Quote Originally Posted by etucker1959 View Post
I take it you never heard about Ralph B. Park in Buena Park???? It's a tiny Regional Park that's had Catch and Release only on LMB for over 30 years! It's work out just fine, without any serious enforcement efforts at all! (for many different reasons)
ETucks, is this or was that an actual regulation? As in, was it ever specifically stated in https://wildlife.ca.gov/Regulations ?

I know Barrett is specifically listed:



Because at MY local pond, there are some bass anglers that straight up lie to the other anglers in saying that all bass are catch and release, and that you'll get a ticket if you keep one. It's a great way to maintain an already low population of bass in there, but if any angler wanted to take 5 fish, 12" and over, they are legally allowed to do so. The myth of bass being C&R at local ponds has been disseminated for years even when I was a kid growing up and I'm ok with it, but it's not an actual DFW regulation, but more a suggestion made by the local anglers, that has ultimately morphed into de facto law.

Kinda like when your parents said they'd get a ticket if you turned on the interior light in the car while they were driving.

Or the signs at Peck Road that say the fish have mercury and you're not supposed to take them. Merely a suggestion, not an actual law.

And as a previous poster said, the main issue is the population density of Southern California. And that's not getting fixed anytime soon. You never realize this until you travel cross country across the South and you bring 1 spinning rod, 2 packs of 2/0 EWG hooks, and 2 packs of Senkos, and proceed to catch fish in every state, by just driving up to a local pond or reservoir, finding some structure, and making some casts.

Or if you ever fly fished Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, et. al. You come back home with that bitter sweet feeling, knowing that California can never have these types of fisheries.