Gator

We went on Easter and there were hundreds of walleye stacked in lower stretch by the parking area, but none right up at the dam. The dam itself had a bunch of bullhead and panfish trying to make the run...never seen that before. Couple of pike in the run just below the dam.

You might want to rethink the whole Conesus thing...shocking, I know, but the fish that came out of there this winter were VERY respectable. True, there were lots of smaller fish, but there's also a whole new class of bluegill that Conesus hasn't produced in a long time. Besides, with kids it doesn't matter what size the fish are, especially at that age. This is speaking from experience...not to be preachy...but if the fishing is more important than just having fun, you may lose the kid to the sport. Fishing somewhere the kid can play in a small stream, build a dam, look for bugs, that's even better. Maybe Canadice? Lots of small streams. Try casting for trout or throwing a bobber for pickeral and crappie. Good luck! And Happy Easter.

I'd almost forgot about that picture of your boat...not that I had anything to do with it I did hear that Italy decided to do away with the whole leaning tower thing: they couldn't compete with the Escape. Hope your birthday was lots of fun.

I know I was there for one of them, maybe two...nice fish. Onto the Big Pond!

So, Pequod and his buddy went out in one boat from Severne and TripleS, his dad, and I went out in another boat from Sampson on Wednesday. Sunny skies and a breeze that rapidly diminished as the morning wore on. My advice: don't fish Seneca on days with sunny skies and a breeze that rapidly diminishes as the day wears on Five fish were brought to the boat(s). Nuff said. Gator

After upgrading to a Terrova, I have the 70 lb thrust Powerdrive unit from my Lund that I need to sell. It's in perfect working order, 60" shaft and a new foot controller. I'm looking for $250 and could include the brand new transducer (Lowrance gray connector) for another $50. Also, I've tried in the past to give away a couple of older trolling motors on here, but nobody was interested. So, this time I'll try to sell them. I have a hand controlled bow mount Minn Kota and a cable driven foot controlled bow mount Minn Kota (54", 60"???shafts). These are smaller units with ~40 lbs of thrust, and the cable driven motor could use having the bearings on the shaft repositioned to make turning easier (10 minute job). Otherwise, they run fine. I'd like to get $20 apiece for them, but am open to offers (including an offer to just come and pick them up) Seriously, if you could use one of the older motors, please pm me. They're not doing anyone any good in my basement. These items are pickup only. I'm in Rush, first exit South of the Thruway from Rochester. First come, first serve. Pm me. Gator

So, who's going to volunteer to put on a seminar at Gander on how to interpret sonar readings? Come on, JBB, it's your density...I mean destiny Couldn't resist...BTTF is a great movie. Gator

Aren't we arguing apples and oranges? There's several variables at play here: first, the width of the mark itself (think of it as being drawn with a fat crayon versus a thin crayon) and second, the length of the arc. The second variable depends upon both the depth of the mark and it's position relative to direction the boat is traveling; a fish on the outside of the spread will mark as a shallower arc than a fish directly beneath the boat because its in the cone for a shorter period of time. Also, I don't know how the algorhythms used by the graph alter its output depending on signal strength...the bottom is infinitely big, but it marks as a discrete structure because, like a sponge, it absorbs the signal...the actual bottom appears darkest, then beneath that becomes increasing light until the signal fades out...good way to tell mud from rock. It could very well be that the graph software generates a bigger mark as the fish get deeper to compensate for the fact that the fish is absorbing so much less of the total signal output. Therefore, it could be that both you and your friend are right. The fish at 40 and 80 look the same on the graph, but that's because the graph is compensating in the case of the deeper fish by amplifying the signal (ie "making it bigger"). How's that for compromise? For practical purposes, without knowing exactly where the fish is and how fast it's moving, I'd say that experience is the best teacher. In my limited experience, you can't eat marks...but it sure beats a blank screen. Fish on!!!

Hey Jim, Geez, sorry about the call...too busy smelting on Canadice Seriously, though, we need to hook up on them jumbos. I started the Lund last night and she purrs like a kitten. I'm up for anything this weekend, but it might get a little wild with the wind and rain they're calling for. Give me a shout. Gator

Hey, if that's the case, more power to you. No offense. Times are rough and a guy's got to get by. Hopefully some of the members on here who couldn't get to Gander for the sale will be able to save $$$. It'd probably help to post some hard and fast #s for what you want to get, though. I saw "e-bay" at one point, and it didn't sit right with me...but I've been known to be wrong on occasion

Sean, It's not unreasonable to try to make some money. What I object to is your posting it on here...why brag? Isn't that just saying, "Nyah, nyah, nyah"? Do what you need to do, but don't rub it in, especially on a board where there's probably lots of guys who'd love to have gotten a deal on one of those motors. It sure doesn't make for warm fuzzys. Gator

I contend that one reason more people are seeing less deer over the past few years is a stratification of the hunting population. The guys who can afford to lease and who take time to establish food plots are going to attract deer, even if there's suitable habitat in surrounding areas. We've all seen how deer herd up during the winter around whatever food source is still available. The same holds true during the season...and the guys with the food plots are practicing selective harvest and QDM techniques, hence they're killing a disproportional amount of deer, particularly does to keep the herd in check. Makes sense, too; if you're going to invest sweat equity in your hunting property, then you're going to take advantage of your hard work. If we're going to talk statistics, I'd like to see a distribution curve of the # of deer taken per hunter. I'd bet dollars-to-donuts that the top end of the curve, representing the guys who take the most deer per individual, has ballooned in the past decade, at the expense of the average Joe who shoots one animal a year. The net result is that there's now a bunch of Joes who haven't seen or harvested a deer, and one lucky sport who's had a banner year. I guess putting in the time and money should reap rewards, but I hate to see this pseudo "class warfare" enter the hunting arena. I think that we've entered a period of haves and have-nots in hunting. I feel lucky to be able to lease and manage a decent chunk of land...we saw lots of deer this year, bucks and does...but I feel bad for the guys who don't have that opportunity. The stories I've heard from people I grew up with tell a very different tale from my own experiences. This isn't the only thing causing the problems (real or perceived), but logically it's got to contribute.

