Badger Reservoir

[Stella]

I know it says in the regulations that there are walleye in here, but I am wondering if anyone has ever caught any here?

[calgarygringo]

Always has been. Used to be one of the best kept secrets as walleye was not listed there in the regs. Nice perch there too.

[TROLLER]

Originally Posted by calgarygringo

Always has been. Used to be one of the best kept secrets as walleye was not listed there in the regs. Nice perch there too.

You mean used to be nice perch.

[dodger]

Originally Posted by TROLLER

You mean used to be nice perch.

Soooooo true^^^^^^

Dodger

[calgarygringo]

You mean used to be nice perch.[/QUOTE]


I did specify used to be. Saying that we still hit it up for some slough sharks a few times every winter. Not as many monsters as the old days but there are many decent size ones for a great time.

[Brovacs]

I don't think I've ever caught a walleye in Badger that was under 23". Caught lots of big ones over the years but the ratio of pike to walleye has always been like 50:1. Caught some big whitefish in there too during fall with jigs and minnows.

[Spudnut]

Have fished a lot at Badger and have never seen a walleye. Did capture some whitefish on camera though.

[old dog]

Use to fish badger a lot but went downhill fast. Like it or not we need to practice catch and release even when we can keep. Am not saying this is why but we as fisherman play an important role.

[fishingnut]

Originally Posted by old dog

Use to fish badger a lot but went downhill fast. Like it or not we need to practice catch and release even when we can keep. Am not saying this is why but we as fisherman play an important role.

This isn't just a problem at Badger, its province wide and even in Saskatchewan its becoming an issue to. Have relatives back there and they are saying same thing. Just because it says you can keep a certain size or a certain amount doesn't mean you need to do it everyday or sometimes even twice a day as I have seen at some reservoirs. I always remember a saying back from the 90's
"the thrill is in the catching not the keeping" and its stuck with me since then. Sure its nice to have a fish fry once in a awhile, but every weekend is a little much. Sorry for the rant but if we don't start changing things quickly and how we operate, there wont be any fisheries left for the next generation.

[Smoky buck]

Originally Posted by fishingnut

This isn't just a problem at Badger, its province wide and even in Saskatchewan its becoming an issue to. Have relatives back there and they are saying same thing. Just because it says you can keep a certain size or a certain amount doesn't mean you need to do it everyday or sometimes even twice a day as I have seen at some reservoirs. I always remember a saying back from the 90's
"the thrill is in the catching not the keeping" and its stuck with me since then. Sure its nice to have a fish fry once in a awhile, but every weekend is a little much. Sorry for the rant but if we don't start changing things quickly and how we operate, there wont be any fisheries left for the next generation.

Improved fish handling and fishing tactics that increase survival are also needed

Personally I believe if there is no retention there should be a bait ban and barbless hooks. Especially for pike size appropriate lures make a big difference in preventing deeply hooked fish

A guy who goes out once in a while keeps a fish or two then goes home has less impact then the C&R guy who goes out as often as possible with poor fishing handling and poor C&R tactics

The fact that most of Alberta’s waters have been C&R for sometime now with out a big improvement or even a continued decline it’s not simply releasing fish that is needed.

I completely support responsible use of Alberta’s fisheries and moderation but it also goes deeper then that if improvement is going to be seen

[old dog]

Originally Posted by Smoky buck

Improved fish handling and fishing tactics that increase survival are also needed

Personally I believe if there is no retention there should be a bait ban and barbless hooks. Especially for pike size appropriate lures make a big difference in preventing deeply hooked fish

A guy who goes out once in a while keeps a fish or two then goes home has less impact then the C&R guy who goes out as often as possible with poor fishing handling and poor C&R tactics

The fact that most of Alberta’s waters have been C&R for sometime now with out a big improvement or even a continued decline it’s not simply releasing fish that is needed.

I completely support responsible use of Alberta’s fisheries and moderation but it also goes deeper then that if improvement is going to be seen

Totally agree

[I’d rather be outdoors]

This isn’t as big of a problem as it’s made out to be by our bios. Our problem is the fisheries management philosophy (outdated and no longer practical).

