Brookies to be legal on Georgetown!! New regs discussion.

[MTviking]

On the topic of the brookies. I've been fishing Georgetown since I was a little one. I have never noticed a drop in the brook trout population, I've speculated that maybe the FWP was dropping the nets in the wrong places, IE the middle of the lake where the brook trout aren't frequently located. Also on a side note, has anyone noticed the rainbow brook hybrids in the lake?

It's impossible to have a brook/rainbow hybrid.  Brookies will cross with Browns creating what is known as a tiger trout and maybe that's what you've seen but brookies,browns,bull trout, lake trout all spawn in the fall.  Rainbows and cutthroats spawn in the spring. 

[Old Man Winter]

This kind of makes me sad. I caught a 21" brookie a few years ago out of G-town. It was beautiful. I almost always catch one >15" but that will end very quickly once the fish hogs have at them.

That being said, I am concerned about brookies being in the Upper Clark Fork because they do hybridize with bull trout and the bulls come down into G-town from Silver Lake and a population holds out in Flint Creek below the spillway.

[MTviking]

Georgetown is phenominal for big brookies.  I've fished Silver for lakers before.  We didn't catch any but I've heard of a few people catching a few.  I wonder if lake trout ever make it downstream into Georgetown from Silver.  Have any of you ever heard anything in regards to that or heard much about the lakers in silver lake?

[missoulafish]

100% guaranteed there are Macs in Georgetown. I have seen them in front of the Pumphouse and my buddy has a picture of one he caught out of Georgetown.

[IllynPayne]

100% guaranteed there are Macs in Georgetown. I have seen them in front of the Pumphouse and my buddy has a picture of one he caught out of Georgetown.

There are.  There is a little-known connection between GTL and Silver Lake called Hardtla Creek.  It only flows when Silver is filled to the brim.  It's the reason there are Lakers in GTL and Kokes in silver.

[Lamnidae]

I had a brookie in my hole yesterday at Georgetown that had to have been within a few ounces one way or another of the Montana state record.  I've caught 10 lb. trout before and this one looked every bit as big as those. 

[fishinwithbrittanies]

There was a pic on here last year or the year before of a laker caught out of Gtown.  It was a pretty good sized one too.  All the more reason to use the reports and conditions page so you don't have to wade through miles of other stuff to find what you want....HA HA.  Any who it was a nice fish caught by the pumphouse I believe and I think, I think, there might be, or was a mount of it in the 7 gables

[fishin247]

Alright Vike, I'll bite, where are pike native in MT? Hint-they're not native.

[missoulafish]

Pike are native to MT. They have been introduce throught almost half the state but they are 100 % native to one very localized area of MT.

[fishin247]

And that would be? I think your getting pike confused with rainbows.

[MTviking]

Alright Vike, I'll bite, where are pike native in MT? Hint-they're not native.

Here you go fishin247, straight from the horse's mouth  Link:   http://fieldguide.mt.gov/detail_AFCHD01020.aspx 

" General Description
The northern pike is Montana's lone representative of the pike family. It is native to Montana only in the Saskatchewan River drainage on the east side of Glacier Park. However, widespread introduction, both legal and illegal, now makes the northern pike a common gamefish statewide except for southwest Montana. "

[MTviking]

Another species that even FWP says is not native is walleye.  How can people be so sure?  They have been in Montana for a long long time, they are native to the Missouri river system in North Dakota and to this day many walleye that were tagged in North Dakota are caught/found over 100 miles upstream in Montana.  Walleyes do in fact frequently travel far upstream.  Historically there were zero barriers preventing them from traveling up the missouri and yellowstone in Montana.  To me it seems pretty damn unlikely that they're not native to Montana. 

But when it comes down to it, what is native and what difference does it make?  You are not native, rainbows, browns,Kokanees,brookies are not native, wild turkeys are not native, pheasants,hangarians and chukars are not native.  Walleyes may or may not be native but the habitats (other than the very lower Yellowstone and Missouri)  they thrive in are not native to Montana i.e. man made reservoirs but they are here now and so are you along with the Walleyes and Pike, so why not just enjoy them.

[fishin247]

Not sying I don't enjoy catching them, I just disagreed on if they were native. After that I will say it takes a big man to admit when he is wrong, so I say this...the link you posted must be wrong. An FWP conspiracy. Glad to get that off my chest finally.

