TN must seek further rules on trotline fishing

An incorrectly set trotline can injure or drown a boater

I am a lifelong fisherman and hunter. I was taught from childhood to respect nature and to ensure that my actions do not endanger other sportsmen.

I will never forget my Daddy passing up a chance to shoot a nice, big buck—back when those were much rarer than they are nowadays—because there was another hunter in a stand a few hundred yards beyond the deer. Dad wouldn't risk his shot passing through the deer and striking the other hunter.

Consideration and safety were a way of life among the sportsmen who raised me.

Continuing a legacy of respect

Now, as an adult sportsman, those lessons and experiences compel me to advocate for a change to Tennessee's trotline fishing regulation.

Currently, there is no requirement to submerge trotlines at any specific depth—georgia, Kentucky, and South Carolina require trotlines to be submerged 3, 3 and 4 feet below the surface—or that trotlines be marked so that they can easily be seen and avoided by boaters or against setting them across the current of a navigable waterway.

Arguably, a trotline set bank-to-bank across a river could violate the federal law against obstructing navigable waters, 44 U.S. Code § 403, but Tennessee's regulation does not address this.

I bring this up because I'm also a kayaker. An incorrectly or inconsiderately set trotline can injure or drown a boater, particularly those in small boats like canoes and kayaks.

As recently as September 2019, there was a drowning on the nearby Buffalo River when a young man got tangled in a trotline. This past Memorial Day on the Nolichucky River in East Tennessee, there was a near mishap when a trotline strung across current caught a paddler as he passed by. Fortunately, that paddler was able to disentangle himself before disaster struck.

Creating a safer environment

I urge the TWRA and our lawmakers to revisit Tennessee's trotline regulation and adopt measures to reduce the danger. Paddling sports are more popular than ever. It is time to revise our trotline fishing regulations to protect these sportsmen.

I also urge trotline anglers to voluntarily make your trotlines safe for passing paddlers. You can set your trotline three or four feet below the surface of the water, parallel to the bank, and mark it so that boaters can easily avoid it, even if the law doesn't require it. None of these measures will make trotlines less effective at catching fish, but all of them will help to make them safer for other sportsmen who share our waterways.

Naturally, this shouldn't be a one-way street.

As a paddler, I urge fellow paddlers to be respectful and courteous toward anglers and mindful of our impact on other sportsmen.

There is room for all Tennesseans on our waters if we are respectful stewards of both our natural resources and of our neighbors. I welcome further discussion and cooperation from my fellow sportsmen of all stripes.

Daniel Rogers is president of the West Tennessee Canoe & Kayak Club and an Aca-certified Level 2 kayaking instructor.

FILE Flathead catfish are among the largest fish commonly caught by anglers who set trotlines and juglines.