Clinch Monsters

[Mike_Anderson]

Originally Posted by No Hackle

I've read reports that striper will follow bait anywhere.

This is fact. So does that mean the Striper follow large schools of Trout from MH up into the Clinch?

Originally Posted by No Hackle

Trout have much more protein.I believe where oyu have trout and shad the striper will pick the trout everytime.

A good analogy to this would be next time your starving give a marathon runner a prime rib and at the some time give 10,000 school kids a hamburger. Now try to catch the runner for your steak dinner. Bet you end up eating a hamburger.

I've spent the last 12 years studying and learning the habits of these fish. That they encounter Trout is purely coincidental. They are going through the same migration movements that nature imprinted on them from the beginning. I understand the concern but again you have to consider that these fish have proven to co exist in other tailwaters where Trout thrived (again I use Cumby as a prime example). There are as many who enjoy fishing for Striper as there are people who enjoy Trout fishing. Both are stocked. There has to be a happy median. Advocating slaughtering of any non invasive fish so that we might enjoy "sportfishing" for another is irresponsible at best, [in my opinion].

[No Hackle]

Originally Posted by Mike_Anderson

This is fact. So does that mean the Striper follow large schools of Trout from MH up into the Clinch?


A good analogy to this would be next time your starving give a marathon runner a prime rib and at the some time give 10,000 school kids a hamburger. Now try to catch the runner for your steak dinner. Bet you end up eating a hamburger.

I've spent the last 12 years studying and learning the habits of these fish. That they encounter Trout is purely coincidental. They are going through the same migration movements that nature imprinted on them from the beginning. I understand the concern but again you have to consider that these fish have proven to co exist in other tailwaters where Trout thrived (again I use Cumby as a prime example). There are as many who enjoy fishing for Striper as there are people who enjoy Trout fishing. Both are stocked. There has to be a happy median. Advocating slaughtering of any non invasive fish so that we might enjoy "sportfishing" for another is irresponsible at best.

Can you or anyone tell me why a trout pattern works better than a shad one on striper where they both exist as food for stripers. Hey i fish for stripers also. They're great game fish. I'm just pointing out the reports that I have read and results of my friends fishing.Whether their meeting is coincidental or not. Then why have they not left that section of the Clinch. I believe that the food source is there. Why dont they just drop back down and eat all those shad.
Lynn

[Mike_Anderson]

Color has very little to do with to lure selection. It's action and size is what you should be using to dictate fly/lure choice. The Cumberland River Striper are used to eating Skipjack and Shad and when available Trout.

Should we also start slitting open the bellies of the big Clinch Browns? What exactly do you think they are eating?? Fingerling on up to stocker sized Trout perhaps... Caught my largest Caney Fork Brown on a Brown Trout wiggle minnow. FWIW, I didn't cut it's belly open and spill out all the Trout it had eaten.


I've done my best to speak in a non confrontational manner on this forum. For some reason my posts are getting edited in a manor that is leading me to believe my "opinion" is not inline with those who own and operate this forum. With that I'll refrain from further comment out of respect.

[Paula Begley]

Mike, I don't want anyone to stay out of the conversation. By the same token, I'd like for this not to turn into WWIII here. I've edited your posts, as well as those of others, to remove flat-out in-your-face challenges or to add in language that eliminates stating opinions as fact.

Please, I beseech you all, keep this civil. You know, it's not hard. Please, everyone, read this site rule:

6. Please reread your posts before you post them.

This should go without saying, but you might be surprised. Seriously, read your post before you post it. Think about how it reads to others, and whether it's relevant to the topic. Also, it is not cool to be intentionally offensive. Don't do it. It's also not cool to be sarcastic, "joke around" or any other form of language in order to provoke someone. Don't do it.

If you feel you are provoked, DO NOT respond. This will make you equally wrong. Instead, contact the administrator of the board or report the post via the "report post" button.

Thank you.

Paula

[Bran]

Originally Posted by No Hackle

I've read reports that striper will follow bait anywhere. Even when the bait goes into level of water that does not have enough oxygen for their survival. The bait will stay in this level not to get eatin and in turn die from lack of oxygen. The stripers will follow suit with their focus on eating them and in turn die also. Their focus is one thing, eating. Trout have much more protein.I believe where oyu have trout and shad the striper will pick the trout everytime.
I have a friend who striper fishes. He does great with shad patterns @ Ft.Loudon Dam but when he fishes Tellico below the dam and down stream he only does well on rainbow lures especially the larger fish.I think the proof is in the pudding.
Lynn

No Hackle, they may very well do that in places but you would think if that happened here in my home lake you would have dead Striper turning up commonly in the areas that these fish run shallow after the shad every evening. It's not the case, at least not here. You rarely see a dead Striper roll up, but commonly see catfish floating up. Not sure why but I figured they must tolerate the low O2 and hot water fairly well. It would be interesting to know for sure but I suppose each body of water holds it's own unique set of criteria and so the fish may react a little differently.

[No Hackle]

Originally Posted by Bran

No Hackle, they may very well do that in places but you would think if that happened here in my home lake you would have dead Striper turning up commonly in the areas that these fish run shallow after the shad every evening. It's not the case, at least not here. You rarely see a dead Striper roll up, but commonly see catfish floating up. Not sure why but I figured they must tolerate the low O2 and hot water fairly well. It would be interesting to know for sure but I suppose each body of water holds it's own unique set of criteria and so the fish may react a little differently.

