Sk8man

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

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

My son and I went out last night and fished for them at 12:01 AM. We were using our usual rapala like lures which normally get us some good keepers. I had only one hit and my son caught a largemouth about 3 pounds (released) and that was it. We fished for about 2 hours or so ( I had to go trout fishing on Canandaigua at 6AM ish). The wind came up wicked out of the west and we were on the east side so we got hammered and I think that was a lot of the problem. I am also wondering if they are still in the streams spawning because everything seems as though it is "behind" so far this season..

70 ft down (over whatever) and 80 ft down etc. that they were running the lures at and 10 color leadccore line (lead weighted line with dacron type covering) which is colored differently every so many ft so you know how much line you have out. 10 different colors is theusual maximum folks are able to get on a reel. It is used for "slight to medium" depth trolling most of the time.

Browns are quite vulnerable to lamprey attacks because of their bottom oriented feeding/staging habits and preference for wide range of water temps which brings them into contact with lampreys at a higher probability rate than other species that are more suspension oriented and higher ranging fish in the water column.

Best of luck....sounds sort of "semi-relaxing"

I guess I'd just as soon go with opinion than spend a couple hundred bucks on a book.

How does your speed seem to compare to theirs? You may be going a bit fast for this time of year Try 1.9 to 2.3 for starters. How far back and how deep are you running your lines? Try running them further back at about 125-200ft in the clear water. Try going on diagonals from close in (e.g. 10ft of water) out to deeper water. Do "s" patterns in your trolling. put your motor in neutral every once in a while briefly and then give it a little gas sometimes they will hit with the change of speed. If it is dead calm try "rocking" the boat as you troll. Change lures frequently (type, size and color) and change the running depth each time too until you start hitting them. Run your boards as far from the boat as practical (depending on boat traffic etc). If all that doesn't work...try fishing in a different area.

What about drifting and jigging with rubber shad? Too much current?

yes and maybe even more in the clear water

Renegade (about 4 inches)

12:01 at Honeoye with my son tonight. I'm hopeful... last year I had two good keepers and one that got off at the last moment on the first day but the water temps are different this year so who knows? Its fun anyways. I'm also going after the trout early tomorrow morning on Canandaigua so it doesn't look like a whole lot of sleep tonight...especially if the walleye action is there. Good luck fellas!

The water all over the place is being reported as very clear so you may want to run your lines further back and run a little deeper water. The fish you are marking in that depth may or may not be trout for one thing. When I use weight I usually just place one or two (at most) #3 split shot about 2 or three ft above the lure. Unless you are running very fast this should keep you well beneath the surface. Light line is also a good idea (8-10 lb) for most situations with a fluorocarbon leader (6-8 ft long) and very small swivel snap.

Great looking on both counts

I run dipseys from wire and braid on 6 1/2 ft. roller tip rods successfully but the most I run is 9 rods....not 18 like some of the folks and I'm real careful on turns

Still beats sitting home like last winter

Ahhh Ok thanks. They hitting the bloodworms on bottom? Was wondering about using large nightcrawlers or even small "tubes" if having trouble locating bait? I've never river fished for them just in the ocean....

The Furunos are what most of the "big boys" on the ocean use but the price tag keeps them out of reach for a lot of us sport fishermen....great units though

Hey Nick, It's hard to tell from the pic which bridge that it and which direction?. I know it isn't the Walkway

Yes that's what I'm hoping for....

There are times when it could be double the frustration (as when marking them but they won't hit )

I'm pretty pumped too. I've been rigging equipment all winter.....I'm still not certain what they are going to do about the north end weigh station this year as they knocked down the Chamber Of Commerce Building. I hope they have something at the north end as it sure helps on gas not having to run all the way to Sampson full tilt just to weigh something (if I fish to the north). Last year mine was flopping on the scale though I was at Seneca today looking around at the Long Pier....the water was crystal clear to the bottom for as far as the eye could see. A good rain a couple days before the derby could certainly help out in stirring things up a little ....I've come up with a few bizarre new weapons this year...must have been the long winter