# Bluefish restrictions in NC



## dbaugus (Oct 4, 2019)

Just heard the bluefish restrictions take effect February 1st in North Carolina according to Carolina Sportsman. https://www.carolinasportsman.com/f...ish-limit-for-nc-anglers-being-reduced-feb-1/


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## dbaugus (Oct 4, 2019)

I mean how in the hell do they expect me to make fish dip with only 3 blues?


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## Gorge (Jun 13, 2017)

Catch bigger blues :beer:


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## dbaugus (Oct 4, 2019)

Gorge said:


> Catch bigger blues :beer:


Bigger blues taste different though...


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

Just like the flounder and other fish. We pay the price while the commercial fishery’s rape the hell out of the ocean. Last October when I wasn’t allowed to keep flounder I seen several small boats in the back bays stringing nets across the entire channel. Commercial flounder netting they said. Well that’s nice. Rape away while we pay the price.


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

Yeah it's total BS.


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## pern (Apr 15, 2009)

Gone will be the days of bluefish stacked on the piers. I like throwing them over my shoulder then loading the cooler up.


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## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

Papa-T said:


> Just like the flounder and other fish. We pay the price while the commercial fishery’s rape the hell out of the ocean. Last October when I wasn’t allowed to keep flounder I seen several small boats in the back bays stringing nets across the entire channel. Commercial flounder netting they said. Well that’s nice. Rape away while we pay the price.


Exactly what price are you paying? If you are a recreational angler as are most on this site you fish for fun. You can not wait a few years to let the species rebound?

If you are a commercial fishermen you fish for a living in some cases and in others a way to supplement a living to be able to live near the Ocean and Sounds.

If you are a recreational fisherman who fishes Hatteras for Drum, then it would seem like you depend on the commercial fishermen to fill up the bait coolers at the tackle shops.

If you praise having fresh mullet and fatback on one hand and condemn the same exact fisherman for being allowed to take flounder when it is permitted, does that make you a hypocrite or does it just make you self centered?

There are perhaps less than 100 in total commercial fishermen who live on Hatteras. Perhaps a 100 more that participate in the Shrimp and Winter Trawl fishery out of Wanchese and Englehard and perhaps 50-60 who longline.

As I recollect 2.5 Million people come each year to Cape Hatteras National Seashore, so which side likely has contributed more to loss of water habitat like Eel grass decimation due to decreased water clarity and and E-Coli contamination of both the Ocean Front and the Sounds? The 260 Commercials or the 2.5Mil Tourists?

When I was a kid in the 1960's I could stand in water chest deep at the Wright Memorial Bridge clear enough see my feet whilst I wiggled my toes to locate the abundant clams, the Eel Grass covered the flats. 

50 years later the water under the Wright Memorial Bridge has more of the characteristics of a septic tank both in color and bacteria counts.

Did the 260 Hatteras Commercials ruin the water, or was it the offal of millions of swine raised upstream, and byproduct of millions of humans wanting to live in the Piedmont?

At the moment I live 100's of miles away from the Ocean, in my freezer are vacuum sealed Mahi Mahi and Ahi steaks, caught offshore somewhere along the Gulf Stream by young men taking risks that most recs would not find acceptable for their Son's and Daughters.

At one time the Rodanthe Midgetts let me fish with them, and I am forever grateful for the experience and am more than willing to speak up for their interests.


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

You have no idea the impact of commercial fishing versus recreational fishing. Also I've never heard of a single commercial fishery do anything to give back to the fishery it's 100% take for them. At least 5% of recs participate in some form of helping the fishery. How does someone deserve more right to a natural resource then someone else just because they sell it? Especially if that resourcea is in need of recovery. If their still allowed to decimate the fishery it won't recover and then limits will be zero and the fishery will only be good in stories of the past. There are plenty of other ways to make money, and there is no way you can convince me that is the only way for them to make a living. Agricultural and developmental impacts are a hole other story and argument.


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## NC KingFisher (Nov 20, 2011)

40inch reds, I'd suggest you do some research. Shrimpers are a huge issue, not as much in the OBX as SENC. As well as "recreational" filling 5 gallon buckets with whatever they catch. See alot more of that than responsible catch and release. Don't see alot of commercial guys going specifically for blues, in again sweeps the recreational crowd. Its a multi part issue, but by pulling the card you are you show ignorance and lack of knowledge.