Six lb test is what I fish, too. As for the truck at Geneva, nope, I only wish it was me...got to work sometimes. I fished Friday with TripleS and his dad from his rig out of Severn. Gator

Sent you a pm.

Oh, and BTW, Seneca is huge, but because of the deep water, fishable water is at a premium. When you've had a couple of boats scream in on you and drop an anchor over the school you're on, you'll understand why people get gun shy about giving out information. Some guys won't even reel in a perch when another boat is going by. As usual, it's the few with a lack of respect that determine the tone of the conversation...this is a universal axiom.

No secrets here. We slaughtered them last Friday fishing sliders and oakies off one of the points. The fish started in 20 fow and as the morning progressed moved out. The rig was a half oz bottom weight, an oakie tied off a dropper twelve inches up, then a slider tied off another dropper above that (sliders are a 2" plastic grub with a swimbait style tail). Cast, let her drop, then slow or fast twitches on a tight line until you figure them out. If the fish aren't there, move around. We anchored, but if the winds permit an electric works fine. Got to have LOTS of anchor line and a double anchor setup for Seneca if you want to fish near the dropoffs. Our biggest was 1.8 lbs and twelve of the 53 were over a pound, several of those >1.5 lbs.

I was there on Saturday morning first thing and discussed cleaning out their stock for reselling on ebay with my wife. In the end we decided that it might not mean as much to us as it would to other people, spread the wealth around, you know. Just saying that it was an obvious idea. There were probably ten or twelve top of the line motors left, including several Terrovas and Fortrexs, as well as the usual assortment of powerdrive V2 APs. We passed, others didn't. Still, I guess I'm more than a little miffed that there's a need to brag about it here. Unless those motors show up here on LOU for 50% off, reserved for LOU members I did pick up a Terrova80USAP for 640, as above. Now I'm off to the MinnKota website to see if I can get some more $$. Thanks for the tip. Gator

Anybody going to brave the snow and lay down some tracks out there? Could be a tough pull... Gator

Hey Bob, Was that you off the corner by Buttonwood? Anyway, I was out with the group on the 4-wheeler fishing mainly perch. Caught three pike on tipdowns, though. Finished with ~2 dozen perch in the 10-12" range, with a couple jumbos. The bite was best late morning, but the day was gorgeous and it was hard to leave. I met Rob (Legacy) on the way out; how'd you fare? We stayed late and you'd pulled out when we went by. Getting slushy...snow over the next 24 hrs is going to make things tough. Gator

Fantastic! I'd heard I left five minutes too early to see the pike come through, but I hadn't heard that Legacy took the top bluegill prize. Congrats to all!

They're using electricity to deter Asian carp from getting into L. Michigan, and fish have the capability to generate/receive small electric impulses...some folks think that's why the e-chip works...but there is very little evidence that a low strength field affects feeding behavior. Of course, that means you can't say it doesn't, either. Jury's still out. The problem is, the initial "evidence" that supports this idea is very different from the way it's being put into play. I knew a guy once who did some research on using electricity to impede the formation of dental plaque. It was published in a mid-tier peer reviewed journal, but never got much press. Then the guy started doing infomertials to sell his new "electric toothbrush...scientifically proven to work!" and now he's a gazillionaire. Go figure. Does it work? I don't think even he knows... I guess I'm a skeptic.

I also have a Mr. Heater, and the pilot blows out in the wind. A buddy of mine says the same thing. Great heater in calm conditions, but truly a pain in the elements. I also have one of the Coleman ones like Tom is looking for and it's much better, except for the exposed burner. If you find a source, send me a pm, please. Gator

I have a T8 on my Lund Mr Pike 17 and it's fantastic. I don't troll salmon with it (set up for backtrolling, tiller, etc...), but I think that being on Lake Ontario would give you even more reason to go with the bigger motor. I've been out in a thunderstorm and had to come in on the kicker and it's nice to have capable backup. The guys who have it set up with a Trollmaster don't seem to complain.

I only fish for small fish. And there's a squirrel hunting tournament that day. No fish in Conesus anyway. In fact, I'm heading down there right now to waste a few hours OK, twist my arm, I'm in.

Two twists that we use on most all of our fish, sunnies to walleye: First, we add parmesan cheese to the batter mix when frying. Peanut oil is best. If you're oil illiterate, like me, and can't read the temperature of the oil offhand, then it'll help to use an oil thermometer. Nothing worse than burnt or soggy fillets when you're anticipating 'nummi treats. Second, when we're pretending to be healthy we fry the fillets with just a hint of salt in grape seed oil. Grape seed oil can get hotter than other oils without smoking, which allows you to flash fry the fish and retain moisture inside. This is especially important for small fillets. We're talking maybe 15s per side, real hot, real quick. After that, the fillets form their own "crust", crunchy on the outside, moist on the inside, and you can do almost anything with them. Great with cucumbers and guacomole on sandwiches (try Monk's Sunflower Bread) or fry up a mixture of diced tomatoes and capers to dish over them...delish!!! These two techniques are mutually exclusive, probably not a good idea to use in combination. Gator