Sea Bass Closure

[captadamnj]

NOAA just announced 180 day closure of recreational black sea bass fishery in federal waters, effective Monday, 10/5.

[Garone Custom Rods]

fantastic!

[oceansuey]

puts another nail in the coffin for every recreational angler that fishes the offshore waters for sea bass during the winter months. puts more dirt in the grave of the headboats that participate in the offshore sea bass fishery. what a crock of s--t. guess the revenue generated by those who fish for sea bass in federal waters doesnt mean anything 2 our govt. arent we in a recession? now the monies spent by anglers and headboat operaters wont be spent. when is this bs gunna end geeze.

[Honger]

this is just for federal water? so inshore is ok i am assuming?

[sportfishingusa]

yeah federal.. and only north of cape hatteras.. what a crock a sheet!

[Garone Custom Rods]

I bet the commercial guys can still fish what a bunch of crap!

[MartyS]

Isn't federal waters only 3 miles from shore? Please tell me I'm wrong.

[NoWorries]

Federal waters are outside 3 miles

[MartyS]

Federal waters are outside 3 miles
So that pretty much shuts down the sea bass fishery for the boats out of Belmar and Brielle/PPB. I don't recall fishing within 3 miles of shore.

[sportfishingusa]

So that pretty much shuts down the sea bass fishery for the boats out of Belmar and Brielle/PPB. I don't recall fishing within 3 miles of shore.


3 miles is about 50-60ft max out of barnaget!! THIS SUCKS!!

Looks like a TON of party boats are going to be sitting dockside this winter...

What i cant wait to see is cod, pollock, hake, and ling trips being ran and all the JUMBO sea bass being thrown back as accidental bycatch without being vented..

I will sit behind all the boats offshore waiting for them to float by.. if they are dead they shouldnt count towards the quota!!

WHAT A CROCK!! I HATE THIS COUNTRY AND WORLD..

[JonDevin]

That just friggin sucks... I just discovered the joys of Jumbo Sea Bass fishing last year on the Voyager... I am totally into it and now nothing... ughhhhhhh!!! Now what, "Offshore for Jumbo Pout" maybe pick up some ling, pollack and an occasional cod... blah....

[LeftyReeler]

Hopefully my Monger trip on the 17th will be inside 60ft/3miles of water...
What a @#*$&#% load of SH*T!

Thanks JD, now my afternoon is ruined! FACK!:mad: :mad: :mad:

[MartyS]

I was planning on hitting the Atlantic Star for porgies tomorrow, but I may have to switch to the Norma K for sea bass while I still can.

[shrimpman steve]

Unreel! The goverment needs to wake up and see all the hurt they r doing! R the commercial guys still able to fish? When r the aholes in charge going to see the rod and reel will never do the damage that the commercials do!

[howarda780]

What do you do if you own a party boat? Going to Florida may be the only answer.

[LeftyReeler]

So I imagine after we kill every blackfish in the ocean this fall, that there will be no April to Nov season and we will be faced with a 2 bag limit for the month they so gratuitously let us fish in the fall. I'm facking taking golf back up. Anyone need any lefty avets, all my sh*t is going on the market. This is unreal!

[sportfishingusa]

What do you do if you own a party boat? Going to Florida may be the only answer.


but with the sheet going on down there with red snapper and grouper and such closing it is going to be a crap shoot.. i truly feel sorry for all the guys in the industry who rely on this..

what a shame.. this could be one of the biggest closure effects on our local economy to ever happen..

you could close down striped bass, and although most iwll be up in arms it will not hurt as bad as this!

[MartyS]

NJ will be hurt worse than most states, because our blackfish season doesn't really start until Nov 16th. At least most other states will only have to tough it out for a couple of weeks.

[AndyS]

The answer to any fish shortage, CUT OUT THE ROD AND REEL GUYS !!

Just like the ICCAT, people in Europe laugh at our bluefin regs while they take them by the metric ton.

Maybe the small yellowfin is another indicator as to what is happening, and the answer to that one will be to shut down the rod and reel guys !

They raped all the cod and haddock and cried to the government for $$$, then went after the herring because it was the only thing left.

