VA Flounder Limit

[capemaychef]

this is far beyond recs for commercial guys....this is about us as fisherman fighting to keep a fishery open...period...if they(enviros) have it there way the will start with flounder...then move onto the next fishery...

This flounder thing will have a HUGE impact on everyone from commericial guys, to restaurants, to bait and tackle shops, to local tourism(for Cape May Are) etc etc etc...

We need to all work together to fight this battle...

[SAXIS ISLANDER]

Chef,

I agree that we all need to work together for the betterment of the fishery, but it ain't gonna happen as long as 14 inch fish are legally marketable. As a chef I'm fairly sure your customers would rather look at 8-10 oz or 10 and up fillets on the plate than skinny strips from a 14 incher.

Virginia lawmakers have already written off VA's seaside fishery as "bycatch". Chincoteague, Wachapreague, Quinby, ect have seen the heyday of flatfishing go by. Once a viable fishery, the economic impact to these areas now is a dismal fraction of what it once was. It shows.

Working together means providing for the welfare of all and these fishskippers along the coast certainly are getting the broken shaft. The best chance of catching larger fish, as mentioned earlier in this thread, is early in the season. After June, the majority of the catch is sub-legal fish. Last year at Metompkin we caught over 100 fish 14-17inches in one day. Sure they might grow up later if they make it. In past years they made allowances for Shore residents welfare by allowing a shorter fish on the seaside during the first part of the season. I'll guess that our commerical overzealousness and quota excesses of that period now must be repaid by someone.

It's too complex for the common man along the shore to be involved in....better leave it to the folks up on the hill.

[magicdragon]

Magicdragon charters -chincoteague- will not be doing any inshore flounder fishing this year. How can you justify taking peoples $$$$ when the chance of catching legal fish is about the same as waking up with Jolo in your bed.
The only real answer is to put a stop to the ground fish fishery period but not going to happen till the pond is a desert and economic factors make it impractical for commercial guys to make a living at it. At some point people are not going to pay $10.00 or more for wildcaught fish. Us recreational guys will never be able to compete with the political power of big business the market will take care of the problem but probably not before the ocean is about sterile. SAD SAD SAD