CANAL RUN....some changes

[bob g]

i went to the run in the morning, just to look, and again in the evening to get bait. the changes were immediatly apparent. it seems bourne has gotten real serious about protecting its run.

not only is a town of bourne herring permit needed, but a photo ID is nessesary to match the permit against the id. it appears the long time illegal practice of holding multiple permits is over.
uniformed town wardens were present, as were plain clothes guys. rangers from the corps were strategically placed, to additionally check fishermen returning to their vehicles with bait. they were checking permits, number of herring recieved (only 10 this year), was permit punched, etc. epo's and bourne police will provide additional patrols
in addition to this, the entire run will be patrolled all night to prevent the nightly poaching raids which were so common in the past.
plenty of guys were already grumbling about this yesterday. however, i think you have to give the town credit, for their efforts.
looks ike the party's over. this place should be a real "tension convention" once the bass show up, and the derby begins.

[mermaid]

[mermaid]

I applaud the town of Bourne on the wake-up call on
their 'run'. Not every town on the Cape has been
endowed by nature with a run. It's a very special
natural resource, and in this particular case, the
policing was long overdue.

[M^2]

Bob,
I drove by last night and they were patrolling which is a good sign.
The trouble with the way the herring runs are managed is they are being managed to kill millions of fish. Almost every herring run I know of with the exception of Middleborough are very concerned about the runs or lack thereof. Here they are openning up the runs the first of May to kill prespawn fish, not only do they kill the herring in the nets but how many offspring have they halted from ever having a chance??? If they are truely concerned they need to harvest the drops, after they have spawned and give them a chance to breed. This time of year fishing with herring is just killing herring, the 20"ers bang them but rarely get the full gulp. They need to open the run a few weeks later and let it run a few weeks later when the herring are truely useful to striper fishermen.
Seems a little too obvious too me. I may be a hypocrite, hey I fill the live well but most of the time I'm using drops later on when the big mama bass arrive. I've seen the herring drop in number and seen too much abuse, the abise will certainly continue....
Mark

[Wee Hooker]

Glad to hear somebody values the resource! I've been buy the little Compton RI run a few times and it' just the oposite scene. Each time, Its been an unabashed orgy of giggling people taking as many fish as their conglomeration of tanks, coolers and buckets will hold. Even the commercial lobstering guys are gorging on free bait for the traps.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not against people taking a reasonable number of fish for the table/bait. It just seems that idiot proof "fishing" seems to bring out the ugly side in a core group of people.

[Bob Thomas]

Question.....

I have a live well on the back of my truck like most. If I were to get the limit from Wareham AND the limit from bourne, I would still be legal correct? Also..what if I have BOTH limits in my drift basket...still legal?

bob

[Bob Parsons]

If you had all your permits to show then you might be ok.

Most live wells in trucks I've seen have the limits from 4-5 places.

One guy talked of keeping 400+ in his swimming pool.
I think he was selling them later.

[Bob Thomas]

Ok..so I show my Wareham & Bourne permit...No permits needed for Mashpee though. What I am getting at is if these wardens are going to be checking livewells, then there better be a clear law they are checking for.

[bob g]

mark,
your very correct, and i totally agree with everything you say. however, the town of bourne has unwittingly put itself into the bait business. bourne has a long standing tradition of`harvesting herring for bait, roe, and lobster bait.
then, the bass fishery rebounds in a big way, and places like red top see a great opportunity for some '.
through the local chamber, they organize a derby which just happens to coincide with herring season. the derby is a smashing success.
well, the town implements a license, catching service, new regs, as a means of protecting it herring.
last year permits were $20. so,..$20x1500=$30,000 for the town. the chamber and all the tackle shops benefit. the town takes in $30,000,...it;s a Win,Win situation, forboth the town, and the chamber.

the only loser is the herring, whose numbers are declining annually. mark, believe me when i tell you, there are several people working very hard, "behind the scense" to change the derby dates, and either eliminate or curtail the present way we harvest herring.

BUT, for now, it's the best we have.

bob g

[tim watts]

Bob,

Does the money from the herring permits go towards improving the run or into the towns general fund? Do they have a herring commission like we have here in middleboro or is it controled by the selectmen?

[mermaid]

Pardon my cynicism but I'm getting the feeling that everyone behind the scenes are busting their behinds making sure that EVERYONE is satisfied and satiated. The majority of herring-rigging fishermen say the glass is half full and we're doing good. I say it's half empty and going fast.