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fishing regulations 2024


fishing user avatarScarborough817 reply : 

ok so since i can't fish i'm obviously extremely jealous of those of you in Florida and Texas and any place that can still fish. it got me thinking how long is everyones legal fishing season?

in ontario where i fish bass season opens the 4th saturday in june and closes november 30th so i really only have summer and winter patterns since ice out is normally the middle of march or april i'm sure they are spawned a long time before the end of june. 

anyway what about you guys when does your season legally open and close?


fishing user avatarBluebasser86 reply : 

We have no seasons. If you can find water to fish, you can fish it. There's seasons on paddlefish snagging, and some lakes that stock trout close for a few days after they stock the trout to allow them to disperse, but that's it. I fish at least one day a week all year round. 


fishing user avatarA-Jay reply : 

Just last year, Michigan changed the C & R bass season.  Meaning as soon as there is open water, I'm GONE !

A-Jay 


fishing user avatarScarborough817 reply : 
  On 1/18/2016 at 10:59 PM, A-Jay said:

Just last year, Michigan REMOVED the C & R bass season.  Meaning as soon as there is open water, I'm GONE !

A-Jay 

i wish they would do that up here i think they only reason they do it is so people aren't keeping spawning fish 


fishing user avatarMattMurr reply : 

Yeah, Such along wait in Ontario :(

Luckly near me we have the walleye run to keep us occupied.

 


fishing user avatarflyfisher reply : 

Virginia has no closed season.  If there is water you can fish.  There are some special reg areas for trout and some trophy bass areas that are C&R but for the most part, I fish year round.


fishing user avatartander reply : 

No close season in Mississippi, fish anytime.


fishing user avatarMissourifishin reply : 

No closed season here.


fishing user avatarSnakehead Whisperer reply : 

On the tidal Potomac there is a 15" minimum length March 1-June 15, and 12" minimum the rest of the year. No closed season. 


fishing user avatarTrenton reply : 

In Pa i can fish year round if there's open water or i can ice fish. Its been a weird winter as of now ice has open holes and its not even an inch thick. But here in the spring they have no harvest and no tournament law from April 16th through June 17th. Its a stupid law in my opinion because of the countless studies done to show that fishing during the spawn doesn't effect it. We still go out in the cold and chase spring lunkers, last spring we were fishing in 43 degree water and it was snowing out and i caught the chunk in my profile pic


fishing user avatarbuzzed bait reply : 

12 months of fishing in GA....


fishing user avatarRaul reply : 
  On 1/18/2016 at 10:53 PM, Scarborough817 said:

ok so since i can't fish i'm obviously extremely jealous of those of you in Florida and Texas and any place that can still fish. it got me thinking how long is everyones legal fishing season?

 

Begins Jan 1st ---> ends Dec 31 st


fishing user avatarroadwarrior reply : 

No season in Tennessee or adjoining states.

 

:winter-146:

 


fishing user avatarScarborough817 reply : 

well i'm jealous of all of you. now i'll just sit here and wait for june :(


fishing user avatarnascar2428 reply : 
  On 1/18/2016 at 10:59 PM, A-Jay said:

Just last year, Michigan REMOVED the C & R bass season.  Meaning as soon as there is open water, I'm GONE !

A-Jay 

Actually we can now legally fish for Bass year round, we just can't keep them. January 1st to the Saturday before Memorial Day is the new Catch and Release season in most of the state. This is a tremendous improvement from no Bass fishing January 1st to mid April. Don't mean to rain on the party, just want to make sure nobody incurs any unnecessary fines!!

 


fishing user avatarA-Jay reply : 
  On 1/19/2016 at 4:32 AM, nascar2428 said:

Actually we can now legally fish for Bass year round, we just can't keep them. January 1st to the Saturday before Memorial Day is the new Catch and Release season in most of the state. This is a tremendous improvement from no Bass fishing January 1st to mid April. Don't mean to rain on the party, just want to make sure nobody incurs any unnecessary fines!!

 

Thank You ~  I edited my post.  This is what I meant but presented it incorrectly.

A-Jay


fishing user avatarCatch and Grease reply : 

I live in south GA and we can fish year round!


fishing user avatarward131 reply : 

In my county in Maine, if the water is open fish, if it's ice - drill a hole and fish. Oct -Jan no Live bait and put the trout and Salmon back.


fishing user avatarJames Frise reply : 

No seasons where I fish. Besides it always 75+ degrees year around here so ice wont be a problem. 


fishing user avatarherbu reply : 
  On 1/18/2016 at 10:53 PM, Scarborough817 said:

since i can't fish... when does your season legally open and close?

