GAMBLER

The DEC has said bait but the biomass has increased the past 5 or so years yet size has not improved. The DEC is not going to close the tribs. The financial backlash would not go over well with the local economies. But, when you manage the salmon fishery for the lake, in times of need, you should be protecting the prime spawning areas you depend on to keep this fishery going (which they do have some areas closed). If we didn't depend on natural reproduction as much as we do now with their new stocking plans, it wouldn't be an issue.

Seeing that the DEC has not come out with a definitive answer (lots of theories tossed around over the years) as to why the kings are shrinking, it's a very concerning trend to me. The sky isn't falling yet but why wait until it is? I bet the Lake Huron salmon guys wish action was taken before they lost their king fishery. Let's be honest, most guys aren't going to book a charter or guide, travel from out of state or buy thousands of dollars in gear and a boat for little kings like in the picture above from Lake Superior. 5lb and change kings are not fun on big lake tackle and you don't get much filets off of them! I know I wouldn't be dumping money into a motor rebuild for my boat if the kings were that small here! 15-25lb kings are fun but sliding the net under a 35+lb king sure is a special memory that one will never forget!

I said nothing bad about trib guys. I just stated fact that the kings are managed for the lake not the tribs. This was the DEC's idea not mine. Like I said before, we used to have fish that hit 40lbs, now barely 30. When does the decline stop? Do we do nothing until we can't find a 20lb king? Look at the top 5 on the pics I posted above from Lake Superior. Grand Prize 39lbs, 1st 20lbs, 2nd 10lbs 3rd -5th 5lbs. Five pond and change kings won money. That is sad. I wouldn't spend the money I spend yearly to continue fishing Lake Ontario to catch 5lb kings. Thats not a fishery that is going keep people coming back......

The picture of the leaderboard shows a different story…. A 39lb Grand prize, first place was 20 and change, 2nd was 10lbs and change, the rest of the board was filled with 5lb and change fish….. Hardly a great comeback for Lake Superior. Lake Ontario spit out one really big king in June. Joe Oakes caught a 37lb king.

The salmon are managed for the lake fishery. The logic to shutdown tournaments in turn to shut down the very king fertile Salmon River (that the fishery depends on more and more) wouldn't be sticking to the plan of the salmon are managed for the lake fishery. If the salmon were truly managed for the lake fishery, why shouldn't they shut down more parts of the Salmon River? We all know neither will happen because it would hurt local economies around the lake. The Garnaska RIver on the North shore is shutdown during the spawn to fishing. The Garnaska has natural reproduction, and the runs are big (I believe they do not stock there anymore either correct me if I'm wrong). Canada doesn't seem to care about the loss of revenue. The lake is also managed as a put and take fishery. Without tournaments, charters and rec guys harvesting kings in the lake, and trib guys roping them out, the alewife would be in big trouble. With fewer taken in the lake, more alewife would be consumed, not enough roped out of the Salmon River, more natural reproduction would occur, and salmon numbers would climb. The DEC plans on a number of these fish being taken out of the system. IMO, not enough kings were taken out of the system this summer. Huge numbers of kings can really put a dent in the alewife population. The Steelhead are managed for the tributary fisheries and the DEC has put more restrictions on protecting steelhead in the lake (where they are not managed for) even though we don't rely on natural reproduction to sustain the fishery. Hmmmm. On a side note, we can't keep as many steelhead and we have a minimum size restriction and this was supposed to increase the size and numbers of steelhead returning to the tribs. By the derby board the past couple of years, that doesn't look like it seemed to make much difference. As for people never being satisfied, it's not that. People want what we once had. Yes, the fishery is amazing for numbers of kings but catching a 40lb king is now a pipe dream and a 30lb king isn't far behind. Where does it end? People aren't disappointed by a 20lb king, they are disappointed the fishery is heading in a direction that a 20lb king might be tough to come by if this trend continues. Not long ago, you could catch 20 kings a day and still crack 30bs multiple times a season. I don't know if you lake fished in 2000-2013 but those years were amazing too. I have not caught a 30lb king on my boat since 2013. The biggest we have caught since 2013 is 28lbs 9oz (2020). If we caught too many kings during tournaments this season, how are you finding any kings at all in Sandy? Shouldn't all the stray kings that Sandy relies on be in the freezer by now?

NY kings - Salmon River the big fish get roped out and the hatchery takes eggs from what ever comes in. Not many big fish get to spawn naturally due to going home on a rope. Canadian Tribs (Garnaska) is closed to fishing during the peak of the salmon spawn. HMMMMMMM.

How come the kings were bigger in the 80;s when the bait biomass density was huge? Alewife health? Less smelt?

Coho. 100%. Next time look in its mouth. If the mouth is all black (gums, jaw, tongue) King. If it has black gums and white mouth, coho.

Still looking for 2 20's with line counters and a 50 with or without a line counter.

Still have 2 left

Apparently reading isn’t a strong point. Make it a trophy fishery. There isn’t a tiger trout fishery with the potential that Lake Ontario would be. Drawn anglers to Lake Ontario for a unique experience. It would benefit both Lake and trib fisheries. Why not create a small fishery? We waste tons of money on poor surviving Atlantic salmon year after year……

I thought the same thing about skips until August. We caught a ton of them in August.