Whole place to ourselves

[Pete Collin]

Hello All,

On our way to Seneca Lake, Ray and I had a bit of back-and-forth over which launch to use.

P: There were piles of fish at Severne on Saturday.

R: What do you want to go all the way there for? With the cost of gas? Geneva's closer.

P: Yes, but I know they are there at Severne.

R: There's fish all over the lake. The north end's a good spot too.

P: Yes, but I remember several trips in march when they hadn't shown up yet at the north end. I don't like wasting the good morning hours trolling around looking for fish.

R: In the extra time it takes for you to drive all the way to Severne, I'll be at the north end with a limit already!

P: OK, we'll go to Geneva. But if the fish aren't there, you're gonna hear about it from me!

R: I ain't gonna hear nothin!

So we set out lines trolling south through the fog. First jingle of the clip-bell came before I got the second rod down. Good sign.

It wasn't so foggy that we couldn't see where the sun was, but a handheld GPS helped with following a contour along the west shore. Trolling motor was still sputtering and acting strange, but we made out alright.

The graph was, overall, pretty blank. We got fish every so often, but the urge to needle Ray about the vast bounty at Severne we passed up was strong. With a bite here and there, we managed 9 fair to smallish lakers by 11:00. The fog finally cleared. Now that we could see where we were going, we opted to pull the lines and go prospecting for a better concentration of fish.

At one spot, there was a satisfying number of bottom blips beneath us. With little wind, we decided to drop some jigs and try for them vertically. Ray got his first fish before I could even get my lure tied on. That first drift through 85-125 foot depths yeilded very fast action. It was shaping up to be a bonanza day! next drift, things slowed way down, but suddenly I got 2 back-to-back giants: 31 and 30 inch lake trout.

My spring is off to a good start! Both fish were taken on an Abu Garcia Ambassadeur reel I bought this winter off Craigslist for $20. It is the second reel of that make I have and it seems ideal for jigging: smooth bearings and drag, very reliable. There are a million of them out there to buy used for peanuts. As a fly fisherman of long standing, I think how you can buy 15 used Ambassadeur reels for the price of one quality fly reel!

So we jigged the rest of our trip, landing 19 fish total. Ray wanted to stick it out until we had 20, but I was tired. As warm as the day was, we stayed bundled the whole time out there - that 42 degree water keeps things chilly. Which makes an amusing contrast as you motor into the Geneva launch. You walk back to your truck dressed like a dogsled musher while joggers and dogwalkers pass you in shorts and tank tops.

We saw maybe 3 other boats all day and one wasn't even fishing. Finger Lakes fishing makes you feel like the world is your oyster!

Pete Collin

http://www.pcforestry.com

[skipper19]

Great storyline! Sounds like a fun day, thanks for sharing

[ Post made via Android ]

[delilah]

GREAT READ

[carpedium]

Very nice. I like your website, too.

[tcon]

Pete sounds like a fun day...my first thought when I saw your picture was..."This has to be an old post look at the way Pete's dressed" Glad your having a successful spring. Take care,

Tom

[panfisher]

Sounds like a typical early season north-end-of-Seneca story.... Great result with the lakers on the jigs! Good story, too. Sounds all too familiar.

[cdgn troller]

Pete,

Glad to see you getting some time on the water and with good results!

[choo-choo]

Nice job on the Lakers Pete.....I wish i lived a little closer to the lakes....The fuel money towing north is definately gonna cut into my trolling trips this year!!! Keep on catching.....steve

[Pete Collin]

Steve,

How far are you from ithaca? You could join me in my boat for some jigging.

[choo-choo]

Pete....Ithaca is only about 1 hour and 20 minutes from Hancock, If you are ever looking for a fishing partner ,even short notice, I would meet you there for sure in a flash !!! ..........Steve