March Madness

[mrklean]

geat pike guys

[hugonian1]

Those are some giants.

The girth on some of them is unreal.

Congrats!

[chirp]

Awesome weekend guys!

[Grum]

Wow! & thanks for sharing your pics of your amazing trip.

[tracker x-2]

holy smokes!!!!

[Hoffer]

Very, very jealous.

[BenO]

Thanks for getting those photos up slick! Such a great 3 days of fishing I was lucky enough to partake in it. Hard work and multiple hours put into tip up fishing pays off. Yes canopy sam those pictures were all taken in 3 days of fishing it was unreal. All fish were released and sent back to swim another day. Only put fish in out 8x10 live well if it was over the slot so we were legal all weekend. No intentions of killing fish just to make a great photo with our friends that would last us all a lifetime!! Lets get em next year boys!!

[SmellEsox]

Great fish and a great time for sure. I, however, am not sure what the reason for the livewell is. If it is just for impressive hero shots, I don't think it is a very good thing. How many times were the pike grabbed and photographed? Why not catch, quick photo, and back down the hole? I would be surprised if you are getting very good water exchange in that livewell unless you have a protable pump bringing water in. What is saving those pike is the cold water temps and lowered metabolism of fish in cold water.

[Jim Panfish Uran]

Wow, nice fish guys. Thanks so much for sharing!!!

[schweady]

Was that one guy so excited he wet his pants, or did the dog do that?

[ozzie]

Great photos and it looks like a great time was had. If you put those fish in the "livewell" for periods over a couple hours I think you are kidding yourself to say they weren't stressed. I don't care in the big picture cause you could have legally taken them home and then they have absolutely no chance at survival. Good catch thanks for sharing...the thing is I love those "livewell" photos!!!

[TruthWalleyes]

Nice fish slicker! Well Done!

Sounds like you treated the fish very well also...and i love to see them big boys go back!!

[TyGuy02]

Is it just me getting this, but they could legally bring those fish HOME that were sitting in the "livewell", since they were over the slot and within their limit? So no laws whatsoever were broken.

That looks like a ton of fun

[MNfan]

Nice fish and I have done the same thing but the law says:

"Any fish that is caught and will not be utilized must be immediately returned

alive back into the water." and

"Once a daily or possession limit of fish has been reached, no culling or live

well sorting is allowed."

[MontanaMax]

This is what possession is under the regs:

Immediately released or returned to the water– Fish must not be retained longer than is needed at the site of capture to unhook, identify, measure, and photograph. Placing the fish in any type of container or on a stringer is not immediately released. Any fish not immediately released is considered to be “reduced to possession.”

These fish were caught, photographed individually, and kept to be photographed in group pictures, activities this definition seems to preclude. The regs then admonish not to plan to release any fish to the water once they have been placed in a live well or on a stringer. Probably due to high stress and mortality levels. My take is that having this "live well" is acceptable to revive the fish and then immediately relase, but not to use as a holding tank for for future self-agrandizing photos. Doubt anyone would get cited and I'm glad to see the fish were all ultimately released but there can't be any doubt all of these fish would have been better off if not handled multiple times for successive photos. I would hope everyone would be discouraged from repeating this practice. With that many guys in the group multiple cameras could have caught all the action of all the different fish caught, which would have been an even more impressive record of the days' catches. Just my 2 cents.

[i'majigger]

Slicker

Great job, I envy you guys to no end. The pictures were fantastic, I sure am glad I got to see them now because if you fellas are that lucky again in the future I'm thinking that with the tounge lashing you have received from some people on here we will not get to see photos again. Somebody always has to look at the negative side of everything. Again, great job and thanks for the pics.

[Ballyhoo]

This is not your typical livewell. It has a hole direct to under the ice so it has fresh water. It is nothing like a livewell in a boat. It is actually the lake. If the fish were smart enough to find the hole, they could have swam away. The posters on here do not need to be armchair CO's. The CO's will do their own job. These guys had an awesome day of fishing that most of us have only dreamed about. Nice work Slicker and good day of fishing.

[jbeck33]

These pike were taken out of the well one time to be photographed, its not like we sat there and played with them all day. And to say were not getting get water exchange? Obviously didn't read how our livewell is made, we poke one hole through the bottom of the ice so the fish have fresh water constantly. Whoever has negative thoughts on our week of fishing, should just keep there comments to themselves, no need to be jealous of never having days like this before, we put in more work then to figure out the patterns of these pike more than anyone I know. Maybe its that a bunch of kids know how to catch fish just really rubs some guys the wrong way. I respect these big girls more than anyone, because pike fishing is my passion, and what I've found in years of fishing, these fish go back better if they can sit in a livewell and regain there strength back rather then pushing them down the hole right after being caught to just roll underneath the ice in the current. Don't make judgements if you've never done something like this.

[cnggack]

These pike were taken out of the well one time to be photographed, its not like we sat there and played with them all day. And to say were not getting get water exchange? Obviously didn't read how our livewell is made, we poke one hole through the bottom of the ice so the fish have fresh water constantly. Whoever has negative thoughts on our week of fishing, should just keep there comments to themselves, no need to be jealous of never having days like this before, we put in more work then to figure out the patterns of these pike more than anyone I know. Maybe its that a bunch of kids know how to catch fish just really rubs some guys the wrong way. I respect these big girls more than anyone, because pike fishing is my passion, and what I've found in years of fishing, these fish go back better if they can sit in a livewell and regain there strength back rather then pushing them down the hole right after being caught to just roll underneath the ice in the current. Don't make judgements if you've never done something like this.

