MDNR's 5 year strategic plan draft available to read

[Waterfoul]

Check it out here.  You can even send in comments.  You know I did!

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7-153-10364-292572--,00.html

The link to the actual document is down a bit on the page.

[1javelin]

sounds like it's all business, no science to me. Some day someone may get it right, but it's going to take a lot of funds from somewhere to do it, or people willing to put in the work for nothing.  Noone works for free anymore.  It's a shame.

1jav

[Waterfoul]

sounds like it's all business, no science to me. Some day someone may get it right, but it's going to take a lot of funds from somewhere to do it, or people willing to put in the work for nothing.  Noone works for free anymore.  It's a shame.

1jav

One of my several comments about it to the MDNR was how difficult it is to make simple changes due to people wanting to make things "sound" difficult.  Too many words and too many people involved.

[Mojo]

Can someone provide a cliff notes version of what they are proposing ? Or what they are doing ?

Maybe:  

1. Summary
2. Bullet points of proposal
3. DNR conclusion

[Manxfishing]

Can someone provide a cliff notes version of what they are proposing ? Or what they are doing ?

Maybe:  

1. Summary
2. Bullet points of proposal
3. DNR conclusion

Well
I looked it over
Bla,bla,bla it was the results of a Survey
Buss. as usual. No real plan, Just a few thoughts and notes

[Waterfoul]

It seems to be a plan with no substance and no real expectations spelled out.  Yeah, control invasive species... again.  Same as all the years past.  Keep existing anglers and gain more... but with no plan on how to do this (a longer season and less restrictions would help... right Indina and Ohio anglers??). 

A bunch of rhetoric is what I read.

[TheFishinPollock]

it matches up with the " survey" for the NW12 for a APR  here.  them and the NRC are really  lost ain't they?

[djkimmel]

They need our help. They just only have that part way figured out. I hope they figure it out more while there are still a few employees left...

You can comment on the 'plan' and I strongly suggest you do that. You ALL (including Mojo) need to read it ALL. That (us) is a big part of the problem. Everyone is 'too busy' to get involved.

If you want change, you have to make some time and get involved. Otherwise... no change. In this case, no change is not a good thing.

[Jmcfarland]

A lot of there goals and objectives could be met or helped by opening a catch and release bass season year round, and from what I read it sounds like they could check off a few more with a catch and delayed release season(early tournament).  So why don't they put the laws into effect that would do this???

[Waterfoul]

A lot of there goals and objectives could be met or helped by opening a catch and release bass season year round, and from what I read it sounds like they could check off a few more with a catch and delayed release season(early tournament).  So why don't they put the laws into effect that would do this???

We as anglers need to help them see that this would be nothing but a good thing.

[djkimmel]

Yes. We need to do that. Change is tough for many people. But it can be done.

How can you all help now? Tell everyone you talk to that remotely knows about fishing that only 4 states in the United States now have closed, statewide bass 'seasons' because bass don't need a closed season. Regulations are simpler and more people can safely fish when they want to if they can legally fish for bass all year whether catch-and-release or catch-and-keep - which isn't much of an issue for bass anymore considering 80 to 90% of all anglers in Michigan voluntarily release most of the bass they catch.

[Jmcfarland]

Well, I guess I have at least been doing that.  I also called around quite a bit over the last 9 months or so. I also bring it up/question the DNR Conservation officers anytime they check any of my licenses or have contact with them.

[stackenem]

I printed this off and actually read all of it. It looks to me as if the plan is to help salmon trout walleye musky and sturgeon. There was hardly any mention of anything to do with bass. If you look at the list of groups that they contacted to help them with this you will see that there are alot of walleye musky and other groups in there to include a bowfishing group but there was not one group that was with bass fishing. Some how we need to get up on our haunches and make ourselves heard. I do not have any idea how to do this but maybe if any one on here has anything to do with any legal eagles (lawyers) They can maybe ask them what would be a good way to get started. JMHO.

[Jmcfarland]

I also noticed that when I read it. Seems a little strange in a state where FLW and B.A.S.S. are pretty popular.

[mikesmiph]

Dan, give me some advise. Like where to start. I'm ready to give every free moment I have. I just need some direction. Call me if you can.

