Would You Harvest on bamboo under these conditions?

[JoeBolt]

An interesting emergency order from Utah for our Western anglers... What's the mood? Is this a chance to eat wild trout like our forebears did - with fewer ethical dilemmas?

Quadrupling the limit of kept trout on large part of Duchesne watershed, from 4 to 16... Pre-rotenone fish eradication, in prep for cutthroat restoration later this season. It has honorable goals bumping up against a timeline.

I'm posting it here crassly as a catch & cook.
Are brown trout the bigger offender here? I'll never catch a big Western brown of game size. And certainly not to eat. I assume this scene will grow into a circus to be avoided, but Local thoughts are important. I'm curious whether a motivation to contribute ecologically turns into (hypothetical) pan-fried magic.

https://kutv.com/news/local/fishing-eme ... r-director

[RMorrison]

I don’t understand the question.

[JoeBolt]

Somebody will catch and eat (invasive) Utah trout before they sacrifice the entire selected watershed to rotenone.

Calling All Anglers to catch and keep.

Q: Would you fish bamboo in order to check a few boxes on your life list; like putting up some fresh fish in these modern times, under newly-approved rules?

Catch & Cook is boyhood fantasy to me, like My Side Of The Mountain stuff. People closer to the action may have interesting thoughts.

[gaddis]

I don’t get the bamboo connection. If these are fish that are going to removed with Rotenone, then you may as well catch some of them for dinner if you’re a fish eater. (I’m not.)

[RMorrison]

Yeah that’s why I asked. Of course I’m catching and keeping fish to eat if they’re going to end up dead anyway. Don’t know that it matters what rod you use. All the old greats I fish built their rods with fishing to eat them in mind.

[BigTJ]

My life list for fishing bamboo fly rods does not including keeping a limit of 14 trout a day. So no. But if that’s your “boyhood fantasy” then it seems like a perfect opportunity for you to go for it.

At this stage in the game the only time catch and kill makes sense for me is hatchery steelhead or stunted brookies when backpacking.

John

[RMorrison]

Cmon John. Now you’re just being contrarian. These fish are about to poisoned out. 14 is a lot. But put a few in the freezer. This would clearly be another time when catch and kill makes sense.

[rsagebrush]

Frozen fish, yech!, but I would take what I could eat for dinner. In fact when camping I keep some fish as an appetizer for dinner, no harm in that, but that doesn't happen much anymore nowadays.

The place would be a complete circus and if I was in the area I think I would avoid it. If I did I would probably use deep diving rapalas for the big ones anyway. I think there will be a lot of litter to clean up after the event, so sad.

[RMorrison]

It’s not sad. They are doing this to re-establish a native cutthroat trout population. Jesus you guys are glass half empty downers sometimes. It’s some short term pain for a long term wild native fishery. And part of that is encouraging guys kill and eat some fish. Fish that will end up in the trash otherwise.

[Brooks]

I play my best guitar even if I’m going to kill the song.

[JoeBolt]

I play my best guitar even if I’m going to kill the song

Well said!

[BigTJ]

Rich I was being sincere / not a contrarian. 100% true my life list doesn’t include killing 14 trout. 100% true I support anybody who has fantasized about getting out there to whack and stack ‘em to go for it. It’s for a good cause.

[BSAGuy]

Yes, catch them on bamboo, fiberglass, or graphite, but catch and eat 'em before they just get killed off.

[rsagebrush]

I was referring to the inevitable litter, not the fish.

[DrLogik]

Now the question becomes do you fish catch & release (to a frying pan) with a barbed or de-barbed hook? Oh the moral dilemma! rofl...

[steeliefool]

Bamboo has nothing to do with it. If you're a local, harvest away and what you don't consume, plant in the garden. Native species need help for sure and it appears to be easier with a clean slate. I think dead fish will certainly feed everything else in the stream.
Here in Jersey we just poison the glacial lakes to eliminate all the species! We also gas Canada geese!

[NshTrtBum]

Yes!

[wiscoy]

I play my best guitar even if I’m going to kill the song.

these are the times I wish this board had a like button

[Hellmtflies]

I dunno. Fishing is still a blood sport like it or not. To me though, the poisoning out of these steams here in the west is nothing more than a make work project for the fish & game agencies. They want to kill off all "Invasive Species" to return a given stream to what was there originally. Take Grayling Creek in YNP, they poisoned it out a dozen years ago to replace it with West Slope Cutthroats and Grayling. It has failed terribly. The same with the upper Gibbon. Some of the best creeks around before they killed them off. It was ripe with good sized browns and rainbows or brookies. So, my question is are they going to try to kill off other species like Black Angus cows to replace them with Bisson. Or perhaps kill off all non-native humans like Caucasians, African Americans, Asians and Spanish to replace them with nothing but Native Americans? Where will it end? These creeks that have been sterilized had some awesome fishing prior to the killings. Who really cares what species of trout one is catching anyway? Does catching a replacement Cutthroat offer any better fishing than a wild brown or brookie? Does any visiting tourist here in the west care? I doubt it. They want to catch trout and don't care what species it is. Hell, most are happy with a whitefish on the line. It's all an attempt to justify the work and positions in the state, county and federal agencies. That's my two cents. IMHO.
Mark

[tyghguy]

Very well said Mark. Your thoughts echo mine and you are better at putting it down in writing.