You obviously spend no time listening to them. Sure, they do, they just don't try and derive an income from their NATIONAL, regional, and local conservation reporting and support efforts, unlike TU. Sorry , Vince< I have just had too many exposure intervals to TU folks during work on the Paint, Salmon Trout, Little Huron, Tahquamenon, lower Escanaba below Boney Falls impoundment and the Black. From throwing every sucker or pike they catch up on the bank to getting lectured that fishing a spinner or for heaven sake....BAIT is akin to being a child molester. Sorry, that just gets old, very old, very quick. Our TU kids just spent endless time and money working to overturn a Fisheries Division creel liberalization on selected trout streams for brook trout...with ZERO biologic evidence that this has resulted in ANY declines in populations and average fish size. My favorite testimony offered to the NRC when they met here in the spring was the fly fishing outfitter who proudly offered that he was able to build a house and support his wife and child via his guide business because people travel to the UP from "all over the World to catch brook trout. They don't care whether they are trophy sized fish or not, they just want to catch brook trout!" One of the NRC commissioners asked him how this decision impacts on his business given the data that supports no change in numbers as the water bodies under this regulation have expanded. They were told that, "so far it hasn't, but I am concerned that this will draw more fisherman to the inland streams that I rely on for my income." The NRC commissioner then gave him the perfect response: This is exactly why we opted to expand the creel limits, to draw more people into the inland fishery for trout in the UP because it is underutilized. I would have made the additional point that he exploits a Public resource for income, paying comparatively VERY LITTLE to conduct his business venture beyond advertising and his license fees. I also would have pointedly reminded him of his own words: 'They just want to catch brook trout!' I eavesdropped on his conversation with the local TU officers at the close of the Public comment sections. His principal concern was that he foresaw to nearby streams getting more pressure near his home location causing him to have to work more hours with a client and drive further to get them the fishing experience they deemed to be a successful trip. Interesting perspective. The TU folks were just a self-protective in their comments and testimony.
My all time TU member "attitude in action favorite was during a brook trout population estimate on the Salmon Trout between the first and second falls on Huron Mountain Club property, we had a TU guy walk-in off the stream to a small clearing where we had pulled the sport-yak the held the pulsed the Pulsed DC generator and the three retractable hose reals attached to our shocking wands. His first words were to "request that we find another place to eat since he had expressly chosen this spot to enjoy his lunch and our presence would severely detract from its ambiance!!" Nice big TU emblem on his fly vest...
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