Sk8man

  For sure but the top one was 12 footers on Lake O in my 13 ft. Whaler (not out there on purpose but...big storm came out of nowhere) I had been out in the shipping lanes for steelies. When I got back in to Sodus Point the fishermen on the pier were clapping and cheering for me because 40 ft. boats were struggling to get back in ...felt lucky to be alive (white knuckes to boot)

BazookaJoe is correct I meant to say to use the loop from the wrap (around my finger) not the arm of the Black...thats one of the problems with doing something a million times and then trying to explain it to others....your brain takes shortcuts

My Whaler has dual scuppers but they have rubber covers on the transom side of the holes to prevent the water from coming in ....other than when it is raining hard I've never had a drop of water in my boat period....even in 10-12 footers.

I've always had better luck with the sand eels for bigger fish...the smaller ones on the blood worms...also used a (larger home made) worm harness with the eels sucessfully.

Vic,

It sounds as though you are not looping the line about four turns before putting it in the arm of the release. For downriggers you want to wrap it around the arm a few times and then snap the thing in place after adjusting the tension (I set it to release with a 2 or 3 lb fish). For outriggers however I just slip the line in so I can let out more length or shorten while trying to get fish to hit without bringing in  the outrigger line.

It does sound like water temp issues. Thanks.

Sweet! Nice report too.

My son just phoned and said he is working at a cottage on the west side about 10 miles out from Seneca Falls on Route 89 and there are dead sunfish and bluegills and other fish all over the lake as far as he can see. Anyone know whats happening out there?

Kuba,

I think fishnwmn hit the nail on the head....if someone is serious about selling a boat they should be willing to take you for a spin in it before buying it. The motor should probably be your main concern since the boat has an aluminum hull dry rot is not an issue but you might want to look over the rivets and any signs of standing water having been in the boat. You can usually tell quite a bit by riding in it.

Good going Kevin. We've had trouble thus far finding good keepers around here ( I only keep them 10 inchs and above). Fun to catch and great eating. The pressure is on

Yeah the area is off limits until then.... Looks like about 9 1/2 to 10 pounds Pete

Yeah the spoons catch more fishermen than they do fish ...just look at the classifieds here

Just make sure ANY ball bearing swivel you use has solid rings NOT split rings.....the split rings can (an do) cut yor line with heavy fish.

I think it may have been around 2001-2003 but not dead sure.

I think that will correct the problem...a lot of time the shielding on the wire is too thin or broken or absent in some cases and could be either the depth finder or other proximal wires creating the interference.

Good going Pete! Is it a Keuka laker?

Heck of a report. Your dad sure did the right thing early in your life. He has given you the gift of a lifetime....a hobby that will cut across all the trials and tribulations of life as well as supply a lot of joy in doing something you love...my son has been my fishing partner since 2 1/2 yrs old and he is 35 now...we fish everything from Crappies and Bullheads to Kings and ice fishing as well. It's a great bonding factor! Enjoy yourself and best of luck this season.

A number of marine suppliers (maybe West Marine for example) carry non-skid tape material for use on boat trailers and the attached "walkways" some of them have. It would probably be somewhat similar in appearance and function.

Lakers are largely bottom oriented and often found in deep water (100ft plus depths) and they are often found near or within bait pods. During the Spring however large lakers come into the shallows looking for baitfish in there spawning and therefore can be found at a variety of depths and on bottom in shallow water as well as within a variety of points within the water column. They are "opportunists" and they have been known to eat sunfish, small bass, perch, and even small pike and other smaller trout in addition to the usual alewives and rainbow smelt. They also can compete for food with larger species such as large pike without concern in the shallows. Their habits are similar in each body of water (Great Lakes and Finger Lakes for example) but there are also variations in each lake too (habitat, bottom characteristics,  food amounts/availability etc. In the Finger Lakes lakers can be caught in the Spring by nearly all of the usual methods of trolling (top lining, lead core, downriggers, dipseys on mono as well as wire, flashers and fly/squid, cowbells/peanuts/spin-n-glows etc.) and also quite easily by still fishing with English hooks and sawbellies (alewives) or smelt either drifting or anchored, and very successfuly by "pulling" or "jerking" copper wire either by hand, on an automatic reel such as the A &S automatic, or an old fashioned victrola rig using spoons such as the Pfleuger 4 or 5, Ace spoon tied directly to the copper wire, or flutter spoons or twin minnows/flatfish on mono leaders all banging bottom or close to it with or without weight attached where the copper meets the leader. Jigging for lakers can occur all year and is done by using regular rods and reels as well as "adapted" ones either anchored or drifting with a fairly heavy jig and a 3-5 inch rubber shad or other "soft bait" immitation.  All this can be done in relatively shallow depths in the Spring but in recent years the water clarity has dictated deeper troilling with everything when exceptionally clear conditions exist (as noticed recently all over) as the larger fish are usually there while more juvenile lakers are often found out deeper. As the season progresses (late Spring/early Summer) the use of Seth Green rigs is very effective using multiple leaders/lures ( 5 are allowed per rod) and flutter spoons, and wire rigs with dipseys and flasher/fly combos, copper wire rigs and braid wth Spin Docs, Cowbells etc. as the fish move out to deeper water. Thermocline (Seth Green) rigs and copper jerking are seldom used on lake Ontario but all of the other methods mentioned apply there as well as numerous others. I may have missed something but this is basically it. Others may have things to add or other different methods I failed to note (I'm "old school")

 think it is a rod holder the angle is too high for an outrigger mount....it sure isn't goingto break!

I guess we're all having our little screwups with the boats...I just took mine in to be looked at....switch that raises and lowers motor (on motor itself) stopped working last time out...better now than at height of season or during the derby

Great report, nice fish and how often do you see Lake O looking like in those pics this time of year? 

Nice fish and report Kev....always something with boat and motor repairs though... yesterday i discovered that the button to raise/lower the motor on the motor itself no longer works ...at least we have tiime before the derby but then again....will it be something else?

Tom,

Nice report and pics....the old "trebles in the net syndrome" looked familiar  as well