smallmouth bass on the menu

[Faststeel]

Great news from Manitoba and the lake we have a cabin on. This year for the first time ever we have a daily limit on the bass fishery. We can keep 4 fish.
Never eaten bass, but I'm sure looking forward to it. FS

[Albertafisher]

I heard from my friends in Ontario that bass taste really good.

[luckyme]

i believe it,all battered fried fish are good.:sHa_shakeshout:

[Big Red 250]

I've ate them a few times back when I lived in Mb. I found them to be a taste of between perch & walleye. Just fillet them like you do a walleye. This was smallmouth bass.

[jono88]

i have eaten largemouth bass before and wasn't really impressed. smallmouth could be a different thing. I would rather eat pike before i ate largemouth. let me know how those smallies taste though. Hey at least you will be catching bass and the rest of us suckers here in Alberta have to mess around with slough sharks. Don't get me wrong i like pike and walleye fishing but it sure would be nice to have some bass here.

[Faststeel]

i have eaten largemouth bass before and wasn't really impressed. smallmouth could be a different thing. I would rather eat pike before i ate largemouth. let me know how those smallies taste though. Hey at least you will be catching bass and the rest of us suckers here in Alberta have to mess around with slough sharks. Don't get me wrong i like pike and walleye fishing but it sure would be nice to have some bass here.

The fight a smallmouth bass gives an angler is pound for pound as good as any fish in Canada, and better than anything in Alberta that is a lake fish. FS

[floppychicken]

The fight a smallmouth bass gives an angler is pound for pound as good as any fish in Canada, and better than anything in Alberta that is a lake fish. FS


OH YEAH, no doubt about that.... Watching those 'smallies' fly outta' the water 3' in the air was unbelievable.

Makes me a bit sick when I think about F&W regarding there 'disdain' for BASS..hahah. Kinda' like my Bass Guide said about Fish and Wildlife in B.C. "The Board Members are 'Trout' fishermen and 'purists' to an extreme'. They look at BASS like many look at suckers, useless.... My Guide was on the Board for two years and was 'amazed' at the 'hard lined stance' they took on the issue.... Now you know why SO MANY lakes are being ILLEGALLY stocked with BASS. People are sick of it. :mad0100:

There is NO reason that there should NOT be some STELLAR BASS FISHING here in Alberta and before anyone says that 'they already tried and it didn't work' is just repeating what everyone ELSE believes to be true... The INTRODUCTION of the BASS was 'SCREWED UP'...period. Don't believe me? Go down to the Hatchery and take the Tour and get the REAL SCOOP from the people that were INVOLVED in the process. They themselves admit it was 'Screwed-Up', but due to the 'Bitching and Whining' it hasn't been attempted again. Personally, I am Looking forward to the tour this Fall and next Spring as well.

I find it 'laughable' when EVERY SINGLE province in CANADA can sustain a BASS population yet ALBERTA cannot? Hahahahah.. Funny shi t!! Between the shallow Prairie Lakes and the Mountain Lakes, none are sustainable, yet LARGEMOUTH can LIVE in LAKE WINDERMERE and purportedly 'Smokey Lake'? :sign0080:
I like the 'too cold' excuse too... That's one of the better ones which I believe people equate to the magazines that 'WORSHIP' them in the Southern States. The funny thing is that they everyone seems to believe they are a WARM WATER fish and that could not be FURTHER from the truth. The RIVERS and LAKES that I personally fished in had 3' of FREAKIN' Ice on them and a WINTER with NO CHINOOKS! Either way, it has absolutely NOTHING to do with water conditions, it's about how BASS live and adapt to their surroundings, especially seeing as how WELL they proliferate in ALL other Provinces except ours:rolleye2::rolleye2::rolleye2:

I can honestly say that I'd rather see 'BASS' Illegally stocked before those 'stupid perch'. Those things are prized in ALBERTA for some BIZARRE reason of which I do not understand. Where I'm 'originally from' they are basically a 'Bait Fish' and were about as high on the 'Fish Want List' as your typical 'Sunfish or Bluegill'.:rolleye2:

**I'm NOT saying illegal stocking is OK, cause' it IS NOT, but it's going to continue regardless of what we do. I just wish these DORKS would 'go the distance' and put some 'REAL FISH' into these lakes..:sHa_shakeshout:**

