1/11/2025 Finally got the Tilt/Trim motor replaced and was itching to go fishing. Yesterday 1/16/2025 I should have stayed in bed it was cold as heck and that skunk was musky. After a few hours of managing the brutal cold and wind picking up I managed a red; tagged and head to the hill. Blunting for punishment I started out this morning 1/17/2025 cold but not brutal.
1st fish in the boat 18" trout that I thought was a red. Had to get it out of some structure and not a hard fight but kept the head high and felt it come across structure after structure and when it was in site I was surprise to see it was a Trout.
Caught a 23" Tagged red and released and missed a few fish all after and ran to the hill by 11:00 after the winds picked up. What away to start the New Year.
Not one of mine. Love to get the data back on a fish I tagged. Most of the reports I get are a released fish. I had tagged a 25” fish that was subsequently caught, harvested and then reported to DNR to try and win a shirt.
They still have the redfish shirt but tend to run out of they often as well as the redfish key chain. Have a note book full of tagged and released fish that I try to keep a record of for me and how long before it’s recaptured. I rarely keep fish unless it gut hooked football game or fish fry
I never released many fish until optiker tagged every fish in the Cooper river.haha
Thankfully he’s not a fish eating outlaw
Made me realize that I needed to reevaluate
Now I only keep what I can eat that night.
And I don’t get out there as much as I used to
It’s so easy to take a cellphone pic of the tag nowadays,wish we had them way back when
LOL sman! I do eat a few fish here and there, last night in fact. It’s pretty cool that in the last 10 years I’ve seen a remarkable increase in catch and release tag returns in the Cooper. It used to be almost guaranteed a catch and retain about 10 years ago. Back then if recaptured in the Wando -usually released. If in the Cooper - retained.
I know an older guy that slays em in flagg and grove almost exclusively, eats lots fish cause he loves it. Keeps em even if tagged, has a shot glass full of tags like trophies …sheesh… lol says he reports most of them but I dont know
Last 2 trips in the Wando had produced tagged fish tho. 2 Orange tags in November and my buddy got 2 yellows in last 2 trips
I think I know that old curmudgeon.haha
I always avoid Flagg because of all the boats but it does produce well.
I feel good that I’ve changed my ways
Thanks to you younger fellas
I’m pretty sure I’ve met that guy. He said to me something like “yeah, the other day I caught about a dozen with tags. I never report them though. Too much work”
He’s been fishing there since I was born probably
Ouch!!! Don’t know what to say about this even though he can harvest a tagged specie. We as a group just have to push forward with the program. Many enjoy harvesting when others try to maintain the ecosystem.
…sheesh… lol says he reports most of them but I dont know