Gnarly Looking Togue

[keith411]

Jigged this up last night. Some people say it looks ugly. I think it looks really cool and unique. The thing had some big teeth too.

22 inches 3 pounds, Caught in about 60 fow.

[sebagosalmo]

That's a beauty 👍
Those dark colored ones are the best looking Lakers

Congrats on your Catch 😜

[Phoenix]

Ya gonna eat it

[franklin fisher]

  Cool.  Nice fish.

[Jim_C.]

Love the dark togue, and that one's almost black

[Fish Wayniac]

Nice dark togue!

[fishbone]

i also have caught a black laker----cool fish

[fishbone]

i also have caught a native blue walleye --so i feel really lucky cause while these color variations happen they are pretty rare----i never got a second blue walleye or a second black lake trout

[gamefisher]

I put it on a stringer and let it live in the water in case i got a bigger keeper. Had it on the stringer for less than an hour and pulled it up for another pic. The fish was still very lively but it looked completely different. Its the same fish though. Never heard of a blue walleye thats pretty sick!

Might want to delete this response, very illegal.

[Sawyerjosh]

Might want to delete this response, very illegal.

X2

[Trout scout 39]

 Greedy .

[Trout scout 39]

 A color change was due to stress when A fish is involved in a fight for a half hour or longer nine times out of 10 it dies  from that experience !You get what you get  that's fishing !!You can measure a trophy and take a picture of it and have it in the water with in minutes!!  And the little elf wonders why people were running his traps over! Don't get it

[Seamonkey84]

Please read through the Maine rule book for inland waters, not only does every other body of water have special regulations, but the general law in Maine is fairly strict. Know the general laws first, then check the s-codes for that water your fishing.

Example, chain stores sell gaffs in with the ice fishing stuff, yet the possession of a gaff on inland waters is grounds for a fine. Same thing with "live" stingers, any fish you don't release immediately must be killed and counted as part of your daily/possession limit (with the exception of legal baitfish and special permit bass tournaments).

[Trout scout 39]

 Typical implant .it's called a law book  their free get one  read it

[IceDog88]

Yes, very true. Need to abide

[NickM]

I understand the logic behind most of the rules, but no stringers?

Why?

I get not being able to transport live game fish because of all the illegal introductions, but this rule makes no sense. I generally think Maine IF&W does a pretty good job of enforcing common sense regulations, but this one seems like a rule for the sake of a rule, and I'm not a fan of that. I don't like letting bureaucrats do my thinking for me.

[weskeagclouser]

It's because of the exact behavior that started this discussion. A fish on a stringer is probably going to die, and if you just toss it back when you get a bigger one, you've killed more than your limit.
A fish that was killed promptly and put on ice in a cooler is going to taste a lot better than one dragged behind a boat all day.

[saltyshores]

It's because of the exact behavior that started this discussion. A fish on a stringer is probably going to die, and if you just toss it back when you get a bigger one, you've killed more than your limit.
A fish that was killed promptly and put on ice in a cooler is going to taste a lot better than one dragged behind a boat all day.

Weskeagclouser just provided the perfect response.[/b]

[Ohiocatfish]

Instead of dragging it behind the boat all day on a stringer, put it in your livewell....oh wait. IMO the best fish is one that never touched ice and is cooked right up after being slaughtered. That all being said, I follow the Maine law book to the T. I just wish we lived in a land of common sense. It's a rule to prevent size culling and bucket biologists, I get it, but couldn't you just make those actions illegal?

[yotepounder]

Better follow the laws in Maine or they will get in that...! Shouldn't kill a laker that big anyways.

[keith411]

I'm really sorry guys. I had know idea that was a problem. It never even crossed my mind that that could be illegal. I thought that would be completely harmless. Thanks for letting me know. I try hard to follow the rules. It usually brings me good karma and good luck. There is just so many rules in Maine. It's really hard to keep track of all of them. I promise it won't happen again.

[Seamonkey84]

Even if it wasn't a legal issue, that practice ends up killing all the fish anyway.

[Loves To Fish]

I'm really sorry guys. I had know idea that was a problem. It never even crossed my mind that that could be illegal. I thought that would be completely harmless. Thanks for letting me know. I try hard to follow the rules. It usually brings me good karma and good luck. There is just so many rules in Maine. It's really hard to keep track of all of them. I promise it won't happen again.

That is very big of you to recognize you made a mistake. We all make them from time to time. Nice post.

Even if it wasn't a legal issue, that practice ends up killing all the fish anyway.

That's not entirely true Seamonkey84. Back in the day, when it was legal to use fish chains / stringers, you could troll all day with your catch swimming along side your boat and those fish were just as lively at the end of the day. But , it had to be done at ice out or when the water was still ice cold. As the season progressed and the water warmed up, using stringers would end up killing your catch because it was just too warm for them to swim in.
I remember as a kid, making live wells in the ice to keep your catch alive all day. the trick was that you had to have a small hole at the bottom of the live well so fresh water would circulate in the live well. The only problem we had back then was the small hole would slowly turn into a big hole and your catch would sometimes escape back into the lake. Those were fun times, for sure, back then.

[Loves To Fish]

Instead of dragging it behind the boat all day on a stringer, put it in your livewell....oh wait. IMO the best fish is one that never touched ice and is cooked right up after being slaughtered. That all being said, I follow the Maine law book to the T. I just wish we lived in a land of common sense. It's a rule to prevent size culling and bucket biologists, I get it, but couldn't you just make those actions illegal?

You hit the nail on the head OCF. It already is illegal to cull fish and illegally stock fish, bucket biology. They were already illegal before banning the use of stringers and fish chains. I went to the public hearing to point out that banning the use of stringers and fish chains wouldn't stop the hard core poachers from releasing smaller fish once they catch a bigger one. They're still doing it today, except instead of releasing a live one back, they just throw a dead one overboard and keep the bigger one. Sad really.

[cchase]

I'm really sorry guys. I had know idea that was a problem. It never even crossed my mind that that could be illegal. I thought that would be completely harmless. Thanks for letting me know. I try hard to follow the rules. It usually brings me good karma and good luck. There is just so many rules in Maine. It's really hard to keep track of all of them. I promise it won't happen again.

Its a loss of license violation so nothing to mess with. You cannot keep them alive in a live well and cull them either. Only time you can is during a state registered bass tournament.

[Mainah]

Typical implant .it's called a law book  their free get one  read it

Be easy on the guy, he probably didn't know. But, either take or release what you get because if you keep them like that they do end up dying.