# UP Brook Trout Report



## fishinDon

I took the same 5 buddies with me to our annual "trout camp" trip again this year. I think this was our 3rd or 4th year now...I've been so busy that this is only my second time in the UP all summer, and the first I spent mostly working on the cottage. It's always a fun weekend to take the guys up, since they are all close buddies, regardless of the trout fishing, and this year was no exception. And the trout fishing (mostly) cooperated...

Our cottage is in the central UP and that was our "base" of operations. We arrived at camp about 5 or 6PM Friday night, immediatly dropped our bags, grabbed our gear, and were off to explore some small creeks and tribs. 

As soon as we hiked into the first creek Friday night, I knew we were in trouble...the water was so low that places that had previously been almost waist deep were now barely ankle deep. We cherry picked a few spots, and I got one of my buddies set up on about the only truely deep hole in the whole stretch. He did well there, the rest of us struggled. We left before dark to find another spot...

The second spot on Friday night was much like the first. Rain is needed. I think all together they managed 9 smallish brookies Friday night. I left all the good water for my rookies, and I personally only caught 1 trout. 

After seeing all the low water Friday night, I knew I had to go someplace where there would be more. So we changed game plans and I took us on a long hike into some deep holes that I knew would be there, in spite of the low water. 

I got the guys set up on a few deep holes and I started hiking down stream. I could tell we made the right decision right away when I could hear them hooting and hollering as I was hiking down river. 

I explored some new water in the lower river, which turned out not to be as deep as I had hoped, but I still managed a few trout...when I caught back up to the guys about 9 or 9:30AM, the sun was bright and the bite had just slowed down, but they had a bunch brook trout between them and some very big smiles on their faces! Almost all of the trout were between 9 and 11 inches. Almost no small ones and no super big ones, but lots of nice ones!

Here's the fish we kept - remember there were 6 guys, including me...only one of these was mine:










In the late morning and early afternoon, we headed out to the lake and tried our hand at some pike fishing. We got a few of those too, no big ones, but the guys all had fun catching 'em between hammer handle size and 28 inches.

After a big fish dinner and a late night at the casino, we got a late start Sunday morning, and only half my crew got out of bed.  We made it to the trout stream about the same time we had quit on Saturday morning, but still managed a few trout, including this one, my biggest of the trip, just over 12":










After that it was time to clean up, pack up, and head for home. Another great time at camp, wish I could be there more often!

Good luck everyone if you get a chance to get out!
Don


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## Jfish

Looks like a great trip!


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## jneef

I would be much more impressed with you taking pictures and releasing the trout. Frankly, I am sickened to see the collection of beautiful fish being harvested. A 20 inch walleye is the equvelent of eight 10-inch brookies. One salmon provides more meat than all those trout. Please leave them in the river next time, or only take a few. If everyone did what you did, all of our memorable trout trips (for us and future generations) to the special UP would be over because the large fish would be gone. Respectfully....


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## badercmu123

Great report! 

Jneef that's less than three fish per man. Take it somewhere else. Those fish are a well deserved treat for some guys that get up there once a year and worked for them. 

Also maybe we should stop eating salmon and switch to sturgeon because there are at least 7 salmon in a sturgeon.

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## MDH

Jneef

The fish were legally caught, so they have every right to keep em. Great job on the fish fellas! I bet they tasted great! 

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## brookies101

Dude has 4posts on this website and thinks he has the right to get on here and take over a good report with that garbage 

Don, 

Nice work on the fish. Thats some good eatin right there. About 8 more days until I journey up that-a-way. Hopefully they'll get a bit more rain before then. 

Either way, I'm getting anxious . Can't wait


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## troutguy26

Nice catch. Makes me wish i did the annual trip to the u.p. maybe next year. As long as there are still fish left i hope i make it in time. Lol


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## Ansel

GREAT POST,

I love to see a great catch...great eats not to mention. Next time, keep a few for me...! Enjoy the fruits of your labor!

As far as the STUPID comment, get real...or better yet...get lost!!!!