[rezeye]

Another species that even FWP says is not native is walleye.  How can people be so sure?  They have been in Montana for a long long time, they are native to the Missouri river system in North Dakota and to this day many walleye that were tagged in North Dakota are caught/found over 100 miles upstream in Montana.  Walleyes do in fact frequently travel far upstream.  Historically there were zero barriers preventing them from traveling up the missouri and yellowstone in Montana.  To me it seems pretty damn unlikely that they're not native to Montana.  

But when it comes down to it, what is native and what difference does it make?  You are not native, rainbows, browns,Kokanees,brookies are not native, wild turkeys are not native, pheasants,hangarians and chukars are not native.  Walleyes may or may not be native but the habitats (other than the very lower Yellowstone and Missouri)  they thrive in are not native to Montana i.e. man made reservoirs but they are here now and so are you along with the Walleyes and Pike, so why not just enjoy them.

I am native and i love pike! and i dont think turkeys came from europe  8)

[MTviking]

Wild Turkeys didn't come from Europe but they are not native to Montana.  They were introduced by the Fish & Game dept. back in the early 1900's


quoted from  http://www.thesportsglobe.com/Wildlife/MerriamsWildTurkey.aspx  "Merriam’s Wild Turkey are native to the pine forests of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico and have been introduced to Montana, Nebraska, Washington Oregon and California. Since their introduction to these northern and western pacific states, their range also includes portions of Idaho, Wyoming and South Dakota.
"

[fishinwithbrittanies]

So....
From slot limit on the stone, keeping a couple brookies on Gtown, and no limit on pike on the MO chain of lakes and drainages comes 3 pages of discussion with everything from killing every pike, are walleyes/pike native, are there lakers in Gtown and now turkeys.  These threads are entertaining.  What is next I wonder?

[fishinwithbrittanies]

I hope it does.  Like a lead shot ban....That one got heated.  You should link this to the wolves up hyalite, lots of native/non-native discussion there.  Are labs native to gallatin national forest?

[fishinwithbrittanies]

Now thats funny   

[MTviking]

Why do ya think I started it...this stuff is great. Lots of pros with the google research and opinions flying like geese on opening day. This could go all winter...

Not to come accross as arrogant, i'm probably a bit late for that, but everything I've said is based on what I have already known.  I've spent my entire life researching and learning about fish and wildlife, its always been an interest and passion of mine.  But I realize people are not going to just take my word for it so I posted web links to simply back up what I was claiming.

[MTviking]

What's that old saying, opinions are like ********, everyones got one.  Well not everyone has all their facts straight.

[fishinwithbrittanies]

What's that old saying, opinions are like ********, everyones got one.  Well not everyone has all their facts straight.

I think it finishes with "and they all stink"

[MTviking]

I think Montana needs more PIKE waters personally!!  
Pike love trout as do most Montanan's lol!

I think Montana needs more lakes with diverse and balanced fisheries rather than forsaking everything else in the name of stocker rainbows.

[fishin mt]

 i agree.  why is it that so many people are against the trout and walleye but are for the non native rainbows.  The trout guys almost act as though they are native.  i say go northerns.  i love to catch them in fort peck and maybee someday will snag one in cf.

[iceholer]

I think Montana needs more PIKE waters personally!!  
Pike love trout as do most Montanan's lol!

[RobG]

Pike have eaten all the elk. Kill them all!

[andercee]

I would love to find some elk eating pike. 

[mtjohn]

I would love to find some elk eating pike. 

If I find any I will let you know, only if you promise to come take the hooks out, cause I sure as heck ain't stickin' my hand in there.
MT

[copperjohn]

Pike have eaten all the elk. Kill them all!

See?!!!  Good for nuttin slimy sons of beeches!

[wallinuts]

my vote goes to pike

[fishin247]

So people b***h about everyone wanting the non-native rainbows in all the lakes in MT yet I don't know of anyone that wants only rainbow waters across the board as so many seem to believe there are. Yet there seem to be a ton of people that don't think there's enough pike/walleye waters and want them introduced other places, and if they do get illegally introduced seem to have a hard-@n for keeping them. Some of ya'll seem to want every f-ing body of water in the state to have walleye and pike, yet bristle at the thought of there being people out there that are exactly like you but want rainbows instead of walleye/pike. And all you internet experts, find me some TU literature or something like that that offers concrete proof of that feeling before you tell me that that's the way TU feels. But if we're gonna pull the "pike are native" line, guess what, so are rainbows by the same line of logic. Native to the Yaak up in NW MT I believe.