chowder

I will be posting this on Great Lakes Trolling Gear and Facebook Marketplace tomorrow or maybe in the end I’ll just end up using it for Ontario in July, Erie in August , and Montauk in September like I have been, life is short after all…

607 361-3532

I’m selling my 97 2450 Crestliner fishing boat. It’s not a boat for cruising around in. It is purpose and practicality, solid and safe.. GM v6/ Volvo drive main . 25 hp 4 stroke kicker. 3 newer cannons, electric planers, Amish boards. Garmin PanOptix rear facing sonar. 13” and 10” Lowrance networked screens with Lowrance autopilot. Dedicated Lowrance 8” screen integrated with Lowrance radar. Fishhawk and SmartTroll temp at depth. Rocket launcher, custom rod tree, hd diver rod holders, custom rear station for Garmin and Lowrance + i Troll controller for main and kicker. Tracks, Bert’s holders. No tire kickers! 13K

My experience is a year ago but may still have some relevance for you. I'm fairly experienced with jigging for lakers on both hard water and open. i talked with an internet fellow before going to keuka but his insights did seem not help me. We had a bathymetric gps iphone map of Keuka and following this fellows advice we started in 30 fow judt outside the crowded pack off the parking area. no marks on vex and moved laterally 3 times , no marks on vex. I believe we moved out to 40 fow, no marks on vex. we jigged with a variety of plastics and hard baits to no avail, we were with another party that was unwilling to move from their first location because they were fishing with tip ups though they had zero activity. at some point around 2;00pm I had a laker smack my jig and after a breif fight got it on the ice. It was probably 18 inchs of medium to thin thickness. we actually saw a laker swim by at just about the macximum sight distance an hour later. That was it! I have never been to Keuka for ice fishing before and I'm unlikely to return. My synopsis as a charter captain and guide is that either the population density of lakers in keuka is not very significant or the pods of active fish do not move around very much because food is prevalent ( although we never marked any) or it was a down bite day ( I do not recall the barometric conditions as it was the only day we had). Ive had excellent days on Cayuga on the ice on the west side but good ice there requires excellent conditions that did not occur last year.

Any current info on Mexico Bay salmon appreciated

PM sent

Humpy

Is that 2nd picture where I ran the inside board into a tree forcing us to dock without permission at a foreboding looking place in crashing waves while you ran down the railroad tracks and got the board? Seriously though, what yesterday attests to is the fact that after a complete debacle in rough water and terrible weather the thing to do is regroup and make a new plan and then persevere. If you’re really lucky, you’ll have a fishing partner who feels the same way.

Hottest stick for me so far this Spring has been a good ol rapala in Hot Steel. Just saying…

I’m not aware of any reputable USCG licensed captains in my area who encourage customers to entertain the idea of using crew or captain’s limit.

Also a charter capt and agree with Rich. Rule on my boat is - if a legal fish comes over the side it counts towards your limit whether you keep it or not, for 2 simple reasons; #1. On average a fish released may or even more likely will probably not survive. #2. We can’t get into a situation in a derby where a customer wants to ‘release’ fish after fish to the detriment of the fishery.

PM sent about leaders, thanx

My first trip of any given new year is typically the first weekend of January so I’d say that I’m pretty far behind…

Launched in very shallow water at Treman about 10:00 am with my 22’ outboard boat. Prop was stirring mud while still trimmed up quite a bit . Navigated out the inflow in 5-8 fow. All systems checked out so deployed bow mount ( AP for my outboard boat), started kicker , put out boards and got 2 inside stix lines out near shore, headed N past docks, bouys , moored boats, guys on paddle boards in dark wet suits, etc. Picked up a decent LL on chartreuse jointed rapala fairly quickly and then a bow on a hot steel rapala 1/2 hour to 45 minutes later, temp avg 38.6. I was marking fish under the boat in 30fow so I put out a shallow rigger with a gold/orange scorpion spoon and a shallow braid diver with a Northport nailer mai tai glow. Sometime in the next 1/2-to 1 hour both of those presentations picked up browns and board lines had gleaned a couple LL shorts. By now the salt plant was well within view so I crossed the lake and reconfigured my lines. Water was colder by a degree but I was marking fish in 200fow. I deployed 2 wire divers with different spoons down 50 and 75 feet and a spoon rigger at 80 down. Within 1/2 hour to 45 minutes the deep diver had clobbered what looked like an Ontario Laker and the rigger hooked another Laker about 4 lbs. Seeing as how I had completed a full check on all my equipment and had accumulated a promising start to a nice baked fish medley , I called it good and gingerly navigated back up the inflow and after a lot of dicking around (from the perspective of a charter captain who is accustomed to launching or pulling a boat solo in 5 minutes) got the boat on the trailer and promptly headed to “The Lucky Hare” in Hector to celebrate the latest start to a fishing season I’ve ever had- Cheers!

I texted you- I’ll be in Ithaca Thursday. Got lead , need weights. Thanks!

Thanks. Never went anywhere this weekend.

Pine Plains Park, Penn Yann. Lakers in 40 FOW Saturday- glare ice.