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Fishing Media => Fishing Pictures => Topic started by: big worm on Jun 27, 2012, 04:54 PM

Title: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jun 27, 2012, 04:54 PM
my old man caught a nice 40 inch 18 pound pike last week while fishing for bass.  no net in the boat either.  it made 3 runs when it saw the boat but was tired out by the 4th time and he was able to gill it.  wish I was there.  the board it is laying on is a 35" long cut out of a coutertop for a 36" sink.
[i(https://www.myfishfinder.com/fishing_forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi886.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fac67%2Fstephenswart%2F1234006.jpg&hash=d84d2958181846b4e0fd4eecbf00c7a3)mg][/im(https://www.myfishfinder.com/fishing_forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi886.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fac67%2Fstephenswart%2F1234005.jpg&hash=2ef18f904c6a5f5fb35816d73f177f17)g]
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jun 27, 2012, 07:00 PM
nice fish.

sucks he had to be killed.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: greensider on Jun 27, 2012, 07:34 PM
congrats real good fish nothing wrong with keeping fish wether for food or to mount it would be on my wall
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jun 27, 2012, 07:38 PM
nice fish.

sucks he had to be killed.

why is that?  there are plenty more that size out there.  sometimes taking the big ones out of the food chain is a good thing.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: jager61 on Jun 27, 2012, 07:39 PM
Awesome fish Bro whether kept or released, congratulations! They're not extinct or endangered!

Mike
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jun 27, 2012, 07:49 PM
Awesome fish Bro whether kept or released, congratulations! They're not extinct or endangered!

Mike

thanks, it is a nice fish.  he actually caught it in a small lake where it did not belong.  when the water went high last year it swam over the locks and was probably doing major damage to the lake.  if it were caught in the big lake it most likely would have been released. 
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jun 27, 2012, 08:09 PM
why is that?  there are plenty more that size out there.  sometimes taking the big ones out of the food chain is a good thing.

actually a big northern like that does more to the ecosystem then you can imagine. That is a breeding machine.

"If you want to improve a pike fishery, immediately put the 36"+ fish back. In fact don't even take them out of the water. Keep and eat any 24-30" fish. It's called Selective Harvest, and works well with pike populations. The bigger fish cannibalize the smaller pike. Remove or kill a big fish, and there's nothing to keep the smaller fish in check, and you get a ton of obnoxious hammer handles. "

I am just biased I guess. With the replica mounts they do today that look better then a skin mount and last longer I just dont understand keeping it.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Goatskin on Jun 27, 2012, 08:44 PM
Get along... Just an internet forum.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: jager61 on Jun 27, 2012, 09:53 PM
actually a big northern like that does more to the ecosystem then you can imagine. That is a breeding machine.

"If you want to improve a pike fishery, immediately put the 36"+ fish back. In fact don't even take them out of the water. Keep and eat any 24-30" fish. It's called Selective Harvest, and works well with pike populations. The bigger fish cannibalize the smaller pike. Remove or kill a big fish, and there's nothing to keep the smaller fish in check, and you get a ton of obnoxious hammer handles. "

I am just biased I guess. With the replica mounts they do today that look better then a skin mount and last longer I just dont understand keeping it.

Nice Lookin Pike ya got there too! Definitely looks bigger than 30"!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: greyghost on Jun 28, 2012, 02:50 AM
Nice fish never got one that big fishing open water, but pulled some nice ones through the ice. Great fish, and great pics. I dont keep many fish myself but one day i will have a monster pike on the wall and it wont be a replica.  8) 
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: NateFishNY on Jun 28, 2012, 06:28 AM
beauty of fish... nice pike!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: waterwolf603 on Jun 28, 2012, 07:26 AM
congrats to your dad on the stud slimer! that is a beast and would have a spot on my wall regaurdless of what peta thinks  ;)
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: bigredfishing on Jun 28, 2012, 08:36 AM
Nice fish!!   Excellent whether eaten or stuffed.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: pikechaser on Jun 28, 2012, 11:26 AM
you fish for it, catch it, and keep it for whatever you want. Always someone here wants to put everything back, some people fish for a long time, before ever getting a fish like that, then someone says put it back ! Its up to who ever caught it, period, no need to feel guilty or come up with things to say back to anyone. NICE FISH !
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: slabspanker on Jun 28, 2012, 11:35 AM
What bait/ lure did it hit on? Awesome catch! thanks for posting! Pike are my favorite to eat!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: waldo24 on Jun 28, 2012, 11:38 AM
Hey thats nice pike Big Worm!.....and same to you SSmokin!.....I agree with the rest of the gang here....its up to whoever catches the fish what you do with it. I just think if your not gonna eat it or mount it......then put it back unharmed.....let the next guy or kid catch em and enjoy the awesome fight they give us!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: carcaju on Jun 28, 2012, 02:05 PM
Hey thats nice pike Big Worm!.....and same to you SSmokin!.....I agree with the rest of the gang here....its up to whoever catches the fish what you do with it. I just think if your not gonna eat it or mount it......then put it back unharmed.....let the next guy or kid catch em and enjoy the awesome fight they give us!
x2
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: vogel451 on Jun 28, 2012, 02:39 PM
What a awsome fish!  I ate pike for the first time a couple months ago.  I was very suprised,  its was some of the best fish ive ever tasted.  tell you pops nice catch!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jun 28, 2012, 03:24 PM
actually a big northern like that does more to the ecosystem then you can imagine. That is a breeding machine.

