Raising the limit on Tiger Muskies on Otisco

[justtracytrolling]

I just got off the phone with Dave Lemon our region 7 fisheries manager and he asked how the tiger musky fishing has been. I told him it has been stellar for most guys and especially better fish. I told him i felt raising the limit from 30 to 36 inches was the catalyst, and asked what the odds were we would see it raised to 40". He is all for it, but was met with plenty of opposition getting it to 36 so he felt it would take time but doable in the future.

So it seems to me if we push a little, and get Muskies inc involved especially, maybe we can speed up the process? Any ideas? Captain Larry? Anyone else agree with me at least?

[rougarou]

all for it should be catch and release

[mostlymuskies]

The way to get the size limit raised to 40" for Tiger Muskies at Otisco is to write Legislation through the County Federation's of Sportsmen's Club's ,send it up through the NY Concervation Council.Then The NY State Conservation Council would vote on sending Legislation for the change directly to NY State Assembly as a Bill.When it is coming from that direction back to the NY State DEC and it is not to racial of a change the NY State DEC will send it back to the NY State Assembly for a floor vote.The out come could be a permanent size limit change or a 3 year trial before putting into permanent regulations.I will start the proccess with a vote from CCFSC & ECFSC to write the Legislation,but we will also need to get the County Federation that Otisco Lake is part of onboard as well.

Edited September 16, 2015 by mostlymuskies

[mostlymuskies]

Now is the time to get change on size limit,because of all the reports the fishing pressure will go up and a good percentage will keep fish!

[muskiedreams]

This is an area where we would need members who live in various counties to become members of the respective Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs. I believe only a county resident can become a member. We can't do it in all counties because the cost of the memberships would add up. Also the MI 69  Chapter Board would have to approve each one. The key counties would be ones that have musky waters. I am not sure if all counties have a federation. There are two counties that border Waneta Lake but I do not know if either one has a federation. It would be nice if we could gain some political influence there to help control the lake association's practices on the lake. From what I understand though, they have a state legislator or two behind them so it may be an uphill battle there.

Edited September 16, 2015 by muskiedreams

[justtracytrolling]

Onondaga county is the only county for Otisco....I know plenty of residents and can get done whatever is needed...just need direction as politics etc is not my forte...

[old man]

All for it,the higher the limit the better. Let me know if there's a way i can help.

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[HybridHunter]

Absolutely. I wish there was a 40" limit on every tiger lake. I feel as though the lakes which are not stocked with as many fish as Otisco would benefit even more.

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[old man]

Make it 60". I keep nothing anyway. The pike could use some help here as well.

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[HybridHunter]

I couldn't agree more old man.

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[justtracytrolling]

40 inch fish are fairly common now i can only imagine how much this would help. Id love to see more 45+ fish as they are tough to come by now. They really fill out if they live long enough. Still wish there was a better fish landing area along the causeway so shore guys could have a better chance of not beating fish on the rocks for those that do want to release fish.

[mostlymuskies]

Any Sportsmen's Club that is part of any County Federation of Sportsmen's Club's, that has a delegate can put together Legislation for Size Limit Change for Tiger Muskies.Would probably be easier if we went after 40"Size Limit accross the State of NY,since Pure Bred Muskies are already at 40" for Inland Waters,I do not see us loosing this if we go through with Legislation sent from Federation to NY Conservation Council and on to NY Assembly as a Bill!I will start by writing a Resolution,have all Sportsmen Club's in Erie County & Chautauqua County vote on sending it to the NY Conservation Council. Then get supporting letters from Muskies Inc Chapter 69 and the Niagara Musky Association.We also have some friends in the NY State Assembly that we can get to sponsor the Bill when it gets to the Assembly.This is how the 3 Rod Rule was done and also helped with the Earlier Inland Musky Season change.

[GAMBLER]

I kept a deep hooked tiger (bleeding horribly and did not revive) out of Conesus and I do not see why anyone would want to keep a tiger.  They taste like largemouth caught in the summer. 

[justtracytrolling]

Captain Larry thank you for the help!

Gambler,

I ate the first one i caught outta the river and deep fried it was ok. We ate every last piece....had four kids to feed then on 1 income. Everything i caught we ate except carp including summer river catfish which was a staple as they were easy to catch. Bottom feeders from hot shallow water from right below the sewage treatment plant.....yum! Now I can eat as much walleye as i want so im fussy and seldom eat anything else.

I have had 2 guests in 4 years that took 40 inchers to eat....both loved them, but I know people that love lake trout! 1 of the guests prefers bass to walleye so their opinion doesn't exactly carry much weight!