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

Ok


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

Garboman said:


> If you praise having fresh mullet and fatback on one hand and condemn the same exact fisherman for being allowed to take flounder when it is permitted, does that make you a hypocrite or does it just make you self centered?


I catch my own bait. I don’t need to buy it. And the negative decline on flounders isn’t because of recreational fisherman it’s due to commercial. Anyone knows that. I mean stopping recreational fisherman from being able to keep flounder and blues but at the same time allowing commercial raping and decimating of the same species is stupid.


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

First your thinking small scale commercial fishing like hook and line. Net boats like shrimp trawlers and the menhaden boats do the big damage. I've been on shrimp boats and have seen the by-catch my self. If the damage has been done and it needs to recover it makes no sense that this guy can keep more then the other because he's a charter or commercial. There are plenty of other fish to target. It's the guys that are professionals that are good at what they do that catch the most fish and then add in they are put there like everyday and multiple trips per day. Now I'm sure you heard the saying that 90% of the fish get caught by 10% of fishers, that 10% isn't the guy with a bucket. Most rec guys don't fill the "bucket" full like you and your locals do. You show your ignorance by thinking this is just a NC thing, they hit most of the east coast with the same limit. In other areas the blue fish commercial and charter business is pretty strong.


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

" In other areas the blue fish commercial and charter business is pretty strong." Same here.. As a matter of fact,the bluefish here, is the backbone of the inshore charter.. There are many reg com vs rec I'm not in agreement with,this is one that could have been thrown in the dumpster as far as most are concerned.. You can argue till you are blue in the face about com vs rec.. It is what cca and many other anti fishing groups THRIVE on.. CCA is in bed with most of those groups that would have you put up your rods and reels,oh wait that will be AFTER they get rid of nets,right??? So that doesn't affect you correct?? Think again my fellow fisherman,it's coming and coming for your children that may never see the thrill in catching a fish or enjoy eating one.. Keep on throwing the "rec vs com" arguments out,it is EXACTLY what they are wanting.....


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

Agree


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

So you think it's fair a charter person can keep 60% more then what you get to keep. If theyre allowed 5 and your allowed 3 thats almost double your limit when claims are that populations are so bad you can only keep 3 but it's ok for that guy to keep 5. If it's so bad there shouldn't be commercial harvest. You can paint it as rec vs commercial but it's really a messed up law. The commercial and charter guys won't say a thing because again they get the better hand. People who don't speak up are the reason it is how it is.


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

I don't know much about CCA or the other groups like them but I'd believe that any group that speaks against commercial or charter would definitely get hate from that side and people easily bandwagon against any form of regulations or authority. You do know there is a push for putting caps on commercial and charter license and from what I was told it's by people already licensed trying to keep out the competition. Many forms of commercial fishing already have it and these guys lease and sell their license out. It's all greed trying to control and profit off a natural resource. No one has more right to it then anyone else.


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

40inchreds said:


> So you think it's fair a charter person can keep 60% more then what you get to keep. If theyre allowed 5 and your allowed 3 thats almost double your limit when claims are that populations are so bad you can only keep 3 but it's ok for that guy to keep 5. If it's so bad there shouldn't be commercial harvest. You can paint it as rec vs commercial but it's really a messed up law. The commercial and charter guys won't say a thing because again they get the better hand. People who don't speak up are the reason it is how it is.


 Folks like yourself "COULD BE" the reason it is how it is.......... It's not about "fair" it is about divide... The reg sucks and we are in FULL agreement about that at least.......


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## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

40inchreds said:


> You have no idea the impact of commercial fishing versus recreational fishing. Also I've never heard of a single commercial fishery do anything to give back to the fishery it's 100% take for them. At least 5% of recs participate in some form of helping the fishery. How does someone deserve more right to a natural resource then someone else just because they sell it? Especially if that resourcea is in need of recovery. If their still allowed to decimate the fishery it won't recover and then limits will be zero and the fishery will only be good in stories of the past. There are plenty of other ways to make money, and there is no way you can convince me that is the only way for them to make a living. Agricultural and developmental impacts are a hole other story and argument.


