Sk8man

Very well said Justin. You covered some great points on both sides of the issue.

Nice going Pete and nice looking fish.

Zack is right.... the last I heard they were having difficulty finding someone to silver plate them. Here is their number 585-374-2628 It would almost be worth the trip there just to experience the store....like walking back in time to the fifties and sixties

They are almost always dead unlike bass tournaments and they are not released after caught (unless undersize) etc.

If they came with the rings I'd leave them on because the weight may be changed as well as potentially affecting the action directly. With that said I always check them at the side of the boat and see exactly how they are running before sending them out....and tune them if or when necessary whether duolocks are used or not.

Could be true... but everything I have ever read or seen myself or heard from others (e.g. Seneca Lake in 500 ft water out by barge suspended 275 -300 ft. never hit- including jigging over them) and other fishermen I've spoken with report the same thing....apparent dormancy. But then again I haven't seen the article either and have not fished those waters either (Huron). Les

I wonder how many of those deep Kings are actually caught or even hit though because freshwater fish that are found that deep are usually in a rather dormant state (i.e.resting and not feeding maybe?)

I strongly second L&M's advice John Mann is top rate and reasonable.

If you look closely at the Parker's as the first selection choice you may not even go any further....they are incredibly well built and well thought out boats. If I wasn't a hardcore Boston Whaler guy it is what I would want to be in.

When the fleas are bad I have downrigger rods with 30 lb Blood Run Mono which I use with 17 lb fluoro leader for spoons and sticks on Lake O but for hardware I have wire setups. By the way with wire rigs I was advised by Tuna Tom Reel Troubles to put at least a small amount on mono backing on the reel with wire to protect the spool integrity.. Often if braid/Spectra is used as backing a small amount of mono should put on first to keep the spool/drag from slipping especially while putting on the braid..I hear ya on the Flea Flicker stuff that is why I didn't mention it above

The braid will pick up fleas because of the texture primarily so they will adhere to both 30 and 50. The larger diameter mono and to an extent wire line does not allow the fleas to cling to it as easily. The larger diameter mono (e.g. 30 lb) is not necessarily the desired diameter people might want to use but if you don't want the fleas to clog your line....it is needed during flea season as they have a harder time clinging to it. There are also lines specially formulated to minimize fleas such as Blood Run Sea Flea mono that has a somewhat "slippery coating to discourage fleas and other lines as well.

Hats off to you fish-on! That dude was one lucky guy.

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16 or 18 inches to about 28 or 30 inches usually with a conventional diver set up. The reason I put it as a range rather than an absolute is that it can also depend on what types/sizes of "flies" you are running. Most of the guys have a set preference which is an "average" within that range and it works well for them and the the specific setups they normally are running or types of flashers as well. I make some of my own flies which I may "tune" as I go along depending on results or when the fish seem tentative or "spooky" and once in awhile even run a squid. The 24 inch average is a real good starting point but don't be afraid to experiment either...it is half the fun...especially finding something that works when nothing else seems to.

I'll PM you Jeff

That freaking ice can really do some incredible damage to docks, hoists and other stuff left out. One of my Seneca Lake buddies that used to fish with me during the winter and lived on the lake kept his 18 ft Blue Fin in his hoist over the water (around 1979) when we had the bad freeze and he got frozen in over night and then the ice starting really building up and he was totally trapped. The ice twisted up his new heavy duty hoist like a pretzel and crunched up his boat totaling it and the motor.

I was just thinking this particular year it may not be as much of a problem depending on the date of the second derby because my hunch is that this years regular derby will be a total bust (because of the water temp and conditions and few fish in the creek and that annual one is the one that draws the real crowd.

I agree with that. It is much too small and fragile a stream to support heavier fishing than is already the case....but like most things these days...it's all about the money.