Bass Fishing Forum - Westernbass.com

A good friend and I were at Clear Lake Thursday and witnessed something that truly broke my heart. While putting the boat on the trailer we noticed a small crowd gathered around this one particular boat. When I got up close enough to see what was going on I noticed that this individual was holding up a very large fish that he had caught earlier that morning. This fish was an easy 11 if not 12 pounds. I asked the gentleman what he had planned on doing with her and he said he was thinking on mounting it. I told the guy to take some photos and measurements and have a fiberglass replica done. This fish was FULL of eggs and looked very sad to be sitting there in that guys live well. My point here is, before you take a fish of that size make sure you know what the heck you’re going to do with it. My problem with this is that if you do not know how properly preserve the fish it will get ruined. Come on guys when it’s this time of year and you catch them big females take some photos and let them go. Even if you want to go show of at the boat ramp, when you’re done showing off let them go do their deal. I hope that plenty of people read this post and pass this message on. If you’re out fishing and land something that you want to hang on your wall, consider a fiberglass replica. Take some photos and measurements then let them go. I can assure you that I have seen some really good fiberglass replica jobs done. A good buddy of mine caught and landed a 14 pounder at Lake Dixon and had a replica done, I was very impressed the way it turned out. Good luck out there……………

skin mounts do look better up close, but...

It's a good thing we're not all meat fishermen.

My buddy was across the street from the baitshop when dude brought his 12-pounder in. Let's just say dude almost got ratpacked by some locals who take stewardship of this resource verrry seriously.

I have been fishing a long time now,And when it comes to eating fish i get spots and when comes to a big largemouth i will keep it if it is what iam looking for, for a wall hanger.I dont care who it is no one can mount a replica fish to look like the real skin mounts.

Just my opion.

IN OTHERWORDS, YOU PAY FOR A CALIF FISHING LICENSE, SO YOU CAN AND WILL DO WHAT EVER YOU WANT WITH YOUR LIMIT OF BASS, CORRECT, EAT THEM OR MOUNT THEM .

WHEN WE SEE GUYS, DAY AFTER DAY AT DON PEDRO, CLEANING AND SKINNING SMALLMOUTH IN THE 4 & 5 LB RANGE AND LARGEMOUTH IN THE 10 LB RANGE AND WE ASK THEM POLITELY TO PLEASE TURN THEM BACK, WE WILL CATCH YOU SOME 2 LBR'S.......WE ARE BLUNTLY TOLD TO MIND OUR OWN BUSINESS, THEY PAY FOR FISHING LICENSE AND CAN KEEP THE LIMIT.........NOW JUST IMAGINE IF ALL THE TOURNAMENTS THAT ARE LEGAL AND ALL HAVE FISHING LICENSE, STARTED TO KEEP THE 5 BASS THEY WEIGH IN............ITS LEGAL ??? THINK ABOUT THAT ONE MISTER KEEP ALL I WANT FISHERMAN !! YOU WOULD HAVE NO FISH WITHOUT THE TOURNAMENT FISHERMAN . (THE ANSWER IS NOT EATING SPOTS, THEY GET BIG ALSO, AND IT TAKES LONGER , LIKE SMALLMOUTH.)

Only someone without taste buds want to eat a ten pound largemouth anyway. They absolutely don't taste good folks and it' way better to keep the smaller fish for eating purposes. Not to mention all the mercury and what not on most of our local waters. Just because you bought your license doesn't make you smart about what to eat and what to throw back.

sTony

Thats right Tony!

Man that is to bad we need to perserve these fish so generations to come can catch these hogs also. some people just dont get it.

Where did the "eating it" come from?
I thought the guy was wanting a mount?

Yea', most of us like to catch big bass. Yea' its this guys right to kill the fish. Yada, yada, yada.

Speaking strictly for myself, "I release big bass, because I like to catch big bass, and I want to increase my own odds at catching a bigger bass in the future".
I dunno'........ Maybe that guy just wanted to "make sure" he didn't catch that same fish in the future, when it had grown to be even larger ? That would be up to him, right ?

But anyway, for a guy to say that he likes to catch big bass, then to turn around and kill a big bass, is like punching himself in the nose.

Fish

PS, Show me a skin mount that looks better than my replicas...... and I still wouldn't kill a big bass, but I might consider that taxidermist for painting a replica.