Will not try and convince you of anything, except to show a little respect to the people of Hatteras if you come up to Shark Fish on their Island.

When I was young I lived on the OBX during a time of economic recession, I had a choice either leave Hatteras or board a commercial boat and fish for living, there pretty much was no other work available to a carpenter. There was a sewer moratorium in Dare County and no homes were being built at that time. Zero Homes from Carova to Hatteras Inlet.

I love the beach and in the 1980's King Fishing was pretty exciting to me, so I got aboard a Gill net boat for a year or so. Less about greed than wanting to be able to live at the beach and have an active life with some level of adventure. I also was there to fish and to me fishing with nets and fishing with a rod and reel are just that fishing. 

One of the most enjoyable periods of my life, you started the engine at dark, left the harbor as the sun was coming over the horizon and set out for your nets.

People across the East Coast of the US ate the fish we caught distributed by the Fulton Fish Market in NY. Some folks like to eat fish on Fridays and some folks are unable to catch their own.

The Fishermen I fished with are part of an extended family that has been on the OBX for 350 years and were part of the Land Grant of Islanders who gave the Federal Government what is now Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Decades later I still count them as my friends, and I have always taken care of people I hold dear.

In my mind Hatteras is their homeland the rest of us just get to visit.


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## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

Papa-T said:


> I catch my own bait. I don’t need to buy it. And the negative decline on flounders isn’t because of recreational fisherman it’s due to commercial. Anyone knows that. I mean stopping recreational fisherman from being able to keep flounder and blues but at the same time allowing commercial raping and decimating of the same species is stupid.


What do you do if there is no bait to catch along the shorelines? Sit around and bitch? My advice would be to stay out of Teddy's spots


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

40inchreds said:


> So you think it's fair a charter person can keep 60% more then what you get to keep. If theyre allowed 5 and your allowed 3 thats almost double your limit when claims are that populations are so bad you can only keep 3 but it's ok for that guy to keep 5. If it's so bad there shouldn't be commercial harvest. You can paint it as rec vs commercial but it's really a messed up law. The commercial and charter guys won't say a thing because again they get the better hand. People who don't speak up are the reason it is how it is.


 You do know that coms and recs pay two different scales in terms of their licenses right? Not as familiar with com licensing as charter.. I know we have to pay a blanket license for those fishing on board,it is 10x the fee that recs pay,no doubt coms pay even more.. I'm not putting that up there to make an argument for charter or com,just showing you some of the criteria these folks design these regs as to divide.. CCA no doubt has a lobbyist or two with their voice sounding out in committees to do just that>>> divide.. Part of the reason why many of our beaches cannot be fished is because of this "divide" method used to separate coms vs recs.. Do a bit of research,dating back to when regs first started being implemented on our beaches and you may conclude the same as I.. Enviro groups divided,using that to unite against fishermen.. They are doing the very same thing with com vs rec everywhere on the east coast,using the cca as a "useful idiot"........................


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

Commercial license depending the method is cheaper then a charter license but both are much more then a rec license but that shouldn't determine ones right to a natural resource. It's like 150 bucks for most commercial license and another hundred or so to be licensed to sell, and you can have several different license and sometimes multiple license for different methods for a single species It's around 600 to be licensed as a charter and depending your area you can be licensed as a guide and it's cheaper but that limits you to a specific area where the charter captain license covers a much broader area. One good work week and you've paid for your license. Do you think a out of Towner paying for a license should be able to keep more because there license cost more or do they have no right to the resource because they are not local and it can't be linked to family or cultural tradition. I'm very familiar with the commercial side of fishing, I grew up around it and I still know plenty of charter captains and commercial fishers as well as a lot of rec guys. Its also not just people and pollution causing problems, climate change is a factor and before you blame that on our impact there was climate chang before people. Efforts to adapt to changes should be equally imparted on all parties. NC is soon to get a lot worse considering SC shrimp are moving north do to warmer waters and so will the trawlers.


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

Ive never heard a thing about CCA besides in post like yours and as a sponsor of a few fishing tournaments.


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

40inchreds said:


> Ive never heard a thing about CCA besides in post like yours and as a sponsor of a few fishing tournaments.


