Anyone here have any idea why we aren't allowed to use corn for bait here in utah? I have used it in Montana to tip wedding ring spinners for kokanees and to also catch trout and it was absolutely awesome and cheap bait. I went up to porcupine yesterday and fished for kokes and it made me remember a be wonder about the corn rule here.
If I were to guess I would think that it might have originally had something to do with keeping people from chumming, but if so, I think we are past that point now and should revisit the issue with the DWR. I mean, if someone was going to chum when its illegal anyways, then banning corn won't help will it?
Other thought I had was maybe if there was enough of it in the water then it could ferment and give us a 40 proof fishery! Fish would be too looped to bite
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Anyway, anyone have insight or an opinion as to why or if we should petition the DWR to change this dumb rule?
P.S.
The fishing at porcupine was OK ,but I was having overheating issues and it really limited my trolling capabilities. 5 kokes landed, 3 that got away boat side and about a half dozen other hits.
Also, I don't know what it is about non-pay places, but it felt like a combination of "My name is earl" and "Cops" from the mouth of the canyon to the inlet. Party time I suppose.
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It had a lot to do with chumming, but also was a huge littering problem (both lots of corn along shoreline AND corn cans). Plus the fish that were being chummed were full of corn since they can't digest it. There is a reason for RAC's and this might be a topic you could bring up at one of the meetings.
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[font "Calibri"]I agree that all they’re doing is holding the law abiding back. There’s been enough research and it has no negative impact on the fish’s digestive system. I did hear that Wyoming had a change to their regulations but it was a type-o in the proclamation and that their going back on. I called the WY DWR when I first heard about it and they said it was still not legal to use corn on the WY side of FG. [/font]
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[#0000FF]I have fished several other states where corn is legal. I don't use it...or have any real desire to use it...but I know a lot of folks who would like to be able to.
I have tried to get it legalized to use corn on NON-TROUT waters at a couple of RAC meetings. All I get is rolled eyes and laughter...like I ain't serious. It has never even been put to a vote.
I have fished Utah waters for over 50 years and in that time I have heard every reason (lame excuse) in the books for not allowing corn. I strongly suspect that most of them are "invented" and become urban (and rural) myths. Tried to do the math on how much corn it would take to cover the bottom of Strawberry to a depth of 6 inches (one myth). And I have caught quite a few trout over the years that were "passing" mostly digested corn. It does not bottle up the innards. If it did there wouldn't be any states allowing its use.
One of the tried and true ways to get a DWR employee to go into cardiac arrest is to suggest legalizing corn...or live minnows. Welcome to Utah. Daylight savings time? Here we set our watches back 100 years.
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I don't think just using corn to tip a bait is or every will be a problem, but that being said back in the day people abused the use of corn in Utah and literally poor gallon cans of the stuff out into strawberry. so I think they are very Leary about going back to the good old days. in my opinion there are better products to use, I'm using berkly gulp maggots to tip for kokanee and they really improve my catch rate.
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Well TD, the couple of times I've been to a RAC meeting I felt like I would need a body guard if I dare suggest that keeping fish, liberalizing bait and tackle or managing hunting for anything less than trophy hunters!
I doubt I'd get any serious consideration on my own, but maybe if a group of us put together a petition or something with our wish list of ideas we may get an ear. I have argued for decades against it not being legal to use a crossbow to take general any weapon big game and non game fish, but it now looks as though the DWR finally listened to some hunters wishes on this ( I'm guessing they were worried about silent poaching, kinda like worrying about chumming with corn, law breakers will do it anyway).
I would just like to have the option to use corn unless there is some real biology and science behind not using it. I do trust our biologists and know that most of them are doing the very best they can and I thank them for it. As Scott suggested, chumming was probably the culprit and the litter, but I have yet to fish a trout hole without seeing that nasty power bait smeared on the rocks and sitting places and the empty PB bottles sunk in the water off shore, should that be off limits as well?
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The verdict is still out on how well the gulp maggots work for me. They seem to help, but a .60 cent can of white shoe peg corn is a lot better bargain than a 4-5 container of gulp maggots.
I do remember some of the good ole days and I remember the opener of fishing season. I really remember marshmallow floating all over the shoreline and targhee bait cups all over too, I think we are better stewards in most places these days.
My fishing or my attitude isn't affected by the corn rule one way or another though, just curious was all[
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as far as cost I only use less than a bottle of gulp spikes a year . so cost is no really no issue for me.
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Ducks and geese pass corn into the water all the time. Corn cans are a big eyesore in Idaho. I know fish struggle with plastics, how do they do with Gulp and power bait? Seems processed food ain't good for the digestion of human tracts.
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DON'T USE CORN!
When I was little my dad stocked the cowpond in front of the house with a couple hundred trout. One day his buddy came up and scattered big handfuls of corn then baited his hooks with it and caught several. Six months or so later I caught a fish, and upon gutting it found its stomach bulging with old corn kernals. It looked like it would have a real hard time digesting much of anything after that. Really pissed me off and I have abhorred corn for bait ever since. Save the corn for fattening up beef!
DON'T USE CORN!
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[#0000FF]Not disputing what you observed...or the conclusions you have drawn. Seems like the main problem was heavily chumming the pond...not so much that fish ate a few kernels as in bait fishing.
But fisheries departments in several states have conducted their own studies and have found that trout DO at least partially digest corn and pass it just fine without it jamming up their innards. Attached is one study from a fisheries biologist in Pennsylvania. It concluded that while corn is not harmful to trout, they do not derive as much nourishment from it as they do "natural" foods.
Some of our own Utah biologists have actually been recommending allowing corn as bait. And if Wyoming passes their change to the regs that will leave Utah as about the last state in the union that still disallows it.
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Good info! I don't know where you find all this info, but I think you should change your handle to fishipedia[
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[#0000FF]Chee. Tanks.
I do a lot of original research. But this paper was sent to me by a Utah DWR biologist. Hmmmm?
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[quote dtayboyz]Corn cans are a big eyesore in Idaho.[/quote]
good enough reason for me to support the current ban.
Don't we already see enough powerbait bottles, zeke's bottles, beer cans, soda cans, plastic bottles, tippet dispensers, floatant, thongs, chapstick, lens caps, ball caps, oars, buckets, etc., etc., etc. littering our shorelines? Why not add corn and bean cans to the list? Sounds good to me.
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[#0000FF]While we are at it why don't we just ban all bait and tackle...and any food or drink items. Everybody gotta show up naked and swim out and catch the fish with their teeth.[/#0000FF]
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[quote TubeDude][#0000ff]While we are at it why don't we just ban all bait and tackle...and any food or drink items. Everybody gotta show up naked and swim out and catch the fish with their teeth.[/#0000ff][/quote]
[cool] Now we're talking[fishin]
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Sadly everything you said is evidenced on the shorelines of most recreation areas. Littering however should not be the consideration when determining what baits are legal or not.
Some degree of Logic should apply when making something Illegal to possess by individuals simply trying to fish not litter.
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I'm not as sexy as I once was but . . .
I am amphibious. Ohrah!
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[#0000FF]Is that the difference between ribbit and rubbit?
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