bulletbob

7 hours ago, chugbug said:

What about the launch in Keuka is it residents only , sure would better than running down from the penn yan arm , I realize the pennyan launch might have ice now . 

 It is a  township ramp, but I don't believe its a "residents only" ramp..  I have used that ramp for many years.. you just back down the ramp, make the  left after launching and park along that road.. NEVER have had a problem or angry word.. On the contrary all the residents around there have been very nice and friendly.. Just don't leave any garbage, and watch your language etc.. I would use it.. It is NOT suitable for a big boat at all especially when the water is super low... bob

 Perch reports around here?? Good luck with that... You'll get info  on big Pacific Salmon on  the big lake, landlocks , browns, lakers and rainbows in the Fingers.

Bass,Pike, Walleyes? no problem you got questions, you'll get answers.. Yellow Perch?,Crappies?... No one talks about them  much around here,,,

 Best answer would probably be.. yep, there's perch in Keuka.. start looking around... good luck..
  I am being just a little sarcastic of course, but in all my years here, I have seen scant  specific information  on yellow perch fishing in any of the Finger lakes,,, the guys that fish  for them on Ontario and Erie and are members here seem a little bit more forthcoming with  perch fishing information on the big lakes.... It is what it is... bob

launch ramp at the state park open?.... bob

 Personally, I just don't think the numbers are there anymore.. Just haven't been seeing fish on the machine past couple years. Years ago, no matter where I went on Keuka, my machine was lit up like a Christmas tree. Now I see blank screens every trip... Unless the fish just aren't  holding  in the same areas they used to... I dunno.....

 That's the NY DEC for you... They live by the millions in Cayuga, but you can't take one out, put it on a friggin' hook and throw it  right back where it came from with a hook through it.. Doesn't make much sense to me... bob

 Anyone tried yet??.. I stuck one on a hook/bobber in Cayuga  a few years ago, and got nailed by something good , probably a SMB, swung and missed when the bobber dove under fast and deep,, Never tried catching them in bait quantities, but it would seem a  screen minnow trap with a little cat food or something would catch dozens at a time... Of course they would ONLY be used at Cayuga, where they are already taking over the damn place.. Just wondering if anyone has  given these little SOB's a good try as  live bait???...  Lakers, Bass, Big Perch, Pickerel, maybe even  a Brown  would be possibilites I would think.. any opinions or experience?... bob

 From the shoreline??..  i realize this winter  fishery is not "hot".. usually its really slow, but if you put the hours, or days... weeks,...lol, you might  get a laker ,brown ,or LL on a Rooster tail, Little Cleo, or bucktail of some sort.. I no longer get to Ithaca very much since I retired, and really have NO idea if its even worth a shot.. Years past, the best time even in mid winter with ice cold water was from first light until maybe 8 am.... If the fish were around, that was the time you might get a hit.. i also realize 99% of the fish in Cayuga are "on the bait", and this time of year that usually means deep, mid lake.. REAL deep!.. Always a few stragglers around the surface/shoreline though even in the dead of winter.. Anyone been there and seen anything at all past few weeks??.. Not looking for  anything specific, just maybe, "yeah saw one caught," had a follow on a spoon", etc... thanks,,,, bob

You can catch ground fish all year. In mid June the dogs show up and can ruin a day on a party boat. the smaller six packs have an easier time avoiding them but some days that i impossible.

Eastmans is a good head boat outfit.

 "Dogs"= Spiny Dogfish..https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiny_dogfish

 When they come around in big numbers, they are a pain in the ass to say the least!

 Guff,... NH is "groundfish " territory..  Various types of hake, haddock, Cod, Pollock... Try these guys...
              http://www.eastmansdocks.com/

 I fish several times a a year in salt water.. Either on party boats for bottom  fish  such as sea bass,  hake, porgies, flounder, blackfish[tautog] etc, or  on my own 18 foot boat  for fluke, bluefish, stripers etc.. Depends on whats around, time of year etc..  Mostly at the NJ shore.. I usually go alone as most people don't want to take the 225 mile   ride  each way, or don't want to spend the money.. anyway, i thought perhaps there might be a few guys that live/fish in the finger lakes region that would enjoy  these ocean/bay  trips now and then... Party boats  fares are about $70 including pool, plus whatever gas we use to get there and back, or if I take my boat, its gas, ramp fee and bait.. Probably a  $50-60 bill each to trailer a boat  down.. Thats usually a May -Nov type thing.. Party boats do sail all year btw,

if you are tough enough to fish on the ocean in 20 degree weather...