 That is exactly why I said go back and look at several regs and the way they were implemented,in terms of the alliances they (cca) have had with certain enviro groups to have them implemented.. There are PLENTY of folks that already have nc licenses that I take out on charter,as well as a few from out of state,is the state double dipping when they charge one amount to me and those folks pay for the same with their license?? If you read my post you'll understand I'm not saying that we SHOULD BE more privileged for paying more,just that it is one avenue they use for justifying the extra limit.. Not saying it is right or wrong,just that it is one more way they divide coms charters and recs... If you don't know that cca and it's allies are behind many of the regs that have come down in the past decade you have not been paying attention..


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

opcorn:


Garboman said:


> What do you do if there is no bait to catch along the shorelines? Sit around and bitch? My advice would be to stay out of Teddy's spots


I only get to fish April, October and November; and no I don’t sit around and bitch. I go out and find some along the shore line, back bays, sound etc. In November I catch and vacuum seal about 10 bags to bring back in April. That’s gets me going until I can find some somewhere.


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

This drag was posted today on a local fb group I'm in. SC, but they were caught at the NC/SC border near Little River. 










I love the ocean, I love the coastal life, I know the fishermen, I'm happy to buy their fresh grouper and triggerfish and sheepshead, but I hate seeing the net by catch. Whenever someone asks they make sure to mention they throw the speckled trout, flounder, weakfish, and drum back. But we know they're already dead from being drug in the net and if they're alive they still have to survive the birds. 

Do the whiting and croaker and spot and herring and shad get turned into crab bait or chum? Probably. Even if not, no doubt it gets eaten by birds and fish. But how much can it take? I don't know. 

Food for thought.


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## NC KingFisher (Nov 20, 2011)

I forget how much a commercial wreck fish license is new, but the quote I heard was around 45k....... Inshores a bit different, but inshore shrimping and the 5 gallon bucket committee need to be dealt with...... Charter fellahs have enough to deal with, and I'm speaking for the real guys like DD and a few friends of mine, every jack leg with a captains license is hopping on board. 40inch reds, I suggest you go to the bars in Snead's ferry and approach the group of fellahs driving rusted pickups with nets in the back, and voice your opinions and see if it isn't changed quickly


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

opcorn:Just so you don’t think I’m lying about my bait.


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

But I guess we can agree to disagree. Tight lines.:fishing:


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## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

Papa-T said:


> opcorn:Just so you don’t think I’m lying about my bait.


Well one more fella decimating the baby mullet population for his own personal avarice with a cast net. 

Why not let them grow up to spawn, if you are all about the resource?

Greed only matters when it is the other man's.

Perhaps if you stayed the whole year on Hatteras you would learn that every year 100,000 folks just like you bring a cast net and all involved have pounded the mullet into near oblivion.

Marine Fisheries was talking about a total moratorium on Striped Mullet to force people to back off and let them rebound.

It may not happen this year, but the ban will happen on Striped Mullet eventually and no doubt you and the other 100,000 cast netters will blame a commercial.


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## poppop1 (Feb 16, 2004)

NC KingFisher said:


> I forget how much a commercial wreck fish license is new, but the quote I heard was around 45k....... Inshores a bit different, but inshore shrimping and the 5 gallon bucket committee need to be dealt with...... Charter fellahs have enough to deal with, and I'm speaking for the real guys like DD and a few friends of mine, every jack leg with a captains license is hopping on board. 40inch reds, I suggest you go to the bars in Snead's ferry and approach the group of fellahs driving rusted pickups with nets in the back, and voice your opinions and see if it isn't changed quickly


I like fishing the Sneads Ferry backwaters, New River Inlet and the surf, so exactly what would those fellows driving rusty pick -ups with nets in the back have to say?, I drive a rusty pick-up by the way.


