smelt

[coldbum]

is it legal to use a minnow trap to catch smelt in the winter threw the ice her in good old ny?

[GAMBELL]

Coldbum,

I am not sure about catching the smelt in traps but, I have tried dead smelt from Tops supermarkets.  We buy them and they are headless and gutted.  They work great for pike and we have caught trout on them in Hemlock Lake.  If it works there it should work anywhere.  Tops has a lot of smelt around Christmas.  I buy a large amount and brine them in a salt and sugar solution.  I then vacuum seal them and freeze them.  The night before I fish I take a package out to thaw.

[Joes fishing]

is it legal to use a minnow trap to catch smelt in the winter threw the ice her in good old ny?

If I am reading page 12 of the NY fishing guide rite it looks like its legal to catch smelt any time with a trap.
But the best source of info would be to call the regional fisheries office thy can give you the best info.
Happy fishing and good luck

[deadsmelthead]

I wish you luck, they refuse to go into a trap, I know a guy who put one in the middle of a school of them for days and not one went in.. He has been trying for a couple years now with no sucess, your best bet is to jig them up or net em in the spring when they spawn.

[NAD42]

Just don't have any smelt on the KING, it doesn't matter if ya caught them in your local lake, out of the KING, or bought them in your local market...possession of smelt on the KING, is illegal.

[bigredonice]

You're not kidding NAD, even the mere mention of smelt at fish307 and those guys get PISSED, trust me I know...they have no sense of humor about the whole thing

[coldbum]

yeah, i want to trap them on Lake Tanglefoot