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South end had bigger fish, but a little harder to find, and not quite as numerous, but really well worth it if you really like good size panfish like i do.. BIG rock bass near the cliffs at the south end/east side in about 25 feet.. Great action on a light rod, they fought hard.. Nice big perch, west side, across the lake from the cliffs, 20-25 FOW. Both this trip and last week all action got slower as the sun got higher.. I would not even attempt a weekend trip this time of year.. mid week only.. Even the scott town ramp got pretty crowded and that was on a wednesday. the water is REALLY shallow in the creek and for good 1/3 mile into the lake,, we are talking less than 3 feet.. Any lower, and i would have been hitting bottom with my prop... When the jet skis and the tubers/ skiers/canoers/kayakers/mid lake marathon swimmers/ hot rodders came out to play, I left... bob

Really nice fishing on skaneateles.. No NOT trout or salmon.. Unlike the vast majority here, I don't troll once trout go deep.. Flat line in spring or fall/winter, and some laker jigging is all.. My favorite fishing is very simple,, Panfish/bass mixed bag in shallow to moderate depth, with bait, small jigs.. Last few trips to Skinny have been really nice for good size perch, really big rock bass, some nice SMB, a Pumpkinseed the size of a small pizza, even a Bullhead.. Got all the nice size panfish and a few keeper size SMB last 2 trips.. This is not wipe out killer drop and reel fishing,, You have to search out productive areas and find the right presentation.. I did best with a very active worm on a single hook and a split shot above it, just big enough to get it down 25 feet or so.. jigs were hit, and took some fish, but they wanted meat.. Drop shot presentations, even a worm with a 1/4 sinker and a 2 foot leader were not as effective as the split shot, and lively worm.. No need for minnows, as far as I am concerned.. I caught all the fat panfish and bass i could possible use on plain old earth worms.. THIS is how i remember Cayuga and Seneca panfishing to be 20 years ago.. These fish were all of a very desirable size, not many dinks, fought like mad in the 20-30 ft depths I caught them at, and are the cleanest tasting. firmest, and whitest fish I have caught since moving here to the FL region 26 years ago. .. I have about abandoned my summer jigging for lakers this year.. I am really enjoying this VERY good summertime fishery, thats under used, and seemingly under reported.. had a piece of the bullhead tonight along with some of the other fish, and it was just as sweet as the perch.. I generally find summertime bullheads muddy and weedy, and generally nasty, and seldom target them... However, any I catch at skinny go home... I have fished both north and south ends launching at 2 different ramps.. I found more fish at the north end, with larger bass, smaller panfish.. I found somewhat slower fishing at the south end, but the average size was MUCH better.. Nothing wrong with 11-12 inch perch and 11 inch rock bass.. I might quit the other lakes for a while, and keep learning this one.. Tried some jigging deep, but the lakers have eluded me here thus far.. I got disgusted, and searched for productive bootom that held fish.. Smaller, yes, but still full of fight, and a blast on light tackle.. I plan on going here a LOT more... bob

Understood, and I agree, but I have always tended to be pretty naive'.. I suppose i always reason along the following equation Money= intellect Intellect= civility Doesn't work that way,,, bob

The water is FULL of lunatics, no matter where you go.. i had something similar happen a few years back, several miles out in the open ocean.. I was in my 18 footer fishing in a choppy sea, and a MORON in a gigantic yacht thought it would be great fun to bear down on me at about 40 knots no other boats for miles, and make a hard turn a few yards from our stern leaving us sideways with green water coming over the stern in a giant 6 foot high wake. Only by a miracle from God did we even survive it.. Its an older early 70's starcraft with no level floatation.. Hope that person had a good laugh.. he nearly killed us... So yeah, the water is fill of sub moron "boaters" these days, no matter where you go.. thankfully its the months between Memorial and Labor days that these idiots are most prevalent,, I have an unrestricted CC permit, and sadly, I feel the need to carry out on the water and at the ramps these days for my own safety.. I am getting older, slower and am no longer physically capable of running or defending myself with my fists... The water or even the boat ramps seems to so often bring out the worst in people that most likely have issues to begin with.. Sad part is, this dangerous behavior is often carried out by people with large, powerful ,expensive boats, that must be a success in life to be able to afford the boats they run.. Never could understand that part of the equation.. Usually people with money have more intellect...... right???....... bob