The problem: limited waterbodies & population increase in Alberta over the last couple decades.

Bio’s Solution: shut our limited waterbodies down, easy to do, doesn’t cost anything. Doesn’t upset the bureaucratic apple cart. Lazy approach IMO and we deserve better.

The Pragmatic Solution: increase funding for stocking to account for population increase (recoup costs from licensing fees). Lift C&R restrictions and implement a slot - this spreads the pressure out in contrast to the cycle of open a waterbody, catch & clean out, close.

There’s no reason we can’t have better fisheries in AB (and we do in pockets-take Frank Lake for example :-)), but our bio’s & government need to change the view of how the fishery gets managed from how it was over 20-30 years ago to reflect the given reality that the AB pop has increased and will continue to do so.

Until this magical revelation happens, they’ll keep closing down what limited waters we have while building their pensions on your dime.

[Smoky buck]

Originally Posted by I’d rather be outdoors

This isn’t as big of a problem as it’s made out to be by our bios. Our problem is the fisheries management philosophy (outdated and no longer practical).

The problem: limited waterbodies & population increase in Alberta over the last couple decades.

Bio’s Solution: shut our limited waterbodies down, easy to do, doesn’t cost anything. Doesn’t upset the bureaucratic apple cart. Lazy approach IMO and we deserve better.

The Pragmatic Solution: increase funding for stocking to account for population increase (recoup costs from licensing fees). Lift C&R restrictions and implement a slot - this spreads the pressure out in contrast to the cycle of open a waterbody, catch & clean out, close.

There’s no reason we can’t have better fisheries in AB (and we do in pockets-take Frank Lake for example :-)), but our bio’s & government need to change the view of how the fishery gets managed from how it was over 20-30 years ago to reflect the given reality that the AB pop has increased and will continue to do so.

Until this magical revelation happens, they’ll keep closing down what limited waters we have while building their pensions on your dime.

No doubt a change in management is needed as well and in my opinion it needs to start at the bottom of the food chain. Slots are a positive but not the answer to all issues. A complete overhaul is needed in my opinion

This horse has been beaten to death on this forum so I am not going to waste much effort typing about it. Do to past education and experience from the aquaculture industry I see many different things. Really it’s not something that can be addressed thinking about it on a provincial level but more so each body of water needs to be addressed with its own management plan

Things are far more complicated then most would think

[Sundancefisher]

Originally Posted by Smoky buck

Improved fish handling and fishing tactics that increase survival are also needed

Personally I believe if there is no retention there should be a bait ban and barbless hooks. Especially for pike size appropriate lures make a big difference in preventing deeply hooked fish

A guy who goes out once in a while keeps a fish or two then goes home has less impact then the C&R guy who goes out as often as possible with poor fishing handling and poor C&R tactics

The fact that most of Alberta’s waters have been C&R for sometime now with out a big improvement or even a continued decline it’s not simply releasing fish that is needed.

I completely support responsible use of Alberta’s fisheries and moderation but it also goes deeper then that if improvement is going to be seen

Yup. Agreed.

It is a huge challenge trying to educate people on proper fish handling. I see that at our private lake. Put resources online… but people don’t read it. Try to explain it cautiously people take offence. I see people drag trout up on shore, take a while to get a hook out. Stop for a few photos. Lift it up looking like they are deciding what to do next. Fish flops out of hands and onto rocks. Repeat one or more times then place in water and walk away.

Those big rapalas… can do incredible damage to gills and blood vessels in the mouth cavity.

People complain the don’t ride the same but is it true? Can someone not only pinch down barbs and remove a few arms from the trebles and still catch fish?

[Smoky buck]

Originally Posted by Sundancefisher

Yup. Agreed.

It is a huge challenge trying to educate people on proper fish handling. I see that at our private lake. Put resources online… but people don’t read it. Try to explain it cautiously people take offence. I see people drag trout up on shore, take a while to get a hook out. Stop for a few photos. Lift it up looking like they are deciding what to do next. Fish flops out of hands and onto rocks. Repeat one or more times then place in water and walk away.

