muskiedreams

I see what you mean about the head shape. It seems more rounded than it should be.

They are all incredibly well done. I have seen most of them in person. I was most impressed with the work of Hans The Carver. You really have to see his work in person and see the detail of every scale to fully appreciate it. Only then will you understand the cost.

It might not be effective for the state to provide trash services. Using state employees to pick up trash at all the state ramps, boat access sites and fishing access sites would probably not be cost effective with all the travel. They could however, have agreements or provisions with local counties, municipalities or citizen organizations to provide receptacles and clean up and remove trash at those sites on a regular basis. But it must be coordinated by someone at the state level with locals for each site.

At Conesus, old men like us can launch for free on weekdays except for holiday weekdays by just scanning your drivers license. Weekends you have to pay. I am not sure what age it starts at, maybe 62. Same for all state launches and state parks.

Congrats to Ch 70. I thought they were all Ch70 but I wasn't sure about Jeremy. But even without him, it sounds like they won.

Any final determination on which chapter won the Chapter Challenge?

Real nice fish. Has left pectoral fin clipped. How was the water level in the canal?

If you are trailering it like that, there might be a lot of stress on it from bouncing while going over bumps and dips in the road. I have an Evinrude 15hp 4 stroke on a Garelick heavy duty aluminum kicker bracket on an aluminum boat. When I had it installed, they put in an extra brace on the inside of the boat's transom to reinforce the transom at that point. Also, my boat has the tie down "U" bolt mounted to the inside of the kicker motor. So I use a ratchet strap from that tie down wrapped around the motor shaft to the cleat on the rear deck. That keeps the whole setup rigid so there is no bouncing on the road. Any bouncing is like a constant hammering on the bolts.

It is within anybody's right to keep a legal fish. Posting it on the internet is the main concern here. It can become a promotion, for everyone not familiar with the reasons for catch and release, to keep their legal size muskies. That could be bad for the future of many musky populations especially in NYS. That is why the reasons for catch and release must be mentioned here. It is not an attack on you BassMrs.ster for keeping the fish. It is just a concern that this thread can turn into a promotion for keeping all muskies which is something that most musky anglers understand would be bad for the sustainability of most musky fisheries. The main point that has to be made here is that muskies can easily become an endangered species, at least in NY. Due greatly to the internet, more people are fishing for muskies. Musky communities simply cannot be sustained without catch and release and/or massive stocking programs. Based on all the conservation reasons already mentioned here, most musky anglers understand the need to, and practice, catch and release for muskies in particular. They cannot be compared to any other fresh water fish,aside from sturgeon, when discussing keep or release. There are not many waters, at least in New York, that hold muskies. Muskies in NY waters of the Great Lakes, which are currently sustained only by natural reproduction, are already in decline for a variety of reasons. Catch and release is the main reason we have the opportunity to catch large muskies in those waters and all waters in NY. As for tigers, aside from a few very small central and northern NY lakes and a few small tributaries, Otisco is the only other lake that Tiger Muskies have done well in. If most anglers practice catch and release there, there is a great potential for mid and upper forties tigers to become fairly common in the future. Since there are more and more anglers in NY fishing for muskies, and so few waters that hold them, it is important to do all we can to protect the muskies that we do have and at the same time, work to show the DEC that there is a growing interest in musky fishing so that they will consider expanding management and stocking of muskies and tiger muskies in other waters in the state. A lot of what the DEC does in fisheries management is based on angler utilization and the commerce it generates. That is one of the important reasons for angler participation in the angler diary studies. This is also one of the most important reasons for the existence of Muskies Inc. Chapters 69 and 70 and all other chapters throughout the musky range as well as Muskies Canada. This helps the DEC to justify expansion of the stocking program to the legislation in Albany (there always has to be a money component for action in Albany). So hopefully, we will eventually have more musky fishing opportunities in NY. More and more people are taking up fishing and that generates commerce. But there are limited numbers of fish. Healthy communities of fish and diversity of species are very important for the health of a body of water. The same is true for plant and other life in and around the water. All of us who use it have a certain amount of responsibility to do our part to help insure the health of our waters and the life within them for the future of mankind and the earth. If we want to enjoy those resources and take from them we also must give back.

Is this twitter?

