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Got my hemlock eye mount back


zackblain

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Last October I was lucky enough to hook into one of the elusive monster hemlock eyes, this guy taped out at 32''. Took it to Scott Samolis taxidermy on cr37 in Honeoye and I couldn't be more pleased with how it turned out. Cellphone pics don't do it justice. Scott also mounted the 22# lake trout we caught on canandaigua 2 years ago and did an awesome job on that fish as well.

 

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Even this trout/salmon guy would agree with that :lol:  We already have plenty of good trout fishing around here....it would be great to have a strong walleye fishery nearby. Honeoye has them but it is a difficult fishery for many reasons. I would think that it might really step up the fishing pressure on the lake though but maybe not with the boat and motor size limit....

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From what I've been told the springwater rod and gun club only stocked about 7500 fingerlings over a period of about 6 years then the DEC wouldn't allow them to stock anymore as they felt it would interfere with their rainbow program. It seems like the bows are doing well but I think the lake could still support a fishable population of eyes. I always mark massive amounts of bait in hemlock and with them not stocking browns anymore I feel that there is room for a few walleye.

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Zackblain.....NNNnniiiiiiccccee!! I've fished Hemlock a few times down the years, but did not realize they have nice 'eyes until reading of them here in LOU. I still like Honeoye, but Hemlock is bigger and more beautiful, being a reservoir. Is there any known evidence of natural reproduction of the walleye at Hemlock? Are there only holdovers from old stockings...? I'm sure the lake could handle a few fingerling 'eyes a year without massive stockings. Any studies (post stockings) of walleyes there? Perhaps I should contact DEC. And I think like Sk8man the boat and motor limits (and launching limits) might keep pressure down even if the walleye bite there got better. Nice fish!    :)  :yes: 

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Zackblain.....NNNnniiiiiiccccee!! I've fished Hemlock a few times down the years, but did not realize they have nice 'eyes until reading of them here in LOU. I still like Honeoye, but Hemlock is bigger and more beautiful, being a reservoir. Is there any known evidence of natural reproduction of the walleye at Hemlock? Are there only holdovers from old stockings...? I'm sure the lake could handle a few fingerling 'eyes a year without massive stockings. Any studies (post stockings) of walleyes there? Perhaps I should contact DEC. And I think like Sk8man the boat and motor limits (and launching limits) might keep pressure down even if the walleye bite there got better. Nice fish!    :)  :yes:

 

 

 

I"ve heard of a few smaller fish being caught recently which would lead me to believe that there is some spawning going on. I personally haven't caught or seen a fish under 27'' but I don't fish the weeds or shallows which is where I suspect the smaller fish likely hang out until they reach a size that they can venture out into open water without becoming trout food.

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I spend a lot of time fishing the South end of Hemlock and the North and South end of Canadice (probably 25-35 times a year).  I'm usually targeting bass and pikeral.  I have often wondered why these lakes have not had recent stockings of walleyes lately or even tiger muskies.  Although there are a few postings of incidental walleyes caught on the DEC Diary Program, I personally have never seen a walleye in the shallows (or the deep) of Hemlock.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Nice mount Zack!!   I was hoping youd post a pic of the mount as soon as I saw the pic last year.  I too wish we had more quality walleye lakes and also feel there is PLENTY of trout water. 

I spend a lot of time fishing the South end of Hemlock and the North and South end of Canadice (probably 25-35 times a year).  I'm usually targeting bass and pikeral.  I have often wondered why these lakes have not had recent stockings of walleyes lately or even tiger muskies.  Although there are a few postings of incidental walleyes caught on the DEC Diary Program, I personally have never seen a walleye in the shallows (or the deep) of Hemlock.

Ive never fished Hemlock, but I spend as much time on Otisco as anyone and its very rare that an angler not targeting walleye catches 1.  Our 5th wheel is close to the launch giving me an excellent opportunity to talk to other anglers and many come see me too and if my memory serves correct I remember 3 incidental catches last season out of EVERY person I talked to.   Furthermore, even those who target walleye on Otisco dont catch many even though a few of us have little trouble catching a couple.  On top of that the guys that know what they are doing arent talking or participating in the diary program.   Ill bet there is more walleye in there than you think.  Think about Owasco, it hasnt been stocked in many years and walleye are rare if you ask around, but for those of us who passionately target them they can be targeted at certain times with relative ease even with low numbers of fish. If you spend enough time out there at night you might be surprised, and  by night I dont just mean after dark,  I mean after midnight.  This is not to say I havent done well after dark, at dusk, or even in the light.  Im not saying we dont need more stockings or more fish, just that no matter how many you put in it wont be easy to catch them with the bait densities found in most finger lakes.  If you fish for walleye in places without a huge bait source, rivers, oneida, etc, you will catch them easily and accidentaly.  If walleyes were easy to target they would call it bass fishing or even trout fishing!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Nice mount Zack!!   I was hoping youd post a pic of the mount as soon as I saw the pic last year.  I too wish we had more quality walleye lakes and also feel there is PLENTY of trout water. 

Ive never fished Hemlock, but I spend as much time on Otisco as anyone and its very rare that an angler not targeting walleye catches 1.  Our 5th wheel is close to the launch giving me an excellent opportunity to talk to other anglers and many come see me too and if my memory serves correct I remember 3 incidental catches last season out of EVERY person I talked to.   Furthermore, even those who target walleye on Otisco dont catch many even though a few of us have little trouble catching a couple.  On top of that the guys that know what they are doing arent talking or participating in the diary program.   Ill bet there is more walleye in there than you think.  Think about Owasco, it hasnt been stocked in many years and walleye are rare if you ask around, but for those of us who passionately target them they can be targeted at certain times with relative ease even with low numbers of fish. If you spend enough time out there at night you might be surprised, and  by night I dont just mean after dark,  I mean after midnight.  This is not to say I havent done well after dark, at dusk, or even in the light.  Im not saying we dont need more stockings or more fish, just that no matter how many you put in it wont be easy to catch them with the bait densities found in most finger lakes.  If you fish for walleye in places without a huge bait source, rivers, oneida, etc, you will catch them easily and accidentaly.  If walleyes were easy to target they would call it bass fishing or even trout fishing!!!!!!!!!!!!

I often fish without any targeting anything in particular. Just to see what is first hitting. I know that some things will often always be hitting in any given body of water. Almost always that will be black bass (sunfish.....really). But sometimes in the same place and same techniques I can hang scads of 'eyes. Usually smaller ones. But good eaters. Legal size and numbers of course. Sometimes northerns will be going nuts. And lakers too, especially in the fingers. Been a good year for many with the sheepies while trying for others. But for consistency for any specie, even panfish, nothing beats experienced, hard won and worked for targeting. Helps to know too, that said fish even exists in the waters....

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  • 5 months later...

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