BTW, experience has shown me that for a big bass to be C/R'd, then re-caught and released, is not just remotely possible, but on the contrary, it's HIGHLY LIKELY ! .....but obviously, this is only if the fish is released.

Oh and BTW, I thought about mounting a bass once...... But I didn't wan't to get scales on my @#$#

Fish

I have been fishing for years, and have come close, but have yet to catch the double digit bass, but when I do, he/she is coming home with me for my wall. I dont condone keeping fish that large to eat, thought it is your right.. However I think the price of years of fishing liscences, a bass boat, gear, good practices, putting back EVERY bass I have ever caught to this point , gives me (us) the the right to keep a trophy, if I ever get one.
I think it is great that people release them, and I will to release my second ten pounder and third etc(god willing), but my first is gonna be mine.
I think if everyone just doesnt make a habit out if it, then it is fine. Cmon, that is what we are here for, good fishing practices and an occasional trophy. Just my opinion.

The cost of having a stuffed or replica fish on the wall is totally crazy. For a fraction of the cost you can have a beautifully framed picture with you, the fish and all the back ground hanging on the wall. This picture will make for a better conversation peice also as you tell your story and finish it up with the fact that you released the hog. This picture will out last a stuffed fish in the long run and a plastic replica is just that, a plastic toy fish you paid $$$$$$.
Instead of spending $300.00 on stuffing a fish, buy yourself a good camera. Just my two cents.
Rich

Hello Gunzen. "Every person does not have to make a habit out of it". If every "10th person" finally caught there 1st double digit bass and kept it, their would not likely be "ANY" double digit bass left.

Fortunately, the vast majority of the anglers who learn enough to "catch big bass with regularity, also learn enough to release all of them".

Peace,
Fish

I am not saying in keeping all the fish,I keep little spots for eating and 2 lbers is still taste like crap they need to be a little smaller.And to keep a big one it has to be very very big. so iam not saying in keeping every big one i have realeased my personel best at 9 and half pounds out of pedro.And i wont keep eaters out of pedro i will go to cammanche,and possible Mclure sometimes because you can keep the smalle spots.

And i also was in a boat that has released 10 pounders.The bigger fish are not even worth the time of day to clean to eat.

Just my opion.

To skin mount or not to skin mount that is the Question. Did somebody NOT watch the weigh ins this weekend. It is not like Large fish are that uncommon here. The B.A.S.S. guys did a "Pheonominal" ( boy, we heard that word a few times this weekend) job of releasing all but a few fish that were caught. These fish are thriving and will be thriving for a long time as long as we don't take everything home. One here or there isn't going to hurt this fishery. Ba-ba-bass

I hope none of you catch any 10 plus pounders... Leave it to the guys that are fishing tournaments...that way all of them will get released. Except Fish Chris...I know you release them. I'm sorry but I just want my kids to be able to have the same fisheries that I have now.

Take some pictures and get over yourselves. Nobody looks at the damn mounts anymore anyway.

This is such a touchy subject..... It is their right to keep the fish, even though its absolutley heartbreaking to people like me!

I have never kept a fish over 3lbs personally, and those 3 pounders were kept in my earlier years. I know of one time that me and a buddy were out knockin some good fish and he nails a 7.5!!! long story short we keep her out of the water too long and spent 30mins trying to revive her, but in the end she didnt make it. That ruined the day for both of us and we still talk about it. It was heartbreaking even though it was just a 7. So the moral is put the big girls in the live well and get everything ready, take your pics and let em go!

All we can do as sportsmen is preach C+R!!! People dont have to listen but if I touch 1 person then its worth it.

Thanks Chris for all your efforts and great site BTW!

Its ok to keep a bunch of 2 pounders every once and a while but really they get tough after that. Last weekend caught a bunch of decent spots, I kept 5 for my kids and me, delicious.

Wow,

I was going to let the regulars handle this one until I saw Bababass chime in. Sorry fellas, I'm not trying to single anyone out but I gotta go on this one.

Please don't use what happened this weekend to support your theory that it is fine to keep these big monsters. If you want to play that card, chew on this. I was there on Saturday and got to talk to a lot of these guys after the weigh in (it is amazing how accessable these guys are to the crowds after the work is done).
The number one comment, other then this is now the best bass fishery in the country, is "make sure y'all take care of this place because you have no idea how special this lake is". That quote was from Boyd Duckett, Classic Champ, along with similar quotes from the likes of KVD, Greg Hackney, Gary Klein, G-Man ect. Well, you get the picture. If you were not there or able to see it over the internet, almost every angler who came to the scales this week had something glowing to say about Clear Lake.

