Sk8man

I guess at least we can now be thankful for the one rainbow limit. on Canandaigua and Seneca.....better than nothing right now... and may make the lifters a bit more inhibited from being caught with multiple fish in their possession.

On Cayuga (near you) try right at and after ice out in front at the State Park at north end at dusk through out early evening with fatheads on jigs (bobber). I'm thinking the ice is no good at this point.

Thanks guys...I can't wait either and I know the rest of you out there are like race horses at the starting gate too right now

Wow....I 've been away from the computer (hard sitting for any length of time) but I sure was surprised by the postings here.Thanks very much for all the kind wishes and words...very much appreciated. I went to the doc again yesterday and got taken of most of the meds which were making things worse especially the Oxycodone...pain killer. I'm hoping this anti inflamatory will do the trick and put me back in action by ice out (July this year ....only kidding hope it will be sooner than that for both. Thanks again. Great bunch of folks on this website. Les

HI Ed, Thanks for asking bud. I'm taking 7 different meds right now and waiting to see the doc tomorrow....I think this may be a longer haul than I wish. I'm just hoping to be straightened out by my daughter's graduation and the Seneca trout Derby. How is the rigging of your new ride going? You've got to be pretty excited to get out there too....beautiful boat.

I know the tendency would be to say it may be a great year since most of the spawners haven't come up the creek yet but there is another dimension to the issue; in years where there is a warm spell in Feb/Mar and a bunch of fish go up high in the tribs during the closed season they aren't as vulnerable to poaching as when they come up the stream in numbers later on when the season is open and at least the daytime poachers aren't as likely to be taking a chance on being caught on a stream with a fish in hand. the night timers are a different matter. I remember in the past hearing some locals discussing their poaching efforts in a restaurant there. The DEC guys make a real good effort to keep watch but they can't be every place and some of these "holes" are up back roads near the poachers homes so it is very hard to nail them. I guess we all need to remain a little vigilant....this year because in all liklihood the fish will still be in the streams real late this year the way the weather is shaping up....

Congratulations Bill .....the guy has to be a "happy camper" with that boat.

The Gulp stuff has to be kept sealed real good in the package because if it dries out it is hard as a rock but the stuff works.

If you haven't actually purchased the braid and put it on I'd suggest 30 lb SS wire too but the 50 lb Power Pro will work too if that's what you already have but during the height of flea season it will be somewhat of a pain clearing the fleas. The 50 lb Power Pro is still pretty small diameter allowing the fleas to attach but the most important feature is it's "woven" texture that allows the fleas to collect more easily. If so It is helpful though to frequently check your lines and use it as an opportunity to change lures and unless you happen to troll through an area of high flea concentration of fleas the lines shouldn't be too clogged to clear quickly. It helps also to have a high gear ratio reel with a power handle to make this a bit easier. Large kings put up a great fight and they can be a "handful" sometimes but they aren't Marlin, Blue fin tuna or sailfish either....you don't need line the length of 6 football fields to contain them if you are using your rod, drag, and the boat properly to get them to the net. You should be able to use 300 yds. of braid (or wire) with plenty of Big Game mono as backing and never get "spooled".

It will be ice there for a while yet unless we get a real warm spell with rain etc. This year the whole lake froze up.

I'm with Gambler. I've had my Cannon (adjustable boom and swivel bases)10A's since the early 1980's and aside for new power cords on them....that is it...never a problem with them.

Well on the plus side is the fact that unlike many of us you were able to get out there after them. As far as the lamprey scars it sounds a lot like the situation on Seneca some years back before they achieved some control of the lampreys. Browns are particularly vulnerable as are lakers because of their bottom oriented habits. It sure is disturbing to see beautiful fish with those nasty SOB' s attached or scarred all to hell though. It is all the more important to keep the pressure on DEC and be as supportive (vocal) of their efforts as we can regarding the lampracide treatments as there are some vocal environmental groups who either don't know anything about fishing or don't really care about it ...they are just paranoid of any chemicals introduced into the lake. Thinking back on those days when Seneca was really a "mess" we were all pretty "demoralized" but DEC really came through in the long run and things are much improved now over that period of time.....so we need to keep in mind that the changes are not real quick but the improvement is worth the wait so don't give up hope.

Thanks Nick ....much appreciated.

Nice job Nick! It sure makes me wish I was out there right now and despite living here near Canandaigua Lake.... Seneca is still "home" for me.....I hope this year is the best ever for you and the other "southenders" and my other Seneca "homies" at the north end Tight lines bud! Les

Around here they are caught suspended at night through the ice with lanterns next to the hole out deep with 2-4 lb test on light jigging poles with #12 gold hooks and spikes. If you put a couple or three spikes on you will catch them on just the spikes as their teeth get caught on them (the spikes) and it saves time getting back down after them without having to unhook them. Sometimes huge lakers will be in the mix so bring extra rigs They light up a flasher like a Christmas tree! We used to get tons of them with dip nets on Seneca and Canandaigua Lake tribs (among others) but they are pretty much history now....