I did cook a piece of the SMB, and as expected it was a very different fish from SMB from other lakes and rivers, which I tend to not eat.. It was very clean tasting, no mud or weedy taste at all, it was moist, not "mealy", and was fresh and firm.. Think of a 3 pound Bluegill as far as how it tasted.. I won't take many, as I am a firm believer in taking very few bass if any, but it probably won't be the last SMB I take out of Skaneateles.. there is something to be said about the eating qualities of fish from really clean water,, makes a big difference... bob

Skaneateles 8/1 Combination trip,, Some exploratory jigging, and panfishing.. I tried jigging in depths from about 50 feet to around 30, .. My theory is that since Skaneateles has a shallow thermocline at about 30-35 feet, I might be fishing the zone where the thermocline meets bottom, which is the by the book method when jigging for salmonids.. Well, it didn't work.. Never got a hit or follow.. Blank screens all around.. As for panfishing it was very good, at times bordering on spectacular.. Using just worms and a splitshot, or tiny jigs tipped with a bit of worm, I loaded up on perch, some sunnies, a couple rock bass, and 4 SM.bass.. Highlight of the day was fat 17 inch bass, that hit a tiny piece of worm meant for perch .. Action was in 10-30 feet, and best at about 25.. The fish felt quite cool at 30 feet... I think I was pretty close to my estimate of T cline depth.. It was such a pleasure fishing worms, and catching nice fish and not Gobies.. It was the way i used to catch fish with worms on cayuga 20 years ago.. Now you can't even use a worm there.. The lake had extensive areas of weed growth everywhere I went, something thats new to me.. I remember almost no weeds at all in skaneatles years ago.. Also, the water is less clear than years ago to my eyes.. It was the crystal clear color of Gin or Vodka at one time, now its more of clear green as Cayuga and Seneca were in the 90's... Could see bottom at about 15 feet, but not at 20.. Water clarity has changed.. I hope its not because of development, but who knows.. I just know being ringed with mansions and wineries has done none of these lakes any favors.. I went a few weeks ago to Skinny as well, but horrible T storms, and screaming wind blew me off the lake.. Last time I caught just a few perch, but they were SO good from that clean water, I went back.. I take very few bass from any water, perhaps one every 2 years or so, but did take the big one yesterday.. More of an experiment than a need for the meat.. I had plenty of panfish to eat, but want to see if that clean water bass from Skinny is less muddy tasting than similar fish from the other Finger Lakes.. Last SM bass I took about 3 -4 years ago was from Keuka, and it was awful.. Strong, muddy, and barely edible.. Just wanted to see if the less turbid water means cleaner taste.. Anyway, it was a nice trip.. been a long time since I caught good size SMB on a little worm.. Used to happen to me and my kids all day long at cayuga while panfishing, but that was a long time ago... I like Skinny, and really hope they don't ruin it with continued development.. btw, is jigging for lakers worthwhile on Skaneateles?, or is that generally a tough nut?. Saw lots of skis and pleasure boats, some bass fishermen, no one trolling... Ramp lot was empty at dawn, packed at 11.., fishing slowed as the sun got higher. bob

I think that because the put and take fishery is still viable, stocked trout salmon etc, a lot of people won't believe the lake is in big trouble.. I only know this,- I used to catch so many fish at Cayuga and Seneca, that for several years, i didn't even own a boat.. there was no need.. i caught salmon and lakers from shore until mid May, then switched to Bass and panfish until fall when the salmonids came close to shore again... Honestly. at cayuga there were days i was getting annoyed while Perch fishing from shore in ithaca , because huge smallmouth would keep hitting the bits of worm i was fishing for perch and pumpkinseeds, one after the other.. i really started to see the big decline in about 2004 or so, a few years after the Zebras became a major infestation.. I wish I knew what that thick brownish glob is all over the place in both lakes.. that stuff wasn't there 10 years ago.. I recall seeing a lot of bare rock on the lakes years ago.. bare and pretty clean.. No longer,- if Zebras don't cover them ,the brown glop does, and the fish aren't there.. It really saddens me... bob

I used to catch big sunfish, big rock bass, perch, and bass in Seneca all the time, right off shore.. It might just be me, but they just aren't around in the same numbers in the areas I used to fish,,, Years ago, if you threw a worm into the lake at samson marina wall, You would see a dozen foot long flashes toward it, as it sank, from every direction... past few years, I go there and no longer even get a bite.. This past week, I and a bunch of other guys were fishing at the park for panfish , all using worms, some even using whole nightcrawlers.. No one even got a hit, where we used to catch a hundred mixed fish on a summer morning.. the rocks and bulkheads these days are covered with a thick, slimey, brown algae, that just has the look of death to it.. No idea what its called.. i only know that when i see it, there are never any fish around it.. the iron walls at samson used to be clean, now they look sick with that brown glop., and the massive life I used to see there every year seems gone.. I know this will get some members here pissed, but something has changed in the lake near shore.. If you can't catch a sunny, perch or rockie off the shore this time of year, they simply aren't there... bob

