02-01-2014, 07:04 AM
[quote Untangler]Could not agree more with Mojo. I respect Matt because I think he is a responsible sportsman and is making an effort to protect fish which is good stuff. That being said, Cascade is a big pond with a bunch of fish and it gets relatively little pressure. Imagine if it was a 90 minute drive from Seattle, Portland or SLC. Even the Idaho Fish & Game Department is trying to get more people to fish it and I hope it happens because the lake can support more fishers and the Cascade economy will benefit.
I am in no way attempting to come off as a fishery expert, because I'm not, but my gut tells me that we have far less impact on the fish population of Cascade, let alone the fish egg population, than we think we do.
It is my opinion that the biggest disservice we can do to Cascade is to harvest more fish than we need and throw them away after they get freezer burned. I agree with the previous posters that an 11" perch is the optimal keeper size and the jumbos are great for photos but are harder to fillet. I fish Cascade a lot and catch more fish than I can eat so, like Matt, have developed my own methods of managing my harvest. If you are going to kill a fish, the least you can do is honor it by eating it.
I make these statements knowing that the haters are going to come out of the woodwork to correct or educate me but that is the beauty of both BFT and the First Amendment so bring it.
Truly yours,
Eric[/quote]
Well stated Eric. You know me I'm good at catching eater fish but rarely do I catch jumbos. I do get lucky once in awhile but for us it's all about eater fish. And yes I have no problem eating the smaller ones and actually prefer them. My freezer is well stocked with fish and game so last week I kept 1 trout and Avery"s one big perch. Both ate well the following night. My wife, the freezer manager, even told me not to bring home fish. I don't hear that often and it's not because we have excessive perch by any means. We don't waste fish to freezer burn but we do eat a ton of fish a year. 52 wks x 3.5 days x 3 lbs a day = 546 lbs. of different species we eat a year. OK not a ton but we eat a lot of fish a year. Do I think I effect the Perch at Cascade? Not at all. I don't fish it enough, it's a big pond, don't catch enough jumbos and only take what will be used. But if I was good or lucky and kept 546 lbs of jumbos each year I think that would have a negative effect on the population. Keep all the smalls you want and enjoy them at the table. If you get lucky and slay the big jumbos think about tossing some of them back. Your kids will thank you.
Rod
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I am in no way attempting to come off as a fishery expert, because I'm not, but my gut tells me that we have far less impact on the fish population of Cascade, let alone the fish egg population, than we think we do.
It is my opinion that the biggest disservice we can do to Cascade is to harvest more fish than we need and throw them away after they get freezer burned. I agree with the previous posters that an 11" perch is the optimal keeper size and the jumbos are great for photos but are harder to fillet. I fish Cascade a lot and catch more fish than I can eat so, like Matt, have developed my own methods of managing my harvest. If you are going to kill a fish, the least you can do is honor it by eating it.
I make these statements knowing that the haters are going to come out of the woodwork to correct or educate me but that is the beauty of both BFT and the First Amendment so bring it.
Truly yours,
Eric[/quote]
Well stated Eric. You know me I'm good at catching eater fish but rarely do I catch jumbos. I do get lucky once in awhile but for us it's all about eater fish. And yes I have no problem eating the smaller ones and actually prefer them. My freezer is well stocked with fish and game so last week I kept 1 trout and Avery"s one big perch. Both ate well the following night. My wife, the freezer manager, even told me not to bring home fish. I don't hear that often and it's not because we have excessive perch by any means. We don't waste fish to freezer burn but we do eat a ton of fish a year. 52 wks x 3.5 days x 3 lbs a day = 546 lbs. of different species we eat a year. OK not a ton but we eat a lot of fish a year. Do I think I effect the Perch at Cascade? Not at all. I don't fish it enough, it's a big pond, don't catch enough jumbos and only take what will be used. But if I was good or lucky and kept 546 lbs of jumbos each year I think that would have a negative effect on the population. Keep all the smalls you want and enjoy them at the table. If you get lucky and slay the big jumbos think about tossing some of them back. Your kids will thank you.
Rod
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