"If you want to improve a pike fishery, immediately put the 36"+ fish back. In fact don't even take them out of the water. Keep and eat any 24-30" fish. It's called Selective Harvest, and works well with pike populations. The bigger fish cannibalize the smaller pike. Remove or kill a big fish, and there's nothing to keep the smaller fish in check, and you get a ton of obnoxious hammer handles. "

I am just biased I guess. With the replica mounts they do today that look better then a skin mount and last longer I just dont understand keeping it.

it was not caught in a pike fishery.  it was caught in a bass and panfish lake.  last thing I want for that lake is a breeding machine.  I also disagree with the replica mounts.  I think they look like a fake plastic fish but this one went on the dinner table anyways.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jun 28, 2012, 03:26 PM
What bait/ lure did it hit on? Awesome catch! thanks for posting! Pike are my favorite to eat!
yamamoto worm
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: jager61 on Jun 28, 2012, 04:45 PM
Pike filets (bones and all, ha) when ground up in a food processor or chopped in a blender make awesome fish cakes! My favorite way to eat the toothy ones!

Mike
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Aeaglos on Jun 28, 2012, 04:54 PM
Congrats on the Fantastic Pike! Hope to catch a monster like that one day myself  :)
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jun 28, 2012, 05:06 PM
Pike filets (bones and all, ha) when ground up in a food processor or chopped in a blender make awesome fish cakes! My favorite way to eat the toothy ones!

Mike

that is what we did.  actually got a recipe of iceshanty.com last winter with bacon, peppers and onions mixed in and fried in the bacon grease.  it was awesome.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: greensider on Jun 28, 2012, 06:40 PM
ive got both replica and skin mounts big diference always get a skin when posable
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jun 28, 2012, 07:56 PM
Nice Lookin Pike ya got there too! Definitely looks bigger than 30"!


mine? He was well over the 40" mark..... and he still swim's today.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jun 28, 2012, 07:59 PM
it was not caught in a pike fishery.  it was caught in a bass and panfish lake.  last thing I want for that lake is a breeding machine.  I also disagree with the replica mounts.  I think they look like a fake plastic fish but this one went on the dinner table anyways.

I have skin mounts of a 39" laker and a bass from when I was young and I have a replica mount of my 10lb+ largemouth I caught last season and the replica largemouth looks more realistic then the actual skin mounts... but then again I didnt cheap out and I had the one and only 10 times bass champion John Fox in florida do the replica.

as long as you go to a taxidermist that is good with replica mounts, a real life looking one shouldnt be a issue and you get them back super fast and they are cheaper (most the time)
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: jager61 on Jun 28, 2012, 09:46 PM
mine? He was well over the 40" mark..... and he still swim's today.

"If you want to improve a pike fishery, immediately put the 36"+ fish back. In fact don't even take them out of the water"  :D

Well, maybe just this one time! And I don't blame you one bit Bro! That's a great pic!

Mike
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: davejohnson2 on Jun 28, 2012, 09:50 PM
i got a question what grows to replace the big pike when it dies if they have eaten all the small ones?
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Buggies on Jun 28, 2012, 11:39 PM
Nice Pike your old man caught, Big Worm!

I hope the dinner was good!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: pike46 on Jun 29, 2012, 07:40 PM
(https://www.myfishfinder.com/fishing_forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1049.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fs391%2Fpike46%2F012.jpg&hash=28397e7eab0db0fda0ba83640ecc780f)

46 inch 23 lb Pike replica
Northeast Taxidermy
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: pike46 on Jun 29, 2012, 07:43 PM
Museum Quality.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: freezerfiller on Jun 29, 2012, 10:19 PM
always amazed at the number of people waiting to punch a hole in your sail when you post a pic of a fish that you're proud of. I say, great job, they would be illegal to posess if the DEC didn't want you to take some that size. Your fish, your decision
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: fishnmachine on Jun 29, 2012, 10:55 PM
Beautiful fish. Congratulations  to your dad!