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## Boardman Brookies

jneef said:


> I would be much more impressed with you taking pictures and releasing the trout. Frankly, I am sickened to see the collection of beautiful fish being harvested. A 20 inch walleye is the equvelent of eight 10-inch brookies. One salmon provides more meat than all those trout. Please leave them in the river next time, or only take a few. If everyone did what you did, all of our memorable trout trips (for us and future generations) to the special UP would be over because the large fish would be gone. Respectfully....


Are you kidding me???


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## fishinDon

jneef said:


> I would be much more impressed with you taking pictures and releasing the trout. Frankly, I am sickened to see the collection of beautiful fish being harvested. A 20 inch walleye is the equvelent of eight 10-inch brookies. One salmon provides more meat than all those trout. Please leave them in the river next time, or only take a few. If everyone did what you did, all of our memorable trout trips (for us and future generations) to the special UP would be over because the large fish would be gone. Respectfully....


Jneef,

Welcome to the site, but please try to be respectful. I did nothing illegal, and neither did any of my buddies. Four of the five guys I take to camp get to trout fish exactly 1 time a year, when I take them. Otherwise, they wouldn't go and they wouldn't buy a trout stamp. 

I almost did not post the picture of the fish, because I figured someone would do exactly what you did. That said, I decided to post it, because it was real, and it was part of our experience. And I refuse to be bullied by some else's opinion. I release the vast majority of the trout I catch each year. If my buddies or I chose to keep a few trout on a special outing for a meal, that should be none of your concern. 

Also, I'm fairly certain that the fish we caught, over a mile from the nearest two-track on foot, did no harm to the overall brook trout population there, nor to anyone's chance to catch more of them in the future, since I've never seen another fisherman back there in my life...

Finally, I just sat through a presentation by the DNR at the last cold water committee where they showed us the science behind a proposal they are considering on raising the UP brook trout limit back to 10 fish. The science showed it would have no imact on the trout population at 10 fish, we had an average of 3 a piece...

To the rest of you, thanks for the kind thoughts and comments. 

Don


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## neeso1aj

jneef said:


> I would be much more impressed with you taking pictures and releasing the trout. Frankly, I am sickened to see the collection of beautiful fish being harvested. A 20 inch walleye is the equvelent of eight 10-inch brookies. One salmon provides more meat than all those trout. Please leave them in the river next time, or only take a few. If everyone did what you did, all of our memorable trout trips (for us and future generations) to the special UP would be over because the large fish would be gone. Respectfully....



Congrats fishindon those are great looking fish, and you were able to catch over 4 times as many fish as jneef has posted.


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## uptracker

I do have to agree though, a few guys can wipe out a section of brookie river pretty quick.


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## bear50

Jneef is just trying to protect what we have here. Get off his back. There are many things that are legal but does not make them right. I think it all depends on if the location the fish were caught had a good population. If not then guess what ? That spot is now hurting. If these fish were taken from many different spots than it should pose no issues. We just need to be smart of where and when we keep a pile of trout. Not justifying how his post was stated but do believe in his intent. Good fishing guy's !!!!!!!!!


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## NEW HUDSON WALT

nice job don...great to turn your friends on to some good fisning for a weekend trip.....i am green with envy.....glad to hear you and your group had a blast this weekend.


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## jmarsh

U pay ur fees u put in the time and your ethical, ur good to go im my book, catch what u can eat put the rest back, good job don!!!


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## tjays

fishinDon said:


> Jneef,
> 
> Welcome to the site, but please try to be respectful. I did nothing illegal, and neither did any of my buddies. Four of the five guys I take to camp get to trout fish exactly 1 time a year, when I take them. Otherwise, they wouldn't go and they wouldn't buy a trout stamp.
> 
> I almost did not post the picture of the fish, because I figured someone would do exactly what you did. That said, I decided to post it, because it was real, and it was part of our experience. And I refuse to be bullied by some else's opinion. I release the vast majority of the trout I catch each year. If my buddies or I chose to keep a few trout on a special outing for a meal, that should be none of your concern.
> 
> Also, I'm fairly certain that the fish we caught, over a mile from the nearest two-track on foot, did no harm to the overall brook trout population there, nor to anyone's chance to catch more of them in the future, since I've never seen another fisherman back there in my life...
> 
> Finally, I just sat through a presentation by the DNR at the last cold water committee where they showed us the science behind a proposal they are considering on raising the UP brook trout limit back to 10 fish. The science showed it would have no imact on the trout population at 10 fish, we had an average of 3 a piece...
> 
> To the rest of you, thanks for the kind thoughts and comments.
> 
> Don


