# Hocking River Report 8/04



## RiverWader (Apr 1, 2006)

Hit the hocking yesterday about 3pm fished till dark Ended up catching 24 Smallies altogether , These 5 being the biggest ones. 18 inches and 3.2 lbs was the biggest of the day


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## BASmead (Jan 11, 2008)

Ouch. That's a shame. Double cheeseburgers are only a buck apiece these days you know. Its hard to get that hungry with a dollar menu right there in Nelsonville.


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## NewbreedFishing (Apr 15, 2004)

ugggggh! dark dayz ahead


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## topwaterdevil (May 23, 2007)

5 of those will last you quite a while.


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## JignPig Guide (Aug 3, 2007)

Oh Hell Yea!

Good job! Great picture. I'll bet you had a blast. 

Bright days are ahead. And what you have done is not a shame. It is natural and fun.


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## LMRsmallmouth (Jan 10, 2006)

Just not sure why anyone would want to eat smallmouth......so many tastier fish in the river, smallies are for sport. That 18" fish could be 10+ years old in Oh streams. You have the right to do what you want but a saugeye, sauger, crappie, gill or catfish dinner is WAAAAYYY tastier....


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## RiverWader (Apr 1, 2006)

I try not to eat to much junk food, Being a diabetic I can eat al the fish I want and never have to worry bout whats in the food or my sugar levels going up. And also wasnt nowhere near Nelsonville


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## Columbusslim31 (Sep 1, 2007)

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice.


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## joe01 (Apr 16, 2004)

don't let anyone push there views on you....Great job


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## flattiesinohio (Sep 30, 2007)

nice catch there......it seems that where you was fishin hold a good amount of smallies so i say cut them up,batter them up....and enjoy 


.......and for those that think it is nessasery to knock the man for keeping his limit in smallies thats is the reason the odnr put a limit on them he has the right to do as he wishes with the ones he catches,if you release your fine but dont knock some one else for keeping theirs!!!!


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## BASmead (Jan 11, 2008)

Ahh you're right, i apologize RiverWader. I didn't mean to jump down your throat. Those fish are all legal and it's your right. Certainly all keepers and no more than the limit. I just hate to see dead smallies. They're so much more useful alive. But i suppose the people that really irk me are the ones with no respect for the law that fill buckets with undersized fish. Didn't mean to offend, it was akneejerk reaction. So let me rephrase: Nice fish. What did you catch em on? P.S. on the health tip, i'm pretty sure there's a garden salad on the dollar menu. Just kiddin man. Fish on.


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## fishslime (Jul 28, 2006)

You'll right there are probaly 10+ years old and only have a couple years at most left in there lives. so why not eat them ??? much better than dieing and rotting in the river this winter

Nice catch riverwader


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## twistertail (Apr 10, 2004)

wow really nice fish, and 24 in day is GREAT! What did you catch them on?


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## RiverWader (Apr 1, 2006)

Caught all fish on Black bitsy bugs .


BASmead, wasnt offended at all, life to short to argue over fish.


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## BASmead (Jan 11, 2008)

Amen to that. What kind of a trailer do you use on those bitsy bugs if any? I use em alot for LMs, but i've never tried em in the river. Seems like i prolly should.


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## RiverWader (Apr 1, 2006)

Zoom Chunk Jr. color black or black/ blue


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## Fishman (Apr 5, 2004)

If you can consistantly catch fish like that out of the Hocking you've earned the right to keep'em  Fished the river for almost 4 years religiously and never caught one that size


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## fishslime (Jul 28, 2006)

Thanks for the bait Riverwader i too fish the hocking, catch alot of smallies but not many in that size class





Fishman said:


> If you can consistantly catch fish like that out of the Hocking you've earned the right to keep'em  Fished the river for almost 4 years religiously and never caught one that size



Fishman couldn't catch that many because he can't cast very far with his pink barbie rod and reel


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## JignPig Guide (Aug 3, 2007)

Hey Riverwader,
The Strike King Bitsy Bug was what I caught all of my Smallmouth on in the Hocking on my last two trips also. JignTube to be exact. They'll hit whatever presentation that matches a crawfish.
But you better take a bunch of them. You'll loose a bunch in the rocks. But you'll catch a bunch also.

Again, awesome catch Riverwader!