[muskiedreams]

Any Sportsmen's Club that is part of any County Federation of Sportsmen's Club's, that has a delegate can put together Legislation for Size Limit Change for Tiger Muskies.Would probably be easier if we went after 40"Size Limit accross the State of NY,since Pure Bred Muskies are already at 40" for Inland Waters,I do not see us loosing this if we go through with Legislation sent from Federation to NY Conservation Council and on to NY Assembly as a Bill!I will start by writing a Resolution,have all Sportsmen Club's in Erie County & Chautauqua County vote on sending it to the NY Conservation Council. Then get supporting letters from Muskies Inc Chapter 69 and the Niagara Musky Association.We also have some friends in the NY State Assembly that we can get to sponsor the Bill when it gets to the Assembly.This is how the 3 Rod Rule was done and also helped with the Earlier Inland Musky Season change.

I agree Larry. Raising tiger minimum size to 40" should be very doable. In waters that hold both purebreds and tigers, they are already at the same length as purebreds. Chautauqua is 40", Great lakes is 54", rivers in southern tier are 40". There might be some concern from the DEC about having the tiger min. size different than pike on waters that have both like Conesus, but it is much easier to tell the difference between pike and tiger as opposed to musky and tiger musky.

 

It would be nice if pike could be raised to at least 25" (currently it is 18") and the creel limit lowered but there might a lot of opposition there. If it is eventually raised in increments to 36", it might create some nice pike fishing opportunities and take some of the pressure off muskies. It should at least be done in some waters (maybe at first to see the potential of restoring them to trophy status).

[mostlymuskies]

Steve,I think it is best to get the Tiger Musky size limit change to 40" accross the State first,before we try to change Northern Pike Regulations.The Northern Pike change will be much harder to accomplish accross the State of NY,because some waters just have to many small hammer handle size Northern Pike and the smaller limit size is to thin them out.We should try to just get a change on limits & size limit on Conesus Lake alone to start!

Edited September 17, 2015 by mostlymuskies

[315angler]

I feel like there would be a lot of resistance from locals. I feel like the sentiment amongst the ice fisherman is that they are not in favor of continuing to increase the size limit.

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[justtracytrolling]

I feel like there would be a lot of resistance from locals. I feel like the sentiment amongst the ice fisherman is that they are not in favor of continuing to increase the size limit.

Of course the weekly tournaments are more fun when they can keep little tigers...I'd take a couple bad ice years myself.....and artificial lures only if we are dreaming!!

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[GAMBLER]

Steve,I think it is best to get the Tiger Musky size limit change to 40" accross the State first,before we try to change Northern Pike Regulations.The Northern Pike change will be much harder to accomplish accross the State of NY,because some waters just have to many small hammer handle size Northern Pike and the smaller limit size is to thin them out.We should try to just get a change on limits & size limit on Conesus Lake alone to start!

Pike regs should be changed by body of water. You can keep the same number of pike on Silver Lake as you can on Lake Ontario????  Lake Ontario bays can take a beating a lot better than the Finger Lakes. 

[EsoxOnly]

I am all for upping the size limit on tigers across the state. It would be great to increase the odds of boating an actual trophy sized fish so close to home. I think I will be purchasing a family membership from musky Inc today. Does everyone feel that is the best way a local non pro fisherman can do his part to support the local musky fisheries? Or are there better ways to spend my money and efforts to help make things happen?

[Ivan]

Muskies Inc is a great organization. What's most important is the projects your local chapter becomes involved with. Takes people donating money and most importantly, their time.

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[muskiedreams]

I am all for upping the size limit on tigers across the state. It would be great to increase the odds of boating an actual trophy sized fish so close to home. I think I will be purchasing a family membership from musky Inc today. Does everyone feel that is the best way a local non pro fisherman can do his part to support the local musky fisheries? Or are there better ways to spend my money and efforts to help make things happen?

Becoming a member of the chapter is a good start. Becoming an active chapter member is ultimately the best way to support local musky fisheries. The larger the support for musky fisheries via organized groups such as Muskies Inc., the better. Active membership is priceless. It is all about creating group support for musky fisheries throughout the state. You can equate it with the crowd being the extra player on the field in a football game but the voice has to be more tempered. We need to work with the state and other groups in a supportive way and within the established mechanisms. We are still a young Chapter. Members are needed to organize and contribute in a wide variety of roles in order to become established as a respected organization in the state.

[justtracytrolling]

It would be nice to have our own muskies inc chapter here in Binghamton or Syracuse or at least a local sportsmanship group with other like minded individuals.. food for thought....

[EsoxOnly]

Well I guess I will take the first step and sign on with chapter 69.  And also do my best to participate in any way I can. Speaking of which, we (my wife and I) are planning on fishing the derby at Waneta Lake on Oct. 3rd. Looking forward to meeting some of you guys there and getting involved. 

Definitely would be interested in joining a more local group of any kind if such a thing was introduced in this area Justin. Let me know if there is any way I can help make it happen.