What are things like in the SLR with the border lock down? Have they been strict about the border line? I have heard that they are being very strict in the Niagara River. I understand that fishing is not allowed across the border (either direction) even with a fishing license and passport or enhanced driver's license. I,m not sure but I think they are allowing boaters to cross the line if it is needed to navigate safely between points. But there could be an issue if you stop on the other side of the line or maybe even drift or slightly cross while fishing. I would think that in some areas in the islands, it might be even more of a headache.

Yea, they are harder to hook because of their bony mouths. If you have a rod that has a lot of bend and stretchy line, and or your hooks are not as sharp as they can be, it is hard to get a good hook set. And of course bite offs can happen without a leader.

From what I have read and experienced, they tend to be in the weed beds and in open pockets in weeds. Similar to Largemouth bass. Prety much all the finger lakes have more extensive weed beds at the north and south ends but there can be good weed beds in coves as well. So you can use maps to identify likely locations but if you are restricted to shore fishing you will also be limited by shore access. And I believe wading (and swimming) is not allowed in those lakes without waders.

Many years ago there used to be some big pickerel in Canandaigua Lake. In the mid 80s I got a 4 lb casting from the Canandaigua City pier.

First off, BassMrs.ster, I am not trying to bash you or anything like that. Us musky anglers are just concerned about muskies and tiger muskies being kept because there are so few waters in NY that hold them, and there is an increasing amount of angling pressure on them. This makes it increasingly important to do what we can to minimize their mortality. The point is that tigers are stocked and maintained in that lake as a sport fish. The size limit was recently raised in order to discourage keeping them and to help the lake become a trophy tiger musky lake. It also helps relieve the angling pressure on the few waters in NY that support purebred muskies because they take a much longer time to reach trophy size. Anglers come to Otisco lake for the experience of catching those fish and that helps justify the cost and effort of stocking them in the lake, because they spend money locally while they are there. That helps support the local businesses as well as the local tax base which in turn helps the residents. Fortunately, the greater majority of anglers who fish for them take great care not to harm them or cause excessive stress and do their best to release them unharmed so they live to grow and provide another great experience for another angler. Many of those anglers are youths who will have a very memorable experience. I know it is completely within your rights to keep and eat a legal size fish. But it looks like you also are thrilled and proud to catch such a large fish since you posted a picture of it on this board. And it is true that there are a lot of them in the lake but not so many of that size or larger. And I bet you would be even more thrilled if one day you catch one that is 48 inches. That is a big reason why most musky anglers release all their muskies. There are a lot of walleye in that lake which are stocked by the state in much greater numbers and they grow to legal size faster than tiger muskies. Walleye, as I am sure you know, is a better eating fish and it is a primary reason why they are stocked and people fish for them. So could you please consider trying not to keep tiger muskies for food if you are able to catch enough walleye to feed your family? Then someday, who knows, you may get that 48 incher and post a picture of it here and a release photo is even more satisfying. Also, if you need to increase your success with walleye, I am sure Justin or others on this board or the Otisco or walleye boards can give you some tips.

Too bad it will never make it to 40" or greater.

I just want to say that in the second photo, the area of the keel that is dented in could be an issue. It looks like that is where the boat sits on a roller. If that is the case, it is most likely dented in because the boat is bouncing up and down on the trailer on the road. It could cause the hull to crack under or near the keel from the pounding and also damage the roller. I have had that problem. You may need to strap down the bow of the boat to keep that from happening.

There used to be a lot of waters in NY 30 to 40 yrs ago where you could get multiple pike in the mid 30s, and 40" fish were not that uncommon.

This virus is nothing to sneeze at or take lightly. If we didn't have a new flu vaccine every year it potentially would be just as (or more) deadly and many of you might not exist. Until the medical community develops a vaccine and/or finds treatments that are effective and safe to treat it, we must do what is necessary to keep it from spreading. The more people who follow the guidelines to control the spread, the less the economic impact will be in the long run. It is as bad as it is now because too many people have not taken it seriously, including many politicians, business leaders, some media outlets, social media platforms, and even health officials under pressure from the first four. Anyone who thinks otherwise is just plain mistaken. With that said, If you can still work with absolute certainty you will not be putting yourself or others at risk, then maybe you can but everything you do must be done with best practices in mind. This is because you can not see it, you can not smell or taste it, you can not tell if you or someone else is carrying it and by the time you know, it will be to late. There are more people dying from it than we really know because the testing has not caught up with the need and the only deaths they are confirming are those who have been tested positive. Not all people who have died from it have been tested.

I have in the past done it many times with trout and salmon and at least once with muskie. But the net gets wet from rain more than while netting a muskie.