and im still not postitive I understand what that means, can you clarify? Maybe I'm just missing a local thing I dunno lol

 

[vikingbud]

The fisherman from June 1 through Sept. 30 can keep 4 fish a day with no size limit. You can catch fish live baiting during this time, but its rough sometimes keeping your bait alive, and the fish are schooled pretty tight and moving. Your odds right now of catching a keeper are basically 1 in 10. thats not very good odds. I do believe in catch and release, and have been practicing it for many years, but I also enjoy striper on the table. I am not a big fan of the heat of the summer, and enjoy the fall and winter fishing more. I also work some long hours in the summer, so the fall and winter thing works better for me. It would be nice if we could keep a couple for table fare. I believe 24" would be a decent size for that, and then make the next two have to be 26" or more. Hope that helps rip n drag

shaky

 

[StriperChaser1]

I agree with Shaky. I enjoy eating stripers and those fish we've been catching would have been keepers three years ago. I hardly fish for stripers during the hot months but once the first frost shows on the pumpkins I try to go at least once per week for about a half day. With gas prices these days I sure hate not being able to bring a few home for filets. I fully supported the new laws to increase the size limit but when it was enacted, just like now we were catching plenty fish just under the 26" limit and I just assumed within a year or two all those would be over 26". I'm just not seeing that happen. I like the idea of 2 @ 24" and the next two over 26". Most of the fish being released now through spring survive to be caught another day. All those caught during the summer end up being catfish food. The VDGIF idea to keep the first four fish any size during the summer then quit fishing for stripers had great intentions but it’s just not happening. All you have to do in the summer is listen to the VHF or read the posts on the message boards about how many are getting caught day in and day out through the summer. The only way to affect the size of the stripers will be to just ban striper fishing during the hot months. That would be fine with me but there are a lot of trollers and jiggers that don’t live bait fish in the cooler months who would be very unhappy, so it’s not going to happen.

 

[JBee]

Sounds like a good plan

Shaky's plan sounds reasonable. One of the reasons I fished Jordan was it's pretty easy to get some fish for the table and I have less guilt knowing I'm not taking a potential spawner like you would at Kerr. I got a lot of flack a couple years back from the JLSC for calling Jordan a put and take fishery but that's what it is, nothing there is going to spawn and stockings will always replace anything harvested!

Like Buddy, I wonder when we are going to see the results of the rule change? According to the ramp surveys less and less people are targeting stripers and the stockings should be yeilding some real trophies by now, what gives?

 

[vikingbud]

I am with you buddy and jbee. I thought that a couple of years ago, that this would really help the fishery for the future, but I believe all it is doing is making good for the summer months when they take alot of fish out of the lake. If they want to be fair, allow 2 fish a day all year. In the summer months there would be no size limit, but when you get to Oct through June, bump it up to 24". Or if they want to keep the the same limits in the summer, let the fall and winter season be 2 @ 24" and 2 more if they are over 26".

shaky

 

[ashman]

I like the new ideas being posted, too. Doing the right thing is doing the right thing. Otherwise, all that is being done is making the situation better for a few. I guess if we are members then we should all make the effort to attend the next BISC meeting!

 

[StriperChaser1]

Problem is the BISC does not make the regulations, only suggestions. Doubt that the VDGIF would make another regulation change so soon without giving it several more years to see what happens. Those 24" fish still pull pretty good and there seems to be plenty of them. Maybe this new abundance of threadfin shad in the lake will make them grow a little faster. Then again there's always Lake Gaston and Jordan Lake. We do have other options.