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

That's why I said most license are cheap, most of the high prices ones are priced that way as a barrier to entry and even then some of them are limited to people who are granted in and they lease their license or sell them to people like I said earlier it's part of the problem or the permit and license process is very selective and unfair. You should talk to some of those Snead commercial fishers and see how they feel about the rules and regulations. All the commercial fishers I know have some form of dissatisfaction with limits, regs, etc. I talk with plenty of people who are rough on the edges and often have conflicting opinions it's not a big deal it's life. I'm sure we'd find things we disagreed and agreed on. Like I said I grew up around commercial fishing and know plenty of them and know it well. There are so many crabbers around my way now compared to how it used to be a lot of the old timers have seen a decline in numbers and even with price increases they don't make what they used to. Oysters are at a all time high price wise and now they limit who they will license and people have to buy leases from private people. The shrimping got so bad that the only people who do it now are trawlers and the number of the small scale and big boats fell off but got replaced by boats from Georgia and Florida looking for better grounds. We got commercial offshore fishers coming up from Florida because it's a little better up here then down there and most our good fish go north because they pay much more. Our flounder come from North Carolina in most our markets and our major oyster festivals started doing imported oysters to reduce impacts on local stocks. Even our docks get boxes of shrimp to sell to supplement local stocks. Evey aspect is over fished, or soon to be. 

That's actually a pretty clean pull for a shrimp trawler and is probably why they posted it. I've seen much worse. When they hit a school of Ray's it's pretty bad, the tails get tangled and it's hell to deal with. I've seen them pics of pretty bad hauls. My buddy worked a boat last season and had to quit because he good paid on a percent of the cage and he said he wasn't making minimum wage by a long shot and got tires of dealing with by-catch


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## poppop1 (Feb 16, 2004)

So here we are, again, commercials vs. the recs, or vice versa, some left this forum for just this reason, different opinions. So what are the ''facts''?, if there are less fish (certain species), who is killing more?


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## Papa-T (Sep 5, 2011)

Garbo you crack me up. Lol. You just love to stir the shit. I tried to agree to disagree but you just can’t let it go. So I’ll be the better man and go on to other things. So, you can argue with someone else that has more time to waste.


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## retired (Oct 20, 2016)

SmoothLures said:


> This drag was posted today on a local fb group I'm in. SC, but they were caught at the NC/SC border near Little River.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Pretty much what I have experienced when I USED to net many years back. I have a friend who abuses his commercial license right now. Everything was dead or the birds got it throwing it back in. Commercial license are abused and should be regulated far far more.

Yes, people should be allowed to make a living but as with the coal industry things change. The world fish population as a whole did not get where its at by recreational fishing. 

I can see both sides but being static with it now as is will not produce results. Commercial fishing must be regulated and ENFORCED to make fish population changes. If they want to nail the rec fisherman I am fine with that too but ENFORCE it. 

Yeap when I was born there were 180 million people in this country.........now there is almost double. Its past time to regulate ourselves too and we don't need MORE people coming in either.


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## dawgfsh (Mar 1, 2005)

So what do y'all think of the non- commercial who has a commercial licence so he can gig lots of flounder for his and his friends freezer, then sells the rest?


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## 40inchreds (Jan 13, 2018)

I think you mean small scale commercial. I respect that more then a poacher which a lot do, or the guy with two coolers, one with one keeper fish where he is fishing and the other stashed where he fills it with poached fish. They give the best excuses back in my day that was the limit, I've been fishing them since before they had a limit, my family's been fishing this area for generations


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## Eltonjohn (Aug 1, 2018)

3 is plenty to feed most families a meal. I dont get why u need any more than that. Catch and release bluefish. Fishing does not have to be about killing. The kill kill kill mentality has to change. It never will commercially, but recreationally, there is hope. If you have to show off your catch take a damn picture.


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## NC KingFisher (Nov 20, 2011)

poppop1 said:


> I like fishing the Sneads Ferry backwaters, New River Inlet and the surf, so exactly what would those fellows driving rusty pick -ups with nets in the back have to say?, I drive a rusty pick-up by the way.


I was referring to his everything is the commercials fault view point......


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

dawgfsh said:


> So what do y'all think of the non- commercial who has a commercial licence so he can gig lots of flounder for his and his friends freezer, then sells the rest?


 That IS the definition of a poacher.. Yes he bought one license,then abused it by breaking a law to sell the fish.. Also I feel certain there is a limit on giggers as to how many they can keep and have in possession,unlike full time netters.. 



Eltonjohn said:


> 3 is plenty to feed most families a meal. I dont get why u need any more than that. Catch and release bluefish. Fishing does not have to be about killing. The kill kill kill mentality has to change. It never will commercially, but recreationally, there is hope. If you have to show off your catch take a damn picture.