I think rod and reel people use better judgement and only take what they can consume, and they do just that, feed thier families. If I had it my way I would let rod and reel guys take whatever they wanted, and I think you would be surprised as a self governing force would take effect and we could have our own voice, but we are shunned by big money and power and left to fend for ourselves and feed off the scaps left behind by the COMMERCIAL SLAUGHTER !!!!!!

[dales529]

What, this is a SUPRISE! Unless fishermen get active and real soon NOTHING will change. Get OFF the commercial fisherman issue, regardless of right and wrong its NOT the BATTLE. Get OFF the partisan crap too. BOTH parties in office have had ample cracks at listening, siding with recreational fishermen and BOTH have FAILED miserably. This shit has been going on in front of our faces for years now. READ Capt TB Posts AGAIN , READ Leif's recent posts (all 3 of them) and the attachments, get educated.

There NEEDS to be some direct action towards the fact that no one will pay attention to REAL Science which is what the SSFFF and RFA have been preaching for quite some time. We (FISHERMAN) can no longer wait until the regs go into place to speak up and do something. Your VOTE of any politician is the only thing that will get their attention regardless of party but more their stance on FISHING ISSUES

JUST MY OPINION!

[AndyS]

NOAA announced today the temporary closure of the black sea bass recreational fishery in federal waters north of Cape Hatteras, N.C., for 180 days in response to recent landings data that showed recreational fishermen may catch more than double their annual quota by the end of the year. The closure will commence Monday, October 5, 2009.

Landings data and scientific analyses show recreational fishermen have reached their quota and could exceed their 1.14 million pound harvest limit by as much as 84 to 225 percent if the recreational fishery is not closed.

An independent body of federal and university scientists recently determined that the black sea bass stock has been rebuilt. However, both the scientists and the Science and Statistical Committee of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council have cautioned against increasing fishing of this stock for several reasons, including the complex and poorly understood reproductive cycle, and limited information on life span and important habitats for this species. The Council recommends catch limits for black sea bass in federal waters.

NOAA understands and predicts changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and conserves and manages our coastal and marine resources.

ALL I CAN SAY IS ........................... WTF !!!!!!!!!!

[sportfishingusa]

Crapola is going to keep getting deeper and deeper my friends.. This is the beginning of their muscle flexing.... We can only wait and see what other moranic BS these poopheads will come up with!


Federal or state.... I will be fishing all winter long for them!! And they can use that as evidence but i WILL NOT GO DOWN, AND I WILL PRACTICE FILET AND RELEASE ON LEGAL FISH ONLY!!


EAT THAT NOAA... BRING IT ON BABY!! IM READY...

[sportfishingusa]

and you wanna know what really tickles my arse.. is that if it was easy to get in the market to begin with we would continue to see it there!

was in shop rite the other night and a guy at the counter was asking when the fluke would be in... :confused: :mad:

SHE SAID TOMORROW!! :mad: WTF!!

[LeftyReeler]

Oh it's on!

[sportfishingusa]

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_SY9QknbPXA8/SnJDTO19MkI/AAAAAAAADW4/5cu7Gk4C97A/s320/its-on-like-donkey-kong.jpg

[captmark]

Well guys it looks like, we should start writing emails to, yeah I know you have heard it before, the fine people that someone voted for??
Moaning about it does nothing, if you are with any group as RFA or any other group that has someone that lobbys for you start calling now dont wait.
But if your smart and have some cash handy, you can buy up some businesses that are going to bankrupt real soon, maybe thats NOAA's idea?

[dales529]

Well guys it looks like, we should start writing emails to, yeah I know you have heard it before, the fine people that someone voted for??
Moaning about it does nothing, if you are with any group as RFA or any other group that has someone that lobbys for you start calling now dont wait.
But if your smart and have some cash handy, you can buy up some businesses that are going to bankrupt real soon, maybe thats NOAA's idea?

Mark, I agree that moaning does nothing and all hands need to get involved with the RFA, SSFFF etc but the someone voted fors have been from both parties since the 1980's and in 2001 they admitted the science is "Flawed". Its the extreme environmentalists, the use of the word "overfishing" and ALL politicians that have failed. WHY the hell is OUR (fishermens) money, 58 billion nationally NO GOOD???? The fight is FOR Fishing and spans everything. If this becomes a Demo vs Rep thing then all bets are off as whoever gets blamed, the other party will RELAX knowing they have our vote regardless of what they do or more importantly DONT DO

[Chrisk]

You could fight city hall and win but a buraucrazy like noaa you can't even get their attention unless you want to meet them at the water cooler to discuss how hard they work. Noaa should get their weather forecasts right then maybe someone might actualy go fishing. Then again with fluke regs like NY's maybe the seabass did get fished harder.