If the Province spent HALF the time and Resources on 'ANY OTHER species' as they have on those 'STUPID BULL TROUT', the fishing in some of our lakes would be completely 'different'..... So exactly HOW long has it been since we've been POURING money and TIME into these Fish anyway? Ten Years? Twenty years? Along with many others, I've simply lost count and don't understand why we NEED to expend so much time, energy and CASH into a Species of FISH that is SO incredibly sensitive to WATER and CLIMATE change. Lest we forget about 'sensitivity' of the DORK ANGLER'S who caught them, bashed them on the head and threw them back into the water merely because they thought they were 'so Fugly'..ugggh. Gotta' stop before I can't......

Cheers,

[hunter49]

save a bass, eat a walleye. IMO.

[jono88]

Some really interesting and good points in there for sure. You make a good point that all the other provinces(many of them very similar to ours) are currently supporting healthy populations of bass yet Alberta is not capable of this? hmmmm something doesn't add up there.

[ice]

OH YEAH, no doubt about that.... Watching those 'smallies' fly outta' the water 3' in the air was unbelievable.

Makes me a bit sick when I think about F&W regarding there 'disdain' for BASS..hahah. Kinda' like my Bass Guide said about Fish and Wildlife in B.C. "The Board Members are 'Trout' fishermen and 'purists' to an extreme'. They look at BASS like many look at suckers, useless.... My Guide was on the Board for two years and was 'amazed' at the 'hard lined stance' they took on the issue.... Now you know why SO MANY lakes are being ILLEGALLY stocked with BASS. People are sick of it. :mad0100:

There is NO reason that there should NOT be some STELLAR BASS FISHING here in Alberta and before anyone says that 'they already tried and it didn't work' is just repeating what everyone ELSE believes to be true... The INTRODUCTION of the BASS was 'SCREWED UP'...period. Don't believe me? Go down to the Hatchery and take the Tour and get the REAL SCOOP from the people that were INVOLVED in the process. They themselves admit it was 'Screwed-Up', but due to the 'Bitching and Whining' it hasn't been attempted again. Personally, I am Looking forward to the tour this Fall and next Spring as well.

I find it 'laughable' when EVERY SINGLE province in CANADA can sustain a BASS population yet ALBERTA cannot? Hahahahah.. Funny shi t!! Between the shallow Prairie Lakes and the Mountain Lakes, none are sustainable, yet LARGEMOUTH can LIVE in LAKE WINDERMERE and purportedly 'Smokey Lake'? :sign0080:
I like the 'too cold' excuse too... That's one of the better ones which I believe people equate to the magazines that 'WORSHIP' them in the Southern States. The funny thing is that they everyone seems to believe they are a WARM WATER fish and that could not be FURTHER from the truth. The RIVERS and LAKES that I personally fished in had 3' of FREAKIN' Ice on them and a WINTER with NO CHINOOKS! Either way, it has absolutely NOTHING to do with water conditions, it's about how BASS live and adapt to their surroundings, especially seeing as how WELL they proliferate in ALL other Provinces except ours:rolleye2::rolleye2::rolleye2:

I can honestly say that I'd rather see 'BASS' Illegally stocked before those 'stupid perch'. Those things are prized in ALBERTA for some BIZARRE reason of which I do not understand. Where I'm 'originally from' they are basically a 'Bait Fish' and were about as high on the 'Fish Want List' as your typical 'Sunfish or Bluegill'.:rolleye2:

**I'm NOT saying illegal stocking is OK, cause' it IS NOT, but it's going to continue regardless of what we do. I just wish these DORKS would 'go the distance' and put some 'REAL FISH' into these lakes..:sHa_shakeshout:**

If the Province spent HALF the time and Resources on 'ANY OTHER species' as they have on those 'STUPID BULL TROUT', the fishing in some of our lakes would be completely 'different'..... So exactly HOW long has it been since we've been POURING money and TIME into these Fish anyway? Ten Years? Twenty years? Along with many others, I've simply lost count and don't understand why we NEED to expend so much time, energy and CASH into a Species of FISH that is SO incredibly sensitive to WATER and CLIMATE change. Lest we forget about 'sensitivity' of the DORK ANGLER'S who caught them, bashed them on the head and threw them back into the water merely because they thought they were 'so Fugly'..ugggh. Gotta' stop before I can't......

