panfisher

pikefreak......check out this first timer's king.....! Seattle Times story.

Your first salmon being a 17lb. chinook (king)..... Nnniiiiiiicee! Complete with fresh lamprey scar...Don't lose, however, appreciation for pike and sheephead (?!!) and largemouth bass and....well, they are all good! Tough to beat those blistering runs with the kings. Tough, too, to beat that endless energy of bustin' smallies on light tackle. Tough to beat that big fish fry of tasty perch, sunnies, and crappies...or walleye...(bluefish is a fav). Hell...fishin' is just fun....especially when successful catching is at hand. Good deal on the king. :yes:

Why4......Yes, like Oncebitten says get it several feet off the bottom. And don't be Twiceshy..... ......about using artificials. The gobies are like bait stealing sunnies.....they will even take a big live bait before many smallies can get to it. Try bigger artificials.....4-8 inch swimbaits, grubtails, hard lures (Rapalas or whatever)...the bigger the lure the closer to bottom u can fish it. The size may scare off many gobies, but not the smallies and 'eyes. Gobies are definitely aligned to the bottom; bigger gamefish will take all over the column.

BSmaster...very nice.....! Was that a rep from last years Tioga fish?

"Lets all hope it doesn't get to that ppint". As per Capt Vince Pierleoni's point, me too. Makes me want to go over and concrete off the Chicago canal entry from the Mississippi with my own two hands and a cement mixer..... . Much more needs to be done to try to keep bigheads and silvers out of the Great Lakes region. I'm of the thought that these are two fish that could put a real hurtin' on the great lakes recreational and even commercial scene. And King Davy.....I've often wondered how great and easy it might be to jig up lakers in the Big O.....Doing that in smaller waters really does show off their fighting skills, unlike trolling (literally dragging fish in.... ) But jigging up kings.....? Now that has got to truly be fun. You've done that? Awesome! Jigging is good for any kind of fishing. Why not the kings? And talk about a fight.... ....I also enjoy the variety of fishing opps afforded to us lucky enough to live in the region. Lets try to do what can be done, small or big, to keep it going as well as it has.....from the days of almost complete environmental ruination to it's current, recent, fun state.

BTW, just checked out your posting in the pics section. Nailing them on shadraps. I'll bet they, along with browns, smallies, largemouths, pike, maybe even perch and crappies and lakers are all feasting on the gobies......maybe. Perhaps those annoying little guys are bringing silver linings to the lake. I'd like to think so.....

OOOooowwwweeeeeeee!! NNNnniiiiiiiccee!! Signed...sealed.....delivered.....ITS YOURS!!! And that is a horse of a fish. To think that you have a New York State Record of an All American fish species is really awesome. And to think the world record out of Tennessee is almost twice that size is further evidence of the neatness of sheepies. BTW, seems the record you broke was about 2lbs less, caught in Ganargua Creek, which, if it is not known, is in the Rochester area (Palmyra-Macedon). I've fished that some, a small warmwater stream that runs into the canal. To think something that large was in there backs my long held theory that big fish of certain species may live anywhere said types are. Yeah, some waters do tend to produce bigger or smaller averages of any given specie for different reasons. But given an average healthy system the Big One could, surprisingly or not so, come from anywhere. Also, noting that sheepheads are a relatively long lived fish, with little focused pressure because of more glamorous types around, increase the odds there are way bigger ones in the area, probably in the Big O area. Whew! This is a true banner season for them, maybe because of gobies. Noticed that it also seems to be a really good year for muskies in Chautauqua Lake, with numbers and qualities being taken there. Anywhoo, congratulations man on a super nice deal! ........Sheepheads Unlimited...

Set a goal.....worked it...achieved it. Xellent! Nice fish.....

Say, devoknevo.........Are you indeed the proud owner of the current state record sheephead.....? Verified and certified by the DEC? And whatever has happened to all those sheepies being caught by u and pikefreak and others? Seems like a banner year for those under appreciated fish. Are they still being caught as frequently as just a few weeks ago? That was a rather amazing run. Did U (devoknevo) have that fish mounted (skin or replica)?

That sort of kind of blows my mind......the image of fat crappies tuned in to the daily dinner bell from the local bait shop..... .... Any idea of the amount of daily leftovers the shop feeds 'em? They must be cheap......!

"Those tigers cannot reproduce either. Two different processes... One natural and one artificially manufactured.".....Are they GMO labelled so you'll know the difference?..... ....Ivan...really, another big beautiful fish. You guys do seem to have it down in St. Clair. Do you pursue musky in NY waters as in that lake? And if so, have you had similar results.....?

"I see" said the blind man...... I guess it would be more for the guy's fingers than for the fish's skin.... And handling a large (or even a small) esocidae as Mr.Joseph is, maybe this really was the lucky fisherman's first ......esox of any kind.....Really, though, that is one very nice musky. And, yes, handling any big fish can be an awkward test because of heft and slickness.....add in some sharp points and movement....it's not easy......."Hold it for the camera!"..... Nice work Rick..........And old man.....thanx

NitroMusky.....Not being a dedicated "musky fisherman", what is the reason for a certain material for a cloth when handling them? Is the idea of any type of cloth material when handling to avoid removal of the protective slime on the fish? And, if it's not too much, how is the points awarded determined; what's the formula...?

NNNnniiiiiiccee!!! :yes: .....On so many levels! And some good questions and answers too!

This topic of the downturn in numbers of smallies along the south shore of Ontario is still a very intriguing subject for me, I know the bass are still there as we pick them up occasionally trouting close to shore in early spring. Not this year though, obviously because of weather. Sometimes in the cold water we would see a small group (3 or 4 fish) of smallies cruising by in the relatively shallow and very clear water. I'm talking within the last 5 years. And that's anywhere from Webster to just west of Sodus Point. But those crazy numbers, like at Hedges, where you could look down in 25-30 fow or so and see the large numbers of smallies down there amidst the backdrop of the cribs and boulders.......makes me wonder where and why they were there for years and then recently left. Timing with the show up of the gobies makes sense. But what exactly happened to those numbers? What we used to see there at Hedges did not appear to be fish guarding nests. More like some social gathering (courtship...?). Like the movements and relocation of human families and whole cultures of people for various environmental or socioeconomic reasons, this kind of thing happens with much of life. Still would be interesting to see if those numbers can rebound, as bass are very hardy and adaptable.......

Nessmuk......may the gods of outdoor fun and intelligence forgive me.....what publication is R&R SS.....?

Niiiiicee! And neat to see a large brownie like that take to the air!

Man....I'm just a little jealous of you guys who stay up near the St. Lawrence area. Where I am really great fishing is close by in all directions... the fingers, the canal, south shore of the Big O.........there is something I really love about the east side of Ontario and "the Larry" (hope y'all don't take offense to that kinda' cheesy sounding name). But I can say the same about some of the area around the Big Apple region. And a few other out of state areas. Ah....makes those vacation trip decisions just a little more intense..... .

Nice report pikefreak. Catching a sheepie with a complete outfit attached........?! That just blows my mind! And with all the partyin' goin' on......Hot Fun In The Summertime.......!!

Xellent Kevin.....And you are absolutely right about having them go airborne!! Were you using topwaters? Summertime, especially when it's calm or very light wind is prime for topwater bass action..... I like floating minnow baits that swim under when steadily pulled.....