Those big rapalas… can do incredible damage to gills and blood vessels in the mouth cavity.

People complain the don’t ride the same but is it true? Can someone not only pinch down barbs and remove a few arms from the trebles and still catch fish?

As someone with a high understanding of lure building/action it is possible to keep a lure running true well changing hooks but you can also mess the action up to. So yes if you do it wrong the action changes or the lure even blows out. If I truly got into lure action and the different factors most would not understand. But a simple principle is if you change weight or the angle a lure rides the action changes

I have explained many times you can modify or change hooks on a lure as long as there is no big change to the weighting. Easiest is cut or file the points off of a treble. But in all honesty it is far more complicated then the old single vs treble theory if one really looks into it both styles of hook have advantages and disadvantages with fish mortality

Appropriate hook size and barbless are far more important in my opinion. Most lethal thing on trout is small singles especially with bait in my opinion. Large singles can also blind and brain hook smaller fish. A treble does create the possibility of multiple hook points penetrating the fish making it take longer to remove. But if you remove the barbs this becomes less of an issue. But they also don’t penetrate as deep do to the junction of the prongs. Also the dimensions of a treble make it harder to swallow deep if using the appropriate size

It’s far more complicated then single vs treble it’s more so applying them correctly to the set up/style of fishing and species/size. Barbs though are meant for meat fishing not C&R plain and simple

In the past I tested a lot of things on a private trout pond I had over 10years regarding different things that impacted mortality

First myth a hook left in a deeply hooked fish in freshwater is not going to de solve. Some may shake it but most will die or have major complications eating or infection. If it’s legal to do so you are better off keeping that fish if you legally can’t do so cutting the line will give the fish a chance but odds of survival are low. I know this from drag netting and harvesting fish from that private pond seeing te impact of the fish that had hooks left in them or finding them as floaters

Choose to use the above information as you please I won’t debate any of it because it has been put to the test far beyond most will ever do. Most studies won’t run near as long or as extensive as I did in the past

Fish can be extremely tough and also extremely frail

[I’d rather be outdoors]

Originally Posted by Smoky buck

No doubt a change in management is needed as well and in my opinion it needs to start at the bottom of the food chain. Slots are a positive but not the answer to all issues. A complete overhaul is needed in my opinion

This horse has been beaten to death on this forum so I am not going to waste much effort typing about it. Do to past education and experience from the aquaculture industry I see many different things. Really it’s not something that can be addressed thinking about it on a provincial level but more so each body of water needs to be addressed with its own management plan

Things are far more complicated then most would think

Agreed to a point. A complete overhaul is needed, plain & simple. Debated to death...agreed. Not super complicated though. It’s been made to be over complicated and decision paralysis/mantra to maintain the status quo isn’t helping. If they start stocking now, we could have a better fishery in <5 years. I’d gladly pay more for licences if they opened up more opportunities. Other provinces get it. Ours is decades behind in fisheries management.

[Smoky buck]

Originally Posted by I’d rather be outdoors

Agreed to a point. A complete overhaul is needed, plain & simple. Debated to death...agreed. Not super complicated though. It’s been made to be over complicated and decision paralysis/mantra to maintain the status quo isn’t helping. If they start stocking now, we could have a better fishery in <5 years. I’d gladly pay more for licences if they opened up more opportunities. Other provinces get it. Ours is decades behind in fisheries management.

I have built and operated small hatcheries it is likely more costly and complicated then you realize. Some species are also poor candidates

I will agree stocking would help but is not the solve all solution. Odds are the efforts I see as a wise investment in stocking would not match your idea either

Put & take vs building a sustainable fishery

But this is way off topic and a waste of typing

[I’d rather be outdoors]

Originally Posted by Smoky buck

I have built and operated small hatcheries it is likely more costly and complicated then you realize. Some species are also poor candidates

I will agree stocking would help but is not the solve all solution. Odds are the efforts I see as a wise investment in stocking would not match your idea either

Put & take vs building a sustainable fishery

But this is way off topic and a waste of typing

I respect your experience and appreciate the input. We both agree (like I believe most would) the current approach just isn’t working for anyone except the Bio’s.