Incident at Monksville....Good Information For Us All

[catfishonthelake]

I just wanted to share something that happened at Monksville yesterday so that people can be on the lookout for stuff like this and know that the state will respond. My buddy was out on Monksville yesterday when he saw a large group of people on shore near a raft and in front of them in the water were 3soda bottles holding up a 100-foot gill net. He called me up and I looked up the number for the DEP. When I contacted the DEP, they immediately sent someone over. It took them a few minutes to get there, but by that time the group was freaked out enough to hop in raft and paddle back to the North Launch, leaving the net. The CO called me back and said it was alright for my buddy, who had some help at this point, to retrieve the net and bring it the launch where they were holding the people. My buddy set free a 5 pound walleye that had become ensnared in the net (after only an hour or so of the net being in the water) and then brought the net to the launch area. They could not prove the net belonged the the group (even though they knew it was), but they gave them a bunch of tickets for not having life jackets and hopefully scared them enough to not do it again.

Very big props to my buddy for taking action and a very big thank-you to the NJDEP for responding. This should be a lesson to everyone to keep your eyes and open and to call the state, as your calls will not be disregarded.

Here is the number for DEP Hotline 877-927-6337

[Eskimo]

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That's so bizarre.
What kind of people would run a long gill net through a reservoir?

I ALWAYS keep my digital camera handy when I'm fishing. It's not only for taking pictures of exceptional fish, but to document anything strange or illegal I see other people doing when I'm out on the water.

[AndyS]

I think a lot of people fishing in New Jersey are starting to get discouraged and are giving up on the sport.
Again I saw people taking cooler loads of pan fish out of Split Rock Res yesterday.
I saw people pulling a seine net across the North Branch last summer, spanned the entire width of the river.
Last fall I saw people cast netting the deep pools on the Raritan river.
Thanx for making the call.

[FASTEDDIE29]

Good stuff!!!

[Big Steve]

Write them up. It only takes a few jerks to ruin it for the whole fishing community.

[Skunk City]

Wow, what a bunch of disrespectful morons. The quality of scum we have in this state never ceases to amaze me! Glad you guys did something about it, as I hope EVERYONE on here would. That being said....

....Why the hell would they choose Monksville??!! A'int no fish in that lake!!!!

[njbassman]

nice to hear about the quick response... one question, where the walleye come from? Ain't no fish in that reservoir... skunksville!!!!

[Mikey topaz]

Andy think ur exactly right they just givin up

[CadiShackFishing]

I can't believe how lazy these morans are. I guess their thinking is as long as they don't get caught it is ok. I put the number in my cell so i have it handy. Thanks for the info.

[gwl2oneida]

I called Dec in NY to check gwl more often.tired of the bucket brigade/buffalo hunters.

[lunkertaker]

unlawful if just that...unlawful and a violation subject to current laws. Catch these violators or report them when seen

[Wilson]

While not as an atrocious act, I saw a guy launch one of these things at RVR on Sunday.
What kills me is there is guy at the entrance to the boat ramp checking for fishing licences or you don't get in.
On my way out I tell the guy that he let a someone in with like a 50 hp motor.
His response....well he had a fishing licence.....DOH

[Polelock]

While not as an atrocious act, I saw a guy launch one of these things at RVR on Sunday.

If he was turned away at the gate, rangers would be unable to write him a ticket... :D

Have the phone # saved and use it when someone is breaking the law...

[dopderbeck]

Good call!

There are 5 pound Walleye in there? Close to shore?? Wow.

[Wilson]

If he was turned away at the gate, rangers would be unable to write him a ticket... :D

Have the phone # saved and use it when someone is breaking the law...
I would of thought the guy at the road block checking licences would of thought of that:confused:

[thefishermanmechanic]

This doesn't surprise me, I've seen huge bass poached out of monks vile and people swimming just off the 50' wide boat ramp where you couldn't launch for fear of hurting someone! I must say though its getting worse! ;-(

[lunkertaker]

Seriously, has the end of time come that folks really need to resort to these extreme harvesting techniques. If I ever see such a violation who do ya call EDP or F&G?

