How many Traps can my 3 year old have out

[JimP]

I don't think it's unreasonable for a warden to expect the kid to be able to set, tend and take care of their own traps if they are supposedly playing their own set of 5 traps. It's good ethics. I truly think that the most special thing you can do is take a kid fishing. Once you decide to take a kid though, you have a responsibility to teach them. You should teach them to be an ethical sportsman. It gives them a goal to work for and something to earn. It builds character and self-esteem.

I have a set of old traps ready to go for my nephew that are his when he can handle them. At 10 that day is quickly coming. Perhaps even this year. Until that time he will fish my sets and use his jig pole. Somebody else wants to set up next to me with 5 kids under the age of 8 and fish 30 traps I ain't going to say nothing. Just saying what is right for me.  

[buddah]

I lose most of my three year olds down those ten inch holes.

First of all,that's hilarious right there. 


second,if you're at question at all,just fish 5 traps together.If he wants his own then he'll have to learn to bait and set "yours".Then go buy a new set of traps for yourself when he's got it down packed.

[chief613]

If a game warden is out to get a father teaching his three year old son about fishing. He shouldn't be a warden.
As long as your not doing it to double your limit.

i think that maybe the problem often

[Phoenix]

Yep, me too. I don't see why we don't do like some other states and provinces and allow the under sixteen-year-old child to fish under the adults license, but not allow an additional limit of fish.

[rayfrommaine]

Yep, me too. I don't see why we don't do like some other states and provinces and allow the under sixteen-year-old child to fish under the adults license, but not allow an additional limit of fish.

What about kids who fish without adults?  Let's encourage kids to fish as much as possible once they can do it safely and responsibly.

[devo]

Yep, me too. I don't see why we don't do like some other states and provinces and allow the under sixteen-year-old child to fish under the adults license, but not allow an additional limit of fish.

only people over 50 should be allowed to fish and keep limits!!!

[The Dad Fisherman]

It will all depend on what you get for a warden and how hard they want to enforce the rule.

I learned this one the hard way. Was over a friends house in maine and the kids were fishiong on the dock with there little Kiddie Zebco setups. I walked down and was talking with them and asked one of the kids if I could take a cast.....he said Sure. I flipped it out there reeled it back in and handed the kid back his rod. Next thing I know a warden pulls up to the dock and asks for my license, which I did not have. He starts writing me a ticket for fishing with out a license. I'm like your kidding me I just through it out there with the kids pole. he said "Did you retrieve the Line, if you did you were fishing"

Cost me $125 and a day off from work to appear in court. I follow the rules to the "T".....I'm not leaving the judgement call in the hands of the warden anymore

Things to remember...

Under 16 (mass regs) do not need a a license to fish legally.....legally means they still have to follow the same rules that you or I have to, they just don't have to pay the fee.

If the rules say that you must be able to tend the traps and the warden wants to make sure the kid can tend the traps....nothing wrong with that, You can't get mad at a warden for not enforcing some rules on others and then get mad at another warden for enforcing the rules on you.

I'm a firm believer in 2 types of fishing......Fishing and Fishing with Kids, and the 2 never seem to go together.....the latter usually means some sacrifices (i.e. less traps, more focus on what they are doing).....but when they get older and can handle stuff themselves then you can combine the 2 

If your're allowed 6 lines in the water...2 traps each and a jigging rod each would make for a nice day on the ice with your son....and you wan't have to worry about what the warden is going to say.

[BoneHead]

JimP and Buddah have it right. Some people just want the extra 5 traps. Just like dipping smelts, extra 2 qrts. 

[speedyrower17]

just show your kid how to do it about a million times and they'll be able to do it so if you get someone that wants to enforce the law completely for a 3 year old you can have your kid kind of show off and say hey i can do it

[TinyTim]

One thing I think of when reading this thread is...I think it's a good idea to do it by the book, not good to teach em at a young age that it's ok to bend the law, long as ya don't break it. I can't wait to get my boy fishing, and until he can do everything but use the auger, I'll just give him most my flags. 

[Hoodoo]

You could have the 3yr. old using Polar tip-ups, even a caveman could fish them  fool proof! (thats what I use )

[MEhunter]

I'm interested in this one because here's another similar scenerio what about my 85 year old grandfather (that loves to be on the ice) who can't take runnin an ice auger any more and cant deal with bending over the entire time to set the trap and deal with the cold on his hands but if he gets a flag he can stay standing and fight the fish.

[dadstacklebox]

 Sam answered  that one for me. Sam takes care of adults with disabilities. He is always taking them fishing and buying fishing equipment. When I asked him if he needed a guides lic. to  to take these adults fishing while he was getting paid. He told me, the State offers a group home lic. for a small fee. We do live in a great State guys. The first lesson for a kid is FLAG, the next is how to release, If the warden walks out, that is the next. Those guys in green are the kids best friend in the field, and first impressions matter in a child's mind. Once you get flag fever you never quite shake it.   