I don't understand how any place could have a "closed season" where you can't fish for bass.  What if you're fishing for something else and happen to catch a bass?  They can say, "throw it back", but how can they say, "don't fish for it"?


fishing user avatarScarborough817 reply : 

ya basically that's what it is but in the lake i mainly fish there are only bass so i pretty much can't fish there until june


fishing user avatarBruce424 reply : 
  On 1/20/2016 at 4:41 AM, Scarborough817 said:

ya basically that's what it is but in the lake i mainly fish there are only bass so i pretty much can't fish there until june

See I think that's kinda dumb. They should at least let ya fish ice out but don't keep anything. In Pa the only regulations we have pretty much is for stock trout. We need trout stamp on our license to fish for bass in trout waters. Haha makes sense. i can't KEEP a bass til June but I can still fish for them whenever.

So you can't fish for bass till mid season?? I kinda feel bad for you. Never will you catch a prespawn giant.


fishing user avatarWRB reply : 

California our fishing is year around, license from Jan 1st to Dec 31st.

Tom


fishing user avatargeo g reply : 

Here in Florida the Season never closes.  Nothing better then winter fishing down here.  Another great thing about Florida is at 65 you NEVER need a freshwater license.  It doesn't get any better then that!


fishing user avatarA fisher reply : 

In South Carolina water never freezes so year round fishing for me!


fishing user avatarInsanity reply : 

Year round here in TN also. If they ever change it il be moving. 


fishing user avatarScarborough817 reply : 
  On 1/20/2016 at 5:51 AM, Bruce424 said:

See I think that's kinda dumb. They should at least let ya fish ice out but don't keep anything. In Pa the only regulations we have pretty much is for stock trout. We need trout stamp on our license to fish for bass in trout waters. Haha makes sense. i can't KEEP a bass til June but I can still fish for them whenever.

So you can't fish for bass till mid season?? I kinda feel bad for you. Never will you catch a prespawn giant.

unless i'm reading it wrong then that's correct 

open season.png


fishing user avatarSoFloBassFiend reply : 
  On 1/18/2016 at 11:06 PM, Scarborough817 said:

i wish they would do that up here i think they only reason they do it is so people aren't keeping spawning fish 

Most states allow fishing although the "seasons" they impose have to do with the ability to keep fish. 


fishing user avatarSoFloBassFiend reply : 
  On 1/19/2016 at 9:02 AM, James Frise said:

No seasons where I fish. Besides it always 75+ degrees year around here so ice wont be a problem. 

75+ huh??? Lol


fishing user avatarherbu reply : 
  On 1/20/2016 at 7:31 AM, WRB said:

California our fishing is year around, license from Jan 1st to Dec 31st.

Tom

In NC, your license is good for a year, starting the day you buy it.  We went away from the calendar year.  I like that.  Just got an email reminder from them that my license will expire in a few weeks.  Renewed online.  Painless.


fishing user avatarherbu reply : 
  On 1/20/2016 at 11:56 AM, Scarborough817 said:

 

open season.png

Hmmm... I bet there is a lot of "Rock Bass fishing" during the closed LMB season.  ;)


fishing user avatarScarborough817 reply : 
  On 1/20/2016 at 9:22 PM, herbu said:

Hmmm... I bet there is a lot of "Rock Bass fishing" during the closed LMB season.  ;)

indeed there are good thinking friend just can't really throw 6" swimbaits :lol:


fishing user avatarWIGuide reply : 

In Wisconsin, we have seasonal regulations. Fishing season opens the first full weekend in May for gamefish (bass, northern, walleye, etc). However for bass, the state is split into a northern and southern zone Doesn't make a lot of sense when you look at the map). Up until a year or two ago the southern zone you could keep both largemouth and smallmouth from the fishing season opener. In the northern zone you had to wait until a date set in June. Now they changed it to where you can catch and keep largemouth in both zones from the beginning of the season opener, but smallmouth are still c&r only until a chosen date in June. It gets hairy at times since the lake I live on is split in two; part in the northern zone and part in the southern zone. Fishing season runs into the following year and is open the first Sunday in March. If you fish on the Mississippi River though the season is open all year.  

For panfish and rough fish there is a year round season.

Muskie season is split depending on zone. Northern zone is from Saturday nearest Memorial day to November 30th. Southern zone is from first Saturday in May through December 31st. 

smallmouth zones.PNG

muskie zones.PNG


fishing user avatarBrent Christian reply : 

No season here in Kentucky, just this time of year a little hard to find water not frozen.




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