Originally Posted by bulletbob
Gerry-
Right now, if I came down on a PB trip and hung a big 10+ tog, had no other fish that day, no way it would go back.. Maybe,, if there were lets say a 5 fish limit, and I already had 3 or 4 nice fat fish, I would consider it.. Now IF I still lived close by, got out regularly, and had no trouble accessing this fishery on a fairly regular basis, its no longer as unique, and there would be no need to always keep the biggest fish. There always "another day".... So, it all depends on ones personal situation..
At this point in my life, a 5 pound tog would be a rare trophy, that I would love to bring home.
When I lived in NJ, fished for them all the time,it was just "yeah nice one", then tossed in the bucket, and forgotten about quickly.. Just not all that special.
I see guys raving over LL salmon over on the fresh water side all the time here... Thats because they don't come easy in NJ, and are not readily caught by most NJ fresh water guys fishing locally... For me, I could drive to Cayuga, and put some time in casting from shore with a spoon, , jig or big rooster tail, hang a tail walking 8 pounder on any given winter day.. Most NJF guys would consider that a mountable trophy... Me, having caught them even bigger than that would look at it, think "yeah, nice one", unpin it, and keep fishing.....
Like many other NJF members, I release a LOT of my biggest and best catches, because while its nice to hang a nice fish or two, its just not all that big a deal... However, now that I don't have access anymore, the thought of releasing a tog of a truly impressive size is alien to me, because that fish would be a rare, perhaps even once in a lifetime event for me.. I hope this makes sense, and sorry I swerved so far off the path of this original content, but this IS a really interesting discussion!!
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