10-09-2024, 04:58 PM
(10-09-2024, 02:43 PM)wiperhunter2 Wrote:(10-09-2024, 01:52 PM)TubeDude Wrote:Agreed, guess we all need to do our part by turning these bucket bozos iThe big downer...especially this time of year with all of the hunting going on...is that the limited number of DWR COs are spread out and stretched thin. Virtually impossible for them to cover their assigned areas completely or to be able to respond to poaching calls in a timely manner. By the time one of them could arrive to check the infraction the perps would be long gone..with no incriminating evidence left behind. Even taking pictures and a shot of their license plate would likely only result in a dead-end investigation.(10-09-2024, 01:10 PM)wiperhunter2 Wrote: Looks like a great haul Pat and those Willard cats sure are some pretty fish. Strange there were so few folks out on the water, guess a few of them followed us up to Echo, as we saw 9 boats up there. It's a good thing that the wipers moved on, as I was hearing reports of the bucket brigade keeping way more than their limits.Yeah, the "happy harvesters" are usually quick to pass the word among themselves and show up in numbers to do their part to reduce the "over-population" of any species available. I had a report last week of an encounter at the cleaning station. Their were two guys with a "bunch" of small wipers. When confronted, they said there was "no limit on the small ones". Ya gotta wonder where that stuff gets started...and how anyone can be so stupid as to believe it...without checking the regulations.
With the abundance of survivors from last year's heavy planting there is reason for hope that at least the next couple of years will be good for bigger fish. But if enough "bucket bozos" show up in the meantime that will reduce the numbers somewhat.
It's a fact that those who persist in overharvest and other violations are well aware of the weaknesses in the DWR field coverage. And they take full advantage of it to rape the resources. I have heard from DWR folks that a surprising number of those they do ticket have not even bothered to get a valid fishing or hunting license.