 Yes,three is plenty for harvest.. BUT,one puppy drum is not enough for most families that actually eat fish..


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## Eltonjohn (Aug 1, 2018)

Agreed one puppy drum is not enough, but one puppy drum 3 bluefish and some sea mullet certainly is... the problem is the mentality of taking as much as u can as opposed to taking as much as u need. We are raping nature and not coexisting with it. Imagine an ocean without human interference... if more regulations on fish harvest happen the commercial guys will eventually receive more money for their catch and rec/charter guys will see more fish and more trophy sized fish. Would a charter client rather catch and release a trophy sized fish or scrap a couple of small fish that he can keep? I bet they would opt for the catch and release trophy. The commercial guys barely making enough money to buy that 24pk of Busch Ice could take rich guys fishing from all over the country and actually make a decent living. Unfortunately no one wants to adapt aND change.


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

"Agreed one puppy drum is not enough, but one puppy drum 3 bluefish and some sea mullet certainly is..." 

It don't always work that way.. Usually you find drum,or you find seamullet,or you find a bunch of blluefish,sometimes mixed with spanish.. If they (cca along with an enviro group) had their way with this "let them grow" bill,I doubt you would have had many sea mullet to add to that equation,unless there were some really NICE ONES to be caught.. Also striped mullet would have been a major problem for bait.. There are places in Europe that only allow one caught fish,no catch and release,if caught fishing after one is caught,you get fined.. That is NOT what I want.. I like to harvest once and a while,I do not freeze fish.. My son and I are the only ones eating,so I take what is necessary to feed the two of us and the rest go back.. I've taken out parties for triggers as well as seabass and have limited them on what numbers they keep,and go on to another species if possible.. When I take folks out we go by limits or catch and release.. As bad as I want more than one puppy drum that is all I keep.. That is not enough to feed my son and I usually try to catch some seamullet or bluefish to supplement.. That doesn't always happen,so it's off to the seafood market for some shrimp.. Com fishing is a rough life,no doubt,and yes they will have to adapt,although everyone that eats seafood or uses it for bait would have a problem if there is none to be had unless you fished with hook and line and provided your own.. With some of the regs they have and are trying to implement now,that will be a struggle..


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## Carolina Rebel (Aug 25, 2005)

Eltonjohn said:


> The commercial guys barely making enough money to buy that 24pk of Busch Ice could take rich guys fishing from all over the country and actually make a decent living. Unfortunately no one wants to adapt aND change.


It takes more than fishing skill to be a fishing guide. Come on now. 

Then again it might make a fair reality show, pairing a random com with a googan for a day on the water. Bonus if googan has to tie his own knots while using com's tackle. 

Some folks are prone to oversimplied, glorious solutions, and reality gets drowned out in resultant unicorn feces. That makes it impossible to find the balance needed to keep everything moving smoothly along. 

Then again maybe we should invest in re-training schools where coal miners and commercial fishermen can learn to program. Boom, problem solved.


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## cpicken (May 16, 2005)

The menhaden in Chesapeake Bay are being “harvested” without regard to the biomass which lives 
on them and used for pet food. But guess what happens to the striper population when there is no
regard for that biomass of menhaden. Less rockfish. The analogy is to the market hunters of old
shooting passenger pigeons to extinction. The competing interests must be balanced in deference 
to the population being decimated. And commercial fishermen have the most impact because of the numbers.


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## Eltonjohn (Aug 1, 2018)

Carolina Rebel said:


> Eltonjohn said:
> 
> 
> > The commercial guys barely making enough money to buy that 24pk of Busch Ice could take rich guys fishing from all over the country and actually make a decent living. Unfortunately no one wants to adapt aND change.
> ...


 I totally agree that would be a great reality show. . I was more thinking of future generations of watermen. A change has to happen. Each year we get better at catching more and more fish commercially and recreationally. Also, I have worked as a commercial fisherman and know exactly the struggles that come with that profession.


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## Benji (Nov 19, 2014)

cpicken said:


> The menhaden in Chesapeake Bay are being “harvested” without regard to the biomass which lives
> on them and used for pet food. But guess what happens to the striper population when there is no
> regard for that biomass of menhaden. Less rockfish. The analogy is to the market hunters of old
> shooting passenger pigeons to extinction. The competing interests must be balanced in deference
> to the population being decimated. And commercial fishermen have the most impact because of the numbers.