[Rickhem]

I used to do a lot of surf fishing and there is some of this same kind of mentality with the laws governing that environment as well. People keeping short stripers and fluke, people crabbing off the bay piers and filling up coolers with undersize crabs, and the guys that catch sea robins and skates, then just throw them up onto the sand and let them die. The general consensus as to how to deal with them was to put the number for Operation Game Thief in our cell phones....877-927-6337.
Some guys would complain that the poachers would leave before the enforcement people arrived, but if you can offer information like boat registration numbers, or a license plate number, they do follow up on it.

[jimmythegreek]

good job catfish! I got a pair of bucketeers on Thanksgiving day in LH for keeping an undersize musky. They were in a dows rental and gaffed a low 30s fish. After a call from park police to a local game warden he waited at lauries and nailed them, i gave my personal info to help testify but they ended up pleading out. Too bad those scumbags at monksville werent caught redhanded

[Skunk City]

good job catfish! I got a pair of bucketeers on Thanksgiving day in LH for keeping an undersize musky. They were in a dows rental and gaffed a low 30s fish. After a call from park police to a local game warden he waited at lauries and nailed them, i gave my personal info to help testify but they ended up pleading out. Too bad those scumbags at monksville werent caught redhanded


That's awesome!

[catfishonthelake]

good job catfish! I got a pair of bucketeers on Thanksgiving day in LH for keeping an undersize musky. They were in a dows rental and gaffed a low 30s fish. After a call from park police to a local game warden he waited at lauries and nailed them, i gave my personal info to help testify but they ended up pleading out. Too bad those scumbags at monksville werent caught redhanded

Nice job man! Very nice. We are the eyes and ears for the state. Once people start thinking they're going to get caught, it will happen less. Let's keep getting these guys busted.

[Mark B.]

A plain clothes NJ conservation officer was waking the trail along the Delaware River south of Frenchtown. He came upon a couple of anglers, bank fishing & drinking beer. He, casually, mentioned to them that they should be careful, as they could get fined for having beer there, part of the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park.

“Oh, yeah?”, one of them retorted as he polished off his beer, ”This is what we do!” ,….as he hook shotted the empty into the river.

The CO identified himself, & wrote the wise guy up.

[NorthJerzyG]

He should have offered him one, lol. Especially since the guy was being cool about it.

[catfishonthelake]

Myself, Chris_JC and his brother got Navy Seal-style ambushed by two CO's while night-fishing for kitties near Belvidere on the Big D a few years ago. These guys were probably taking bets how many beer bottles and short fish they were gonna find, but they found no bucket, no alcohol and three guys with valid fishing licenses. Scared the crap out of us though.

[Eskimo]

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Apparently, people used to be able to volunteer to be a Deputy Conservation Officer up until 2009. But for some reason, the state did away with that.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2009/02/state_eliminates_deputy_conser.html


I used to see Conservation Officers working the Delaware Water Gap in the summer when the teeming hordes of city folk are there, but I haven't seen them in a couple of years. I often see the Park Rangers there, but I don't know if they can enforce game laws.

The COs would either pull up in a jon boat or walk up behind you and check your license and look around for booze and stuff. Normally, I would hate that kind of intrusion, but you have to see the amount of nonsense that occurs up at the Gap in the summer to appreciate some well-timed law enforcement.

Checking the NJDEP's website, it appears they only have 55-60 COs. I guess that's why i don't see them very often.


The Division of Fish and Wildlife now employs 55-60 Conservation Officers statewide...

http://www.njfishandwildlife.com/lawhome.htm

[Eskimo]

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I stated this in another thread, but I'll repeat it here.

One way to report wildlife crimes is calling 1-855-OGT-TIPS

OGT is "operation game thief" and then TIPS


http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/images/ogt_tips_logo.jpg