 
fishinDon,, you don't have to explain yourself, glad to see you and your buddy's had a great time and thanks for sharing the photos that's what makes this site interesting. We have enough people in this world telling us what we can and cannot do.


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## MDH

bear50 said:


> Jneef is just trying to protect what we have here. Get off his back. There are many things that are legal but does not make them right. I think it all depends on if the location the fish were caught had a good population. If not then guess what ? That spot is now hurting. If these fish were taken from many different spots than it should pose no issues. We just need to be smart of where and when we keep a pile of trout. Not justifying how his post was stated but do believe in his intent. Good fishing guy's !!!!!!!!!



Aren't there also rules on this site about questioning one's limit? I'm tired of guys getting crapped on for doing nothing wrong legally or ethically. They barely took any fish per man. I understand the concern about areas getting fished out, but this thread, in my opinion, was not the time or place. Totally brought down a guys positive original post, because some guys think THEY know how to regulate the rest of us. 


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## fishinDon

uptracker said:


> I do have to agree though, a few guys can wipe out a section of brookie river pretty quick.


I kinda agree. If a group of good fishermen make it their mission, they could over-fish a trout stream. Of course, I have absolutely no intention of ever doing that since I wouldn't want to see the trout gone and I'd have no way to use all the fish...I fish there a 2-3 times a year, and I'm not sure if almost anyone else (besides my dad and cousin) fishes there at all...Back when there were many more trout fishermen (50's and 60's) and lots of harvest pressure, that was actually a concern. But 6 guys taking 18 trout out of a good sized section of stream one time certainly didn't hurt anything. 

As a counter-point...think about that river in Seney. I bet it gets fished most every day of the trout season by multiple fishermen, yet it still has great fishing (destination) all season long. So somehow the pressure there must simply crumble to the productivity of that system. 

Trust me when I say we didn't hurt the population any, based simply on the number of trout the guys missed, lost, and that I saw give chase, I'm positive that there's still more than a lot left and I really hope I can go back again in Sept. to see for myself! 

Thanks again everyone,
Don


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## slabstar

Don, great job on the brookies! Thanks for posting the pics! Keep 'em coming! I will be in da UP next week, so its good to get a heads up on the water conditions.
Its really unfortunate, but obviously most ppl have NO CLUE how robust our trout fishery is! A seasoned trout fisherman knows for every trout that hits the creel, 10x that amount are realesed/lost in battle/missed/ or spooked!
I'll be sure to post some pics and a report 
Goodluck!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## crs76

what river did you fish ?


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## Curt

fishinDon,
I am real curious about the DNR presentation that you attended where they talked about going back to a 10 fish limit on brook trout in the U.P. Where was this meeting and who was there? I can't find anything about it on the DNR website. 
I might add that I feel there are few things in life more satisfying than a day on the stream followed by a meal of trout!


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## Robert Holmes

Curt said:


> fishinDon,
> I am real curious about the DNR presentation that you attended where they talked about going back to a 10 fish limit on brook trout in the U.P. Where was this meeting and who was there? I can't find anything about it on the DNR website.
> I might add that I feel there are few things in life more satisfying than a day on the stream followed by a meal of trout!


 With a 10 fish limit I will give the salmon a break and chase brookies. Mabey a couple of times a year.


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## fishinDon

Curt said:


> fishinDon,
> I am real curious about the DNR presentation that you attended where they talked about going back to a 10 fish limit on brook trout in the U.P. Where was this meeting and who was there? I can't find anything about it on the DNR website.
> I might add that I feel there are few things in life more satisfying than a day on the stream followed by a meal of trout!