[sportfishingusa]

anyone ever think this was planned and thats why the fluke quota went higher? just a crazy thought! probably not true at all but a though! haha

[AndyS]

"An independent body of federal and university scientists recently determined that the black sea bass stock has been rebuilt. However......"

?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????????????????????????????????????

Like I said, those commercial guys will anchor on those wrecks all winter long.

Same thing with the fluke..................this sux !

[oceansuey]

yes it is complete bs that they r shutting down sea bass fishing. i am friends with several party boat owners and commercial boat owners. i think the govt should reevaluate their FLAWED science and rethink it. it only hurts both sides. yes many charter and party boats will suffer because of this and that sucks. many people on here ore against commercial fishing for any species. they pay money for permits, gear etc etc. they spend money just like everyone else. both commercial boat operaters and party boat operaters have a lot of money invested in their respected operations of business. look at the whole picture of the industry. comm guys sell 2 fish wholesellers who in turn sell 2 restaurants and small fish markets. party boats and charter boats help people catch fish for there own consumption. the state and federal govts require permits for the sale of species to fish wholesellers and yes the govt does require landing permits for both types of businesses. so i find it hard 2 put the blame on the commercial side when x boat goes out for sea bass in dec with 70 persons and all 70 persons cath their allowable limit. 25 fish at say 4lbs =100lbs correct 70 persons at 100 lbs each =7000lbs for that trip. not sure what the commercial limit is per trip for sea bass but im sure it isnt 7000lbs. thats alot of fish isnt it just my opinion and look at the big picture. im sure some of the people on here will agree with me and most wont. educate urself on whats going on and then u can say wise things and not make stupid comments

[captmark]

Guys, I just remembered that this meetinfg is coming up in Toms River and I was planning on going to to hear what was being said about the Weakfish
it may be worth while to hear what is also said and even they still plan on holding it :mad:

New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife
October 6, 2009; 7:00 PM
Toms River Township Clerk's Office
L. Manuel Hirshblond Room
33 Washington Street
Toms River, New Jersey
Contact: Tom McCloy at (609) 292-7794
* Public comment will also be gathered on Weakfish Draft Addendum IV (8:00 PM)

[oceansuey]

do the math 1 boat goes offshore sea bass 3 times a week in the winter with 30 persons = x amount of sea bass per trid multyply by 3times = x number of lbs of sea bass caught and then add in the boats that fish inshore waters. simple math right im sure the commercial sector does not catch as many sea bass in lbs as recreactional fisherman. im sure tony bogan will post some great input on this. i respect what he says cause he knows what hes talking about. hes fought about fishing issues for a long time. change can only happen if u support groups who fight for fishing issues thats the only way things will change. so support the rfa the ssstf and others and hopefully things will change

[snapperbluefish101]

Looks like the party boats are now going to fish in the shark and manisquan rivers for seabass now. These is ridiculous.I didn't even got to catch my first keeper seabass yet.

[shresearchdude]

1) Oceansuey- you're not going to get any positive responses to your post. Someone has to be the enemy, either it's the commercial guys or the Govt (many think it's both).
2) If one follows the theory of: all fish over approx 12.5" are male fish, most fish caught offshore are over 12.5", therefore(?) are all those male fish getting removed from the population and not getting the chance to reproduce ever again? Most(?) trips offshore target big male fish(it makes sense to do so) If the offshore trips are eliminated for one season-as a precaution to harvest estimates-then the population in the spring will only get better.
3) In the big picture doesn't everyone want more fish in the ocean?
4) Yes I like to eat big black seabass, they are my favorite fish to eat.

