Some new Regs for 08....

[mhall]

On Kentucky and Barkley this year the daily creel limit on crappie has been lowered from 30 fish to 20 fish. On Cave Run they have put an 18 inch size limit on smallmouth bass. At Cedar Creek they have lifted the 9 inch size limit on crappie, however the 30 fish daily creel still applies. Just posting some changes made for anyone that may not know. I myself thought all these moves were good ones and should have positive results. Tightlines to all.

[Moose1am]

Thanks for the information.

[Chubminnow]

I sure wished they'd increase the size of legal smallmouth at Cumberland.

[mhall]

I sure wished they'd increase the size of legal smallmouth at Cumberland.

I would love the slot like Dale has, look at what it's done for that lake. That way when probably 70% of the brown fish caught by anyone especially the thousand or so striper guides they will have to be returned to the lake. I undertand the guides have to allow clients to keep legal fish if they catch them and desire to. However if they are not legal they must return to swim the big C another day. This would really help size and numbers on the lake. Ain't gonna happen though, forgettaboutit. Lots and I mean lots of 18 to 20 inch smallmouth meet the knife after biting somebodies live shad or shiner, LOTS. And it's year round pressure too, Ouch.

[dh]

08 laurel lake daily creel limit for smallmouth bass reduced to two fish, 18 inch minimum length, this would be good for cumberland & all the lakes in ky. the state of tenn. has raised the size limit on s.m. bass to 18 inch on all lakes in tenn. except dale hollow & douglas which have higher size limits. changes can take place if bass fishermen would band together & lobby the nine member commission who make these changes. i have appeared before the commission in support of the 18 inch sm limit on laurel & cumberland & the two fish creel limit on laurel & one thing i have to say is that hunters band together & lobby for their causes, like ducks unlimited , elk foundation, ect, you get the picture while fishermen rarely appear in support of changes as a group. fishin .com is a group that could band together & lobby for changes in regs that would improve bass fishing in ky lakes, unlike hunting which is seasonal, fishing is 24-7 365 so regs & rules are important to maintain quality sportfishing for bass so let hear it what do the majority of you think!!!!!!

[mhall]

You know I have sent e-mails and written letters but I'm one man. You make an excellent point as there are strength in numbers and I like your idea of banning together. I ponder would Jim Dicken and Peter be alright with us using fishin.com as a platform to lobby the KDFWR. Others chime in, does this idea have merit I personally think it does. I would think it would shine a favorable light on this fine site to help change laws in our area lakes to improve our fisheries.

[Bad_Company]

I would be all for trying to get regulations changed on Cumberland and other lake. I have seen many 18 - 20 in fish go home with striper fisherman. I would also like to see some regulations changed on Green, I may be wrong but I would like to see a 15in size on largemouth and atleast 15in on smallmouth. It would hurt tournament fishing for a few years but I think it would make it better down the road. I see a lot of 12in fish go home with limits of crappie, I used to do it when I was younger and crappie fished all the time. Green is a lake that can produce and does produce big largemouth and big smallmouth.

[Bonefish]

You can count one me. I have been pushing this for a number of years now by writing, but if you don't organize, it will fall on unconcerned ears.

[birdstrike]

I'm all for more restrictive regs, but come on, each lake having it's own unique regulations is getting out of hand. It's hard enough to remember the State-wide regs without all the special lake regs, some of which only aply to a portion of a steam or river. At some point it's just too much to keep up with.

How about this. Start with the most restrictive regulations- say 20 crappie, then give some lakes less restrictive rules- say 30 crappie. That way if you stick with the state wide rules, you'll never have to worry about breaking the law, getting a ticket.

Just my .02

[mhall]

I'm all for more restrictive regs, but come on, each lake having it's own unique regulations is getting out of hand. It's hard enough to remember the State-wide regs without all the special lake regs, some of which only aply to a portion of a steam or river. At some point it's just too much to keep up with.

How about this. Start with the most restrictive regulations- say 20 crappie, then give some lakes less restrictive rules- say 30 crappie. That way if you stick with the state wide rules, you'll never have to worry about breaking the law, getting a ticket.

Just my .02

Slot limit placed on certain lakes like Dale would be very easy to keep up with. Be consistent and mainstream it a bit, I'm sure it wouldn't be that hard to keep up with. I don't think anybody is promoting a different reg for every single lake. A little bit could go a long way. I was told by a well known biologist that frequents Cumberland that the slot limit has been bounced around several times and that it is usually met with fierce oppostion from bass fishing tournament groups. Will it make it harder to get five fish to weigh, probably so but won't everybody be competing on the same playing field. I don't get the menality that would be opposed to this. If anyone on this site or anywhere else can deny that Dale isn't just completely going bonkers with this slot limit thing than you are highly misinformed. All the guys in the know at Dale including Steven Headrick, Bob Coan, Bobby Gentry, Jonathan Davis and many more will swear to you that it was the best thing that ever happened to the lake. These guys happen to know a little about what they are talking about to by the way. So if it does that kind of good why not institute in other lakes that will also perform the same way? Am I wrong??

[thebassman30]

MarkH,
Well said. Every fishery can benefit from proper management and limits.

This is as long as the warden is out checking.

Attn: TN & KY DNR
I hope to see you soon on DH or KY/Barkley Lakes
Mark B

[dh]

one man can do a lot if you have the majority behind you, back in 1995 laurel lake had a 12 inch size limit & you could win a tournament with 5 or 6 lbs of fish. i circulated a petition for c&r of s.m. at laurel lake & had 1,500 people sign it so i knew then that the majority of people just want good fishing even if it means you can't keep them, i presented the petition to f&w & the ninth dis. comm. which was then david godby & david went to bat for us we did succeed in getting the size limit raised to 15 " in 96 & then the 18 " on sm. a few years later.now this year two fish limit on sm. which by the way was supported by ky f&w, now it takes anywhere from 18 to 22 lbs to win in the springtime tours. rules&regs are made not necessarily from a biological standpoint but what do the majority of anglers want in their fishing.i don't know anybody that is unhappy with what has happened at laurel lake it just shows that tour. anglers & people that fun fish for bass want the same thing, which by the way just happens to be the majority of bass fishermen. i think ky f&w has done a good job in the past several years in listening to fishermen & trying to please the majority of anglers,but the old saying that the squeaky wheel get the grease is still true today. i personally support anything that improves our bass fishing in kentucky lakes