Fishing rules question

[Mainehazmt]

If the law allows you to bait for minnows during any open fishing season  If you drill a hole for your bait trap  use your favorite minnow bait(ol roy dog food)     and nearby drill your hole for fishing    is that chumming? baiting for targeted species   ect?   that isn't allowed??   might be more of a moral than a legal issue maybe??

[rich81]

good question

[slt]

Depends on the Warden and what kind of day he / she is having

[Mainehazmt]

presoak the dog food too for quicker results
 

[Mainehazmt]

plus if you dont have to check it for 7 days and you have a permanet shack   hmmm     there is some possibilitys there   wish I was a tin knocker Id make one to fit  in a 6 - 8" hole

[scavengerj]

I'd have to go with what slt said. To be safe, just be sure to place the trap a decent distance from where you are fishing.

[ifishhi]

i would say you'd be fine. your doing 2 different things, it doesn't say you have to have any distance between you and your trap

i do it on a spot i found in the summer , the bait hang on the edge of a drop off on a  point and the bigger fish hang off the edge in the deeper water so i fish off the edge and and trap on the other side off it 

[Mainehazmt]

Depends on the Warden and what kind of day he / she is having

that might be the truth there

[ifishhi]

that might be the truth there

BS the warden's  are not always right, call mdifw if you want to know for sure.

2 years ago i was out and i had i quick strike rig on a trap i was not using. a warden came over to check us a saw the rig and said the were illegal to use. now i had called the state and it was explained to me as long as it's only meant to catch 1 fish at a time it was legal so i told him that and after a while he said he would look into it and gave me a warning. so don't always go by what they say, sometimes it's only their interpretation of the laws

[duck doctor]

don't always go by what they say, sometimes it's only their interpretation of the laws

Very true.  Although you will make a name for yourself if you keep pushing the limits. I know I do not want a CO breathing down my neck all the time.

[ifishhi]

i don't think i'm pushing any limits, i'm not trying to piss anyone off, i'm just trying to fish the way the state say's that i can. i'm with in the laws. they should be open minded enough to know they might not know everything and should make sure before basically calling someone a lier . it could of been worse and ruined my trip but that doesn't make it right. all he had to do was call in like i did

[duck doctor]

they should be open minded enough to know they might not know everything and should make sure before basically calling someone a lier.

True....but many are not!

[pegasus]

I have set my traps right by someones elses bait trap before and never thought a thing about it. Where the bait fish are there is going to be the bigger fish. I have never looked for bait traps to fish by, but where there is good salmon or brown trout fishing there is bait. I don't believe that there is a limit of how close you can fish by a bait trap. I just don't fish so close that I'm going to get snarled up with their trap line if a fish runs.

[Mainehazmt]

ya do have to admit  they have a crappy job and alot of times it's a confrontational job they do... one thing I do is have a rule book promently displayed in case there is an issue and if Im 100% sure Im right Id ask to see where that is in the law politely  and then accept the ticket if I was wrong   and pay my fine   or if I felt I was not wrong there is always the judge and a jury of my peers  Confrontation out on the ice is not good, non productive, and could cause problems   plus no witnesses just in case.   Ive only had one not so nice encounter with the wardens but there was documentation at the office that I had called  and all was clear had to do with shack removal so that wasnt even that bad.   they are there to help us and protect what we have grown to enjoy

[nd.walleye]

I agree - they do have a crappy job (although - one i wouldn't mind having:)) - I try to be as nice as possible though - they usually have tips/hints/locations they don't mind sharing. I've developed some nice friendships as well through talking with a few of them. Great guys just trying to do their job, and as Mainehazmt said, protect the resource that we all love to enjoy.

[duck doctor]

The C/O in my area has watched me grow up in the world of hunting and fishing.  We are on a first name basis and he rarely askes to see my license. I witnessed some illegal activity last year and in the end, I turned the guys in.   I have a business I need to protect and if I was found to be "knowedgable" of illegal activity, there goes everything I have worked so hard to build. 


Long story short, if you work with them, they will work with you.  You will gain their respect.

[keepah seekah]

this is true. im glad that im on a first name basis with a couple wardens. but...i have also met some real *censored*heads out there. but, can't say as i take them for granted, they have a tough job and if we didn't have any around, the state of maine would have a few more poachers.

[duck doctor]

I know a C/O in the state that I have had a bad time with. He knows he made a mistake but is not willing to admit it. I personally know that the father of the particular C/O shot and killed 2 bear 5 or so years ago.  The C/O does not impress me at all. There are bad ones out there, just like Police Officers. But there are great C/O's out there that will bend over backwards to help you out.  I tip my hat to those guys!

[Heron]

Ifishhi

I made the same call in reference to the "Quick Strike" rigs,about 10 to 12 years ago.Your post reminded me.At the time I was not sure of there legalities either,so I called the wardens service directly.The first warden I spoke with over the phone was not familiar with the quick strike rigs at all.So I explained the apparatus to him in full detail and its intended purposes.Even after my explanation,the first warden was not ready to give me an answer,on whether or not I could use the device and remain legal.He then politely transfered my call over to another warden.After explaining the device and its intended purpose again.Anyways the short answer I recieved was,is that they where still unsure of the rigs in question,and also recommended that I just refrain from using them.I other words the rig was so unfamiliar in Maine,that wardens in the field would in fact be left up to there own gut.So I never did use them,in avoiding a possible situation out on the ice.

I did intend to use these on pike at the time,to reduce the potential of gut hooking.Hence there "quick strike" namesake.Yes pike conservation in Maine just isnt the same, as with the midwestern states.

[Phoenix]

To respond to the original question, it seems to me that this is a "gray" area of the law that they probably ought to clear up by saying you can't fish within x number of yards from a baited trap.

'Bout the wardens, I have a great deal of respect for them and several as friends. But I won't tell them how the fishing is when they ask, they tend to tell everyone else

[rich81]

. But I won't tell them how the fishing is when they ask, they tend to tell everyone else

so thats where they get all there good tips and info from!    i have not had a bad encounter with a warden yet. but there is good and bad i everything