Sk8man

Good tip about the hemlock spinners if you can get beforehand. Stop at the Bait Barn between Naples and Middlesex or call there foirst and ask if they have any sawbellies live or frozen (frozen is actually better in terms of getting it to spin right). Run them behind the downriggers (6-10 ft) and/or the dipsey and spinney or flasher out 250-350. vary your trolling speed. Thermocline should be running between about 50-80 ft about now if you don't have a temp device. A lot of times about this time you can run right down the center of the lake. Fish below 70 ft for the lakers and in the 50-70 range for rainbows. Small spoons for the bows and trolled pretty fast, lakers slower 2.0-2.3 You could also run sliders on each rigger for rainbows above the hemnlocks (could have slight tangle but may be worth it). Troll Sutton spoons at slower speeds than the other spoons you may try.... again... usually 2.0 to 2.3 or 2.4 at the fastest for laker action. if after silvers exclusively fish specifically for them ....middle of the lake troll 2.4-3.2 small (non Suttons) spoons orange and copper, silver/copper, blue/silver, green/silver Vary your speed frequently, make a lot of (careful) turns. Good luck.

Mike I sent his info to you in a PM

Boat speed, number of colors out and the lure make a difference. For example with a very light flutter spoon and 10 colors out there can be a bow or belly in the leadcore such that it lifts the light spoon upward and higher speed will also lift the lure up from where you estimate it. A heavier spoon may give you a little more depth especially at slower speed. You can get a pretty good estimate by running a Fishawk TD on it and subtract a foot for the additional weight of it.

Nick you have a PM

Don't do it Mike. You'll lose your money and maybe compromise your credit card too.

Yeah it makes you wonder where they come from ....way out there in the middle of nowhere...I've often wondered if they hatch on the water out there or something...

I told ya that although kinda homely.....Mr. google eye could end up being a close friend Nick

Nice work! You sure had those browns dialed in....Those pesky flies seem to love it when it goes flat and the sun comes out

Might be time for the barbie rod Nick!

I'm not sure how you rigged your free sliders but we often account for about half our fish on them.I used to stack rods but I think they are more inconvenient to mess with than sliders. Folks use various lengths but I generally rig mine 6-8 ft long and I lower my first line about15 or 20 ft before attaching the slider.

Brian- First eating salmon eggs raw on Lake O and now this....what is the world coming to?

cinnamon fish - Thanks for posting this issue because I think a lot of folks may not realize the seriousness and/or extent of the problem.

bulletbob - Don't feel like a lone voice in the wilderness....you are exactly right in your description. Some of the folks on here haven't been around long enough to be able to remember when things were VERY different. It isn't just Sampson either. i grew up at the Geneva end of the lake and fished it every available moment as a kid from shore. There used to be a boat livery named Tuttles (rentals bait etc.) right where the launch is now at the State Park is now and all that land was owned by the City of Geneva back then before they turned it over to the State. There were docks all along there as there are now and we used to fish there all the time. You could see sunfish, bluegills perch, largemouths, smallies, rock bass, and carp and pike swimming all over the place. More importantly there were minnows of various species in gigantic schools swimming under and between the docks. You could catch any of the the various species almost at will Now the area is devoid of any observable life most of the time...even the annual spawning cycles of the bluegills and other fish in the Seneca marina has now nearly disappeared.The area where the Seneca River enters the lake where the T pier is held huge amounts of black bass and rockies and perch as did the bay near the Yacht Club. We caught huge lakers and pike right from shore at the Chamber of Commerce every Spring and off the seawall at the north end. There have been many changes in the lake over the years to the land surrounding (e.g. development) the lake and the water itself and then the introduction of numerous plant and animal invasive species on top of it. The lake has been stressed to the max from this combination and only remotely resembles the lake I knew as a kid. Seneca has also experienced many ups and downs in its long history too and sometimes it has appeared to rebound from some of these changes. Some of the added stresses to Sampson and the Seneca Lake State Park have been exascerbated by over fishing as well especcially during vulnerable times for the schooling fish (e.g. intense ice fishing of the perch at Sampson,. hammering the bluegill population while spawing at the Seneca Lake marina). I know there will be folks that feel that this is bull and that the populations of fish are cyclical etc. and that everything is fine out there.....but then there is reality.....some of this may be global in nature too.

When my kids were young I had a 13 ft Boston Whaler which had a custom dodger at the front of it for shelter and protection. I took my kids on the Finger Lakes at about age 5 (only one at a time) and ran 4 lines which was the max 2 per person at the time and even 4 Seth Greens often times. I made sure the kids brought along books, dolls, snacks and GI Joe men to play with and they always had life jackets on and I had a bunch of cushions up front that they could nap on if they wanted to. I also didn't fish for the long hours that I would normally fish by myself or with another adult. My son used a pee can but with my daughters I always trolled near where I could head for a bathroom if necessary and I mentioned to them about drinking excessive liquids and to take it easy on them. Only my son accompanied me to Lake O where the availability of bathrooms was not a practicality in most places. My son is still my fishing partner so I guess I didn't screw up too badly

As long as he is under 16

It sure does seem logical that if someone took it they would have grabbed both while they were at it. Those things if not checked routinely can work loose while you're driving down the road and pop off without you knowing it. That is where I would be focusing without actually seeing someone or something suspicious and then making that conclusion. Might be a good idea tocarry a spare just in case....