Hey Curt,
I was invited to sit on the Coldwater Committe that the DNR has formed last year after I attended several NRC meetings in Lansing, etc. The coldwater committee meets several times a year and is comprised of people like the head of TU, Anglers of Au Sable, Au Sable Big Water Preservation Association, and then some regular Joe sportsmen, like me. The DNR reviews potential rule changes in front of this committee. There are other members of this site that also sit on the committee and were invited to join at the same time I was...

The proposal to raise the brook trout limit was formally submitted to the DNR by MUCC. It was submitted to MUCC by the Ottawa Sportsman's via the Cass Co. Conservation club. I have a copy of the document if you want to PM me your email. Essentially it states things like Brook Trout have high natural mortality and don't typically grow to large sizes so having a low bag limit amounts to a wasted resource. 

I believe the DNR is officially "neutral" on the proposal. The DNR simply showed us the science behind the bag limit at the last meeting and then concluded that there would really be no difference biologically to the population if the bag was set at 5 or 10. However, the committee did not offer and was not asked for any opinion on the issue yet, we simply saw the presentation for informational purposes. My guess is that the bag limit is just as likely to be raised as it is to stay at 5. We only have one more cold water committee meeting this year, so no action may be taken on this item until next year as well...

Hope that helps a little, like I said, PM me if you want more details. I also try to keep our GLFSA members informed on this kind of stuff (the meeting dates, agenda and what was discussed), so check out the link in my signature and see if we are for you...Also, the coldwater meetings are open to the public, so if you have interest, you are allowed to attend.

Don


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## epw

Here's what I do when I'm camping and have a little weber grill and a cast iron skillet. I clean them up really good then pat them dry. light salt and pepper, then roll them in flour. lay them in 1/2" hot olive oil, brown on both sides. gotta be hot but not smoking.:fish2:


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## Splitshot

People are always suggesting that somehow we should all get along especially sports people. As long as there is so much ignorance out there it is my opinion that goal is going to be difficult if not impossible to achieve. 

First of all brook trout only live an average of 2 years. That means any fish over 5 ot 6 inches will probably not make it through the winter. So what should we do. Should we expect that fishermen who support our fishery and spend their hard earned money for a fishing licence, gas and other expenses to go fishing d not be allowed to keep some trout that will die anyway just to satisfy the ethical idea that some people have that we can somehow stockpile trout?

The DNR is looking to increase brook trout limits because they overcrowd the streams especially in the UP and encourage more people will keep them. The DNR also says that sportfishing has no noticeable impact on our trout fisheries. That means that the impact some of you perceive is in your imaginations and based on emotions instead of reason.

When I was a kid I fished a little brook trout stream that from beginning to end is just over 2 miles before emptying into the Grand River. I fished it almost every day through out the trout season after school got out and I kept 10 fish (my limit) almost every time I fished the half mile section I fished over and over and it never seemed to run out of trout.

Now that I think about it, how could I have kept between 500 and 800 brook trout every year and the fishing stayed constant. My conclusion agrees with the biologists. Sport fishing has little impact on the fishery. Now that I havent fished this little stream in over 50 years, I can only conclude that the thousands of brook trout that used to feed my family and many in our neighborhood end up as crab food.

I always felt the purpose of this web-site was for sportsmen to have a place to have discussions with other sportsmen and women and share their experiences in the great outdoors just exactly like Don did in his excellent post. It is not for sportsmen to belittle other sportsmen who participate in the outdoors and follow the rules. 

At the very least if you want a discussion about keeping trout start your own thread and pose the question instead of inserting your ignorant views in a thread meant to share outdoor experiences. I also recommend some common courtesy and know what you are talking about before you press the submit button.

Fish biologist at the DNR say half of the trout in our Michigan rivers die of natural causes every year and that is what they base limits on most of the time. Part of the time unfortunately they listen to uninformed people and make rules based on pressure from these people and that is shameful. As sportsmen we should be fighting against special interest groups who spread lies so they can get more of our resources for their personal use..