KVD told me in the 4 years since he has been here, he was totally amazed in how this lake has changed. From the quality of the bait source to the size of the fish, this is not the same lake he remembered. And how, you ask, did this happen? I would love to get that started so here I go.....

It's because EVERY person who caught their first "trophy fish" didn't stick in a box to have it's skin ripped off to hang on some dude's wall!!!
In the old days, when this was the only option, I could understand it a little since skin mounts were the only option but come on guys, we now have the technology to save these fish AND put a good reproduction of your proud moment on the wall without killing the very thing that gave you the proud moment to begin with. Please do not use the argument that a skin mount "looks better" than a fiberglass mount....does it matter THAT much to you? Who besides you is looking at this? Does your cousin from Idaho really care if the "stuffed fish" as he or she is likely to call it, that is hanging next to the "stuffed "Jackalope" trophy, you know...the rabbit with the horns sticking out of it's skull, doesn't have real skin on the outside? Is that your reasoning to kill one of these "phenominal" cretures so uncle Fred from Ohio can see what real skin from a 10lb bass really looks like? Well heck, if it doesn't have the original guts inside, I don't even want to look at real skin!!!

Sorry to rant but I needed to get that out. Fellas' if you feel the need to keep one of these monster fish for whatever reason you come up with, Fish & Game law says you have the right so you don't have to ask permission. But please....DO NOT try to justify it or convince others that it does not affect the health of the fishery. There are not as many 10+ fish in these lakes as you might like to think there is. If you want to eat, keep a few small ones (that WILL help the fishery), if you want a fish to hang on the wall and you are lucky enough to catch one, take a measurement and a few photos and let her go back to making babys so we all have a better chance of catching a big one too.

With that said, in my opinion, most people who would consider killing a 10+ bass to hang on a wall probably couldn't catch one if their life depended on it. But please don't come here if all you have is "skin mounts look better than fiberglass". It really insults my intellegence

Auggie Dog

HEY GUNZMEN, WHAT ARE YOU KIDDING! WHY WOULD YOU KILL SOMETHING THAT AWESOME, LIKE A TEN POUNDER. REPOS ARE BEAUTIFUL IF YOU HAVE THE RIGHT GUY DOIN IT. WHEN YOU FINALLY GET THAT TEN POUNDER AND SEE HOW AWESOME THAT CREATURE REALLY IS, HOPEFULLY YOU WILL RECONSIDER KILLING IT. MAYBE SOMEDAY SOMEONES KID COULD CATCH IT AND IT WILL BE 15 POUNDS.

I have had one fish mounted year's ago,hold on it was a 35lb Striper i cought at San Luis,and it has been stuffed away in the garage for year's.My point is it is only a one time thing then it get's old and put away.

To this day i wished i would have released her.Like most have stated Largemouth really are not very tasty.

Remind's me of something that happened once.I was at LBC and these guy's were waiving me over to there boat,an old wooden peice of junk,i went over thinking they were having problem's.Well when i got there they had a peice of rope hanging off the side.They said look at this and pulled it up.Thinking they had a big catfish they pulled up what i would guess to be at least a 12lb Largemouth.I asked what are you going to do with it.They said take it home.So after a few word's i took multiple picture with my camera and said if you release her i will send you the photo's.Well they finally agreed and let her go.

PS:Show's you dont need a 50 thousand doller boat to get a double digit Bass,well at least it has not helped me yet.

I've witnessed this a couple of times, yet I can't witness on my own boat !
I saw a family down San Jose with a beatiful 10 plus full of eggs tied up on a stringer. I tried to explain that it would be better to let her go. There are signs all over the lake with pictures that say don't eat the fish, they are contaminated with mercury.
They just smiled at me and didn't comprehend a word I said....
Just makes me wonder what I did to deserve all this??????

a friend of mine caught an 11lb 13oz northern strain out of Potholes Res,WA in the early 90's. He kept it because it WAS the state record beating out the current 11.3. The fish was caught late on a sunday evening when no one was around to certify it. So they made the LONG drive home and as a result the fish lost quite a bit of weight and ended up sitting in his freezer for six months and was then skin mounted. Ofcourse this was before replicas took off and were affordable.

