Bitter lake

[eagleblood]

you'll be fine eating the fish. Just can't eat a ton everyday that is all the GFAP is talking about.

But I do think it is funny how you called Voltaire a "Cyber Warden" I never heard that one before Drake that is a great phrase.

[lastapproach]

The fish from there are fine, I haven't gotten sick yet! Perch that don't even warn about, just big walleyes over 20in and who eats those anyways?

[flatnose]

what is going on big eyes will make me sick?

[fishslayer32]

the mercury in the water i guess but dont worry we ate plenty of fish and are still fishing out there.

[lastapproach]

It's just a bunch of hype if you ask me, I haven't heard of one person getting sick in SD from fish from there. I never have been sick either from fish.

[BojiHawk]

I use mercury as a dipping sauce for McNuggets.  And....it makes a he11 of a fondu for scallops and crab legs.    Just saying....

PB....heavy metals....LOL.  Eat the fish...lick the ice.  That is alarmist BS.   Ive fed those fish to everyone on my block....no tumors or third legs appearing....well, the third leg thing may be true.   I've eaten a lot of perch and nice eyes from there...then I got out of the shower...and glanced into the mirror...yeah....third leg stories may be accurate.  That's an "In House Open Water Urban Tip Up"...pass the mercury...wife's running for a 20 pc. at McD's...Voltaire's wife is on her way.

[Buckshots]

The fish from there are fine, I haven't gotten sick yet! Perch that don't even warn about, just big walleyes over 20in and who eats those anyways?

Yup throw those ones away! They're only good for their cheek meat! 

[Old Crow Ice]

Guys not trying to be an alarmist or tagged as a negative nelly but I have had locals here ( in Watertown ) mention it to me as well. I've only been in the area for a couple years and am still learning the ins and outs

I just want to be educated and make informed choices

The fish from there are fine, I haven't gotten sick yet! Perch that don't even warn about, just big walleyes over 20in and who eats those anyways?

Please read as that is false info as SDGFP states walleye all sizes

http://gfp.sd.gov/fishing-boating/fish-consumption-advisoiries.aspx

I was told there was some type of ordenence mfg facility in the area that used mercury in detination switches and the landfill was flooded over. May be pure B.S.

[lastapproach]

Just sayin I live on a farm outside Hazel. Grew up fishing bitter (pa and ma put the play pen in the boat)  "don't feed to kids" or whatever that BS is. I'm just fine, don't have any problems. I'll eat fish from there no worries. Bojihawk that's some good humor right there.

Phone jackin my posts up! Gah.

[BojiHawk]

I just used a perch filet from Bitter to check my temp...seems I'm running a little fever.  Then the filet turned into the Terminator liquid guy and chased me around the block.  I didn't have molten iron....but the hot peanut oil seemed to calm him down....

...yes, I used a tartar mercury sauce...third leg still in tact.

[Old Crow Ice]

Release to grease ......

[Voltaire]

I have never eaten a fish out of Bitter and never will. They are for out-of-staters.

[Voltaire]

"Chronic exposure to trace amounts of the compound can lead to mercury buildup in the body over time; it may take months or even years for the body to eliminate excess mercury. Overexposure to mercuric cyanide can lead to kidney damage and/or mercury poisoning, leading to 'shakes' (ex: shaky handwriting), irritability, sore gums, increased saliva, metallic taste, loss of appetite, memory loss, personality changes, and brain damage. Exposure to large doses at one time can lead to sudden death."

[12ICEFISH]

So let me get this straight? I'm going to have memory loss, get cranky, shaky, and have brain damage. After all that I'm going to die! I told her it wasn't from the alcohol!

All funnies aside, some of the best fisheries in NE have mercury warnings as well. Read a little about it, and pretty much you have to eat mass qtys of the fish, almost regularly to affect. There's a pretty long list of don'ts out there that will affect us. And guess what, most of them are communicated after we've already infected ourselves for maybe even years!

I've already come to terms with the fact that I'm going to die! And when I do, you can rest assure that there'll be some mercury in me, as well as every other thing we've been warned about for years. 