Cheers,

Men I say leave the albertan lakes the way they are. We already have problems with the fish we have. The last thing we need is the province worryng sbouut another fish population. Stock walleyes. I'd rather my tax dollars go into keeping a healthy walleye pop rATher then some fish that isn't supposed to be here in the first place. Sure they can survive:... Bilut there's a reason they aren't natural here.....



Ice:confused:

[Big Red 250]

Fasteel: Smallmouth have been in that lake for a long time now havn't they? And there just opening a season on them. Their must be some huge fish in there now. I'm sure the pike didn't eat them all.LOL.

[slingshotz]

I've eaten almost every type of sportfish fish in Alberta and BC and I'd have to rank smallmouth bass just under walleye and perch for culinary qualities. The meat is easy to fillet, not a lot of bones (about the same as walleye and perch I'd say) and quite firm. I've only had them during the late summer/early fall months so I'd bet they would be even better in the spring or out of the ice.

Mind you I've never eaten a large smallie but I figure they would be the same as any other large predator fish, not as good when they get really big.

[floppychicken]

Men I say leave the albertan lakes the way they are. We already have problems with the fish we have. The last thing we need is the province worryng sbouut another fish population. Stock walleyes. I'd rather my tax dollars go into keeping a healthy walleye pop rATher then some fish that isn't supposed to be here in the first place. Sure they can survive:... Bilut there's a reason they aren't natural here.....

Ice:confused:


Well, that's where I think you are VERY WRONG...

You have to REALIZE that WE CANNOT sustain the FISHERIES that we Have now!! There is just WAAAAY TOO much Fishing pressure for ALL THESE WALLEYE you want to add. Don't forget that they are one of the SLOWEST GROWING SPORTFISH in NORTH AMERICA, especially once they mature. They CAN GROW much quicker in different parts, but they have to have FOOD... like 'BAITFISH' or 'PANFISH'! That is something we ARE SERIOUSLY lacking. The MORE WALLEYE you put in these waters, the WORSE ALBERTA waters will become... There are now approximately 400 (HUNDRED) Anglers PER FISHABLE LAKE in this PROVINCE and THAT IS A FACT! HOW in the HELL are we going to sustain MASSIVE quantities of SLOW GROWING FISH?? The simple answer is that we CAN'T!!

I'm telling you that we are looking at a VERY, VERY big problem in the next 5 to 10 years.... If we continue on the path that we are on, the FISHING is going to be MUCH, MUCH worse than it already is...

You mentioned that WALLEYE were a NATURAL or NATIVE fish to Alberta... and your are Correct, but in HOW MANY LAKES and RESERVOIRS? The ONE THING that nobody seems to understand is that ALBERTA LAKES and RESERVOIRS are NOWHERE NEAR to being in a NATURAL STATE! HOW many Reservoirs and Lakes are Man-made? How many of them (man made or not) have been STOCKED with fish? I don't think anyone 'Actually' knows how GREAT that number is.... Now take a 'good look' at all those LAKES and MAN-MADE reservoirs with stocked fish and ask; "How many of these bodies of water have ALSO been stocked with proper 'Baitfish or Panfish'?" You won't like the answer... As you STATED above, you'd like to see HEALTHY POPULATIONS of WALLEYE..well so do I! The problem is we have too many 'UNHEALTHY' WALLEYE right now!

For the RECORD, I LOVE to Fish for Walleye! I also think we NEED to have WALLEYE in ALBERTA in BOTH our Lakes and Reservoirs. I also know that we CANNOT have them IN ALL of our LAKES and RESERVOIRS because we DO NOT have the right ENVIRONMENT for SLOW GROWING FISH mainly because of 2 factors of which I've previously stated... 'Fish food' and MASSIVE 'angling pressure'.