 In any case, I am just seeing if anyone in the area would like to    do some salt water fishing.. The fish are bigger, stronger and WAY better to eat than what we have up here... Thats why Wegmans gets $20 for a whole  1 1/2 pound Sea Bass, with the head, fins,gills still on!...  I don't stay down there, I leave candor around 1 am, get there around 5 or 6 am,, fish and then come home.. Its a long tiring day, but its a lot of fun, and some of the very best eating fish you can imagine.. Just putting it out there.. PM me with interest, and we can talk about it... bob

 Hope I can get out there once more before we get into another brutal winter.. I would love to try the north end around the state park.. Haven't fished there in years.
 Thanks to all that shared, and helping me realize i was simply being lazy, and not expanding my search  for active fish. I won't make that mistake again... I hope..
 I have 3 boats, but can't get to them as the area in my yard where they are is oozy soft  DEEP mud, and my 4 wd pickup sinks down to the axles, and just spins all the tires, when I make the attempt.. I  believe  I need to rethink my "boat storage area"... duh.. Oh well,, maybe I can get one of them out of the mud  before July hits.... bob

With all that has been written about Keyuka in the last few months, my thoughts.  Years ago we felt that the Lakers moved south in the winter to the end of the lake near the motel as that is where we found them March-May- LOTS of them.  Then they populated the bluffs and beyond.  Then ice fishing we got them real good at  the at the bluffs, we got a limit every trip, those two years, now to my of thinking it seems to me that they are home bodys, never leaving a very small area of the lake at any time of the year.  At first I thought that there were a few that acted like home bodys for a while then the big school came by and reloaded those spots and some of those resident fish joined the big school while some of the transients took to living a local life on that point for a while reloading the points.   What is your all thoughts on the general movement of them in Keyuka?????? They stay where their egg was laid.....jk

 It would seem to me they would have to go where thier food is most readily available -wherever that is.. Food is foremost.. Just look at the Finger Lakes.. Lakers by nature area bottom fish.. salmon, rainbows and browns are stream fish.. Smallmouth bass are a fish of rock bottom streams.. Pike are weed dwellers.. Yet ALL of these fish are turned into open water fish at times in the fingers -- they might be 75 feet down over 150 fow, because thats where the bait is.. We have all caught bass while laker jigging near bait, FAR from the rocks/ sparse weeds/docks/structure they should be relating to by nature.. Some of us have caught Pike as well while laker fishing, with the closest weed 1/2 miles away,,, Why?.. They were relating to their primary food source. usually sawbellies in the large Finger Lakes... Food WILL trump habitat and temperature preferences, at least some of the time... bob

 Actually I feel better knowing I was just fishing the wrong area.. I need to STOP assuming fish will always be in the same spots I always used to catch them. Can't catch fish that aren't where you are fishing... bob

 Never thought about the fact that they may have moved due to the spawn.. I know they spawn a lot later  at  Keuka than they do on Cayuga.. In Cayuga most of the fish move away from the north and south ends of the lake and go to areas between Myers and Sheldrake, with a majority near the park.

 I suppose they might move  in keuka during the spawn as well ,... I dunno, either that or I just suck at fishing.. Just NEVER saw such empty screens as long as I have been jigging lakers , at least 20 years. Not even 1 chaser today...    Our friend Copperliner has told me the area he did well at, and it was nowhere near where i was...   Maybe next time... bob

 Was out today from 6:15 am till 11:30, jigging near the Bluffs. All depths from about 80 to 150 FOW. Never had a touch, and saw almost NO fish at all.. A stray scratch  on the FF screen every 20 minutes or so... Keuka was for years my absolute best "go to" lake for lakers.. Nowadays, I can't even get a hit there .. haven't caught more than one or two  on any given day last few years.. It must be me, as other guys are getting a lot of lake trout in Keuka.. i simply am having trouble understanding how I have gone from always catching a ton of lakers there, to seeing none at all on the screen and not getting even a hit.. Saw no bait either.... I have not launched from the south end of the lake, and its been years since I have launched  at the state park in branchport.. Any ideas??.. Am i just fishing the wrong area by staying within a few miles of the Bluffs?... I used to see incredible screens all around that area, now i am waiting for a half hour to find one suspended mark, and for all i know, I am dropping the jig down on a carp or something... I also see  very few boats there anymore as well.. There were  couple guys in close to the shoreline either bass or perch fishing, but I was all alone fishing for lakers on a gorgeous 70 degree day... never saw another boat jigging deep around the Bluffs today.

Getting really discouraged  about fishing Keuka these days, as I simply can't figure out why all of a sudden, i started getting skunk after skunk , fishing  the same techniques, lures and areas I used to catch dozens of fish at...
Sorry for the rant, but I am really perplexed after  jigging  over 5 hours without even a hit.. I was going to go to Cayuga which is less than 1/2 the distance, but historically, Keuka was always hotter for me this time of year for lake trout so I took the ride,,,..   Not looking for spots  or anything.. just let me know if the Bluffs are the wrong place to fish Keuka these days.. Any help would be appreciated... bob

 I am closest to Cayuga of course, but the lakers there are still spawning, and sometimes I have trouble catching them on jigs  there this time of year, doing better again in mid November..
If anyone can correct me  and the lakers are hitting well there I would appreciate it..
Otherwise, I usually hit Keuka this time of the fall, but last few years there have been awful for me, since the sawbellies crashed, Again, if there are  some members catching them on jigs pretty well let me know.. I don't need particular spots, just real basic insight on  if the fish are fairly active...have also done well this time of year on Seneca around Samson, and the north end of Owasco, so again just a basic yes or no from guys jigging would be great... 