[smeltshack]

Well here's the thing, I am strictly catch and release because i fish mostly for bass so its not a matter of wanting to double my limit, its more about teaching him how to ice fish on his traps. He goes wild when i make a big deal out of him learning something new or something cool that happened with "his" stuff. Having his own 5 traps certainly would let him have a better chance at catching and releasing more fish.  Here's the other catch, he does have a license its a lifetime license we bought for him when he was 1 so why wouldnt he be entitled to 5 traps, WHERE in the law book does it say that you have to actually know how to fish to be able to ice fish and have traps. Does this mean if a guy goes out and buys a license but doesnt know how to fish he cannot do so??. I think i have made my decision that i will let him have the one "special" trap that we bought him and i will just fish with my 4. He will pull up all my fish anyway. Its his first ice fishing trap and he got his name on it with all his little stickers and stuff. If a warden gives me a hard time i guess i'll just tell him i found him out there on the ice by himself and decided to take him under my wing  . Pretty cool to see everyone's opinion on this. I think that its definately a gray area. There's not a lot of Trophy fish where i go so hopefully i wont run into the men in green.

[smeltshack]

I would let the 3 year old fish as many traps as they want.  Who is going to give a ticket to a three year old??  "Seriously Warden, all 14 of those traps are his.  My five are over here."  LOL

I like this one the best. 

[THE JIGGER]

If your three year old has a lifetime license, I would say case is closed. Fish the ten traps with him, help him and teach him all you want.
If a warden gives you a hard time after you show both you and your son having a license,he should turn in his badge.
What you have done by buying him a license at that age is beginning to teach him how to respect the law and regulations.

Now get out there and continue the bonding. Say hi to your son for me. Good Luck

[rob-s]

he should turn in his badge

  he should have it taken away   

[umoguy]

I throw in 1 trap for my 3-year old so he knows one is his which gets him into it.

[yukoncornelius]

the problem isn't the warden

the law is partly to blame....quite a few F&G are poorly written

but the big problem is the guy who buys licenses for his wife and kids so he can tag multiple deer.....the guy who puts traps out for his kids so HE can fish, the guy who leaves his trash behind (see the thread about horn pond)

do i think "this guy" represents a majority, or even any of us, here? probably not....but they exist

i sympathize with the warden that has to deal with the vagaries of the law (well, do you have to label a portable shack or not?) AND with some folks who will bend/break every law possible......certainl y not the majority, but they have to deal with it enough that it must get pretty depressing

my daughter has come out with me a few times....she's 4

i set 5 traps......i show her how they work....she pulls up a few fish after i've set the hook

she's happy....she wants to go again.....there's no question we're legal.....

when the time comes, she'll get "assigned" one of the 5.....someday when she shows she can do it all her own, we'll go buy her 5.....but there's no rush, she's a kid.....she's just as happy on our fishing trips to turn over logs looking for crawly things (in the summer), she's just as happy with a cup of hot chocolate in the shack when we ice fish.....getting her 5 in the water just isn't in the equation for us, and i kind of prefer it that way.....

[Mainehazmt]

Im entitled to 5 traps  I take my 4 yo out he is entitled to 5    but myself I dont really put out alot of traps  so Ill just have my jigging holes in the shack and he has one too   if there is a flag well Ill let him pull it after I set it simple he is 4  I dont expect him to know it all or beable to set the trap   

[Fishalot]

 OK, I've got one for ya. I'm out fishing with my kid,I drill all the holes and set the traps 5 for me and 5 for him his hands are cold. Now I let him get all the flags and he's running back and forth chasing flags,while I bait the hooks. WOW did we have a great day,he's hooked for life...
    So how many laws did we break?

[gamefisher]

OK, I've got one for ya. I'm out fishing with my kid,I drill all the holes and set the traps 5 for me and 5 for him his hands are cold. Now I let him get all the flags and he's running back and forth chasing flags,while I bait the hooks. WOW did we have a great day,he's hooked for life...
    So how many laws did we break?

More than one and less than ten

I guess my thoughts are similar to Yukon's, Buddah's, and JimP.'s.... my kids are a prefect example of this scenario at 4 and 7.  Although we have lifetime licenses for both, I don't think that ENTITLES them to 5 traps.  The law is under the immediate supervision by the person who set them.  Although I can legally drill and skim 8 bizillion holes, the problem lies when you get into the baiting, setting, retrieving, etc.   No for us, we'll continue to just set ten for a while longer (my wife has a license) and let the kids pitch in where they can without feeling like they HAVE to.  When they show a real fire to "do it all", then they'll have their own set.

[smeltshack]

Good stuff guys! I think he can learn off my traps just as much as if he had  his own. Its not worth it to me to have a warden get all technical on me and fine me for having too many traps out. He's just just as happy to have my 5 out and i'll just call them his, that way he still thinks its special. They grow up so fast and i will miss these days when he is 10 and doing everything by himself (well except drilling holes) he will have to wait till he's 11 for that . Thanks for all your opinions.

[Fishalot]

(well except drilling holes) he will have to wait till he's 11 for that . Thanks for all your opinions.

Is that a law Too?

[smeltshack]

Is that a law Too?

I dont think that actually qualifies as fishing.

[dadstacklebox]

 Ok, so you and your buddy go out with a guide. The guide sets out six rods. everyone has a lic. When the rods start bending and the sports take turns on the next fish. How many laws are broken? 

[gamefisher]

Is that a law Too?

You can drill and skim all you want.

[rude the dude]

Just like dipping smelts, extra 2 qrts. 

at least to keep them alive you have to by another lic. now. 8)

[Corso]

Ok, so you and your buddy go out with a guide. The guide sets out six rods. everyone has a lic. When the rods start bending and the sports take turns on the next fish. How many laws are broken? 

the plot thickens

[Fishalot]

Ok, so you and your buddy go out with a guide. The guide sets out six rods. everyone has a lic. When the rods start bending and the sports take turns on the next fish. How many laws are broken? 

Your all going to jail. I can't beleave that could happen.