St. Mary’s Lake 4/5/2018

[lovinmaryland]

DH hit the lake for the first time this “spring” yesterday.

Started out with a lot of small guys

 

[lovinmaryland]

Then they started to get a little bit bigger

 

[lovinmaryland]

He finished the afternoon off by catching one of the biggest bass he’s ever caught!

 

[Monello]

That is 1 fat sow he caught there. SML is famous for it's dinky bass. I know there has to be a few hogs in there. What did he catch that on?



Why is he wearing a fake beard and sunglasses? Witness protection?

 

[limblips]

SML is a good candidate for a slot limit type lake for a few years. It really needs the smaller ones removed. It has great potential but the smaller ones will never get huge and only compete for the available food. Reminds me of a farm pond I used to fish. A bass just about every cast but all were 10 inches. Game biologist said they will never get any bigger, natures way of keeping the population matched to the food supply.

 

[lovinmaryland]

That is 1 fat sow he caught there. SML is famous for it's dinky bass. I know there has to be a few hogs in there. What did he catch that on?



Why is he wearing a fake beard and sunglasses? Witness protection?

Haha I know right it’s a great disguise!

Here’s the lure he used

SML is a good candidate for a slot limit type lake for a few years. It really needs the smaller ones removed. It has great potential but the smaller ones will never get huge and only compete for the available food. Reminds me of a farm pond I used to fish. A bass just about every cast but all were 10 inches. Game biologist said they will never get any bigger, natures way of keeping the population matched to the food supply.

He’s actually caught quite a few decent size bass there mostly between 2-4lbs but nothing like this fatty.

 

[Kyle]

He finished the afternoon off by catching one of the biggest bass he’s ever caught!

 

[Monello]

SML is a good candidate for a slot limit type lake for a few years. It really needs the smaller ones removed. It has great potential but the smaller ones will never get huge and only compete for the available food.

SML has a slot limit. DNR will tell you that several limits of under 11 inch fish should be retained each year. But nobody is keeping fish that small so they get returned to the lake to compete for the limited food supply. Here's the current bass regs for the lake:

• No bass in possession can measure between 11 and 15 inches long.
• Only one bass in possession may be 15 inches or longer.

 

[Bonehead]

I sure hope that fish went back in the water although laying it on the ground is kinda dumb if it is catch and release.

 

[Merlin99]

I sure hope that fish went back in the water although laying it on the ground is kinda dumb if it is catch and release.

• Only one bass in possession may be 15 inches or longer.

If he's allowed one over 15" why would he throw it back?

 

[lovinmaryland]

I sure hope that fish went back in the water although laying it on the ground is kinda dumb if it is catch and release.

Yes he did catch & release it, he never keeps bass... Said it was out for less than 2 minutes. He was alone and the only way he could think of to get a picture that showed it to scale. He said it swam off when he put it back in the water so hopefully it’s ok :shrug:

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[/LIST]

If he's allowed one over 15" why would he throw it back?

I’ve never understood why he releases them when we could eat them lol. He thinks if he releases it he/or another fisherman can come back another day to catch it.

 

[limblips]

SML has a slot limit. DNR will tell you that several limits of under 11 inch fish should be retained each year. But nobody is keeping fish that small so they get returned to the lake to compete for the limited food supply. Here's the current bass regs for the lake:

• No bass in possession can measure between 11 and 15 inches long.
• Only one bass in possession may be 15 inches or longer.

Thanks for the info! That needs to be publicized better (or more of us need to read the regs!!).

 

[Bonehead]

Yes he did catch & release it, he never keeps bass... Said it was out for less than 2 minutes. He was alone and the only way he could think of to get a picture that showed it to scale. He said it swam off when he put it back in the water so hopefully it’s ok :shrug:


I’ve never understood why he releases them when we could eat them lol. He thinks if he releases it he/or another fisherman can come back another day to catch it.

Good for him ! That was a female loaded with eggs, let her spawn then catch and keep. Killing that fish now would be like killing thousands. I know most fry get eaten but a few would survive.

 

[Monello]

Thanks for the info! That needs to be publicized better (or more of us need to read the regs!!).

Here are links for both fresh, saltwater and crabbing regs. Luck for Maryland anglers the rules are pretty straightforward. In some states the rules on a river change depending on where you are on the river.

 

[Monello]

Good for him ! That was a female loaded with eggs, let her spawn then catch and keep. Killing that fish now would be like killing thousands. I know most fry get eaten but a few would survive.

But even the fry that never make it very long are food for other fish. Watch a bass sit on a bed and you will see a dozen bluegill hanging around just waiting to ambush the nest to get an easy meal.

 

[SandieGarry]

Nice fish. Catch and eat the bluegill, good eats !!