reduced bag limit Winnebago system

Effective 04/01/2020 daily bag on walleyes is reduced to 3 fish no size limit. Details on dnr website. 

Fish hound could be binary LOL

I think you can actually be both now can't you? Lol

You’re friends with one of the wardens and you don’t know whether they’re a he or she?? lol   

I know one of the warden's and have talked to him or her at length about this. They have heard every excuse in the book more than once and typically watch people from afar and don't make a move until they are ready to give out a citation. Culling and overbagging is one of the big things he or she enforces. This year it will be double dipping from what I was told, even the guys on the river that change clothes and boats.

btw, their contact reports are entered in the computer so they know who they have been talking to.

"That being said if you're out trolling six boards with Flickershads and have 5 Walleyes in the well you're in for trouble. Same can be said for any type of fishing, if they feel you are still reasonably targeting Walleye after you have your limit you're in trouble." 

I find this hard to believe. I've fished trolling and you never seem to know what you bring to the boat. I'm just as likely to pull in sheephead, white bass, crappie, northern, or catfish as walleye where I fish. I certainly wouldn't pull 3 lines just because there are 5 walleyes in the boat. If I had 3 'eyes already and I was pulling in a line and realized it was a walleye I would simply exchange the rod for the net with my partner and be perfectly legal.

Thanks FishHound.  

Wisconsin rules are just too confusing.  WI allows you to "catch and release" bass and pike during the "closed" spring spawning season now.  They also allow you to keep (1) trophy during the spring walleye run on the Fox river below Neenah, which is essentially a closed season to allow for smaller fish to spawn.  So in essence a catch and release river.  

But you can't catch and release a walleye when you already have your limit.  

Actually no, it's up to the wardens discretion as to what you're targeting. If all rods are baited the same and being run together he can issue a ticket or a warning. 

A more obvious case would be two guys in a boat casting big Musky baits with one in the livewell. A warden floats up and checks, one guy says, "oh, I'm casting for Pike" throwing the same bait as the other guy. While it's possible a Pike could eat the bait it more than likely is targeting Musky yet.

So if your on 'bago pulling six Flicker Shads it could be a tough sell one angler fishing for Walleye and one is only fishing for White Bass with the same presentation. For that same reason I certainly wouldn't be trolling around with your daily bag of Walleye in the boat and tell the warden you're only fishing White Bass now. LOL

Could you argue it, sure. Could you fight it, sure. I would be 99% sure the judge would side with the discretion of the Warden and uphold it.

I'm only putting this out there so people are aware, each angler still has to decide for themselves what they choose to do. Many don't know or understand so I thought to mention it.

I understand the point of pulling lines, but in reality it likely does not happen.  If you are on Bago, all you have to say is you are targeting sheephead or whitebass and you are magically in compliance.  The only place I can think of where you could maybe make a point of this would be salmon/trout fishing on Lake Michigan because you don't get too many other species.

That's the thing with trolling, you don't have designated rods.  If you were not trolling, then the guys with their limits can't keep more fish so that is more enforceable.

Not trying to be Mr. loophole, but its just reality of what I see everywhere trolling is involved.

CH,

The regs state: "It is illegal to take, catch, kill, or fish for any variety of fish in excess of the daily bag limit or total daily bag limit" (p. 9). It is also illegal to group bag (p. 9).

Once a person has reached their limit, they can no longer target that species. If 2 people are fishing together and one catches his limit, that person can no longer target that species and would have to pull their lines.

Crawler, it was posted over a month ago so had to go back and read, but yes that is correct.

I assume in your post you're talking a 5 Walleye per person limit with four people in the boat. Let's keep in mind on 'bago now it's 3 Walleye per day though.

Using your numbers of 19 Walleyes kept with four people fishing  (you are running 12 lines).......at that point you are running 9 more lines than allowed, because 3 people have already boated their limit of 5 Walleyes each and one has 4. The limit is dictated per person (daily bag) not per vessel. In WI once you have reached your daily bag limit you are not allowed to target that species anymore, you must stop fishing for them by removing their lines from the spread. Catch and release of a single species is only allowed up until your daily bag limit. In WI once it goes in a livewell or cooler it is considered part of your daily bag even if you choose to release it later.

In states where culling is allowed you can continue to fish because you can "upgrade" your catch if they are kept in a releasable condition. 

The same holds true on Lake Michigan with Trout and Salmon, you must reduce your line count after each licensed angler aboard reaches their daily bag limit.

Chartering with a captain and/or crew adds other variables I will not discuss to confuse anybody.

Fish Hound....

Regarding your comment below....is that accurate for Wisconsin or any state nearby?  You can always catch and release, so I haven't seen any regulations around using less poles when you are nearing your limit.  I have always understood it as you have 19 keepers in the boat, with 1 to go.  You can still fish with 12 poles/boards, because you can throw them back.  

That being said if you're out trolling six boards with Flickershads and have 5 Walleyes in the well you're in for trouble. Same can be said for any type of fishing, if they feel you are still reasonably targeting Walleye after you have your limit you're in trouble.

Today's the day it finally changes. Hopefully the bag limit change will only be for five years like they said. Unfortunately the fish are getting hammered more this year with everybody off fishing.

I still wonder why nothing was done specifically to protect the immature females in Oshkosh , the neighbor had a couple 11" fish and said they weren't females because they didn't have eggs and he actually believed it!

Found the new changes here:

https://dnr.wi.gov/files/pdf/pubs/fh/fh0301.pdf#page=76 

Hope this helps save some people money/ having a bad day.

I am not the greatest fisherman.   Except for a limit each year in May or June I seldom catch more than 1 or 2.  Maybe a reduced bag limit will help me out.  I don't think my family has ever taken more than 20 walleye in a year out of the system.

Yeah, I guess I was talking about Walleye fishing on this Walleye fishing thread. Of course you can fish for a different species.

That being said if you're out trolling six boards with Flickershads and have 5 Walleyes in the well you're in for trouble. Same can be said for any type of fishing, if they feel you are still reasonably targeting Walleye after you have your limit you're in trouble.