I would also like to know who the some guys are that are raping our rivers. If you know that these things are happening you should be contacting the RAP and doing what is necessary to put them out of business. If you know and dont say anything, you are the problem.

Nice fish Don but more importantly it seems like you are starting a tradition and enjoying the outdoors with good friends. When you have a good time, it keeps you coming back and after all isnt that the point?


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## DFJISH

I urge those who are interested enough in distinguishing the facts from the opinions regarding the issue of keeping brook trout to do some of their own research. There have been some *opinions presented as facts* on this thread, and the contradictions are very clear.


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## sweet tree

Some folks catch and release while others kill their limit every time. The vast majority of sportsmen practice a little of both. Lets keep it civil and work together...

Nice report Don...


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## muddyfeet

Nice Fish Don!

Can't wait to hit my favorite stretches early September. They certainly taste as good as they look.


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## epw

amen splitshot. more than half the trout I catch manage to get hooked in the gills. those are the ones I keep for dinner since they will more than likely die anyway if I release them.


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## Patricio

nice. I usually make it up there once a year, not this year. just the dog and I, we spend 4 or 5 days wandering about setting up camp wherever we find ourselves. something special about brook trout in the north woods. delicious, too. its not like theyre rare up that way, or even this is in PA or NY with heavy fishing pressure. theres a lot of water up there, most of it goes unmolested by man.


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## tannhd

Brook Trout!


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## DFJISH

muddyfeet said:


> Nice Fish Don!
> 
> Can't wait to hit my favorite stretches early September. They certainly taste as good as they look.


Spot on! This is what a September brookie will look like. Astonishing! Fall leaf colors pale by comparison!


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## Robert Holmes

Every time I see a picture of a brook trout it makes me want to leave work and grab a pole and some crawlers. I am getting hungry for something besides a steelhead or salmon. Nice pictures guys keep it up


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## Jfish

epw said:


> Here's what I do when I'm camping and have a little weber grill and a cast iron skillet. I clean them up really good then pat them dry. light salt and pepper, then roll them in flour. lay them in 1/2" hot olive oil, brown on both sides. gotta be hot but not smoking.:fish2:


What do you mean; "clean them up really good..."?


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## troutguy26

Tannhd your fish looks very greyish or something. Have seen a couple of your pics and they are different lookin wonder why the difference? I have caught alot of brookies and never seen em like that before.


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## epw

I lived in western PA for a year and only trout fished one time. The streams get pretty crowded there. Typically there will be elbow to elbow fisherman trying to catch the fish that the stock truck dumped earlier that day. Fish you catch in the spring are most likely planted, and by summer there just aren't any more fish. Just not the same as the secluded streams of the UP. I had no desire to fish anymore when I was there. I did catch a 13.5" rainbow but it didn't have any color or taste.


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## epw

No clue if this photo will work, its my first time. I posted it to the board anyway.

By cleaning up I meant that I gut the fish and rinse them off really good.

My brother and nephew drove up from down below recently to go stream fishing; it was my 12 year old nephew's 1st time. We caught a nice mess and had a tasty dinner out in the woods. My brother has the fever now and is on his way back up right now to go again with my father in law and I. Hoping they will be biting this weekend. Water was low and could use some rain.


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## Jfish

EPW,

Those look like some nice fish. How big are those on the left side?


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## epw

the three on the left are between 11.5" and 12". the smallest one is 8.5". they were taken out of a small secluded creek and probably won't get any bigger than that. my brother and nephew caught a couple and I got the rest spending about 5 or 6 hours fishing an entire mile of creek. My brother and neph fished together. my brother spent a lot of time helping his boy, untangling yo-yos, and making sure he caught his 1st trout. that is why he is on his way back up right now on his bike. he wants some solo time on the stream.


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## tannhd

troutguy26 said:


> Tannhd your fish looks very greyish or something. Have seen a couple of your pics and they are different lookin wonder why the difference? I have caught alot of brookies and never seen em like that before.


Not sure either. The ones I catch near me look sorta weird lol.