[fishslayer32]

its just GFP running there mouths trying to get people to throw fish back in the lake!!

[Old Crow Ice]

Did some reading most consider rapid expansion as the cause , exposed surface area due to coal fired power generation seem to be a leading thought

http://sdstate.edu/news/articles/mercury.cfm

Fish are known to exceed 1ppm

SDGF&P and SD Health Dept are considering lowering the consumption warning levels  to just .3 ppm

[dghunter]

When i start determining my temperature by the angle of my third leg, ill stop eating fish from bitter.. until then my lines will be wet and fillets in the oil 

[fishslayer32]

I dont know really what to be leave until something or someone gets sick. its only the really big walleyes i heard that are bad.

[icechata]

Just limited out on 5lb+ walleyes from Bitter.  Thanks for the advice on where to fish and to coordinates voltarire.  I am still not worried about the mercery though. 

Thanks Cyber Warden

[jonas]

I heard a rumor that all of the lakes in Nebraska dried up?  Is that true?

[Voltaire]

Just limited out on 5lb+ walleyes from Bitter.  Thanks for the advice on where to fish and to coordinates voltarire.  I am still not worried about the mercery though. 

Thanks Cyber Warden

No problem, glad I could help. I am happy that you did good.

[Voltaire]

I heard a rumor that all of the lakes in Nebraska dried up?  Is that true?

No just extremely poor fishing, that is why they all come to South Dakota to fish.

[BojiHawk]

I have never eaten a fish out of Bitter and never will. They are for out-of-staters.

LMFAO...no....I don't recommend eating your bait since the locals always seem to take their fish off the lake in a coffee can.   I've had a dozen fish fry's with my "over limit huge truck loads of over harvest and poached fish" from Bitter.   My fish frys are only open to the elderly, infants, immune difficient, morbidly obeese,  AIDS patients, cancer survirvors and / or cancer sufferers, and mercury-sensitive humans I've solicited online to come eat the glow fish.  I normally filter the grease and have an online thermometer-sales site on Greezbay....9.95 each....and you get a free side of fried potatos, onions, slaw, and french bread with each thermometer....and a co-pay gift card to the hospital of your choice.

PS - NE is basically a waking group of mercury zombies...at least in my town.  I saw a guy who sat for 4 straight weeks...glowing in a lawn... in some sort of a red rash and huge white hairy growth on his chin....right in my neighbors lawn!!     Yes....he has eaten the glow fish.   He looked at me morning, noon and night.   And his kids??   They only crawl now on all fours....horns growing off their heads...dad called them crazy names....dancer, prancer, etc.  The eldest child actually had a glowing red nose.  I'm not sure why they took the tires off that convertible either...but the kids never got it off the lawn.   I can tell you with conviction (but no felonies)....no more fish fry's at my house.  If anyone can still get .223 high cap. magazines for a Colt AR....let me know.  I might need them.  NE Mercury victims have gone nuts...one guy actually kidnapped that mercury family and locked them in a crawlspace...convetibl e, glow-nose....everyone!!   I watched him!!!!   Send help...please....:-(

[EyeDoc]

SO the size limit for 15-20" with one over 20 doesnt apply to bitter? Im going in a couple of weeks and just checkin. THanks. Just seeing how you could fill a limit with 5 pound fish.

[dwmiller]

Doc,

It has the one over 20" law, and a 15" min. Just have to look at the source.

[EyeDoc]

Doc,

It has the one over 20" law, and a 15" min. Just have to look at the source.

Ha thanks. I thought I knew the regs...just was checking. Guess I dont know the guys well enough on here yet to know who is serous and joking. Either way, cannot wait to visit this place. We will throw the 5 pounders back tho! ha.