I've never ridden on a pigeon, is it a one seater or two? 

Looks like the menhaden is going to be turned over to vmrc from the general assembly, following a moratorium. I'd expect some big changes coming soon.


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## JeepGirl (Jun 29, 2019)

Eltonjohn said:


> 3 is plenty to feed most families a meal. I dont get why u need any more than that. Catch and release bluefish. Fishing does not have to be about killing. The kill kill kill mentality has to change. It never will commercially, but recreationally, there is hope. If you have to show off your catch take a damn picture.


 Kill, Kill; Kill; That's the ticket !

Jeep Girl


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## Guest (Feb 14, 2020)

Eltonjohn said:


> Agreed one puppy drum is not enough, but one puppy drum 3 bluefish and some sea mullet certainly is... the problem is the mentality of taking as much as u can as opposed to taking as much as u need. We are raping nature and not coexisting with it. Imagine an ocean without human interference... if more regulations on fish harvest happen the commercial guys will eventually receive more money for their catch and rec/charter guys will see more fish and more trophy sized fish. Would a charter client rather catch and release a trophy sized fish or scrap a couple of small fish that he can keep? I bet they would opt for the catch and release trophy. The commercial guys barely making enough money to buy that 24pk of Busch Ice could take rich guys fishing from all over the country and actually make a decent living. Unfortunately no one wants to adapt aND change.


I agree. Too much take in many circumstances. I don't like seeing so much bycatch but I realize that if there wasn't a demand they wouldn't be out there. I work in a controversial field every day extracting oil and natural gas via hydraulic fracturing. People actually hate workers in my field because of a whole lot of misunderstanding. But, they'd see oilfield workers even as much as die if it were up to them. I simply point to their gasoline powered car and tell them that if y'all didn't create a demand nobody would be doing it. We need to come together and help each other. Commercial and recs alike. We share a resource and we both depend on it for work and leisure. Let's learn how to share. Learn how to take less. If people at Capt George's only ate two plates of fish instead of 3 or cut down on how much shrimp they ate or oysters etc imagine how much less those guys would be fishing. We create the demand, not them. They are just out there getting what we want.


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## psychodiagnostik (Jun 27, 2009)

I know this is a hot issue and that the regs have been a source of heated arguments for years. However I don't know enough about commercial fishing, shrimping, numbers, or any of the stuff to make an argument.

I do know that recreational flounder regs, blues regs, etc don't really make sense without enforcement. Is it just me, or is there practically no license or limit checking of recreational coastal anglers? I've surf fished for 30 years, from Crystal Coast to Carolla and not once been checked by an officer or seen one checking. I've done a ton of pier fishing too at Kure. Do they only check selective spots at certain times? I've seen on the KB FB page on occasion that they were checking coolers but I've never seen them. I've only been to the point a few times, I'm mostly at Davis, Wrightsville, and Ft. Fisher last 15 years.


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## Drumdum (Jan 6, 2003)

psychodiagnostik said:


> I know this is a hot issue and that the regs have been a source of heated arguments for years. However I don't know enough about commercial fishing, shrimping, numbers, or any of the stuff to make an argument.
> 
> I do know that recreational flounder regs, blues regs, etc don't really make sense without enforcement. Is it just me, or is there practically no license or limit checking of recreational coastal anglers? I've surf fished for 30 years, from Crystal Coast to Carolla and not once been checked by an officer or seen one checking. I've done a ton of pier fishing too at Kure. Do they only check selective spots at certain times? I've seen on the KB FB page on occasion that they were checking coolers but I've never seen them. I've only been to the point a few times, I'm mostly at Davis, Wrightsville, and Ft. Fisher last 15 years.


 There isn't that many of them compared to the amount of anglers.. I have been checked a few times.. They do come and check piers,but it is just to check coolers,because piers have a blanket license so no need to check your fishing license on a pier..


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## NC KingFisher (Nov 20, 2011)

Wrightsville enforcement is a joke, beach officer doesn't know the difference in a Spanish and a juvenile king. Most DNR officers are way over stretched in terms of what they have to do.


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