Pay Lakes – Who’s in the know?

There’s been a lot of chatter in the FB cyber arena since In-Fish ran an article on pay lakes for flatheads.

Anyone up to date on this subject?

Here’s a shot from a pay lake.

Wonder if they pay by the pound.

So what is a pay lake? They raise huge fish with steroid laced food and then you pay to fish?

Would be a heck of a lot of fun!

Wouldn’t want those guys on a wintering hole up here.WTF would you do with all those dead flats?

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Wouldn’t want those guys on a wintering hole up here.WTF would you do with all those dead flats?

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Ditto!! I guess I am getting soft in my old age. If a Flathead can get that big and old they should be let go to live a happy life.

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So what is a pay lake? They raise huge fish with steroid laced food and then you pay to fish?

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That’s kinda why I posted this question.

From my understanding, commercial fishermen in Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee (maybe others) catch these fish out of our rivers. They then sell them to the Pay Lakes where folks pay to fish for them.

Although these “ponds” are mostly catch and release, the do not have enough if any forage for the cats to live. It’s reported most die from starvation.

The catfishing community in these areas where the fish are being caught in the wild are complaining the size of the fishery trophy fish is getting smaller.

The folks that are making money from the pay lakes are claiming they are taking the big fish out making room for more and healthier flats.

This isn’t like the old Trout-Air that was a fish farm and raised their own fish. These are 20 -30 year old fish being taking from our waters.

One comment about the photo above is the fish have been hooked so many times their mouth can’t heal. (that could be one fella’s opinion, I don’t know).

Obviously we don’t have any around the upper Midwest or we would be hearing about them.

I believe the controversy is not that people catch and keep on these private lakes, the controversy is that they stock them with fish from public waters.

Personally I could careless what happens elsewhere. The exception being surrounding states whose conservation (I use that term loosely) could lead to undue pressure on our fisheries because of their mismanagement.

I could see pay lakes being OK if they reared their own fish or purchased them from a fish farm, but netting them in public waters and harvesting them like that is gluttony and greed pure and simple. It’s in the same category as shooting deer in a fenced in pen as far as I’m concerned.

I agree, Those giant flatheads, blue cats and channel cats that get caught and taken to pay lakes belong to the public fisheries that we pay a lot of tax money to manage. It should be illegal.

This is about as bad as the big bad hunter that goes into a 40 acre fenced in area, whacks a big ole’ buck and takes a picture next to it like he’s some kinda’ stud…Never will I understand “canned hunting/fishing”… RR

Where I tend to agree what everyone has said here. These are fish that were taken by commercial fishermen and would of been sold to the market at market prices. Where as the commercial guy gets a premium price.

If you do some searches there are actually tournaments for some pretty good money on the pay to fish ponds and those are catch and release.

That is a valid point if they allow that in the bodies of water where these fish are being taken from. In Minnesota I believe you can only commercial harvest 100# of catfish? Brian?

That actually leads to the point that commercial fishermen shouldn’t be able to exploit public waters either.

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In Minnesota I believe you can only commercial harvest 100# of catfish? Brian?

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On the Minnesota/Wisconsin border waters commercial harvest is limited to 100# of Flathead catfish in the winter months.

On the Wisconsin side there isn’t a limit for flatheads and the rod and reel limit is 25.

The picture is extreme and I believe to be inflammatory. Most of the pay to fish ponds are very well managed if they don`t keep the big fish populations at a good level and healthy, there business is down the tubes. Many have a size limit that a person can keep. It is big money down south.

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I believe the controversy is not that people catch and keep on these private lakes, the controversy is that they stock them with fish from public waters.

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From the conversations I’ve read, Pug was nose on.

How do they keep them from starving Tom? Do they stock the ponds with bait?

I need some money. Can I go to the local park and chop a cord of wood down and then sell it?

I’m not pointing a finger at the commercial guys. After all, if it wasn’t for the demand of the pay lakes the fish could be going to market. Same difference.

Although the catfish folks are complaining the size of a trophy fish is going down in these stretches of river that are being harvested.

If there is a bad guy, who is it?

The commercial netters?
The people that own the pay lakes?
or
The people that fish the pay lakes (that create the demand)?

I may be naive in saying this, but thank God there is not a big market for wild harvested channel cats and flatheads. Either that or they are too difficult to net. Otherwise I would assume guys like those on Bottom Feeders would be harvesting them over the $.50 per lb carp or whatever they get.

I don’t have a problem with commercial fishermen either. As long as it is less desirable (my apologies to roughfishermen) that are seemingly over abundant.

Pay lakes are the scum of the fishing world!

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Pay lakes are the scum of the fishing world!

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Sounds like you might be “in the know.”

Why do you say that Matt?

I can type that Pug stinks. But until I explain it’s his body odor, people don’t really understand.

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Pay lakes are the scum of the fishing world!

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Sounds like you might be “in the know.”

Why do you say that Matt?

I can type that Pug stinks. But until I explain it’s his body odor, people don’t really understand.

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Most of my opinions on the matter have been stated above already by others. But fish the size of the ones in them pictures( which look to be all above or close to 50lbs are not common in any waterways.
They are already noticing a decline in the trophy flats in the waters where these commercial fisherman are getting them in their nets and selling them.
If this paylake thing caught on and started popping up everywhere how long would it take for big flats to totally disapear from the waters these fish originally called home?
i would put a 50$ bill on it that these commercial fisherman don’t abide by that 100# rule and out of greed take way more then that to these guys to sell.
Sure it would be fun to catch 50 lbers all the time but would you really feel like you accomplished something by going about it the way of paying some guy to fish his pond that’s chalk full of them and underfed so they bite anything tossed in there. No sport to that!

It’s not only commercial fisherman that are doing it though, I have read on 50 statewide forums and youtube comments of individual anglers catching large cats and selling them to pay lakes.

That’s illegal, no? At least in Minnesota?

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That’s illegal, no? At least in Minnesota?

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I’m sure it is but I doubt these guys running these things care.
They do whatever they can to line there pockets.

http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/community/archive/index.php/t-201479.html
Apparently 1-2$ a lb bk.

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I believe the controversy is not that people catch and keep on these private lakes, the controversy is that they stock them with fish from public waters.

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From the conversations I’ve read, Pug was nose on.

How do they keep them from starving Tom? Do they stock the ponds with bait?

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As I said before most of these ponds are very well managed down south the panfish can overtake a small pond in a heart beat with the year round warm weather. Some ponds use a commercial food, and some of these ponds might as well call them private lakes some are very large.

After these bigger cats get caught once or twice they get pretty darn smart and be ultra tough to catch.

Many ponds rent rods and reel and sell bait so for many people it works out well take the kids have some fun catch a few fish for supper. It isn`t cheap they are sold by the pound when you catch them. There is a lot of catch and release that does go on for the bigger fish.

Some outdated study said catfish were worth about double the price of rough fish per pound. And they do net them on the Iowa/Ill border.

I met a guy that nets carp and buffalo and he was pleasant. Every sportsman wants them out of the lake so the commercial guy is your friend here.

The weirdness with pay ponds is that there is a limited area for them to harvest fish and it is pressured. One side of the river there is maybe one big fish per day and on the other side anything goes. And the fish get sold back across the state line to confuse things.

If it wasn’t for pay ponds, they would harvest smaller fish and the length limit regulations would pass easier. People are not happy with the politicians who influence these things.

Have a nice day gentlemen. Winter is going. Eventually.