Awesome pike Jake Thanks for sharing them!!

[pokegpike]

well said jbeck. Great pics!! wow wow wow

[Handsonthepole]

It was a great day for sure but the bottom line is those fish were under stress in the homemade livewell regardless of the water being refreshed. Take your pics, release the fish and put it all together when you get home. No reason to hold them for a group photo. Looks like a great day and not I am not jealous at all as I am sure many others aren't either. Me being a past aquculture student I have to say you are wrong as I know the effects this type of handling can have on fish. Don't get defensive when others are concerned for the well being of our natural resources.

[jerkbait]

Maybe next year instead of the live well in the ice you could just slab them out and put them on the grill. Then put the pictures of the grilled fillets on here in place of the pics of them being released. Some people just like to whine!!! I learned the hard way also not to share pictures and stories on here. Thank you for sharing your great day with us. Awesome job!!

[Skidmack]

I couldn't agree with you more jerkbait nicely said. Congrats guys.

[Handsonthepole]

I generally never get into these types of conversations and you obviously misunderstand the intent of my comments. Every one of us outdoorsman has a resposibility to protect ourselves from the people who want to make out hunting and fishing as well as live animal agriculture to be cruel and inhumane. Any chance they get to make us out to be that way will add fuel to the fire and cause us unwanted headaches and possibly ruin it for our kids in the future. Putting a bunch of 20yr pike in a manmade livewell is exactly the dump they look for. I am on our side boys. Read the papers and go online and check out just exactly what I am talking about. I deal with it on almost a daily basis. Those pictures are awesome and I can only dream of having a day like that on the ice but have some common sense and show respect to the resource AND the people who don't understand. It stinks I know, but we have to do it. I have a different angle on this so don't misinterpret that for being jealous or whiney. I hunt and fish every chance i get when I am not farming so please don't come back at me as some type of preacher. Sounds like it though...lol. Sorry if I seem grouchy.

[ozzie]

Pretty funny how a person does something against the rule book, it gets pointed out, and the people that point it out are the bad people. Give me a break. Great photo and great fish but you could have released them right away to swim in the 100,000's of acres of water rather than keeping them in a "livewell" for your own Glory pic!!! and to say that you have respect for the fish!?! Yeah last time I was shown respect I was locked in 4x8 room ....like I mentioned earlier thanks for letting them go as you could have legally taken them home but don't try to kid us or yourself saying you were doing those fish good by keeping them locked up.

[CaptainMusky]

+1 Ozzie.

I was going to comment on the vertical holds, but there appears to be enough to keep everyone busy just on the livewell talk. :-)

[Scupper]

Great pictures! Thanks for sharing your story. What I found best about your pictures was the good old fashioned smiles.

Scott

[MontanaMax]

+2 Ozzie. Thanks for getting the point of my post-there was a better way to get the photos without using a questionable fish locker.

HSO forums have been a great place for people to discuss situations that may be in or close to grey areas so everybody gets a better and proper understanding of the regs and rules. None of the participants in the pictures helped us out by reporting if they had cleared such a live well with the CO's or if one stopped by and cleared it while fishing. I'm sure if either happened it would have been reported. My concern is that 100's if not 1000's of viewers who never had a clue about making such a livewell, will now be trying one in the future. I fear most the potential unintended consequences of publishing this practice to the masses. If that makes me jealous of successful fisherman rather than concerned about the fishing resource well color me guilty.

[Hoffer]

These pike were taken out of the well one time to be photographed, its not like we sat there and played with them all day. And to say were not getting get water exchange? Obviously didn't read how our livewell is made, we poke one hole through the bottom of the ice so the fish have fresh water constantly. Whoever has negative thoughts on our week of fishing, should just keep there comments to themselves, no need to be jealous of never having days like this before, we put in more work then to figure out the patterns of these pike more than anyone I know. Maybe its that a bunch of kids know how to catch fish just really rubs some guys the wrong way. I respect these big girls more than anyone, because pike fishing is my passion, and what I've found in years of fishing, these fish go back better if they can sit in a livewell and regain there strength back rather then pushing them down the hole right after being caught to just roll underneath the ice in the current. Don't make judgements if you've never done something like this.

I have to agree. The laws might not agree...but I have to agree.

I would think resuscitating these fish the way they did with the livewell probably increased their chances of survival. I am not doubting the validity of the laws/rules though either. I am just saying common sense seems to dictate that the fish probably had a better chance of survival compared to if they were just released back down the hole. Many fish dont "come to" when this is done and end up dying under the ice. With that said, looking at the "letter of the law" it appears to be a close call. Bottom-line for me?...what an awesome day of fishing and I am very glad and have a high level of respect that those hawgs are alive and swimming today. Last, can I come with you guys next year?

[jwmiller33]

Many fish dont "come to" when this is done and end up dying under the ice.

How do you know this? I'm not doubting you, just curious as how one can conclude a fish dies under the ice without seeing it die