Blue cats on the ohio river

[Moveon]

Kentucky regulation for Ohio River

Blue, Channel and Flathead Catfish: Anglers may keep one blue or flathead catfish 35 inches or longer and one channel catfish 28 inches or longer daily. No daily creel limit for catfish under those limits.

Thanks Tyme2fish. That's close or the same as the New Indiana Regulations. Both states are trying to protect the resource so that our kids can have some big catfish to catch after we are all gone. Then their kids can have some fun too. It's all about sustaining the resource into the future.

I think it would be a lot of fun to catch one of them big catfish.

When I first got my Humminbird LCR8000 unit back around 1986 I took it out on my boat just below the Newburgh, IN dam and saw a lot of returns around the bottom. Where the water comes out/over the dam it scrubs away the bottom sand and makes a big deep hole right downstream from the dam's gates. That hole was about 50 ft deep or more. I noticed big returns coming off the bottom and figured it was old logs trees that were caught up in the hydro logics below the dam. The big hole was filled up with all types of debris or maybe it was big catfish too. But it was scary looking to me. I could only try to image what all these echo returns were coming from the bottom of that big hole in the Ohio River. I've never fished that area as I feared getting hug up on something down there and not being able to cut the line before I lost my rod or the boat tipped over with me in it. The current down steam from those open gates can be dangerous at best and life threatening if you are not careful in how you point the nose of the boat into the current. These days they don't let boats get up close to the dams like they did pre 911.

[Tyme2fish]

I'm 99% sure that the Indiana regs are the same as Kentucky's on the Ohio.

[smashdn]

Means you have to take that many more small ones to make the money that you used to with a few big ones. 300 lb of fish with 5 fish don't pay the same as 300 lb of 50 fish. Got to catch a bunch more of the small ones to make anywhere near the same money.

More gear, more time, more expense, takes more fish to break even.

[riverrat12]

Means you have to take that many more small ones to make the money that you used to with a few big ones. 300 lb of fish with 5 fish don't pay the same as 300 lb of 50 fish. Got to catch a bunch more of the small ones to make anywhere near the same money.

More gear, more time, more expense, takes more fish to break even.

Good ,maybe they will go after another speices like bighead and silver carp. Maybe paylakes will start buying grain fed cats again and stop depleating OUR natural resource. All anyone has to do is look back at what comercial fishing did to the Mo. river. But I digress.

[riverrat12]

The reason for the new regs was samples taking showed a large decrease in big catfish. Plain and simple.

[smashdn]

Good ,maybe they will go after another speices like bighead and silver carp. Maybe paylakes will start buying grain fed cats again and stop depleating OUR natural resource. All anyone has to do is look back at what comercial fishing did to the Mo. river. But I digress.

Carp certainly don't pay what catfish do.

Youdo realize there are fewer commercial fishers now than ever right? And fewer bodies of water open and more regulation.

[AaronS]

Carp certainly don't pay what catfish do.

Youdo realize there are fewer commercial fishers now than ever right? And fewer bodies of water open and more regulation.

And your point is? The resource is there for EVERYONE to enjoy, not to be raped and pillaged by a few for a paycheck. There needs to be a complete ban. I don't understand why catfish aren't considered a sport fish. That would help this mess. The Ohio River is a ghost of what it used to be when it comes to trophy catfish, thanks in large part to the commercial "fishermen" (much nicer term that I feel like using). The new regs will help save a few fish to ensure our kids and grandkids will be able to enjoy the sport, but I wish it would have went further.

[smashdn]

And your point is?

My point is mathematically they have less of an impact now than they ever had. Point is that the effect you are seeing is not the cause of commercial fishing.

If you would like to blame someone blame pay lakes. Then blame the people that run them and go to them. The pay lake is willing to pay big money for big fish. The fish market is willing to pay better money for bigger fish to satisfy the pay lake demand. Used to there was demand for smaller eating size fish. They paid as well or better than large fish. Pay lakes changed that. Now pay lakes can get the small fish from fish farms (out of state btw) but there is still the demand for the large trophy fish.

One commercial tag can only keep one fish over 35" a day. I would be willing to bet there are not 250 commercial tags sold to guys fishing the Ohio. And no way are the fishing everyday let alone catching their +35" fish everyday. We are talking minimal impact.

Your vitriole is misplaced.

What I don't understand is why anyone would pay to catch something you can catch for free in a lake or river.

[AaronS]

What I don't understand is why anyone would pay to catch something you can catch for free in a lake or river.

I agree completely with that statement. I do place the blame squarely on pay lakes, but where do they get these trophy cats? Most don't come from the regular Joe Fisherman.

[mhall]

And your point is? The resource is there for EVERYONE to enjoy, not to be raped and pillaged by a few for a paycheck. There needs to be a complete ban. I don't understand why catfish aren't considered a sport fish. That would help this mess. The Ohio River is a ghost of what it used to be when it comes to trophy catfish, thanks in large part to the commercial "fishermen" (much nicer term that I feel like using). The new regs will help save a few fish to ensure our kids and grandkids will be able to enjoy the sport, but I wish it would have went further.

Welcome to the site I like you already. You are spot on with this post, preach on brother....Many here like riverrat, Tyme, Lowerider and many more including me have your back.

[kyriverblues]

I would love to see catfish made a sport fish but I don't guess that is going to happen any time soon. I just try to do my part and release every cat I catch. Maybe we all should start going to pay lakes and taking every cat we can catch and put them back in the river????????

[AaronS]

Unfortunately that's probably illegal. I'm pretty sure you can catch a fish in state waters and release it in your pond, but that it's illegal to do the opposite.

Here's something that made my blood boil.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSPH4JL9hu0