Stinky Finger

Most likely a Scout but you'll have to get nit-picky with the details if you want to learn exactly what you have there. Check the link~ http://www.chuckstacklebox.com/c-a-clark-mfg-co

You're right about the locals. That's not unusual though, pretty much that way on any lake but definitely more pronounced on smaller lakes like Alice. Locals don't want "strangers" coming around. They don't want you on "their lake" taking "their fish". Go look at the prices posted at the launch on Rushford Lake and you'll see exactly how that can be taken to the extreme. I lived on Rushford for a few years and IIRC launch fees went something like $5 for boats under 16' with less than 20 hp for purposes of fishing. Runabouts/ ski boats $45, pontoon boats $55, jet skis $75. The $5 fishing boat thing came only after pressure form the state because the state stocks the lake, originally it was outrageous like the rest of the fees. The high fees are ostensibly to reduce traffic because a small lake can get very crowded but I know a lot of the locals there and believe me, it's because they don't want YOU on THEIR LAKE, STRANGER! My first wife had relatives with a cottage on Lake Alice. I did quite a bit of fishing there in the 90's. The large mouth bass fishing can be good, I caught quite a few 5 lbers there. The key always seemed to be finding the greenest weeds and drop shotting or Carolina rigging the deep outside edge. Surface plugs were good at night around the docks but oddly I never did well around docks there in daylight. Walleyes don't seem to be there in huge numbers but there are some huge walleyes. I put together a pattern that worked well for me once I figured it out. I found that three things in combination made a good walleye spot on Alice. Along the cliffs find where you have shade, a point and a shelf with a drop off. Fish crawlers on slip bobbers at the level of the shelf and be within a few feet of it. Anywhere along the cliffs could be good but the combination of the other features really improved things. Use fatheads and you'll get walleyes and pick up crappies too. Through the 90's the perch there were runty but they are cyclical and their numbers and size may be better now. You will have fits on Alice from the pleasure traffic and it doesn't take much. Because the "lake" is so skinny it only takes one or two jet skis or water skiers to make the whole place like a wave pool at a water park. That's what caused me to quickly abandon trolling there and drive me to the cliffs, out of the way. Alice has a good pike population too.

Canadice, south end, bass gear, chain pickerel. Action can be fast & furious. Some of these chains can push the 30" mark. Sounds like you are a chain pickerel fanatic and you just don't know it yet.

Beautiful pike, nice trophy! That will make a great skin mount. Yes, replicas are all the rage but skin mounts are so much better. Replicas just do NOT compare. After all, this is a pike, not the next state record muskie. Pike are everywhere and prolific but getting one north of 36" is tough. This is a nice trophy to put on the wall and a great memory for you and your son to have shared. I salute him on his catch and his service! (USMC '86-'90)

Here's a good read for you, Waylander. Legend plows are nice but hard to find and the price may make you gasp. I like the Bagley's DB08, you can find them on EPay. Good luck! http://www.fishinfo.com/fishing-article ... _388.shtml

Leave the boat at home and bring a surf board instead, seriously. Par le vous hang ten, mon frer? JoJ_D1MouaQ

Nothing gets under my skin more than a thief. I'm glad to see these two chumps arrested and hopefully they will be guests of the Governor for awhile. http://rochester.ynn.com/content/top_st ... equipment/

Finally some common sense, it's about time. Muskies (and tigers too) are not the put-and-take trout planted for the once a year hatchery truck chasers to go out and gather up a fish fry. They are the apex predators, short in numbers and long in reaching maturity. They need realistic protection. 40 inch minimum statewide limits are sorely needed and 54 inches or more on select waters.

Larry when you are King you can pass any royal edict you like.

