Tag Page hookregs

Realized too late that my favorite hooks aren’t always legal on certain waters 😬

Was crushing stripers in Jersey last fall with live bunker when a warden walked up. Thought I was golden since I had my license and was within limits. Wrong! Turns out they require circle hooks for all live/dead bait fishing for stripers now. I'm standing there with J hooks like an idiot, totally clueless about the rule change. Luckily he just gave me a warning and educated me about gut-hooking prevention. Then I found out trout conservation areas have even crazier rules - barbless only, max 3 hooks per lure. That little Rapala with two trebles? Illegal in some spots even though it's artificial! Now I obsessively check regs before every trip. What hook rule caught you completely off guard? #fishing #circlehooks #hookregs #troutfishing #hookrules