Cherokee, NC Regulations

[sam]

I was in Cherokee, North Carolina for a few days last week. I inquired about fishing regulations and was surprised to learn that most of the stream I was staying on was a "Catch & Keep". I asked what if I caught and released a fish and was told if anyone saw me it would be an $800 fine.

There was a Catch a Release section further south from where I was staying, but this got me thinking. What's the rationale behind a Catch and Keep? I thought maybe it was more of a spiritual/belief thing for the Cherokee people, but if that was the case, there wouldn't be a Catch & Release section as well. I had a hard time understanding the rule and business logic behind it.

I ended up not fishing the stream. To be fair, it was also very cold during the "free" time I had to fish so that contributed to my decision as well.

 

[RLeep2]

While a lot of the Cherokee Enterprise waters also have good wild trout populations, most are managed as high density/high yield stocked fisheries. I don't know for certain but the reason they have Catch and Keep regs on some sections is likely the same reason that many pay to fish ponds are also strictly catch & keep. Fish that are caught and then released eventually develop some wariness and become harder to catch, a model that doesn't really fit the consumptive business model used to manage these waters. Bad for customer satisfaction...