Didn't get out today due to family functions, First Communion celebrations for nieces and nephews and an early Mother's Day party when everyone could be in the same place at the same time. Big party & Kentucky Derby too! Doesn't look like I missed anything anyway, fishing wise. Things are however shaping up for a rare occurrence in Buffalo. Not every spring is the same. Right now we are all lamenting high waters, launches not open, closed lakes, etc. for the pike opener. Oh well, things will shape up soon. I have no clue what stage the pike are in now. It's a high water spring so once I can get out somewhere it will probably be a pre summer bite. Have had now 17 days straight of at least some rain every day or night in Leicester, between Conesus & Silver. Muskies are a bit slower and a cold wet and long New York spring coupled with an early opening date can mean a short shot/small window of rare opportunity in Buffalo harbor on the big girls. The REALLY BIG girls. This doesn't happen often, once in seven to ten years do the moons, stars, planets all line up like this. With a New York opening date of the third Saturday in June for muskie, past most other states, Buffalo harbor is usually devoid of the biggest of the big. Warmer waters arrive, they spawn and are gone, vanished into Lake Erie like a needle in a haystack before the opener. It takes a long, slow, cold and wet spring coinciding with an early opening date to produce the rare occurrence when the pigs are still in on the opener. This could be one of those years. This year is the 18th. Some years as early as the 15th or sooner! Buffalo has good muskie fishing as a general rule. Strawberry Island is legendary as are the deeper shoals out in the lake. Like any other fishery, it has its off times and poor seasons. Buffalo does not share the limelight with more consistent honey holes as Lake St Claire or the Larry. Now and then though, it has the potential to be a true contender, bar none. As I stated, conditions could shape up this year -if the cruddy weather holds- to produce that rare window when a true pig might turn up. Lake Erie has them just the same as Eagle, LOTW, French River or Moon River /Georgian bay. The big girls are here but they don't stick around long. They do their do and split, usually long before the season opens. Gone. Keep your fingers crossed that the weather, and the water temps stay in the dumps. BTW, this isn't breaking news, among those in the know. You will see plenty of out of state registrations out there under these rare conditions. I'm putting this out there because I'd like to see more N.Y. boats out there among the Pa. Oh. Wi. Ont. Mi. etc. etc. This was "in the know" stuff 15 or 20 years ago among the traveling muskie hounds.

No, they list all three, pickerel, pike and muskie. These were pros, market fishermen. They knew what they were dealing with. I've seen other old references to "muscalonge" in the Finger Lakes from mid 19th century so I believe they were there. It would be interesting to know how many of the lakes had muskies originally, when the lakes existed in their natural state before canals and dams changed things. The spelling "muscalonge" was used in New York up into the 1960's.

That's what I thought at first too but it identifies the different species caught, pike, bullhead, perch, muscalonge. If pike weren't listed I'd think it was mistaken identity but it's not.

So once upon a time Cayuga lake had muskies? Interesting! (article near top center of page) http://fultonhistory.com/newspaper%202/ ... 4jbig2.pdf

Stopped in at the inlet today on our way to see some friends on the lake. Crowds of people (was a beautiful spring day) and more top of the line photography equipment than you would see in a well stocked camera shop but the only thing I saw with fins on it was one dead sunfish. Levels are up and running very clear.

15% to 25% is thought to be natural reproduction in the lake. That means 75% to 85% are hatchery fish.

Sorry for the rant. Just had to get that off my chest.