HEY GUNZMEN, WHAT ARE YOU KIDDING! WHY WOULD YOU KILL SOMETHING THAT AWESOME, LIKE A TEN POUNDER. REPOS ARE BEAUTIFUL IF YOU HAVE THE RIGHT GUY DOIN IT. WHEN YOU FINALLY GET THAT TEN POUNDER AND SEE HOW AWESOME THAT CREATURE REALLY IS, HOPEFULLY YOU WILL RECONSIDER KILLING IT. MAYBE SOMEDAY SOMEONES KID COULD CATCH IT AND IT WILL BE 15 POUNDS.
_________________
WHY LEAVE FISH TO GO FIND FISH?




Hey Guy,
I love bass fishing just as much as the next guy, and I have NEVER kept a bass, but lets be honest, it is a bass, not a child. They are not even close to being extinct, so stop being so dramatic, there are places in this country where you cant even throw a spinnerbait without catching one.
I am a legal bass fisherman, and as asuch, as long as I follow the rules, I can catch 1 bass and keep it in my life without some guy teling me I am the devil, sorry man, I am gonna do it if I catch one. Maybe I wont, cause as a rule I dont remove bed fish and that is the best chance at it.
It is a fish man... say it with me..."It is a fish"...and one more thing:

MoreauMotorsInc wrote:This is such a touchy subject..... It is their right to keep the fish, even though its absolutley heartbreaking to people like me!

I have never kept a fish over 3lbs personally, and those 3 pounders were kept in my earlier years. I know of one time that me and a buddy were out knockin some good fish and he nails a 7.5!!! long story short we keep her out of the water too long and spent 30mins trying to revive her, but in the end she didnt make it. That ruined the day for both of us and we still talk about it. It was heartbreaking even though it was just a 7. So the moral is put the big girls in the live well and get everything ready, take your pics and let em go!

All we can do as sportsmen is preach C+R!!! People dont have to listen but if I touch 1 person then its worth it.

Thanks Chris for all your efforts and great site BTW!

ummm...dude, it is a fish. my favorite fish of all time and one I have never intentionally killed, not even once, but please, is is just a fish. It seems like people here are so militant about these things. Bass are not endangered, just harder to catch because they are smarter. Have you even looked under the water (diving or camera) they are EVERYWHERE. Wow, you all have the right to your opinions, but geez.

Auggie Dog wrote:Wow,

I was going to let the regulars handle this one until I saw Bababass chime in. Sorry fellas, I'm not trying to single anyone out but I gotta go on this one.

Please don't use what happened this weekend to support your theory that it is fine to keep these big monsters. If you want to play that card, chew on this. I was there on Saturday and got to talk to a lot of these guys after the weigh in (it is amazing how accessable these guys are to the crowds after the work is done).
The number one comment, other then this is now the best bass fishery in the country, is "make sure y'all take care of this place because you have no idea how special this lake is". That quote was from Boyd Duckett, Classic Champ, along with similar quotes from the likes of KVD, Greg Hackney, Gary Klein, G-Man ect. Well, you get the picture. If you were not there or able to see it over the internet, almost every angler who came to the scales this week had something glowing to say about Clear Lake.

KVD told me in the 4 years since he has been here, he was totally amazed in how this lake has changed. From the quality of the bait source to the size of the fish, this is not the same lake he remembered. And how, you ask, did this happen? I would love to get that started so here I go.....

It's because EVERY person who caught their first "trophy fish" didn't stick in a box to have it's skin ripped off to hang on some dude's wall!!!
In the old days, when this was the only option, I could understand it a little since skin mounts were the only option but come on guys, we now have the technology to save these fish AND put a good reproduction of your proud moment on the wall without killing the very thing that gave you the proud moment to begin with. Please do not use the argument that a skin mount "looks better" than a fiberglass mount....does it matter THAT much to you? Who besides you is looking at this? Does your cousin from Idaho really care if the "stuffed fish" as he or she is likely to call it, that is hanging next to the "stuffed "Jackalope" trophy, you know...the rabbit with the horns sticking out of it's skull, doesn't have real skin on the outside? Is that your reasoning to kill one of these "phenominal" cretures so uncle Fred from Ohio can see what real skin from a 10lb bass really looks like? Well heck, if it doesn't have the original guts inside, I don't even want to look at real skin!!!