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## Patricio

epw said:


> I lived in western PA for a year and only trout fished one time. The streams get pretty crowded there. Typically there will be elbow to elbow fisherman trying to catch the fish that the stock truck dumped earlier that day. Fish you catch in the spring are most likely planted, and by summer there just aren't any more fish. Just not the same as the secluded streams of the UP. I had no desire to fish anymore when I was there. I did catch a 13.5" rainbow but it didn't have any color or taste.


its not that bad. there are wild fish in pa. and secluded streams, but being so close to large populations, no one speaks openly of these streams. the brook trout in pa tend to be smaller than in the UP. and there is less of them. potter county in northern central pa has 38 blue ribbon wild trout streams. I know of one an hour north of pittsburgh where 15" can be caught regularly. the stocked streams are great, they keep the masses out of the good rivers.

btw: those tiny streams can hold surprisingly large trout. tough to catch though. theres a not so secret, secret to catching them.


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## ERGOMAN

plus one on splitshot. Emotion over science never works.

keep getting your buds together, its one of the best parts of your life. I cant believe the attitude on this site over the years.


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## wolfgang510

Brook trout populations, growth rates, average size/lifespan, fishing pressure, disease, water temps etc. There is no good way to optimally regulate brook trout for the whole UP. What works for one steam will be terrible for the next. I think making the limit 10 can only make things worse. Using the average lifespan of 2 years as an excuse makes no sense. I could care less if 99.9% of newly hatched fish die before reaching seven inches. It is the 1% or .1% or whatever it is that reach 8-16 inches that I care about and plenty of them can live that long if they are released - otherwise we wouldn't be catching these footballs from time to time. The problem is 5 fish per angler is too high on some streams and other less fished streams could probably tolerate unlimited harvest. I would like to see some trials of slot limits on some streams like 7-12 inches. The bigger ones don't taste good anyway.


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## m hunter

four of us are headed up on tuesday night to wander the streams and have brook trout shore lunches:corkysm55. It is TRULY one of my favorite things to do in life and I am COMPLETELY convinced that our 4 days of fishing and eating will have no impact on the overall brook trout populations of the rivers we will fish. could we impact a particular stretch of water?? OF COURSE! but there is still a LOT of water that I am sure NEVER gets fished up there...we have found stretches that had "apparently" not been touched for a while. I am CONFIDENT that we could go to one spot where we WILL find a pod of 100 or more 7-12" brookies! (and NO I will NOT tell ANYONE where that spot is....thats the the whole fun of the "game")
I can't wait! and those that are trying to say release them all have no grasp of the true reproductive potential/migratory nature of these fish! 
NICE JOB fishindon!!!


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## brookies101

I'm headed up tuesday afternoon as well. Just gonna be me, as my fishing buddy has to work for the couple days I'm on vacation. 

Its going to be nice to get a little R&R, along with as much brookie fishing as I want. Can't wait...... I'll be sure to post a full report with pic's when I get back thursday night. 

Good luck m hunter


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## Ralph Smith

Nice looking pics of the trout there "fishindon" and others. Nothing like a fresh meal of steam trout. I haven't trout fished in years, and wouldn't hesitate to keep and eat a mess of fresh ones. Don't get to do it that often. Great times with great friends in our great outdoors. Life is good!


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## Robert Holmes

In all honesty I believe that allowing the catch limit to increase to 10 fish will hurt the odds of someone being able to catch a trophy fish. On the other hand my two largest brook trout 23" and 25" came from two streams that are both heavily fished. One of those streams is in the EUP and one is in the NLP. I catch a few brookies 18"+ out of one stream every year and it is quite heavily fished. I normally do not keep the brook trout except mabey a couple of them every year to eat. Mabey thinning the population a little will allow for bigger hook shy trout to be caught by savy fisherman. There is also lots of water in the UP that never gets fished. I hiked 2 miles back to a steelhead stream a couple of years ago and in the first 200 or so yards I counted mabey 100+ steelhead. I just watched them spawn, I did not even throw a line in the water. One idea might be to allow for 10 brookies but only one fish over 15" may be kept.


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