"Where the majority of the Pa. musky fry were stocked, they are not saying". I support the DEC, on the whole I feel they are hard working folks who do not receive nearly enough gratitude for all that they do. On the other hand they can really get under my skin sometimes. To me it seems that when it became apparent that a mistake had been made and the number of fry on hand for stocking was low it should have stopped right there. Just proceed with what they had on hand, a much smaller year class but so be it. That would not be something the lake could not recover from. Screwing up the gene pool is something the lake will never recover from. That sort of thing would be beyond mind numbingly stupid and in the face of public protest, as it seems was the case, absolutely obstinate, just unforgivable. Like I said, I support DEC, they are all we have but sometimes it's hard. Three times I have personally been burned by them. The first time I was fishing beneath the Grand Island bridge from shore when an ECO showed up to check my license. That morning before I left the house I checked to see that I had my license. I did not. The week before I had been up at the hunting camp in Humphrey and it had got soaked in the rain. I spread it out on the table to dry and forgot it there. I took my Sportsman's backtag with me in lieu of that which is what I presented to him, and my driver's license. He said "I can see you do in fact have a fishing license but my boss says we need to generate our revenue so I have to cite you for not having the paper on your person". Fine, as per the letter of the law, he was right and I was in violation. That didn't upset me. What upset me was the measly $25 he got for his department. They got their lousy $25 which cost me that, plus a $50 surcharge at the court which I called ahead about simply mailing it in. No, I had to appear. Working second shift that also cost me lost wages for a night off work to take care of it. I felt like I had been mugged. The second time was at Burt, salmon fishing. Me and two friends arrived at the baitshop there and bought our new licenses as it was the first week of October. We pulled in and as we were getting out of the car a DEC car pulled up and parked next to us, two ECO's. I held the door for them as we walked in. We bought our licenses, filled them all out, etc. with these two guys standing right behind us, they saw the whole thing. We left and went to the nearby marina where we had fished every fall for years, under the bridge. Not five minutes later the ECO's appeared. They asked to check our licenses which I thought was silly. They then proceeded to write us tickets for fishing under the bridge at night and -get this, I am not making this up- one of them then produced a handful of papers and handed each of us a copy. "These are the pages that were omitted from the rulebook when it was printed. It covers the part about no more fishing under the bridge in the marina at night". I'm thinking uh huh, why not tell us that five minutes ago at the baitshop? Nope. They sat there in their car after pulling out of the baitshop behind us, watched us get set up and then approached us and wrote us up. Again, another ticket with another fine, another fat surcharge and another night lost from work with a long drive to the cornfield courthouse in the middle of nowhere to have the privilege of sitting through all the parking tickets and being seen dead last, four hour wait. I felt like I had been raped. The third time, even a decade later still puts a bad taste in my mouth so I'm not going to get into it. I am livid still to this day. Still though, I do support these guys. One week after the Burt ticket I was fishing on the bank at the dam alone. There was one other guy there, out on corner of the concrete at the bottom of the dam. I saw the ECO coming up the bank, about a hundred yards away. The other guy saw him too. When he did he kicked the bucket at his feet into the water which was stuffed with brown trout (season closed) and also dropped his rod into the water and walked off the dam, passed me on the bank and right by the ECO. The ECO, same one that cited me the week before, checked my license and I pointed out the bucket full of fish drifting down the pool, which he had not seen, and I told him what happened. He gave me back my license, thanked me and ran after the guy. Busted. I do support these guys. Another time, up in Humphrey during the first week of deer season the guys on the next property over from ours shot a black bear sow and all four of her cubs, on our side of the property line, shooting from their side. Bear is closed until the second week. It is illegal to shoot bears in groups. It is illegal to shoot cubs. I reported it. I do support these guys. I could turn sour for what the DEC has done to me and look the other way when I see violations but I report them because it is the right thing to do. I support them because they are all that we have.

A little off topic on this thread but I want to bring this up, and it goes with the not bringing St. Lawrence eggs to Chautauqua. This past year at the hatchery there was a problem with feed pellets which resulted in the fry turning off their feed and a lot died. The usual feed pellets were replaced with a lower cost alternative. I know why it happened, budgetary/ cost of doing business on the part of DEC but I am not slamming them for that. The bottom line is very important and keeping costs reined in deserves constant diligence. So no foul where good intentions were made. The problem as I see it in what resulted was the wrong thing to do, bringing in muskie fingerlings from another state to replace the lost numbers and still stock the usual amount into the lake. IMHO this should not have been done. Not for VHS concerns but for genetic concerns. Chautauqua truly is the Mother ship of eastern muskie fisheries. Back in the first half of the twentieth century muskie fry from Chautauqua were sent to other eastern states, Pa., Oh., and maybe W.Va. to reestablish muskie populations that had been wiped out by pollution, damming, etc. Many waters that historically had Ohio river/ Chautauqua strain but were lost were born again. That's great. What gives me trepidation is the fact that in the ensuing decades there were muskies from other areas also introduced to these fisheries, muddying the gene pool. Chautauqua is near and dear to my heart and I feel her muskies are unique as compared to muskies from anywhere else. I can only hope that what was released there was kosher and we haven't had any genetic backwash. Maybe I'm overreacting but I would rather err on the side of caution. Once things get changed there is no going back. I don't care if I come off as an alarmist, Chautauqua needs alarmists. Don't mess with the Mother ship!