[ReelErIn]

All I can say http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj295/reelerin/BullShit-1.gif

[oceansuey]

shresearch i know most on here will reply negatively. im just pointing out that the if u look at the hard numbers its pretty much self explanatary on how much fish are caught by the recreational side. say 10 party boats from sandy hook to cape may fish for sea bass in fed waters 3 times a week with say 30 paying customers catch an avg 20 fish per man at an avg size of 4lbs per fish. do the math and u can have an idea on whats caaught by the 10 boats 3 times a week. simple math gives u the numbers. just stating my opinion about why they have just cause for closing federal waters to sea bass fishing. ask any party boat capt that targets offshore sea bass and im sure they probally will in most part agree with my said numbers i wrote about. thats alot of fish if u ask me. and if we keep catching those fish the stock doesnt have toime 2 rebuild. right i think some that actually have a clue will agree with me. all i can say is get involved and get informed

[Ling Slinger]

Come November 15 they are going to say that we overfished tog even before the limit jumps from 1 to 6 on Nov. 16 with all of the pressure that's going to be put on them now and close the season for the year.:mad:

And what if you are fishing a wreck that lies east to west on or across the 3 mile line with the western half positioned 2.999999999999 miles off the beach and the eastern half positioned 3.00000000000001 miles off. Are you only allowed to keep fish from the western side of it? :confused:

This is completely absurd. My friends were on a party boat today for seabass and said they couldn't keep their baits on the bottom for more than 3 seconds without getting a bite.
I think people's opinions on breaking these laws will be changed with this new regulation.

[tautog]

For at least the next three weeks, boats north of Manasquan will have some sea bass fishing inside of 3 miles, while porgy fishing. As for the state of the fishery, if 20% of the males survive and the female population is untouched, there is virtually no effect on breeding. Sea bass are not monogamous by nature and a male can breed with several females.

The statistics are absolute nonsense as few boats were fishing in rainy June this year, let alone were they slamming the 12 1/2" plus sea bass. I bottom fish with the best boats in NJ every week, sometimes twice and have not yet seen an inshore limit of sea bass. I had 23 one day and have not had over 18 since. I have seen a few guys with 20 to 21. Most guys have 6 to 8 keepers. In June and July ling dominated and since late Aug, porgies have made up most of the catch.

[Reel Class]

Just got home, just saw this crap... Saw Capt Mark's email about an hour ago - MARK THANKS FOR THAT

This is an absolute joke, another prime example of people that are "decision makers" REACTING not thinking something through.. What are they reacting on??? FLAWED SCIENCE which simply cannot, and should not, be upheld by a court of law or any level headed decision maker...

This is RIDICULOUS :mad: :rolleyes:

[AndyS]

In response to shresearchdude, and not to make a thread gone wild but..

"3) In the big picture doesn't everyone want more fish in the ocean?"

Yes, we all do, and the rod and reel guys get shut down time and time again.

Write a list of all fish in the ocean that we have limits on..................

From In Pursuit today 9/30

On a side note, there was a gill netter up there, it made me sick to see the amount of short dead bass that were floating around up there. WTF?

[oceansuey]

my postings have been about what the sea bass fishery in federal waters. from 3 miles and beyond. most of the bottom fishing boats that r catching sea bass now are mostly in state waters not federal waters i believe. it comes down to the data the noaa is using its been proven it is flawed. until they compile new data they will use the numbers from the flawed data. i pretty sure most of the sea bass caught are in the federal waters. that is why i talked about number of boats. num of passengers and how many times they go. if u do the math u will get an idea on whats caught in federal waters for sea bass landings. then looik, up 2 see what the quota is and bang u get an answer. yes noaa and nmfs are messed up govt organizations. i always thought that when i fished for giant bluefins for a living. many friends have since stopped fishing for them do to the bs of the fishery and i must say the people i know caught a majority of the bluefin quota. this just another slap in the face to all fisherman no matter if ur commercial or recreationalc ause the effect will be felt by everyone that fishes i said fishery.i might even be harder for some commercial guys cause of leguslature of removing pots from reefs. which i totally support but there r 2 sides 2 every story

[nightspeaks]

http://www.app.com/article/20090930/NEWS/90930111/-1/FRONTTABS01/Anglers+consider+challenge+to+halt+on+black+sea+ba ss+fishing

[Blackfish Doug]

[QUOTE=oceansuey]shresearch i know most on here will reply negatively. im just pointing out that the if u look at the hard numbers its pretty much self explanatary on how much fish are caught by the recreational side. say 10 party boats from sandy hook to cape may fish for sea bass in fed waters 3 times a week with say 30 paying customers catch an avg 20 fish per man at an avg size of 4lbs per fish. do the math and u can have an idea on whats caaught by the 10 boats 3 times a week.

