Spot Burning vs. Info Sharing topic...

[buzzbaiter]

Why locked?

My two cents:

Yes there are no secrets but I see no need to spread the word.

Its not just bucket brigades that can be a problem. Its guys who find a new spot and love it to death. For example: that pond where I caught the big bass is someplace I won't go back to for a month or so. I'll give it a rest and go elsewhere. LOts of choices. No need to hammer away at the same place week after week or even day after day.

As for PM's, its your choice. If they already know a spot and are going there anyways, I'll tell them what I know. But if you simply ask
"where to catch big bass or lots of trout?" You'll get no reply from me.

[baetis]

This board has always been a place where people share much more information than other places.

Personally, I've seen too many small/medium sized freshwater holes become non-productive over the last 20 years as a result of the internet/cell phone and bucket brigade. It happens, and there really isn't much you can do about it with todays technology.

On the other hand, I've learned of many great spots and techniques from the people on this board. There is 100x more substantive info given on njfishing than any other site. Not just spots, but techniques/timing/baits and things that matter a lot more than a specific location.

I think you just have to accept the fact that any low pressured spot that you currently fish can change any minute.

[Eskimo]

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In before the lock!


You all probably already know my opinion on the topic. Anybody starts bugging me about where I catch bass, especially someone who kills bass, I tell them, "Figure it out for yourself. Learn to be a skilled and ethical angler. Explore the lakes, ponds, and rivers. You will find the fish you are looking for." .

Bass grow slow at our latitude. According to some sources, it takes three years for a bass to reach twelve inches. Three years!

A twenty-two inch bass could be over ten years old!!

With that in mind, it's easy to see it doesn't take many bone heads to destroy a bass fishery. How many years do you think the average bass in the average body of water lives before some selfish moron takes him home for dinner?

Source: http://www.fishingthebigd.com/index_Page373.htm


My opinion is, if you know of a under-utilized bass fishery, keep it to yourself. There are a lot of selfish and ignorant anglers out there who will ruin it for you and everybody else who uses it.

[acabtp]

while i agree that it takes a long time for bass to grow up (this is one of the reasons that i like panfish so much), it is going too far to call someone who keeps a bass a 'selfish moron'. in fact, a population needs some of its top members removed from the pool on a regular basis in order for the rest of the fish to stay on a healthy growth track. with no pressure at the top, all you end up with is a stunted population. there is an article about this very thing on page 35 of this year's digest. http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/pdf/2013/digfsh13.pdf

the idea that all bass should be tossed back, every time, is about 40 or 45 years old, and like most other ideas that we had 40 or 45 years ago... we have learned more since then and know better now. not keeping all the bass, not keeping none of the bass, but keeping a large bass occasionally is the best thing for your bass lake. really, bass are one of the species that cries out for a slot limit.

[Skunk City]

As much as I love helping someone who has the same passion for fishing as myself, there is a very fine line between helping someone develop their fishing skills and flat out putting them on fish. As populated as this state is, a productive spot that doesn't get hammered is a priceless asset. Fortunately, I have a few of those spots that I only share with a small group of friends/family that I know will respect its "un-burnt-ness". These spots have been found by myself or my close fishing buddies through research, exploration, thorough skunkings, and many hours on Google/Bing/Navionics Maps. I always encourage new guys to do the same, because it is that much more rewarding when you catch your first fish, your first limit, or your first beast.

That being said, while there are definetely a bunch of guys here that practice the same, I couldn't tell you how many times I get the "Where exactly did you catch that fish? I promise I won't tell anyone". Its frustrating because fishing is more than driving up to a spot, tossing out a lure, catching a limit or beast, and going home. Hell, with the Passaic being as awesome as it has been the past few years, I won't even mention the word "Passaic" in my report posts anymore. Guys who are on here enough know if a report is posted by me with some big a$$ Pike, it's from the Passaic! Without mentioning the P-word, the report won't turn up on Google, Yahoo, etc. for the world to see. I like helping guys on here, not someone who will never contribute to NJFishing.

Having had spots of mine completely blown up on the internet by too specific wording or blatantly obvious pictures, I now am selective about my reports and the background in my photos. This forum is pretty respective of that, but some other NJ specific forums (rhymes with rICE pANTY) have guys who don't understand the concept that while only 10-20 guys may respond to a post/report, there are literally hundreds of "lurkers" out there reading it as well. They could be respectful to these "unwritten rules", or they could be spot burning, bucket brigading guys that will fish a spot til its sucked dry...you never know. I enjoy fishing too much to see that happen.

My suggestion? Keep all this in mind when posting a report, keep it to PM's, and be selective on the info you give out to guys that aren't in your inner circle.