Good points, Gambler. I thought about the tags too but left it out. We had for many years, from the forties into the nineties, a special muskie license that cost about $5 and came with five tags for the season. You could keep five muskies of legal length per year and the tags were not transferable, you couldn't use others people's tags or give yours away. If you had a fish you tagged the numbers on the tag had better match the numbers on your muskie license and be in your name. Proceeds funded the hatchery at Chautauqua and muskie research projects. I think it should be brought back on a state wide level. Maybe with just one tag for a keeper. Like before the proceeds could go to the baitfish fund and perhaps also into habitat improvement, such as where nursery areas are threatened by invasive aquatic plants taking over. I still feel the tiger regs should be the same as purebred regs where they coexist in the same waters. Also, as Capt. Larry points out, people are claiming to be pike fishing in the spring when they're really targeting muskies. This has got to stop. Do we have to move the pike opener ahead to the third Saturday in June where pike and muskies share the same waters? That might be the only answer.

Actually tigers are sharing several waters with pure muskies in New York. Most of these tigers are naturally occurring (anywhere in the great lakes), Chautauqua lake, Cassadaga lakes and creek, Allegheny river and reservoir, several souther tier rivers; Chemung, Susquehana, Tioghnioga, Chenango and the Delaware river, Greenwood lake and also Champlain where there is no closed season on muskies. I totally agree with the slot limit for northerns.

Just as a hypothetical exercise let's say you have the liberty to write in changes to the muskie regs in the New York fishing regulations. What changes do you make? I would make three. 1.) I would make the great lakes size limit for muskellunge and tiger muskellunge 54" from Ripley on the N.Y./Pa. line to St. Regis on the N.Y./Quebec line. All of it, Lake Erie, Niagara River, Lake Ontario, St. Lawrence River all inclusive and upstream to the first barrier impassible by fish, 54". Creel limit one fish per day. Possibly even a 60" size limit for the Larry. 2.) All inland waters (everywhere muskies swim in N.Y. apart from the great lakes) 50" size limit for muskellunge and tiger muskellunge. Creel limit one fish per day. 3.) Statewide muskellunge and tiger muskellunge season third Saturday in June to December 15. I thought about having no size limit, no creel limit and no closed season for northern pike in waters where pike and muskies coexist but this I feel would be abused and result in a lot of dead muskies. That's also why I advocate the same regulations for muskies and tiger muskies. Education can certainly help in getting the general angling public on board with accurate fish I.D. but we will never reach a point where regulations could be eased, i.e. having tiger season open while muskie season is closed on those waters where they coexist. So what changes (if any) would you make?

That's too bad Caps on Transit rd was good and Rainbow sports on Niagara st. as was Redwood Ranch in Bemus Point. I can walk to Happy Hooker from the cottage at Chautauqua. Definitely the best place to go. Hogan's Hut by the ferry in Stow is good too.

Ronix, I'm thinking of Chet's hunting and fishing on Niagara Falls Boulevard in north Amherst. I'm pretty sure, if memory serves after 15 years that this is the guy I'm thinking of. Capt. Chet Beyer. He was in the NMA back then and opened the tackle shop which was well stocked with muskie stuff. Ask Capt. Larry, he would know more than me. If I'm right then this place would be worth the drive.

Ronix, iceshanty.com has this bait shop map which is a great resource. If you know of bait & tackle shops which are not on this map you can add them. http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie ... 4f07e7&z=7 I have a tackle shop in mind for you but I can't remember the name of it, I'll figure it out and get back. I suggest you ask Capt. Larry, he seems to know everybody in the Esox game in Western New York. Also you could contact the NMA, Jon MacSwan or Tony Scime. I know the NMA has members in the Rochester area but I haven't attended their meetings in 15 years since moving to the southern tier. Those guys will know where the goodies are.

Almost forgot. I need to get off my duff, fire up the wood lathe and turn out some pikies & vamps. I can't believe I've let myself go two years without making any plugs. Gotta change that.