Capt Vince Pierleoni

So sorry to hear this Chris. You live in the right community-I'm sure Niagara county will show up big for your fundraiser. I will PM you shortly.

The Humminbird Helix series is tough to beat, very reliable and resolution is excellent.

If you can't easily afford to replace the transducer DO NOT run around in the lower river when theres ice chunks. That condition has been the death of many transducers. Have a 2nd simpler transducer, or a 2nd unit to use for depth. Store your valuable transducer in your splash well and zip tie up any loose cable. If you are using your unit for the gps function make sure to unplug the idle transducer so its not running out of the water.

In the late 60's and early 70's it was closed to fishing. When we were very young our dad would take us there and show us exploding largemouth by tossing sticks in the water. There was a window in time when it was first opened to fishing when the LM bass fishing was excellent. I know its deep enough to drown an ice fisherman so use caution if you try.

Falcons completely botched their last 2 drives and the challenge was a poor one, wasting a timeout they could have used in regulation. There's just no denying the greatness of the Pats coach and QB. Don't give them an inch, or they will take a mile. Casual fans got see why the NFL as a product is as big as it is.

We all went to Cabelas stand hunter stuff for late season. If its their label they will stand behind it practically indefinitely. Not sure if that will change with the Bass Pro merger though. The stuff usually goes half price post season. Now on the other side of the coin, what do you guys like for the "new normal", 70 degree Oct/Nov bowhunts? Aside from just going out in baselayers, whats out there in good patterns that will be light enough to fit the bill?

Dan, yes mussels are a factor but they only retain about about 10% of what they filter and there's nothing we can do about them now. The phosphorus reductions can be adjusted, and with the deforestation of the Great Lakes shorelines these reductions could very easily go too far.

The biggest concern is what they will consume nutrient-wise in Lake Erie. Not only would that affect the carrying capacity of gamefish in Lake Erie, but also Lake Ontario. 80% of Ontarios water comes from Lake Erie via the Niagara. IMO, the "clean water act" does more damage than good and should be immediately revisited. Sterile, crystal clear lakes are comforting to some, but hold low densities of gamefish.

I think it has more to do with the density of Lakers and year to year fluctuations in the contributions of natural fish in their fishery. Talk to some of those guys Gill T, its very enlightening. The 2 bad winters definitely but if it was stocking density you would not have seen such a sharp decline between 2013(big Kings) and last season. The culprit is the Laker agenda, but its not the Lake trout as a species fault.

Although the breakaway "dropper" is designed to fail first, it doesn't go through the abuse your regular cable or braid goes through(running over pulleys, on spools, through lanyards, ect). It is extra critical to examine the rigger the probe is on and perform more routine maintenance to up the odds against losing the whole "shebang."

Sadly, HB2, its the opposite. Despite all time high quality pressure on Kings and all the predation they endure, and the shortfalls in Coho, Brown Trout, and Steelhead stocking target numbers--they decided a stocking cut was the right thing to do. There were lots of important considerations not taken into account.

I think I know the harbor you fish out of. That trib has a dam on it and is trounced through by anglers. When you fish staging Salmon off that harbor, it will be primarily pen held stocked Salmon and direct stocked Salmon that have returned. The wild fish have "left the building" by then. They are already on the north shore and east end by then. The single biggest factor to the number there for you to catch at the end of 2-4 yrs when the matures come home is predation on the released fingerlings. Warm water species take their toll, but its primarily cormorants that crop the fingerlings as they may make their way downstream and after they slide into the lake and hang around the harbor for awhile. NY wanted to take greater measures to control cormorants but a lawsuit was threatened by the Feds. It is hoped with the new regime that serious control measures can be revisited.

Thanks for taking this on, Penny.

Horrible tragedy. Wishing his friends and family comfort and peace in this very sad time.