Sorry to rant but I needed to get that out. Fellas' if you feel the need to keep one of these monster fish for whatever reason you come up with, Fish & Game law says you have the right so you don't have to ask permission. But please....DO NOT try to justify it or convince others that it does not affect the health of the fishery. There are not as many 10+ fish in these lakes as you might like to think there is. If you want to eat, keep a few small ones (that WILL help the fishery), if you want a fish to hang on the wall and you are lucky enough to catch one, take a measurement and a few photos and let her go back to making babys so we all have a better chance of catching a big one too.

With that said, in my opinion, most people who would consider killing a 10+ bass to hang on a wall probably couldn't catch one if their life depended on it. But please don't come here if all you have is "skin mounts look better than fiberglass". It really insults my intellegence

Auggie Dog

I am keeping my first, none after, but I am. Say what you want, I dont think that taking out 1 fish my whole life will kill fishing. I see no evidence that removing occasional "big fish" deprives the fisheries, there are just as many articles saying that too many huge bass is no better for a fishery. I am not the devil, irresponsible or even a bad guy.

I dont care who you think you are, but if we are following the rules, and we dont like plastic fish, then who are you to tell us what to do? I know, NOBODY. You guys act like people are catching ten pounders all day long and mounting them (which we could if we wanted too) but we are just talking about a once or twice in a lifetime thing. Get over yourself. We will "come in" with whatever we want. And untill you catch me keeping a fish that isnt legal, back off, cause as a tournament fisherman have seen hundreds of much more devastating things done to fish during tournaments, i.e dead livewell fish, dumping fish off the ramp, pulling bedfish to weigh in (commonplace) so unless you are gonna call out tournament fishing, you probobly should stop the insults.

This topic has been discussed a few times before, but I'll chime in again...it IS legal to keep a bass (even trophies) and I would never dream of telling someone else they are wrong for doing so, however...for me personally, I will never ever keep one. In fact it kills me when I have lost a 1-lber. Even when that day comes when I Finally get my double-digit, I will take a ton of photos and measurements and release that beauty. A replica or framed photo (and memories) is good enough for me.

" Cali "

Unless you change your name back to Greg, you won't catch a DD Bass.

Everytime I see you post, I think your a hot chick.......

Do what's right man... Change it back NOW!!!!!

Fish Chris wrote:Oh and BTW, I thought about mounting a bass once...... But I didn't wan't to get scales on my @#$#

Fish

hopefully it was a girl bass.

Gunzen, of course you are correct, that killing 1 fish is not going to cause the collapse of bass fishing. You are also totally correct that "it is ONLY a fish" ! Geeez ! Some of these guys sure get bent out of shape over such menial things, huh ? Maybe they net to get out and go fishing more often

I have to admit, their was a time in my life when I would have gotten all bent out of shape over somebody killing a big bass too....... and way before that, was a time when I myself would have killed a big bass. In fact, I have an old skin mount of an 8 1/2 (not really a big bass, but it was at the time) right here above my PC. But live and learn, right ?

Now, to anybody who might be tempted to jump on a guy who "even considers killing a big bass for the wall", just think about this for a minute;
Why should this person want to be a C/R angler, if C/R anglers have always been such jerks to them ??? I'll tell you right now, if I had a bunch of guys trying to determine my rights for me, and jumping all over my *** for expressing my oppinions, I'd be thinking two things, 1) I sure don't want to be like those guys, and 2) I'm going to show them..... by keeping this fish !!!

Experience has shown me, that the best method BY FAR, for getting people to release big bass, is education, and a positive attitude. Given enough "positive" knowleage, the vast majority of anglers will do the right thing.

Anyway Gunzen, the one thing I really want to stress, is that re-catching a big bass after it has been C/R'd is a REALLY common thing.
I have personally re-caught several big bass that I had previously C/R'd. And guess what ? Those fish got me just as stoked the second time around ! In fact, since I'm not much of a "numbers kind of guy", most of my re-catches made the difference between "caught another big one"..... and "Nah.... got the big skunk today"....... Which is why I give myself an extra little pat on the back, every time I make a re-catch.

Finally Gunzen, I hope you won't let some guys attitudes reinforce your oppinion about keeping just one big bass. Don't release it for them. Release it for you ! {then send those guys a PM and tell them your getting a skin mount ! LOL}

Peace,
Fish

Unless you change your name back to Greg, you won't catch a DD Bass

Sorry my man...but Cali is around to stay. That nickname has served me well over the years....of course I could of went with the nickname suggestion of "G-String" now don't tell me THAT wouldn't have give you the vision of a "hot chick". In fact, I'm starting to get the feeling that you would envision a "hot chick" if my nickname were "Mack Truck".