[BojiHawk]

Bingo...and no cleaned fish on the ice...even within those regs.  It's simple....you get 15 perch / 30 per angler possesion (after 24 hours of license activation for possession).  4 Eyes...1 over 20 and please...don't take 7-8 pounders out....not worth it other than a pic.  You can CONTINUE TO FISH AFTER YOUR POSSESSION LIMIT but don't have any on the ice cleaned or other wise.  If you want to go out and look for "picture fish"...go for it.  Just safely return incidental fish back.  No one says if you are there for 3 days and you fill the freezer you have to go home or stop fishing....you just have to stop harvesting.  We always grab eaters.   Who the he11 is going to harvest an 8 pound walleye???  Take some pics fast and bring a scale...then put her back. Pike?   Most SD angler make fun of us for cleaning them...most anglers I see from SD thump them shove them back down.  Not sure why....they taste great but take time to clean.

Other than the "no cleaned fish on the ice" (even within your limits / possessions) ...all SD laws are clear and make sense.

[EyeDoc]

No just extremely poor fishing, that is why they all come to South Dakota to fish.

Just have to know where to look. Just this last year, I caught a MA Crappie, walleye, Musky, Trout, white bass, and catfish, and all in my state. We may not have the perch fishery you do up there but that doesnt mean that we dont have anything. Besides, seeing that you're from the glacial lakes region, dont you rely a lot on income from other states? Look at your occupation. Now look how it (and your whole area for that matter) would be affected if all those tourism dollars went away. Your attitude towards other states is pretty obvious through the few posts i have seen of yours and your avatar. I actually own property in SD, We have a family lake house. I grew up only 45 mins from SD border. My dad gets a ton of income from out of state business every year and you better believe he is grateful for that. Dont lose sight of the big picture here buddy. Be grateful where you live, but dont lose track of where a lot of that $$ comes from that allows you to live there. Good fishing.

[EyeDoc]

Bingo...and no cleaned fish on the ice...even within those regs.  It's simple....you get 15 perch / 30 per angler possesion (after 24 hours of license activation for possession).  4 Eyes...1 over 20 and please...don't take 7-8 pounders out....not worth it other than a pic.  You can CONTINUE TO FISH AFTER YOUR POSSESSION LIMIT but don't have any on the ice cleaned or other wise.  If you want to go out and look for "picture fish"...go for it.  Just safely return incidental fish back.  No one says if you are there for 3 days and you fill the freezer you have to go home or stop fishing....you just have to stop harvesting.  We always grab eaters.   Who the he11 is going to harvest an 8 pound walleye???  Take some pics fast and bring a scale...then put her back. Pike?   Most SD angler make fun of us for cleaning them...most anglers I see from SD thump them shove them back down.  Not sure why....they taste great but take time to clean.

Other than the "no cleaned fish on the ice" (even within your limits / possessions) ...all SD laws are clear and make sense.

Thanks Boji, extremely helpful as per usual with you big guy.

[BojiHawk]

Just have to know where to look. Just this last year, I caught a MA Crappie, walleye, Musky, Trout, white bass, and catfish, and all in my state. We may not have the perch fishery you do up there but that doesnt mean that we dont have anything. Besides, seeing that you're from the glacial lakes region, dont you rely a lot on income from other states? Look at your occupation. Now look how it (and your whole area for that matter) would be affected if all those tourism dollars went away. Your attitude towards other states is pretty obvious through the few posts i have seen of yours and your avatar. I actually own property in SD, We have a family lake house. I grew up only 45 mins from SD border. My dad gets a ton of income from out of state business every year and you better believe he is grateful for that. Dont lose sight of the big picture here buddy. Be grateful where you live, but dont lose track of where a lot of that $$ comes from that allows you to live there. Good fishing.

No truer words ever spoken.  Shy of ringnecks, perch, eyes, imported NE beef, some nice resort owners,....looks like Nuerenburg after the war...with fat refugees.  That region without each out ot state truck ($1000 per for local revenue...conservative) would be done.   We (IA, NE, MN, even ND) bring $$...get over it or go broke...2 choices for anyone in that area.  And that goes for 1000 diff resosrts in SD, MN, MI, ND, IA, NE etc....be nice...make $$.  It's very simple...