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Billfish715 03-27-2018 12:08 AM

No Kill Trout Stretches
 
I know I should have gone to the trout meeting with my concerns but family matters kept me close to home. The more I read through the current fishing digest, the more I wonder about why we, as trout fishermen, are being overly regulated. It's been going on for a long time and some things need to be questioned and addressed. One thing that I'd like to have answered involves the stocking of trout in the two "no kill" stretches in the Big Flatbrook and the Ken Lockwood Gorge. Also included in the discussion can be the two year round TCA's. Why are trout being stocked on a weekly schedule in those places when all of the trout must be released when caught? Why are more trout going in when no trout are coming out? Isn't that a waste of money and fish? Can't those fish be released elsewhere? At that rate, the guys who fish in the Lake Solitude Club won't have to stock any trout of their own. There will be plenty of the overflow trout from the Gorge swimming down to their property. There is no need to restock the no kill stretches every week unless fishermen are allowed to take trout out.

What is the reasoning behind stocking those stretches every week? There has to be some politics or special interest groups at work here. Can anyone share the Division's mission statement about its trout stocking program with us?

thmyorke1 03-27-2018 06:57 AM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
You did not miss the trout meeting, they cancelled it and did not reschedule.

From my understanding klg is sort of a super-river in the eyes of the state. When you think of nj trout fishing, you think if the klg and that's exactly what the state wants, as the gorge is not only a fishing spot but a tourist attraction.

With this idea, that means the state is going to stock it over a reasonable capacity so that it maintains that "#1 trout fishing spot in Nj" attribute.

Klg is stocked heavily because the state wants to impress their guest anglers.

In my perspective, returning back to your previous thread, it would be a great wild trout stream stretch but i feel like the stockings actually have driven out the wild population there, directly by competition or indirectly by all the predatory birds that recognize the gorge.

Imo if somewhere is no kill, then it should be no stock.

Billfish715 03-27-2018 08:09 AM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
The general trout public has to continue to ask questions of the Fish and Game Council members. They are the ones who vote on any regulation changes or omissions. So, if any of the council members are lurking on this board, please answer the concerns of those in the general trout fishing public. The special interest groups ( especially the salmonidically correct ) might be well funded and vocal, but they pay the same license fees as an average fisherman; and, there are more average fisherman than those in the special groups. If I want to take my five year old son trout fishing in the Ken Lockwood Gorge; and I want him to use a worm and a bobber; why am I not allowed to do it? My license fee paid for those trout as much as someone else's. If you want to issue a usage fee for no kill waters, by all means do so. With that I have no problem. If you want exclusivity with regulations that suit you, then pay for it.......exclusively. Maybe then we'll see just how important and cost effective regulating those stretches will be. Just an idea.........or is it?

So, what is the mission statement? Why are trout stocked on a weekly basis in the no kill stretches and the year round TCA's ( Which are basically no kill waters.)? How much more productive will those beats be to natural brown and brook trout reproduction if left unstocked? It seems that a major goal is to restore natural trout production in NJ waters. How, then, is stocking ( especially rainbow trout ) helping in that goal?

thmyorke1 03-27-2018 08:26 AM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Billfish715 (Post 504417)
It seems that a major goal is to restore natural trout production in NJ waters. How, then, is stocking ( especially rainbow trout ) helping in that goal?

That is a goal, but another goal is to give good fishing opportunities to the high demand of anglers in NJ, which is done by stocking waters.

If there were no trout stockings, then the fishing pressure on wild trout would be too high. No matter the regulations. Waters that wouldnt normally hold wild trout get stocked trout, and fishing pressure is directed away.

The state avoids stocking trout where there are wild trout populations. We just saw an extension on the South Branch and a few other waters like Rockaway Creek S/B, where they are no longer stocking trout so that their wild populations can increase.

I believe there can be plenty more extensions to the WTS program. But progress is being made.

Chrisper4694 03-27-2018 11:58 AM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
honestly, in short, the vast regulations are super over complicated...I, for one, am not doing 10 minutes of research every time i want to fish a new stream in NJ to try to figure out the rules...

If the sign where i go fishing doesn't have the rules on it, then i'm fishing as per usual, simple as that.

Drossi 03-27-2018 12:01 PM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
There are plenty of other good or better places to fish for trout in NJ besides KLG or the precious (:rolleyes:) TCA's. Places that fall under general regulations (gasp!). Stop whining over a few places that are stocked regularly that fall under special regs. Besides they are useful in that they keep the a-holes concentrated in easily avoided areas, leaving the rest of the waters relatively uncrowded.

Super 03-27-2018 03:47 PM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
2% of NJ's stocked rivers have special regulations. Don't know why everyone makes such a big deal about it.

Drossi 03-27-2018 04:24 PM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Super (Post 504447)
2% of NJ's stocked rivers have special regulations. Don't know why everyone makes such a big deal about it.

Couldn't agree more. If I fish one of them more than 2 times a season that's a lot. And I pretty much fly fish every time out, yet I can find better fishing without crowds elsewhere. I never did understand why everyone gets so hung up on KLG, Pequest, Pt Mtn, or Flatbrook TCA's. There are equally pretty places to fish besides them with as good fish populations and no restrictions (or large populations of dbags).

Even back in the day when I fished bait and KLG had that couple of week open period for all tackle, I never went near it. Too many jerkoffs in there.

AndyS 03-27-2018 06:21 PM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
The 2.5 mile KLG only gets 3000 trout in the spring and heap more in the fall.
I asked a few TU groups why so many fish in a NO KILL section, they replied by saying "Oh, we have birds of prey eating all the fish"

thmyorke1 03-27-2018 06:53 PM

Re: No Kill Trout Stretches
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by AndyS (Post 504453)
The 2.5 mile KLG only gets 3000 trout in the spring and heap more in the fall.
I asked a few TU groups why so many fish in a NO KILL section, they replied by saying "Oh, we have birds of prey eating all the fish"

No doubt KLG has a lot of birds.

But arent there so many birds because it's filled to the brim?

There's a point where there's too much trout. Where it starts actually harming the fishery rather than make it better. Consequences of overpopulation; disease spreads easier, less food to go around, etc, and in this example a bigger presence of predators.


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