When you buy your license, you buy the right to keep your limit of fish as described by law; NO ONE has the right to say otherwise, or that, in itself closely falls under the guile of sportsman harassment. Your dad bought the rights to that fish and used them as he saw fit. YAY!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: freezerfiller on Jun 30, 2012, 07:46 PM
nicely put !!!!!!!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Hocfish on Jul 01, 2012, 11:22 AM
"If you want to improve a pike fishery, immediately put the 36"+ fish back. In fact don't even take them out of the water."

Hmmm....looks like his fish was out of the water in his hero shot.

Congrats on your Dad's fish Mr. Big Worm. Big pike are awesomely fierce predators, and fun to catch.  Glad your dad caught one.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jul 01, 2012, 12:20 PM
"If you want to improve a pike fishery, immediately put the 36"+ fish back. In fact don't even take them out of the water."

Hmmm....looks like his fish was out of the water in his hero shot.

Congrats on your Dad's fish Mr. Big Worm. Big pike are awesomely fierce predators, and fun to catch.  Glad your dad caught one.

Notice my quotation marks? I quoted it. I didnt type that.

thanks bud.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: RIVERRAT2 on Jul 01, 2012, 12:59 PM
nice fish.

sucks he had to be killed.
YOUR NOT HAPPY,about this?????,HOW LONG would this fish LIVE in the wild,are you a tree hugger,ALL THINGS END.
90% OF all fisherman love the FISH and work at making sure  the fish are there next year,PLEASE LEARN,WE ALL NEED
TO KNOW ABOUT what we do
 ;D ;D ;D
RAT
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: RoundLakeNY on Jul 02, 2012, 02:12 PM
Nice fish.  ITs always cool to see the ol man get on some nice fish.    Hope it tasted as good as it looked.   
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jul 02, 2012, 04:00 PM
YOUR NOT HAPPY,about this?????,HOW LONG would this fish LIVE in the wild,are you a tree hugger,ALL THINGS END.
90% OF all fisherman love the FISH and work at making sure  the fish are there next year,PLEASE LEARN,WE ALL NEED
TO KNOW ABOUT what we do
 ;D ;D ;D
RAT

Tree hugger? I dont think so. I cut tree's down for a living, so what does that make me then?

I just respect a fish thats as old as 20+ years and like to give other people and their children a chance to catch the same fish I do......
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Aeaglos on Jul 02, 2012, 06:25 PM
Tree hugger? I dont think so. I cut tree's down for a living, so what does that make me then?

I just respect a fish thats as old as 20+ years and like to give other people and their children a chance to catch the same fish I do......

I get what both sides are saying here. I think the thing we all should keep in mind, is that it's not harmful to take the occasional large apex predator out of the environment as long as it's a heath fishery. I will keep a lunker every now and again, but mostly I just keep what I like to call "eating size" specimens. On the other hand it's just flat out responsible for us to bear in mind not to destroy our own fisheries by removing the prime spawning candidates. The best example one of my ecology professor gave me was to imagine the a healthy fish population in a lake as a pyramid of 10,000 bricks, you have to take proportionally many more out of bottom to disrupt the structure than if you started taking from the middle or the top.

  Once again, amazing fish, That's one to be proud of!
Cheers!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: dmntd169 on Jul 02, 2012, 06:54 PM
thanks, it is a nice fish.  he actually caught it in a small lake where it did not belong.  when the water went high last year it swam over the locks and was probably doing major damage to the lake.  if it were caught in the big lake it most likely would have been released. 

did anyone who keeps saying it should have been released bother to read that part  ::) ::) 


my thoughts on it are its his legal right as a licensed fisherman to keep a legal fish. Given the fact that fish was taken from a body of water where it should not have been, I'd have harvested it to. Had it been a well established pike fishery I'd probably have released her, but given the fact it is not, I'd say I'd have harvested her as well
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jul 02, 2012, 08:21 PM
im not sure how you guys can claim it was in a body of water where it should not have been. It got in there by nature right? Just like how every other fish species got in any other body of water. Everything happens for a reason.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: freezerfiller on Jul 02, 2012, 10:50 PM
if that fish was legal size for that body of water im sure there are plenty more that size in there.  legal size varies by body of water for a reason
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: davejohnson2 on Jul 03, 2012, 07:37 AM
man i still cant believe people are having a fi over this, he kept 1 fish, its not a big deal, i fish up around the st lawrence all winter long and with the number of pike kept out of there and out of the lakes around there there are still a ton of pike in there, heck we will catch 30 a day on some bodies of water
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Cornbread on Jul 03, 2012, 09:05 AM
man i still cant believe people are having a fi over this, he kept 1 fish, its not a big deal, i fish up around the st lawrence all winter long and with the number of pike kept out of there and out of the lakes around there there are still a ton of pike in there, heck we will catch 30 a day on some bodies of water

