Legacy

Salmon River Fish Hatchery; 2008 Annual Report By Doug Fuegel The news was definitely upbeat concerning salmon egg taking and the salmon migration in the Salmon River this fall compared to the dismal news of 2007. Salmon River Hatchery Manager Andy Greulich presented his annual report to local anglers and angler organizations at a recent hatchery gathering in Altmar, NY. Salmon River anglers as well as open lake fishermen well remember the effects Mother Nature had on the 2007 fall migration of Chinooks and Coho salmon a year ago. Central New York entered into last fall with one of the driest years on record that continued well into late October. The river had little water; the Salmon River Reservoir was approximately 14 feet below normal and above normal temperatures kept the river water above 67° past peak migration around Columbus Day. Few salmon entered the river and eggs deposited failed to hatch as evident by the very poor natural reproduction assessment conducted in the spring of 2008. Many of the eggs gathered during the 2007 migration failed to "eye up" that led to less than half the normal salmon stocking in the spring of 2008. This year Mother Nature did a 180 degree turn around, Central New York could boast only one above 90° date this year and rain fall has been well above normal with October measuring more than eight inches of rain. Needless to say the river was in prime condition for the salmon migration, anglers enjoyed a very successful season on Chinooks and by October 15th Greulich reported the full compliment of 2.6 million Chinooks eggs taken in just four days. Greulich stated the water temperature in the river was near perfect measuring 56° by early October and dropping daily that brought in more than 8,000 Chinooks by mid-month. According to Greulich Coho salmon follow Chinooks a bit later but at this meeting time more than half, 720,000 Coho eggs had been taken of the target 1.5 million. Greulich reported "jacks" young salmon numbers entering the hatchery was about normal indicating a very stabile salmon population in the open lake. Scott Pindell, Regions 7 fishery biologist reported salmon entering the hatchery this year averaged two to three pounds heavier than last year indicating good growth and abundant forage base. Abundant water supply of the right temperature has plagued the hatchery however Gruelich reported a new deep well just 40 feet from the old existing well is capable of 475 GPM of constant cold water complimenting the shallow well warmer river water; ideal for the production of steelhead. Greulich reported a new pump designed to move all species from their holding tanks directly to the new marking trailer will greatly reduce handling mortality. All the news at this annual gathering was not positive, the dismal fiscal position of New York's finances has hit the DEC and the hatchery system. The state hiring freeze has hit this hatchery; Greulich is short one technical position that will not be filled anytime soon. Additionally all repair funds have been frozen and although the states hatchery truck fleet is in deplorable condition no new hatchery trucks are in the foreseeable future. Greulich did report the state had purchased one new truck that is up for grabs and he is hopeful his Salmon River hatchery will receive it. All indications point to a great 2009 Lake Ontario fishing season and those attending this annual hatchery update were amazed at the progress and production this hatchery outputs with the limited resources.

get well soon bob

shawn, unfortunately i have only seen a couple of the smaller bucks i have on film and i havent seen any of the big guys yet.

congrats on your first guarantee youll never forget that one.

i paid $2.87 today (not cheap enough)

what a rod hog!

we want more! we want more! we want more!

yeah andy its just a normal canon camcorder. im not sure about cold weather but i do try to avoid extreme conditions.

i thought this was definetely worth sharing guys.

November 3, 2008 DMU 8A (town of hamlin) Temp H 63 L 47 south wind 5mph partly cloudy time on stand 3pm- dusk Had a 4pt buck come out into field about 4pm and work 2 scrapes along western face of woods. at 4:30pm he was joined by a 2.5 year old 8pt (maybe 90" class) and he worked 3 scrapes on north face of woods. the 4pt approached the 8pt and they sparred for about 30 mins in the field (they just seemed like they were playing).

this new stand has been incredible so far this year. i havent dabbled much in filming hunts but i told myself that i need to at least start bringing the camera. obviously these videos are raw and uncut (now i have to learn video editing).

congrats andy.

some videos from the past weekend.

dont forget to vote,dont let this be you. http://www.cnnbcvideo.com/index.html?nid=XMw2i7K3TMlu9Y3yVLc3tjkxNDU5NTU-&referred_by=13609781-8kSbggx

November 1, 2008 DMU- 9H (town of Covington) temp high 45 low 41 NNE wind 5-10 mph cloudy time on stand - 6:05-10:30 am one of the best days ive ever had in the deer woods (well without shooting one). deer were on their feet and very active through out the morning. 5 min didnt go by today without deer around me. 3 different bucks , 2- 1.5 year olds and 1 -2.5 year old 8pt chasing does for the entire morning. saw the 8 pt 4 times today and one of those times i watch him beat up a small tree. fairly active scrape line 20 yards from my stand with a series of 5 scrapes along main run. one of the 1.5 year old bucks (6/7 pt) worked 3 out 5 scrapes. its only a matter of time before it all breaks loose.

cast my vote for proos.

sorry for the loss of your friend, bob

yup...cohos

doug it looks like one of the 27000 we stocked a month back

October 23 5:00 pm DMU 8a 45 degrees east wind 10mph witness a half racked 6 pt (broken right beam) aggresively chasing a doe.

dont worry your english seems to be as good as mine. welcome to the site.

yum......animals.....

yes i like the format

for the past six years ive kept a hunting journal documenting my hunts. i include wind, temp, weather, stand location, day, and time spent in the field. i make notes of what i saw and when i saw it, for example deer sightings, food sources (including mast production), rubs, scrapes, etc. I thought it would be a good idea for us lou members to share some of our observations in the woods for 2008 focusing on the rut timing and activity.