I was just sharing what I had read before. I dont know if its true or not. Just thought I would try to give us something more to think about. Do I
believe everything I read.No. I just know I'm interested in other peoples opinions. Whether I agree or not. There is always room to learn. I know every body of water is different. That's why we fish. If it was all the same it would be a fishermans nightmare.
Thats whats great about this forum. We can learn from differant people from different parts of the country.
I've caught lots of fish and none of them were the same. Now thats Heaven.
Lynn

[waterwolf]

Originally Posted by Mike_Anderson

This is fact. So does that mean the Striper follow large schools of Trout from MH up into the Clinch?


A good analogy to this would be next time your starving give a marathon runner a prime rib and at the some time give 10,000 school kids a hamburger. Now try to catch the runner for your steak dinner. Bet you end up eating a hamburger.

I've spent the last 12 years studying and learning the habits of these fish. That they encounter Trout is purely coincidental. They are going through the same migration movements that nature imprinted on them from the beginning. I understand the concern but again you have to consider that these fish have proven to co exist in other tailwaters where Trout thrived (again I use Cumby as a prime example). There are as many who enjoy fishing for Striper as there are people who enjoy Trout fishing. Both are stocked. There has to be a happy median. Advocating slaughtering of any non invasive fish so that we might enjoy "sportfishing" for another is irresponsible at best, [in my opinion].

Mike, again I will try and inform you that there is no comparison between the rivers you frequent and the Clinch. Apples and oranges.

Your rivers are long diverse rivers , the clinch is not either.
Your rivers have gazillions of shad to offer alternate food sources, the Clinch has only trout.
Your rivers are stocked with stripers or the lakes downstream are, the Clinch is not nor is Melton Hill.


I think the lack of understanding lies in the lack of knowledge you possess with regards to the Clinch. Don't take that as a shot, it is not meant that way, I state that because it would be easy to assume the Clinch is similar to other rivers where the two species coexist. Simply stated the two cannot because of he lack of forage.

I wish things were different as I am almost exclusively catch and release except for a few spring crappie and Clinch stripers. I love the species, but hate their presence in 13 select miles of river. Everywhere they are fine and should be released .

[Bran]

Lynn,
This is the one bad thing about a forum, just like an email, you can't hear my tone so I think I sounded rude or condescending to you. Nothing could be further from the truth. I was just throwing it out that I don't see any dead but it certainly could be true what you read. I'm an electrical engineer, fishing is just my hobby, I wouldn't try to assert that I know anything more than you. To the contrary I can probably learn a lot from you. I'm definitely not arguing, just curious and trying to fuel the conversation. That's all. Please accept my apology if I came across that way, I'm one of those people that doesn't meet a stranger and tries not to upset anyone. Cheers!!

[MadisonBoats]

Mr. Anderson,
I respect your point of view and the fact you took the time to explain your viewpoint. I appreciate your input about striper and the information about other rivers in TN that have striper. However; I agree with Waterwolf in discerning the Clinch tailwater as a unique, cold-water, river. I believe there are differences in the characteristics of the Clinch River that separate it from other tailwaters in TN that contain striper. Maybe we could expand on this topic by looking at this subjectively(?) Are there differences in fishing techniques for striper on the Clinch? Is the catch-rate, size, and fishing calendar similar to other striper rivers?

I believe the increase in striper presence has been due to longer-low flow periods and water conditions that induce striper to feed/habitat in the upper tailwater. Fortunately; I believe this is cyclical and will remedy itself when the river is operated with a regular flow of CFS rates throughout the year. My only worry is that TVA's data is historical and they have changed their winter pool levels in the past decade. This will make it challenging for them to forecast Spring and Summer flows. Well; at-least until they get many years of data to increase the accuracy.

I agree that big brown trout eat trout as well. However; their physiological structure inhibits the amount of feeding they can perform. I believe the daily feeding rate of trout is about half of striper. (0.5 to 1.8% vs. 3.0-4.0% striper/ percent of body weight): suggested maintenance feeding rates for raising fish in ponds. Striper seem to have a gorging feeding behavior and can really impact the trout habitat of a short-tailwater like the Clinch River. I know very little about striper from a scientific view or as an experienced angler. Most of my opinions are based on river interactions and casual knowledge of the fish. So; I appreciate your input and respect your passion for supporting striper fishing. Also; I hope you can see that you are discussing a controversial topic on a fly fishing forum.

[No Hackle]

Originally Posted by Bran

Lynn,
This is the one bad thing about a forum, just like an email, you can't hear my tone so I think I sounded rude or condescending to you. Nothing could be further from the truth. I was just throwing it out that I don't see any dead but it certainly could be true what you read. I'm an electrical engineer, fishing is just my hobby, I wouldn't try to assert that I know anything more than you. To the contrary I can probably learn a lot from you. I'm definitely not arguing, just curious and trying to fuel the conversation. That's all. Please accept my apology if I came across that way, I'm one of those people that doesn't meet a stranger and tries not to upset anyone. Cheers!!

Bran you didnt come off as rude to me. I appreciate everyones opinion and respect it. I won't accept your apology because none was needed, but thank you. I do agree with you that alot of things come off the wrong way through typed messages.
As far as you lerning from me, I think we can use this forum to learn period. You can take ten fisherman to the same fish and they'll all catch it ten different ways. Thats whats great about our sport.
Lynn