 I would appreciate any reliable intel from guys that have been scoring with jigs on any of the FL.. My time is REALLY limited so even getting out a half day has been super tough, and I would just prefer to hit water with some active fish if I possibly can,, Thanks to all... bob

Can't comment on trolling at night, but I would tend to doubt it.. I can say for certain however that lakers DO hit jigging spoons painted with flourescent paint.. The kind you have to shine a light on.. Paint  a few heavy jigging spoons  with it.. Get a good strong flashlight on it for  15 seconds or so and send it down to your marks.. they WILL hit at night.. However its a big pain in the butt.. You must reflash the lure every time you bring it up as  light effect  doesn't last long at all.. I would bet a cyalume stick on a  jigging spoon would draw hits as well, and last longer.. The question is .. "why bother?... Just go early in the AM, get your lakers, and leave early... bob

 Cayuga Lake panfishing  has changed.. Gobies have devastated the fishery..  At least for me anyway. Everywhere i go I catch Gobies and nothing but Gobies.. I no longer fish Cayuga for panfish after doing so with great success  for 25 years.. There are guys that say they still catch them good, but I haven't seen them do it personally.
 If you use worms, make sure they don't get close to the bottom, as they are  attacked by hundreds of Gobies instantly.. Those damn things are a curse..
 You might do better using minnows off the bottom and try and find some perch... 

Do you have a boat??.. If so, you would do a lot better for sunnies and perch at Cayuta Lake..There are a LOT of panfish there.. Small sinker, maybe 1/2 oz, and two hooks each with a 1/4 nightcrawler drfited along bottom  will get you into scads of nice sunnies, and some good size perch, with a LOT of action.. I caught  over 50 eating size panfish there a few weeks ago. If its real windy simply anchor up.. Anywhere on the lake is good,  I usually stay in water around 17-21 feet deep, which is the majority of the lake...  My grandson is 3 and he had a blast catching nice size sunnies there... bob

 Tournaments of ANY type are wasteful, and kill many many fish of all species, fresh and salt..
 In the words of the great salt water sportfishing  author Frank Woolner-

 "Fishing should not be a competitive sport, it should be a contemplative sport"..

 Bass fishing in Cayuga is a pale shadow of what it was, and MUCH of the blame rests squarely on the shoulders of the "sportsmen" who pound the  lake relentlessly in the dozens of tournaments held here each and every year.. it isn't just big money tournaments but dozens of small local club tournaments  as well.

 I look forward to a day when people stop trying to "outdo" one another with such a valuable and vulnerable natural resource.. We simply do NOT respect it at all.. Flame away,, I know a lot of members here love tourneys, but I myself despise them as I have personally witnessed the  horrible results.. Dead fish everywhere near the weigh in... bob

 Carp  do NOT eat rotten nasty dead garbage like bullheads and cats do.. They eat mostly  insect larvae, they LOVE Crayfish as well and will eat vegetation, fish eggs, small fish, worms etc.. They don't eat dead, decomposed rot  as  catfish do... bob
 

http://www.fishingmagic.com/fm-features/coarse_fishing/carp/15156-ian_gemson_carp_eat.html

 It would work perfectly.. Problem is, sawbellies are a pain in the ass to obtain and even worse to try and keep alive once the water temps go up..
 Also in the gigantic  great lakes[finger lakes as well], you simply need to cover a LOT of water.. miles and miles of it as most trollers know... With live bait you need to be right on top of the fish.. Its not all that workable a situation, but yes those sawbellies would be snatched up quick if you found a way to keep them alive all day and then get them down to where the fish are... bob

  Guff.. You mentioned "perch minnows"... Are you talking about generic small minnows the size that would be used for perch fishing , or actual baby perch?...

 

 I have been having awful fishing for about the past 2 years on Keuka, and really don't know what the problem is.. Years ago, if I caught 3 or 4 I was ashamed to report because everyone else was catching 20 or more... I had a few 30 fish days there  in the past.. Now I get skunked regularly.. Last time there in May I never even had a hit.. I couldn't even feel that bad, because I talked to several other boats and no one had more than one...  Something bad has happened in that lake in the past several years, or I simply  don't know how to fish it anymore.. I used to hammer lakers in the fall there.. Might try again in October/November before I write it off.. Like Hermit I spend more time fishing for Walleyes these days, but still love Keuka laker fishing, and hope it  comes back strong. bob

 yes... still here..

 Mark.. I would ship both of them for $70.. Might have to break them down just a bit to make the  shipping box smaller, but it won't be more than a screw or two each... bob

 They are Walker  Mini Laker downriggers.. Just go anywhere on the net and type in  those words, and you will get a million photos.. Cabelas has them at $115 EACH without weights.. Its only my opinion, but $60 for 2 of them, with downrigger  balls is a pretty nice deal, they are in EXCELLENT condition, basically unused... bob  607-659-5334