12-12-2016, 06:27 PM
This seems to be a hot topic. Here are my two cents that are probably worth less than that.
Ice fishing is not having as much of an impact as people are thinking that it does. It is easy to point the finger at ice fishing to be the scapegoat. The hot topic here is the trophy fish, not the amount of fish that are being caught. I would like to see a slot limit of fish that are able to be harvested. I think we need to bump the harvest from 2 to 4 to get those Trophy Fish more to work with food wise. My catch with the greater harvest would be that no fish harvested can be greater than 20 inches. I think if we leave the trophy fish in the lake through release efforts we will see those 10-15 lb fish become more common.
I have ice fished, and I have fished late fall/opener from the boat. The same fish are harvested in the fall or spring that are harvested on the hard deck. People catch that 8 pound fish and have a hard time letting it go. It is their choice either way, but I'd like to see a slot limit that enables the trophy fish to grow even larger. To me, I'd rather have a great picture than a meal. The bigger fish don't taste as good as those cookie cutters anyway=). But that is just me, and everyone gets to make that choice when those big fish of a lifetime are in hand.
I don't agree that the people catching the fish on the hard deck would not have the same success in the fall or early spring on the open water. In my opinion, I don't see a difference in locating a group of willing takers on the ice or by anchoring a boat on top of a productive area. Ice fishing you drop your offering into the zone and wait for a player. The same is done from the boat. And yes, that applies to fly fishing (I do both) as well. Fishing a double or triple choronomid combination under a strike indicator is basically the same thing as dropping something down the hole and waiting. Both effective. Stripping a leach takes just as much skill as perfecting a good effective twitch with a needle fish. I get tired of the fly fishing community scoffing at the lure fisherman, and vice versa. We are doing the same thing to entice the fish but with different methods.
I'd also be a fan of going artificial only. Daniel's Reservoir does that and they still have pretty decent catch rates. I like the fact that when you hook fish on artificials you have a better chance of a clean release. The fish don't tend to swallow the artificial gear as hard. I might take some heat for that suggestion, but its just one opinion and to each their own.
Bottom line is we are fortunate to have such a quality fishery at Henry's lake. Are there things that can be done to improve the fishery? Yes. But are they doing a decent job? Yes. Ice fishing is only done for about a month, and most of the bite is over after the first two weeks of that time. Also, people have been ice fishing Henry's for a long time. Even before the January 1st closer. Normally you can get a good week or 10 days of good November ice fishing. People have been doing it for a while.
Henry's can be both a family fishery, and a trophy fishery. There is room for both to coexist. I love fighting a trophy fish, but 10 times out of 10 if I have my young kids in the boat or on the ice with me they are going to be the one with the rod in their hands with that fish on the line. If we want to see changes we need to let our departments know. I'm all for a slot limit or artificial. That doesn't mean that everyone needs to think the way that I do. I just think we are all lucky as it is to live where we have a chance to fish places like Henry's or the other hundreds of locations in Idaho.
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Ice fishing is not having as much of an impact as people are thinking that it does. It is easy to point the finger at ice fishing to be the scapegoat. The hot topic here is the trophy fish, not the amount of fish that are being caught. I would like to see a slot limit of fish that are able to be harvested. I think we need to bump the harvest from 2 to 4 to get those Trophy Fish more to work with food wise. My catch with the greater harvest would be that no fish harvested can be greater than 20 inches. I think if we leave the trophy fish in the lake through release efforts we will see those 10-15 lb fish become more common.
I have ice fished, and I have fished late fall/opener from the boat. The same fish are harvested in the fall or spring that are harvested on the hard deck. People catch that 8 pound fish and have a hard time letting it go. It is their choice either way, but I'd like to see a slot limit that enables the trophy fish to grow even larger. To me, I'd rather have a great picture than a meal. The bigger fish don't taste as good as those cookie cutters anyway=). But that is just me, and everyone gets to make that choice when those big fish of a lifetime are in hand.
I don't agree that the people catching the fish on the hard deck would not have the same success in the fall or early spring on the open water. In my opinion, I don't see a difference in locating a group of willing takers on the ice or by anchoring a boat on top of a productive area. Ice fishing you drop your offering into the zone and wait for a player. The same is done from the boat. And yes, that applies to fly fishing (I do both) as well. Fishing a double or triple choronomid combination under a strike indicator is basically the same thing as dropping something down the hole and waiting. Both effective. Stripping a leach takes just as much skill as perfecting a good effective twitch with a needle fish. I get tired of the fly fishing community scoffing at the lure fisherman, and vice versa. We are doing the same thing to entice the fish but with different methods.
I'd also be a fan of going artificial only. Daniel's Reservoir does that and they still have pretty decent catch rates. I like the fact that when you hook fish on artificials you have a better chance of a clean release. The fish don't tend to swallow the artificial gear as hard. I might take some heat for that suggestion, but its just one opinion and to each their own.
Bottom line is we are fortunate to have such a quality fishery at Henry's lake. Are there things that can be done to improve the fishery? Yes. But are they doing a decent job? Yes. Ice fishing is only done for about a month, and most of the bite is over after the first two weeks of that time. Also, people have been ice fishing Henry's for a long time. Even before the January 1st closer. Normally you can get a good week or 10 days of good November ice fishing. People have been doing it for a while.
Henry's can be both a family fishery, and a trophy fishery. There is room for both to coexist. I love fighting a trophy fish, but 10 times out of 10 if I have my young kids in the boat or on the ice with me they are going to be the one with the rod in their hands with that fish on the line. If we want to see changes we need to let our departments know. I'm all for a slot limit or artificial. That doesn't mean that everyone needs to think the way that I do. I just think we are all lucky as it is to live where we have a chance to fish places like Henry's or the other hundreds of locations in Idaho.
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