Oh, and I WILL catch the DD...maybe this week at CL. I tell you what, I was on Berryessa on Sunday and my buddy Mark and I were tossing swimbaits just before dark and everytime I got bumped, my heart would skip a beat....we didn't catch any big ones but did manage several 2.5 lbers.

Come on Clearlake!!

Gunzen wrote:

MoreauMotorsInc wrote:This is such a touchy subject..... It is their right to keep the fish, even though its absolutley heartbreaking to people like me!

I have never kept a fish over 3lbs personally, and those 3 pounders were kept in my earlier years. I know of one time that me and a buddy were out knockin some good fish and he nails a 7.5!!! long story short we keep her out of the water too long and spent 30mins trying to revive her, but in the end she didnt make it. That ruined the day for both of us and we still talk about it. It was heartbreaking even though it was just a 7. So the moral is put the big girls in the live well and get everything ready, take your pics and let em go!

All we can do as sportsmen is preach C+R!!! People dont have to listen but if I touch 1 person then its worth it.

Thanks Chris for all your efforts and great site BTW!

ummm...dude, it is a fish. my favorite fish of all time and one I have never intentionally killed, not even once, but please, is is just a fish. It seems like people here are so militant about these things. Bass are not endangered, just harder to catch because they are smarter. Have you even looked under the water (diving or camera) they are EVERYWHERE. Wow, you all have the right to your opinions, but geez.

Gunzen,
Ohhh i see.... So since "is is just a fish" it must be wrong to feel bad when a big one dies. It must be wrong to have compassion! You are a joke! It seems you are the most "MILITANT' person posting in this thread. Look at how opinionated YOU are and how foolish YOU sound! I simply stated how i felt and that it is the right of the individual to decide if they want to keep their catch. And you bash me and everyone else. Yes other people are "militant" on here mainly because they respect the sport and want to preserve what we have worked for. In addition, we have to deal with people like you. I would have never posted a response to your threads except that you called me out for simply stating my feeling bad about something that should have never happened! So am i being 'Militant" now? Hell yes!!!

another thing that guys don't realize and this may change your views somewhat. I have a few mounted fish from over 20 years ago and while they still exist, they don't look all that great now. Even prepped the fins and such tend to dry out and they are at this point very fragile. Also, I think the color of a replica for the same reasons would hold up better. Mine are fading. Now maybe they weren't the best jobs? who knows and some may contradict me, but my self I wouldn't not do a skin mount again.

This thread just as those that came before has brought out the good and the bad in a lot of us..The simple facts are, if the fish is caught by a liscensed individual, it is his/her right to do with the fish as they so choose, short of wasting it..If they want a skin mount, so be it..If they want to release it, so be it..If they want to eat it, so be it..In all honesty it is none of our business what one does with their legal catch as long as it does not violate another law..Sure we would like to see all the big ones released and possibly giving someone else or even that person another opportunity to catch it again..If it is laden with eggs we would love to see it returned to spawn, but it is not our fish so we must live with what the person catching it decides..There is nothing gained by going ape over the situation..

mac

Dang Matt, Did you eat your thug cookies this morning? I agree with what you said.

It is the right of the fisherman to choose to keep a bass, as long as they are legally fishing. I would never skin mount a bass, or any game fish for that matter. If someone chooses to do so that is their buisness. Does that mean I like it? No. I have heard of big bass dying from the stress of being caught, and people mounting the fish. That to me is better than just throwing it back in the water. This is America, and we have the right to choose to do what we want as long as it is legal. If some wants to mount a bass, than so be it, but I choose not to. That is if I could catch a DD bass. Just my opinion.

LOL! Ya, I just dont understand how people get off on bashin others when it is beside the point. Sometimes i think they just like to be antagonistic or get off on the controversy! Owell, like Chris said, i guess its better to teach than preach C+R!!!

What would anyone do if you caught a world record bass, with no livewell, and more than a 20-30 minute drive to get it certified?

Kill it!

Vince Lazzeroni wrote:What would anyone do if you caught a world record bass, with no livewell, and more than a 20-30 minute drive to get it certified?

I doubt I'll ever have that problem. You know catching the world record , and all. Plus when ever I'm on a lake its always in a boat with a live well. I highly doubt that fish would be in the ponds I fish. So I'm going with catch, weigh, pics, verify, and release!! Phew I dodged that bullet!!!