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## RiverWader (Apr 1, 2006)

JignPigGuide, I hardly ever loose any , 1. I use 14 lb Fireline , and 2. When your wading you can just swim over and get it out of the snag


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## crittergitter (Jun 9, 2005)

You caught some nice fish. 

CG


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## twistertail (Apr 10, 2004)

RiverWader said:


> 2. When your wading you can just swim over and get it out of the snag


 
Thats one of the best things about wade fishing!


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## shvlhed (May 26, 2007)

great fish, enjoy them!


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## crittergitter (Jun 9, 2005)

I have been thinking about this for awhile. You caught 24 smallies. You chose to keep the 5 biggest, the 5 oldest, the 5 that are the most difficult to replace in that kind of fishery. 

We all like to eat fish. I would encourage harvest of the small to medium size(10-13") fish in the future. It would help the fishery tremendously.

CG


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## Wiper Swiper (May 24, 2005)

< Sigh...>

*"You'll right there are probaly 10+ years old and only have a couple years at most left in there lives. so why not eat them ??? "*

fishslim, those fish are in their prime and have SEVERAL more good spawns in them...at least they did. You say you don't catch fish like that from the Hocking yet you know that the only way fishing could improve is to protect the mature spawners...the ODW sure isn't doing anything to help recruitment.

Yes it's legal, noteworthy, and deserves congratulations. That some folks see it as a bit of a bummer shouldn't cause others to scoff at their feelings. Remember, we respect BOTH views here.

RiverWader, enjoy your fish fry. We're having cold water crappie tonight, and I guarantee you we'll enjoy ours. I'm sure you've got a great recipe that will more than honor those fine fish!


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## Fishman (Apr 5, 2004)

What are you basing this on Wiper? The second personal opinion starts to overwrite scientific fact is around the same time I start worshipping the sun, sacrificing goats and smoking cigarettes to cure cancer. Those fish are seniors, ounce for ounce younger smallies are more fertile.


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## Wiper Swiper (May 24, 2005)

Fishman, I base my "opinion" on the information provided by the original poster and simple stream biology. Stay with me.

Since RiverWader stated that the largest fish was 18 inches, per that mark, I see a 17 and three fish in the 15-16 inch range. Generally, an 18 inch smallie in our streams is 11 to 12 years old. Put the 17 in at 9-10 years old, and the 15-16 inchers at 8 to 9 years young. Left to their own demise in fertile environments, stream smallies have a life expectancy of around 18 years. Those fish could have been around for another 6, 8, and 9 years respectfully. Couple that with the scientific fact that smallies produce 2,000 to 7,000 eggs per pound of body weight, and one can easily see that the potential y.o.y. for that particular stretch of river has been impacted. I will grant you that stream smallies reach sexual maturity in 3- 4 years, but to say that younger smallies are _"more fertile"_ is demonstrably incorrect.

Older smallies get "old" for a reason. Genetically, they're predisposed to better cope with the hostile environment in which they live. With spawning habitat (and timing) in the Hocking at a premium, by virtue of their status, the more mature fish secure the best sites at the best time to ensure successful reproduction. Call me opinionated...but I think they pass those superior survival traits on to their young. 

But...in hindsight...I think the real question is how many 16 inch fish roam that particular 1/4 mile of river? Are they in need of harvest/can they stand any harvest? How many 5 fish limits of that size smallies does it take to negatively impact the big fish potential of 500 yards of river?

Some folks look at it and say, "18 inches is as big as they're gonna get". Others say, "If it grows an 18...it'll grow a 20".

I like to hunt big bass. That said, I won't eat them even if I know they're in the twilight of their existance...particularly, a river smallie. They work hard for a living, and I respect that.

< another sigh...>

...but it's a legal harvest...

...and RiverWader did really catch some nice fish...

...and I'm headed back to bed...

Ya'll enjoy your fishing!


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## RiverWader (Apr 1, 2006)

Well that stretch of River must have some big Smallies holed up in it , We hit it again yesterday , And between 3 of us we managed 27 fish, and6 of them over 16 inches, All yeah, All of them were RELEASED to live another day, The one swallowed my shad rap and was floating on top when put back on the water.


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## Fishman (Apr 5, 2004)

> Wiper Swiper said:
> 
> 
> > Couple that with the scientific fact that smallies produce 2,000 to 7,000 eggs per pound of body weight
> ...


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