I DO THE MATH 20 Sea Bass AVG. Your math is just as flawed as the regulators. I fish more for Sea Bass than most. I know the numbers and have pictures & data to back it up. Yes some fisherman do average numbers more than others but 20 Keepers :confused: I'm going to post you a picture from this Tuesday trip on the Ocean Explorer this is a picture of the racks for the day& this was an above average day. Me & my brother got 23 keepers. Do you know how many people on board that day swore that we limited we were not even half way there between the both of us. I know of 2 people on board that day that walked off the boat without getting their fish filleted. they had 8 keepers between them. There was 31 on board that day do the math how many fish would you say was in that can. Does it look anywhere near 612. Now this is the true hard number what do you think it is?. I have seen so many so called limit days when actually the person had no more that maybe 15 in the box. I know on charters limits can be had but Party Boats :confused: Your Offshore Theory of 3 to 4lb average is so way off do you have any Idea how big a 3 to 4lb Sea Bass is? I have looked at many so called 3 to 4 lb fish. The Sea Bass that's pictured here is 19" do you know how much it weighed. How many would say yeah that's a 3 to 4 lb. fish. Wrong it was 2. 75 lbs. I weighed it. I myself thought it was at least a 3 lb. fish & I was even wrong. I know a lot of exaggeration does go on but my numbers are true. Do you honestly think the average fish offshore is 3 to 4 lbs? I'm willing to bet that that number is far from the the truth as well & I could prove it. I averaged about 4 to 6 offshore trips a year for the last 20 years the numbers each year numbers get more & more exaggerated. I know it's good advertisement but that's what killing us the hype. I agree with some of the theories here but most are way overblown & now we are all suffering from it.

[oceansuey]

blackfish doug yes u do fish alot and i respect that, but what im saying is the offshore sea bass trips boats do in the winter 18hr trips. thats what i was talking about thats a complete different fishery than what most bottom fishing boats do day in and day out. and my numbers are just an estimate on what is caught on 18 hr sea bass trips never said it was correct data just an opinion on my part. it comes down to it noaa the asmfc and nmfs need 2 get their heads out of their respected asses and actually listen 2 REAL data from fishermen that catch said species. they screw us with regulations and closures based on bs data im sure u agree on that. they want real data so why dont they send observers on head boats 2 collect the data. they observe commercial vessels that way so why cant they do it with the party boats. im sure most party boats wouldnt mind having an observer on board unless they are breaking the law

[SNAPS]

DOUG-ABSOLUTELY CORRECT-GOOD POST
I rarely limit out on C bass, I may have caught 20 keepers in 3-4 trips but never limited out on 1 trip neither did I limit out for fluke except 1 trip and some trips I had zero.
I love it when people pull numbers out of thin air.

[sportfishingusa]

dont wanna step backwards here because i feel strongly they are mistaken as usual..

but years ago seabass fishing offshore i would fill a huge cooler or tote myself in a day..


25 limit? HA! we used to pee on that in an hour or two.. we used to catch numbers between 2 of us in the 3 digits and it was amazing..

when it went to a 25 limit i did several offshore trips for exampe and we started fishing one day at 5am and i had my limit and was in my bunk with TRUE 3-6lb bass and a cod and 2 pollock by 7am!!!! thats no JOKE!!

s o i ask.. where have these days gone? what caused it? id ont know but i dont think this closure is ever going to bring those days back! just like the tuna.. all these BIG fishys are there just not "stupid" as they used to be! hah


IMHO OF COURSE!!

[fsl1]

It's ironic that while everyone is debating if limits are ever caught, Fishmonger Jerry just posted a limit seabass report, which is pretty regular for him and several other knowlegeable bottomfish guides.
Who knows where these fish came from, but even if the limit were 20 fish per person, that's still a decent catch for one day and would reduce stress by 1/3 if in fact there is any stress on them. I just don't get the knee jerk reaction of going from 30 fish/person to a closure!