What mac said. Personally I will release so that I, or someone else, can experience the thrill of catching it again. I don't need/want a mount on my wall. A good picture will be sufficient.

I have seen many double digit fish that have been skin mounted years ago. A friend had one on his wall in fact several. The mounts were done by a very good taxidermist. his 13lb 12 oz bass was the size of a good four pond fish. Skin mounts shrink over time. A fiberglass replica will not shrink nor will the pain job fade. Roberts fish mounts in southern california have been turning out some really great an realistic replica's for year now.

Chris Koda

So, about these skin mounts that you guys have convinced me to stay away from, are you saying to eat the fish and get a replica made instsead?

Catch & Take is necessary guys, you don't want an over populated body of water, it will stunt there growth!

Look at the Kokanee population in Lake Pardee, too many fish = no growth!

something else to think about is the fact that by the time the females reach that size,their best spawning years are past them.Also believe it or not guys fish eventually die it's just a matter of time.over population will stunt growth.I've seen huge fish dead and floating out on the delta.Now maybe that fish swam off when it was caught,but it eventually died.

MoreauMotorsInc wrote:

Gunzen wrote:

MoreauMotorsInc wrote:This is such a touchy subject..... It is their right to keep the fish, even though its absolutley heartbreaking to people like me!

I have never kept a fish over 3lbs personally, and those 3 pounders were kept in my earlier years. I know of one time that me and a buddy were out knockin some good fish and he nails a 7.5!!! long story short we keep her out of the water too long and spent 30mins trying to revive her, but in the end she didnt make it. That ruined the day for both of us and we still talk about it. It was heartbreaking even though it was just a 7. So the moral is put the big girls in the live well and get everything ready, take your pics and let em go!

All we can do as sportsmen is preach C+R!!! People dont have to listen but if I touch 1 person then its worth it.

Thanks Chris for all your efforts and great site BTW!

ummm...dude, it is a fish. my favorite fish of all time and one I have never intentionally killed, not even once, but please, is is just a fish. It seems like people here are so militant about these things. Bass are not endangered, just harder to catch because they are smarter. Have you even looked under the water (diving or camera) they are EVERYWHERE. Wow, you all have the right to your opinions, but geez.

Gunzen,
Ohhh i see.... So since "is is just a fish" it must be wrong to feel bad when a big one dies. It must be wrong to have compassion! You are a joke! It seems you are the most "MILITANT' person posting in this thread. Look at how opinionated YOU are and how foolish YOU sound! I simply stated how i felt and that it is the right of the individual to decide if they want to keep their catch. And you bash me and everyone else. Yes other people are "militant" on here mainly because they respect the sport and want to preserve what we have worked for. In addition, we have to deal with people like you. I would have never posted a response to your threads except that you called me out for simply stating my feeling bad about something that should have never happened! So am i being 'Militant" now? Hell yes!!!

I never said that, I just said it is wrong for you to tell me I'm wrong if I keep one, check yourself dude. Again, it is just a fish, you can be compassionate if you want, but dont tell me I'm not if I dont care as much about a 10 pound fish. I like people more, I wouldnt kill a person, but a fish...yeah...as long as it is legal I would.
If you are gonna quote me fine, but dont paraphrase me incorrectly.

And feeling bad is one thing, but ruining your trip, well, that seems a bit silly to me, but each his/her own.

Vince Lazzeroni wrote:What would anyone do if you caught a world record bass, with no livewell, and more than a 20-30 minute drive to get it certified?

i was reading a fairly recent copy of bassmaster magazine and ray scott himself said that he would want to see a corpse in the case of a world record.

-perry-

REPLY TO MY LAST POST !!! > To Gunzen AND to everybody else <

What's the matter ? Do I make too much sense ?

Don't want to argue with me ? ..... Why the heck not ? Don't be wimps !

Now, everybody here ought to know how important big bass are to me {in fact, I'd like to know, if their is anybody here who has spent more of their life chasing trophy bass ???}, yet I haven't the slightest bit of negative attitude towards Gunzen.... and those of you that do, are just hurting your own cause.

And Gunzen, do you still believe that "everybody out there could kill just one bass over 10 lbs, and that their might still be some left" ? Do you not believe how common it is to re-catch big bass ? Or, do you not care if you ever catch "a second bass over 10 lbs" ??? I could show you how to catch 20 of them.... 50... 100.... But it's that first one I'd be most concerned about.