Leaf springs are a tough one.. they can look fabulous, clean tight and strong, and snap at any time leaving you in the middle of nowhere with a mess, or they can look rusty and shot to hell and be good to go forever.. I typically oil and grease mine, to try and keep the rust down, try my best to keep rust and wear to a minimum, but I too have had them break en route, and yes, it SUCKS!.. bob

I like them smoked, but you could smoke your socks and drawers and they would taste good. .. Other than that they are inconsistent.. Some are less nasty than others, and here and there, i get one i actually almost enjoy.. They are NOT my favorite fish to eat, but i make sure i eat whatever i kill, so some go home.. People HATE bluefish, as they are strong and gamey.. However after decades of eating lakers from fresh water and blues from salt, I can say for certain that lake trout are stronger gamier and nastier than even a bluefish... Thats saying something.. If I could consistently catch good size panfish year round, i would take no lake trout home, unless they were bleeding bad.. Some aren't too bad eating , but the really bad ones are just plain awful... bob

I and my kids when they were young used to catch big Bluegills/Pumpkinseeds, and some nice Perch and Rock Bass right off shore at sampson during the summer.. Right at the launch ramp lot there is a row of rocks and a long iron breakwater.. We used to fish a worm about 6 feet under a bobber, and always caught nice size panfish and a bass now and then.. If you get some minnows, you might get a bass or pike/pickerel as well...bob

Blind jigging??.. Yikes.. Thats a tough one!,,, You need a good FF, unless you get lucky I suppose.. Lots of times you will see nothing on bottom, but then see your jig dropping[a thin line going from surface to the bottom on the screen], and then a big thick line that intersects with the line on the screen from the jig.. Thats shows that there are lakers on bottom, even though there is no bait around.. If you are catching any lakers at all fishing blind, you deserve a lot of credit.. thats tough fishing for most, unless one is VERY familiar with the area he is fishing.. If you want SMB, you might want to try Skaneateles or Keuka.. Cayuga has had a few big die offs of SMB as has Seneca, and they are depleted pretty badly.. Its been years since I have caught a good size SMB or even a good size rock bass[ they died off with the SMB], and I used to catch them by the dozen every trip.. No more, the numbers are way down, and I no longer even try cayuga for SMB... bob

Got 2 jigging around Long Point one day last week, and a nice perch as well on a small jig in shallow water.. Other guys I saw jigging out there did roughly the same, 5 fish for 3 guys.. It has been a bit slow for me personally, but I haven't been skunked yet... I dunno a few years ago, I could sometimes do at least almost respectable numbers compared to some mediocre trollers, but lately most trollers are out catching me by at least 5, and probably closer to 10 to 1.... I am just not getting the numbers, getting the hits and follows, or seeing the life out there I am used to.. I have not been seeing big numbers of fish or lots of bait thus far on my trips to cayuga.. The boat I have been using is my 14 footer, and it doesn't have a top end color FF on it, just a cheaper Lowrance X4 Pro B&W unit with 250 watts.. The units I have on my other 2 boats, a 15 foot open skiff and an 18 Starcraft [all old junkers] have much better 500 watt Garmin color units.. Next trip I plan on using one of my old tubs that has a good FF on it.. Judging by my mediocre numbers thus far this year, I am either not fishing where the bait and fish are, or I just plain suck... or both!.. In any case, I should be doing better.. I suppose i feel a bit better knowing that some others that jig aren't mopping up either. I will bet there are a few that are however...bob

This is done in an odd way, and might be a bit confusing, but it might answer some questions concerning what the future management plans for the lake are.. One thing is for certain, Keuka has changed, and NOT for the better... bob https://www.keukalakeassociation.org/pdf/post/pdf181_pdf.pdf

Doesn't matter, they are all great.. I love fishing for big sunnies, great fighters, and the only better eating fish in fresh water is a perch... I used to catch tons of huge sunnies in cayuga lake with a little ultra lite, and a tiny jig with a bit of worm, or just a small baited hook and bobber the size of a grape.. Now with the advent of gobies, i haven't caught sunfish in cayuga in several years.. some guys might know where they are, but at the south end of the lake, i haven't caught a sunny or rock bass in years... So sad... btw, I have seen bluegills that have pumpkinseed markings as well.. i think they interbreed at times.. bob