Glad to see some nice fish coming over the rails. Watch out for those NY DEC boys, even if you have a non resident NY license. I know from my personal experience that they are out there for the revenue, and that's all. I was stopped last August in the back of Raritan bay while fishing in an aluminum skiff. Two guys boarded my little boat, and went through every orifice they could find. When I had all the documentation and safety equipment required, as well as their non resident license, they nailed me for "discarding". "Discarding" is their terminology for releasing a short. They sit off at a distance and watch with binoculars. The moment you pull in a fish, they begin to approach your boat. They've got you in a catch 22, if you throw the fish back, it's "discarding", if you leave the fish on the boat floor, you're retaining shorts. I was actually told by one of the guys that it would have been cheaper for me to just take the fine for the short. They know they've got you, no matter what you do. The fine is $250, and you have to go to court over it. I even asked the prosecutor how I should legally return a short fish, and even he couldn't give me an answer. It's all about the money.
Keep this in mind if you decide to fish NY waters this fall, license or not. It can get expensive.
