Sk8man

Brian- First eating salmon eggs raw on Lake O and now this....what is the world coming to?

cinnamon fish - Thanks for posting this issue because I think a lot of folks may not realize the seriousness and/or extent of the problem.

bulletbob - Don't feel like a lone voice in the wilderness....you are exactly right in your description. Some of the folks on here haven't been around long enough to be able to remember when things were VERY different. It isn't just Sampson either. i grew up at the Geneva end of the lake and fished it every available moment as a kid from shore. There used to be a boat livery named Tuttles (rentals bait etc.) right where the launch is now at the State Park is now and all that land was owned by the City of Geneva back then before they turned it over to the State. There were docks all along there as there are now and we used to fish there all the time. You could see sunfish, bluegills perch, largemouths, smallies, rock bass, and carp and pike swimming all over the place. More importantly there were minnows of various species in gigantic schools swimming under and between the docks. You could catch any of the the various species almost at will Now the area is devoid of any observable life most of the time...even the annual spawning cycles of the bluegills and other fish in the Seneca marina has now nearly disappeared.The area where the Seneca River enters the lake where the T pier is held huge amounts of black bass and rockies and perch as did the bay near the Yacht Club. We caught huge lakers and pike right from shore at the Chamber of Commerce every Spring and off the seawall at the north end. There have been many changes in the lake over the years to the land surrounding (e.g. development) the lake and the water itself and then the introduction of numerous plant and animal invasive species on top of it. The lake has been stressed to the max from this combination and only remotely resembles the lake I knew as a kid. Seneca has also experienced many ups and downs in its long history too and sometimes it has appeared to rebound from some of these changes. Some of the added stresses to Sampson and the Seneca Lake State Park have been exascerbated by over fishing as well especcially during vulnerable times for the schooling fish (e.g. intense ice fishing of the perch at Sampson,. hammering the bluegill population while spawing at the Seneca Lake marina). I know there will be folks that feel that this is bull and that the populations of fish are cyclical etc. and that everything is fine out there.....but then there is reality.....some of this may be global in nature too.

When my kids were young I had a 13 ft Boston Whaler which had a custom dodger at the front of it for shelter and protection. I took my kids on the Finger Lakes at about age 5 (only one at a time) and ran 4 lines which was the max 2 per person at the time and even 4 Seth Greens often times. I made sure the kids brought along books, dolls, snacks and GI Joe men to play with and they always had life jackets on and I had a bunch of cushions up front that they could nap on if they wanted to. I also didn't fish for the long hours that I would normally fish by myself or with another adult. My son used a pee can but with my daughters I always trolled near where I could head for a bathroom if necessary and I mentioned to them about drinking excessive liquids and to take it easy on them. Only my son accompanied me to Lake O where the availability of bathrooms was not a practicality in most places. My son is still my fishing partner so I guess I didn't screw up too badly

As long as he is under 16

It sure does seem logical that if someone took it they would have grabbed both while they were at it. Those things if not checked routinely can work loose while you're driving down the road and pop off without you knowing it. That is where I would be focusing without actually seeing someone or something suspicious and then making that conclusion. Might be a good idea tocarry a spare just in case....

WTG Jeremy Very cool!

Although stuff can be replaced it is the feeling of being violated that is difficult to accept. Really sorry....It is unfortuately a sign ofthe times and becoming alll too frequent lately. Hopefully your stuff will turn up and the scum caught.

First of all there are some different types of fleas and some are more difficult than others to get off your lines. It also depends on what particular lines you are using (e.g. leadcore, wire, or mono/fluoro etc.) and in some cases the line diameter as well as the texture of the line makes a difference. With mono for downriggers I use the Bloodrun 30 lb Sea Flee and a fluoro leader off of it and in general it works quite well for that application and confines pretty much any build up to the leader and/or connections. The Sea Flee line especially when new has a lot of stretch and that is something to get used to. It is very slick and that is probably why the fleas have a hard time attaching to it but I also now make about 7 twists of the loop in my Black releases to keep ity from slipping there. Leadcore and braid load up fast and are probably the most prone to quick build ups. My 250 and 300 coppers don't seem to have much problem other than at the leader connection to the swivels. Seven strand wire collects it pretty good if the fleas are real thick...I'm not sure about 19 strand wire as I haven't used it. Keep in mind that the concentrations of fleas vary greatly throughout the water column both vertically and horizontally. It is why some folks report heavy infestations while other say they were light or didn't encounter them at all the same day on that particular body of water. Some people also check their lines more frequently than others giving them less time to bulld up. Recently on Lake O the fleas that attached to our lines looked a greenish color rather than grey and they came off the lines quite easily in comparison with some other types we've encountered and especially those on most of the Finger Lakes which are like cottonwood stuff to get off. When very thick they will also build up on 150 lb downrigger cable so the larger line line diameter thing is not bullet proof either. Folks have mentioned many ways in previous posts here that they get them off and some of it depends on which type of flea and what type of line interms of success. For me usually they seem to come off the line by scrunching them up and pinching them off. The other day we were able to just shake our lines with that particular type and they came off. Some folks slap the water with their line. If the fleas are thick I know of no way to prevent them totally and checking your lines very frequently is always advisable.

I know he is a bit homely Nick but he could become a good friend

I rest my case..... Good going Nick