I agree. Here in NW MT we have many lakes where you can take home your limit of 15 a day and you could do it every day of the year and not put a dent in the pike population, same with lake trout, the limit on them is 100 a day on Flathead lake or at least it was last year when I fished it, not sure what it is this year as I haven't been over there.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: MickeyFinn on Jul 03, 2012, 11:38 AM
Its a shame that people cant post their catch and what they did with it without some self righteous people throwing a slam at them... 

You know what cracks me up is this... If he posted that he caught the pike and released it there would be absolutely no one posting,  AWW MAN WHY DIDNT YOU EAT IT OR MOUNT IT?   

Whacky world we live in when everyone has to push their beliefs or practices on to everyone else or make them feel like they did something wrong because its not what they would do.....
_
There is a group of people out there with that mentality and they have a club you can join, its called PETA...
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Santo180 on Jul 03, 2012, 11:44 AM
Its a shame that people cant post their catch and what they did with it without some self righteous people throwing a slam at them... 

x2
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: esox v on Jul 03, 2012, 03:46 PM
Whacky world we live in when everyone has to push their beliefs or practices on to everyone else or make them feel like they did something wrong because its not what they would do.....
_
There is a group of people out there with that mentality and they have a club you can join, its called PETA...
I thought it was the DEMOCRATIC Party !! :rotflol: :rotflol: :rotflol: :rotflol: :rotflol:
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jul 03, 2012, 03:52 PM
im not sure how you guys can claim it was in a body of water where it should not have been. It got in there by nature right? Just like how every other fish species got in any other body of water. Everything happens for a reason.

you are right, everything does happen for a reason.  that must be why that pike bit my dads hook, my dad caught her, and she went home for dinner.   the food chain is part of nature right? and if you do not know what body of water I am talking about then you really can not make that comment.  you keep releasing those big ones for others to catch and eat!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: big worm on Jul 03, 2012, 03:57 PM
by the way, it seems like there is only one person throwing a stink that the fish went home for dinner.  I guess he is just a better man than all of us!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: wnybassman on Jul 03, 2012, 05:33 PM
For the record, if all the pike were cleaned out of the lakes, that's good by me     ;D
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: SSmokinn SS on Jul 03, 2012, 07:48 PM
LOL this is obviously why I dont post here much. This forum is not for me. Im a bass fisherman and practice catch and release.....obviously im the one backed in a corner here.

Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: davejohnson2 on Jul 03, 2012, 09:19 PM
i catch and release almost everything also, but there is nothing wrong with keepin one once in  a while
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: wnybassman on Jul 03, 2012, 10:37 PM
LOL this is obviously why I dont post here much. This forum is not for me. Im a bass fisherman and practice catch and release.....obviously im the one backed in a corner here.



I'm mainly C&R also, but I don't have a problem with anyone keeping fish within the regulations either.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: ship of fools on Jul 04, 2012, 04:49 AM
LOL this is obviously why I dont post here much. This forum is not for me. Im a bass fisherman and practice catch and release.....obviously im the one backed in a corner here.



don't lose any sleep over it ......   ::)

i agree with you that it is a shame to kill a monster like that because i would like to see it get bigger and have a shot at catching it again  :o   ......  but i also agree with everyone else that if it was legally caught the angler is free to do whatever he wants

obviously most pike fisheries are pretty strong .....  i watched a show with Larry Csonka (spelling?) catching pike after pike in alaska and killing them all because they had made their way into a water body where they didn't belong

Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: skunkedbywalleye on Jul 04, 2012, 07:04 AM
Does PETA stand for

P eople
E ating
T asty
A nimals

Nice pike dude....enjoy!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: The Reel Deal on Jul 04, 2012, 07:16 AM
Great fish!
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: davejohnson2 on Jul 04, 2012, 07:37 AM
don't lose any sleep over it ......   ::)

i agree with you that it is a shame to kill a monster like that because i would like to see it get bigger and have a shot at catching it again  :o   ......  but i also agree with everyone else that if it was legally caught the angler is free to do whatever he wants

obviously most pike fisheries are pretty strong .....  i watched a show with Larry Csonka (spelling?) catching pike after pike in alaska and killing them all because they had made their way into a water body where they didn't belong



in alaska they want them all dead because if they make their way into the salmon rivers the salmon fry will be toast
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: fishbone on Jul 04, 2012, 01:42 PM
thats a great pike--congrats---im lucky to have both skin mounts and replica mounts----they both can be good
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: TimberKing on Jul 11, 2012, 04:38 PM
I release most of the Pike I get,, But now and then I will keep a few for dinner. Mmmmm Pike is so good.

Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: pruville on Jul 11, 2012, 08:28 PM
by the way, it seems like there is only one person throwing a stink that the fish went home for dinner.  I guess he is just a better man than all of us!
nice pike, congratulate your father,season fish the way you like it, wrap in foil ,cook it on an open fire and invite some freinds to eat. Any problems see me.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: gotabig1 on Jul 12, 2012, 03:09 AM
Nice fish. I'm still looking for a 40"+ Pike that would fit on my wall. By the way, that recipe for patties sounds delicious.
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: Cornbread on Jul 12, 2012, 09:38 AM
In Finland(where I graduated high school before coming to the US to join the Marine Corps) we have a way of eating pike that is simply fantastic and a 40" pike in your gill nets is not at all uncommon there, pike get much larger than that there and we are allowed to sustenance fish with gill nets in addition to regular fishing pole and line fishing which unlike here does not require a license. In Finland being able to fish is a part of something codified in law that roughly translates to "every man's rights" and so long as you are using only a single pole per person you do not need a license to fish, but you do need a family sustenance permit to use gill nets, anyway I digress. Here are two recipes that are used to make a type of fish patty from pike that is amazing when done correctly. You will have to translate the units to the imperial / apothecary units used here in the US where she did not do it. If there are a ton of misspellings blame my sister, English is not her first language and she translated these from my mother's recipes to English for me so I could post them:

Fish patties
12-14 pieces
500-600 grams of fresh skinless fish fillets
1 ˝ dl breadcrumbs
2dl cream
˝ juice of a lemon
1tl dried dill
Bunch of chives
1 onion
1 tablespoon oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
˝ teaspoon lemon pepper
Oil for frying

•   Measure bread crumbs,  cream, lemon juice, dill and chives into a bowl and mix
•   Chop the onion into small pieces and sauté in oil in a frying pan  until soft. Add the onions and eggs into the mixing bowl
•   Cut the boneless fish fillets into smaller pieces and grind them in a meat grinder or a blender. If you haven’t removed the small bones, grind the fillets 2-3 times in the meat grinder
•   Add the fish, lemon pepper and salt into the mixing bowl
•   Heat the frying pan and add oil to a hot pan. Make a small test hamburger and taste if there is enough salt. Then bake hamburger patties and fry them golden brown on both sides on medium heat.
•   You can also use other fresh herbs or chili sauce for seasoning.
•   Serve with mashed potatoes, shrimp sauce or egg sauce. In Finland we would make a sort of sour cream sauce with eggs or shrimps or maybe dill. “kermaviilikastike”.


Pikeballs or Pikepatties
Ingredients:
500g of pike or other fish fillet
I big slice of bread chopped
1dl cream
˝ dl sunflower seeds
Cold water
1 garlic clove
2 tomatoes
Bundle of coriander
2 eggs
White pepper
Black pepper from a peppermill
1/2dl of oil
Salt butter
•   Grind the fish fillet
•   Soak a large piece of bread in cream
•   Soak the sunflower seeds in cold water
•   Crush the garlic clove
•   Parboil the tomato, chop into small cubes and de-seed
•   Wash and chop the coriander
•   Beat the eggs and mix with the bread, mix with the rest of the ingredients, add the peppers, salt and oil
•   Make a test cake and fry it in a mixture of oil and butter, form cakes or balls and fry until well done. Moist the cakes with frying stock while frying.
•   Cakes are easier to make if you oil your hands! Change herbs and seasoning if you like!
•   Serve with potatoes, boiled or mashed, rice or vegetables. Especially delicious with fried chanterelles.

I had to look this up but here are some conversions to help:
1 tl= 1 Teaspoon
1 rkl= 1 Tablespoon
1 dl = 0.422675284 US cups
500 grams = 1.1 pounds
Title: Re: 40" pike
Post by: wec on Jul 13, 2012, 03:47 AM
Awesome Pike.  Just smoked three I kept last winter, all over 30 inches.  No problem keeping fish as long as you either eat them or get them mounted.  I caught 60 fish last winter, and kept nine, not really hurting the fish population in any of lakes I fished.  Great catch, hope it tasted good.