This DOES NOT even cover the 'PIKE ISSUE'! What are the PIKE eating in these waters? They're EATING the freakin' WALLEYE! There's certainly NOTHING ELSE for them to eat when there's not a GOOD HEALTHY amount of Whitefish around... How many reservoirs down SOUTH have good populations of WHITEFISH? Hell, the WHITEFISH in GULL and SYLVAN are so DAMN big I doubt ANYTHING BUT a decent sized PIKE could EAT THEM anyway..hahah

We need to do a FEW things to make Alberta Fisheries even VIABLE for the Future...
-We need BAITFISH! That is as simple as I can put it... We have populations of WALLEYE that are STARVING! (PCR anyone?) We need Goby, Toby, Adobe...:) whatever!! just get some FREAKIN' FAST GROWING BAITFISH and/or PANFISH for the starving POPULATION of GAMEFISH.
-STOP STOCKING POOR and OBVIOUSLY 'dying' WALLEYE lakes and concentrate on the bodies of WATER that DO SUSTAIN 'decent' growing fish and above all HEALTHY FISH.
-Introduce a NEW GAMEFISH to ALBERTA!!!!!!! RESILIENT and FAST GROWING... I.E. Smallmouth BASS. I can see many of you CRINGING in FEAR :scared0015: and DISGUST :sick: at the mere mention of it... hahahaha but the 'ALTERNATIVE' is FAR, FAR worse. Take those REALLY BAD FISHERIES and make them into GREAT BASS LAKES! It will alleviate the FISHING pressure on the WALLEYE population and allow the GOOD WALLEYE and PIKE FISHERIES to become EXCELLENT FISHERIES!

Oh, and for those of you whom have never had the 'PLEASURE' of hooking into a two or three pound Smallie or a 6 or 8lb Largemouth, you are REALLY missing out on one of the MOST UNIQUE fishing experiences you will EVER have!

Ok, I'm done......:)

Cheers All,

/FC...

[savagencounter]

im all for stocking bass here, if the lakes out east support walleye, pike, bass and whitfish all mixed in one lake what is the concern of stocking bass here? Hell the oil companies should pay for the stocking program as payment for all the water they use and destroy not to mention the drop in water level and quality. COME ON SHELL LETS BRING BASS TO ALBERTA WOOHOOO. There may be a valid reason to not bring bass re not enough baitfish or maybe the bass would eat the young walleye and pike but Alberta could make a fortune out of creating some great bass fishing , tournaments ect. I myself am getting kinda bored of walleye and pike(i still enjoy them though), Growing up in terrace and experiencing one of th best fisheries on earth will do that i guess lol IM OFF TO THE WESTCOAST mid july cant wait 50lb springs,sockeye coho, steelhead and sea run cutthroat, char and dolley varden here i come woohoo. Oh and pink salmon, we call them humppys lol oh and i forgot monster rainbows, BUT ALAS NO BASS. There should be a vote in alberta from the anglers too see who supports bass and who doesnt, majority rules, and hey if we are paying for a resourse shouldnt we have a say in what we want to pay for? IM FOR BASS HERE ANYONeE ELSE? Before i comment too much i would like to learn more on the concerns of stocking bass here as there may be a really good reason they dont. Ill give an example (atlantic salmon on the west coast) couldnt imagine if walleye or pike got introduced to the salmon streams) but would bass harm the pike or walleye? they seem fine in the other provinces mixed together. and alot of the lakes here are contained so stocking could be secluded to a few lakes that are already in need of a change.

[jesse34567]

There have been so many topics covering this issue and I believe under the the right managment and stocking programs smallmouth and largemouth could survive here no problem. FC good example of PCR, that lake is dying of overpopulated and stunted walleye with no real predators (pike numbers low)
and no bait fish to grow of trophy size, just as you stated we need more fish diversity if alberta will ever thrive, Ontario as arguably the best fishing in the world becasue of their fish diversity.

[podman]

I lived in the USA for 9 years and learned to love bass fishing. I think they taste good especially out of colder water. They are a blast to fish for. I would have no objection. Trout are still my favorite but I tell you a kid with a spinner catching a small mouth or large mouth would get them hooked on fishing it is such a rush.

[Faststeel]

Fasteel: Smallmouth have been in that lake for a long time now havn't they? And there just opening a season on them. Their must be some huge fish in there now. I'm sure the pike didn't eat them all.LOL.

Big Red

I believe that the lake was stocked 20 years ago and perhaps longer. An 18 inch smallmouth puts you in the master catagory in Manitoba. I have only caught 1 this size and it was well over 3 lbs, was the high light of my summers fishing as well as the trip into Yawning stone lake. FS