Come on you guys..... Both sides..... Wanna' argue with somebody ?

Right here I am !

Say something that makes more sense than what I have already said..... Or show me where I'm mistaken. I challenge you......

Fish

Chris;

Most people on here agree with you, so you probably wont find an argument here. But if you want to be "Militant" im sure we can find something to ruffle the feathers about(That Pardee smallmouth was cropped and photo shopped)...

Like i stated, i too DO NOT have a problem with people keeping what they catch. Ya, i would preffer they dont but thats my problem and i never force MY opinion on anyone! I will hovwever talk, preach, teach or whatever you want to call it to the person about C+R. But if they dont want to hear it then thats fine! Thats their choice! I offer my opinion and thats it... Just like my original post here. I dont have a negative attitude towards Gunzen i just thought he was wrong in calling me out when i never stated anything against killing big fish! I was simply telling my story!

Gunzen;

I would have to say that you are the one that has mis qouted and phrased a lot of things on here(although i probably have too). Look at my original post! I said its ok to keep your catch just makes me sad! And then i told my story! I NEVER SAID ITS WRONG FOR YOU TO KEEP ONE! But i think its just a misunderstanding on our parts and not seeing eye to eye. One thing i will agree with you on is that im a SAP for feeling bad about killing her......but hey whatcha gonna do! By all means though no hard feelings!

One guy i cant stand though is that CHRIS!!!! J/K

Well Gunzen, you like all others here are entitled to your opinion. But, I feel you are not seeing the forest for the trees. If you actually did read my post, I was responding to two ideas that did not make sense. One, was that "taking a few 10+ lb bass once in a while to eat or mount would not hurt a fishery and two, that the reason to kill a big fish to mount was that skin mounts "look" better than fiberglass mounts.

Both ideas are ridiculous to me but maybe I am the minority on this. I will admit I do not fish the Delta since it is a 3 hr drive for me and Clear Lake is only 30 minutes so I do not see what happens on the Delta. But I do see the amount of fishermen that fish on Clear Lake and on an average weekend day, that is a very large number. I will assume it is not that much different on the Delta.

The first "idea" that taking even one of these big bass in your lifetime may seem to you as nothing and you are right. One 11 lb bass in YOUR lifetime would do nothing. I have seen the bank fisherman throwing minnows in Lucerne take home 10 fish over 8lb in one day. The point I was trying to make is if you think you have the right, which I did agree that you do, what about the thousands upon thousands of other fishermen that fish the lake every year that might have the same thought. What, in your reasoning, would THAT do to a lake. Would they not be entitled to the same rights as you are? As we saw during the BASS event last weekend, there are times when these big fish are vulnerable to the top fishermen and in cases like right now, even weekend amatures like you and me. If we all kept one in the four to six week span when they are easier to catch (and unfortunately snag as we have seen in the past on Clear Lake) how many would be left to keep the gene pool going. Before you pile on, I know EVERYONE doesn't catch these big fish but I am talking about the idea, not the reality.

The second idea I took issue with is the reason to kill a big fish was the skin mounts LOOK better than replicas. I made my thoughts known and nothing anyone says will ever change my mind so I will leave it at that.

I looked back at my post and realized I did get carried away and what started out as a passionate response to an issue that bothered me took on a somewhat sarcastic and condencinding tone and for that I apologize to all that participated in this thread. My post was not meant to insult people but it was meant to get people to think about what was being said. Most here are very passionate about out sport and killing big bass for any reason makes most of us cringe at the thought. As some stories have been shared in the past, we as bass fishermen get mad, dissapointed, ready to kill or cause bodily harm when we see a "bankie" or "meat fisherman" pull up a stinger to head home and you see one huge fish (or more than one) hanging on the line ready to hit the stove.

Does it make sense to you to kill a trophy sized fish, and by doing so, any chance of it spawning and making more fish like it, just because you think it's skin looks better on your wall than a painted fish would. If you do then we will just disagree and move on. Does it make sense to kill one so you can take it home to see what a big fish tastes like? Why? We catch so many of the smaller fish during the course of the year that you could take home any number of 2-4 lbrs and get a good meal without taking one of these somewhat rare fish out of the loop.

Yes everyone, we have the right to kill and keep 5 bass over 12 inches every day if we choose to. But why would you do that with a rare catch like a 10 + lb bass?

Auggie Dog

does anybody eat fish out of clear lake?not me