[MartyS]

dont wanna step backwards here because i feel strongly they are mistaken as usual..

but years ago seabass fishing offshore i would fill a huge cooler or tote myself in a day..


25 limit? HA! we used to pee on that in an hour or two.. we used to catch numbers between 2 of us in the 3 digits and it was amazing..

when it went to a 25 limit i did several offshore trips for exampe and we started fishing one day at 5am and i had my limit and was in my bunk with TRUE 3-6lb bass and a cod and 2 pollock by 7am!!!! thats no JOKE!!

s o i ask.. where have these days gone? what caused it? id ont know but i dont think this closure is ever going to bring those days back! just like the tuna.. all these BIG fishys are there just not "stupid" as they used to be! hah


IMHO OF COURSE!!
What caused it? Bumping the minimum size up to 12.5". There is no shortage of sea bass.

Same as fluke. If the minimum size for fluke was back to 12" or 13", how many keepers would you have in a few hours of fishing this year?

They are just throttling us back with the regs.

[laketrout]

I heard this somewhere... and believe it's an analogy of today's time.

You can place a frog into a pot of boiling water and it will immediately jump out.

Or,

You can place a frog in a pot of luke warm water, turn up the heat, and it will slowly boil to death.

We are the frogs in luke warm water, it must stop.

Yes, I am a contributing member of the RFA but it doesn't seem to help.

Regretfully, sorry to see the ocean prospects going directly to the big pockets, and yes, it is about the commercial interest. Just ask the commercial "hand line" cod fisherman in the north atlantic (Canada). You talk of revolution. Those boys commender-ed the official office after laws were passed against them (for a week or more i believe) and there was a great documentary movie which details all of it. Eventually, it all fell against them, even after the hand line fisherman were able to declare victory based on promises which weren't kept by officials.

Troubled times are upon us (fluke regs./ mako shark closure/ sea bass) and I want to buy a bigger boat. WTF for...

[mj4]

The way I understand this is the closure is not because of overfishing.Capt Adam can explain this much better than I.



Nobody loves jiggin up them offshore seabass more than I.Its gonna be a long winter without it.I do it for fun but the charter/party boat guys do it for their livelihood.

What really gets me is its recreational only.Now the commercial pots are sitting on OUR REEFS that OUR tax dollars paid for and we cant fish there only the commercial pots can.Im not against commercial fishing but once again were really takin it up the a$$ here.Until we organize like the commercial guys do and spend the time and money to hire the lawyers to prove how ridiculous their scientific methods are we'll continue to take it in the can.Send youre checks and speak up to the RfA and JCAA or this is only the beginning.

[Little old man]

There is no doubt in my mind that recreational fisherman are getting screwed in the latest round of draconian regulations. To go from a manageable limit per angler, to a full closure for 180 days, is ridiculous. I would like to see what different organizations that represent the recreational fisherman, party/charter boat owners, bait shops, etc, have planned to combat these measures that have been imposed. I feel it is extremely important to fight NOAA on this immediately, as it has gone way too far. My only hope is that there is a plan that is viable and they get the support (most likely $) they need. Too many times people talk, but fail to take action.

also, i really hope the damn tuna decide to bite this saturday night for sunday on the gambler! LOL

[regulator 29]

fillet and release time fcuk noaa they are a bunch of morons

[O'Connor]

I truly feel sorry for my friends that work so hard to make a living running fishing boats. It is nearly impossible to succeed. :(

[Duffman]

I truly feel sorry for my friends that work so hard to make a living running fishing boats. It is nearly impossible to succeed. :(


"nearly" is an understatement

[bill-fish]

What a bummer... especially for all the PB captains that fish for this species over the winter:mad:

[maddhatterr]

:mad: There was a time when Americans where actually ruled by the people, the majority......we revolted from Brtitan for taxation without representation.....women stood up for there right to vote...and blacks stood up for there right to equal right......change doesn't happen with out us changing it. I feel that we are all so divided in our cause as there so much bullshit from the goverment that we all have many causes in our lives and it divides us. I believe that the corruption in goverment needs to be delt with in the old fashion ways.....I believe that we are the mojority and our founding fathers did not intend for our goverment to rule us, rather govern us. How did it ever come to this.....I've never been really into politics but perhaps thats is how it has come to this......so many of us have been lambs for so long.....think its time to remember that we are Americans and remember why this country was founded.......not sure if I got my point across but at least I got it off my chest.....Thanks for listening:mad:

Its time to TAKE the power back!!!!!