[djkimmel]

They don't want more bass tournaments and most 'bass' groups are involved in 'tournaments' in some way. They don't even want to support youth 'tournaments.'

Bass groups are invited to some meetings but bass anglers seem a little less likely to take the time to go to meetings too. When I go to a meeting, they are usually heavy with walleye, musky, trout, pike-type groups even though more anglers in Michigan fish for bass.

What we need to do is retrain their thinking into PROVIDING MORE OPPORTUNITY not more restrictions. The MDNR has too many restrictions-oriented people in it still. They can literally restrict themselves right out of their jobs.

Closed seasons are not heavily used management tools for many reasons. They need to stop managing for the lowest denominator or to make it easier to target a few bad people (while punishing all the good people that they DESPERATELY need).

I had an past-MDNR person tell me the other day that they were trying to make bass regulations to protect that smaller number of lakes that need more protection. It should be obvious by doing that that you TAKE AWAY TONS OF OPPORTUNITY on all the good lakes we have when those lakes with problems will only be fixed with targeted solutions anyway.

What all of you can do is what I have suggested - tell everyone you talk to that almost no one has a statewide closed bass season because the studies, EVEN MICHIGAN studies do NOT support the need for that. All our almost any of our closed seasons do is take away tons of fishing opportunity, cause unnecessary infighting every year among anglers - which is bad for EVERYONE - and cause a bunch of nonsense talk and some amount of wasted law enforcement problems with people trying to argue over what is a bass lure, and what is a pike lure and what is a muskie lure.

Most people just want to fish! The more the MDNR does to make that harder, the less fishing licenses they sell. The result is what we have now - plummeting staff numbers, plummeting budget and very little money to do the things that actually can help our natural resources. Another year or two of the overly conservative behavior that the MDNR still preaches at every single meeting I go to, and their self-defeating "who is real angler verses what 'type' of angler don't we like behavior" and we'll be down to the last guy who turns out the light when they shut the doors... There are no TYPES. There's just anglers and hunters. AND THE MDNR NEEDS EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM!

That is the message you get out to everyone you talk to about fishing, to your elected officials and to any MDNR people you happen to run into.

[djkimmel]

I'm fine with leaving the dirty 'tournament' word out of the whole bass season change process. We should be legally able to fish for bass whether it's catch-and-release or catch-and-keep in Michigan all year. Plain and simple.

With all the good, clean water we have, the tournaments will happen anyway regardless of what I say or do, or any of you say or do or anyone else says or does as long as lots of people, especially young people, want to do them. They're pretty popular in Michigan. According to a recent study, we have the 4th or 5th most bass tournaments among states despite our shortened catch-and-keep season and our cold winter.

And that's just counting the 'organized bass angler' events. I'm amazed at how many fishing competitions there are now that don't involved 'organized bass anglers in flashy bass boats!' I run into churches, ma and pa stores, campgrounds, firemen, police officers, colleges, high schools, charities... You name it and the group is holding fishing competitions aka bass tournaments in Michigan.

The DNR's even have big, detailed studies that suggest ways they can get and keep more people in fishing, especially young people, is to hold fishing contests or competitions. Several states have rightfully published their studies on the Internet so you can find them (rightfully because your money and my money paid for them). The MDNR has one of these studies too but it is not public and not published. I know it exists though because I saw it sitting on a desk in downtown Lansing at the Mason building in the Fisheries department. I also have a study BY the MDNR that suggested they hold an annual fishing competition to engage more people in fishing. Somehow... it never happened...  

But, I don't have a lot of time or a budget, and I know we can improve our odds greatly at fixing our bass season if we leave out tournaments. I don't enjoy ridiculous arguments or listening to people talking - in a country that has a professional aspect to every single 'sport' you can imagine!!! - about the 'evils' of competition in fishing. So, I personally am leaving tournaments out of any papers I hope to eventually write and any meetings I may eventually talk at (if I can help myself). I have suggested the same on here to you a number of times for the same reasons - without talking about tournaments our odds of better success go way up.

At the same time, ANYTHING outside of the season fix project that I can do to attract more high profile events - like the Bassmaster Elite Series and the EverStart - to our Great State and Great Lakes of Michigan, I will be doing. It's good for Michigan bass fishing, it's good for our economy and businesses, it's good for a bunch of my friends, and dangit, I like fishing, jobs and tournaments!