[Blackfish Doug]

:mad: There was a time when Americans where actually ruled by the people, the majority......we revolted from Brtitan for taxation without representation.....women stood up for there right to vote...and blacks stood up for there right to equal right......change doesn't happen with out us changing it. I feel that we are all so divided in our cause as there so much bullshit from the goverment that we all have many causes in our lives and it divides us. I believe that the corruption in goverment needs to be delt with in the old fashion ways.....I believe that we are the mojority and our founding fathers did not intend for our goverment to rule us, rather govern us. How did it ever come to this.....I've never been really into politics but perhaps thats is how it has come to this......so many of us have been lambs for so long.....think its time to remember that we are Americans and remember why this country was founded.......not sure if I got my point across but at least I got it off my chest.....Thanks for listening:mad:

Its time to TAKE the power back!!!!!
I guess I know what my grandparents felt like during prohibition. This is an outrage I guess we now have to form some type of speakeasy for fisherman.

[sportfishingusa]

What caused it? Bumping the minimum size up to 12.5". There is no shortage of sea bass.

Same as fluke. If the minimum size for fluke was back to 12" or 13", how many keepers would you have in a few hours of fishing this year?

They are just throttling us back with the regs.


i 100% agree with you on this one martys.. I meant scientifically.. what caused them to do this..

Its a crap shoot and i am not only angry but saddened.. I am willing to do anything it takes to get this reverse for the future generations as i was not long ago, that little guy fishing on boats for this beautiful fish..

someone point us in the right direction.. lets start our own revelation and get this crapola on the right track again!

[Taxman]

You can fish for weakfish and then switch to whiting

Oh wait, nothing was done for them and you bitchh that they are gone.

The day people stop buying fish in the markets and ordering them in resturants is the last day commercial fisherman will have the upper hand

[Blackfish Doug]

This is what they want plain & simple.

[maddhatterr]

You can fish for weakfish and then switch to whiting

Oh wait, nothing was done for them and you bitchh that they are gone.

The day people stop buying fish in the markets and ordering them in resturants is the last day commercial fisherman will have the upper hand
Curious....are you suggesting that the reason there is hardle any weak and whiting left is because of the rod and reel fisherman rather than the commercial guys.....?
There seems to be plenty of weakies in the surf right now...!

[MartyS]

It doesn't take a genius to tell which species of fish are plentiful and which are in trouble. Most recreational fishermen can tell.

Blues, sea bass, fluke are among the plentiful and we should be able to fish for them more freely.

Whiting, weakfish, winter flounder are scarce and need regulation.

Somehow, NOAA manages to utilize our tax dollars to manipulate faulty data to completely mishandle the regulation of our fisheries. I really hope they are just diehard anti-fishing types, because if they seriously think they know what they are doing, they belong in an insane asylum. Their marine forecasts look accurate compared to their fisheries management.

The amateurs at windguru.com do a better job forecasting the winds and seas than these overfunded NOAA morons. It was blowing a lot harder than 10kts this morning when I was out fishing.

[Taxman]

Curious....are you suggesting that the reason there is hardle any weak and whiting left is because of the rod and reel fisherman rather than the commercial guys.....?
There seems to be plenty of weakies in the surf right now...!

I am suggesting that they are missing because nothing was done to stop them from being overfished. What is being done now might not be great, but is still better than what was done to save the whiting

I am suggesting that just because we have a 1 week run by the Man Inlet, does not mean the stock is healthy. Fortescue calls themselves the weakfish capital of the world and they would kill to have a 1 week run. They are catchig blues and croakers and dreaming about the good old days

The Raritan Party boat fleet prayed for the weaks to show after the fluke season closed

I am stating, that as long as there is a big demand for seafood at the markets and in resturants, the general public and the politicians will not give a damn about the recreational fisherman and only care that they can buy what they want, when they want, at a good price.

[skipper.ll]

i hope the party boats that target these fish can find something else that the fares would fish for or it is going to be a very long hard winter for them