Capt Vince Pierleoni

It was a whirlwind trip to seatrial a boat I never thought I would own. This economic climate is good for something. Spent time in Waukegan harbor (IL), Winthrop Harbor (IL), and Kenosha (Wisc). The marinas were incredible! Modern, clean, bustling, and full of high-end boats and yachts. Not much going on North of Waukegan yet. Pier fishermen casting for Browns, and catches of approx 15 Cohos coming from Waukegan and south. Anglers very happy with coolers of 2-4 lb Cohos, and they should be. They treasure the Coho fillets, and lots of large charterboats running Perch trips until the Cohos and odd Kings show up. Great to be back and looking forward to our season here.

I have had great luck with the Fish Hawk 840. I have upgraded to the Fish Hawk X-4 and expect it will be even better with longer battery life.

Thats what you,and most reasonable people would surmise. Unfortunately, we are dealing with "smiling coyotes"(thats a term I've coined for the way they present to us), they are cash grabbers. The reason the Somerset plant was built there, in that location, was it was a short run to real deep water. Makes NO sense to consider putting them there, for any reason. Not to mention, losing a great piece of fishing water to an artificial eyesore.

NYPA will be represented at this meeting by Sharon Laudski. Jon Reimann, AES Somerset project manager will attend. It will be held at the Barker Fire Hall, 660 Quaker rd. Barker, NY on April 20 at 7pm. Public welcome. The bullets are becoming faster and more numerous.

Something is very wrong. The fact that it is a "showroom" model should have nothing to do with it being unwarrantable. Any dealer in his right mind would expect to be backed up by the manufacturer , in this competitive market, for helping to promote and sell their product. Do you really want a motor they won't stand behind because it was "trailered around"? Call the manufacturer with the serial number, and tell them you want it as a condition of sale if you really want that one. Otherwise, consider Honda. Even a lightly used one will have a transferrable warranty that you won't need to use anyway. I watch these outboards get the daylights beat out of them all winter on the Niagara.

Was an article in a Watertown paper April 13th, stating that they are building a large windfarm IN the water off Wolfe Island. The Canadian firm that landed the contract gleefully exclaimed how much more the energy would cost. It also stated that Ontario Province is throwing around 8 BILLION dollars for such contracts. There is a meeting coming up in Barker(can you say, SOMERSET plant?) soon. I will post details on its own thread shortly.

Why? I would say they were trying to get some dramatic, "cool" footage. Very, very, lucky. If he didn't survive I would think it inappropriate to post. As it turns out, it should save someone at some point. Thanks Stan.

Love and appreciate both species. The Steelhead is probably the most adaptable gamefish of the Salmonoids. They can be crazy active in the dead of winter, in water that would be as solid as concrete if it wasn't moving, and wicked in water better suited for bullfrogs in the dog days of August. There are trade offs, as with anything. The warm water fish have brought many ridiculed anglers to their knees, but if they don't ruin you early they peter out quick. The Kings, with their "serial killer" eyes, fry you mentally some days and steal your tackle others. The stamina they exhibit in the cool water of the Spring, is certainly one reason why they are aptly named the "King".

Definitely more spirited in warmer temps. Rarely clear the water in the Niagara during the winter(33 degrees), but in the 40's--look out! If you haven't experienced open water mid-Summer "IRON", you owe it to yourself to see what they can do in 60 degree water. The strike of a Steelie on a wire diver in warm water is absolutely sinister!

Yeah, Gotta Bite, DW bought up Fuzzy Bear spoons when they were gonna close up shop. Shane had respect for the product because he fished against guys in tournaments in Michigan who did well using them. They had a following, and the DW boys wanted to take advantage of it. If you're going to own a a tackle business, you have to "LIVE IT", as ATOMIK Tommy Allen knows.

Great posts guys, I agree with all of you. The only reason they want to put them in the Lakes is financial. No societal or financial gains whatsoever for US. It IS about "NOT IN MY BACK YARD". They don't want them in Long Island, so just throw 'em up north where the simpleton rednecks live, you know, the "rust belt". Sorry, but I fish very little in lake Erie, and I don't want them there either. Just plain wrong. Since when did this "Wonders of the world" area become a convenient place for eyesores? Last time I checked, if you had to much runoff into this watershed, it had to be approved by the DEC. This whole project isn't just "fishy", it's CRIMINAL.

Congrats! A smart move, and long overdue. I hope the area supports you. Good luck with the venture.

Very nice looking rig. Those Parkers mean business, and have a very efficient use of space which I appreciate in all "battlewagons", large and small. Good Luck with it, and this season.

It could be a bad connection robbing power or a weak battery. Discount this before moving on to those possibilities.

I want to thank LOTSA members and everyone one who assisted them with the pens today. I missed being there this year. I hope the Cafora's buffet was awesome for all the helpers!

Good point Jimski. The 21inch minimum size on Steelhead is a prime example of that. It is a "feel good rule". DEC themselves said that it was a social issue, not much proof at all of it contributing to more returning Steelies to the tribs. The 3 biggest reasons for better returns to your favorite trib of mature Steelhead, in my opinion: 1) Good numbers of Salmon around--locations and tactics can vary greatly from Steelhead approaches. DEC census, and my own personal records testify to this. 2) Stocking practices, including the addition of penning Steelhead. Guys, there are just way more warm water predators and cormorants around than there were years ago. In fact, in some areas, we are actually stocking Walleye to increase their numbers. West coast fishery managers, our Lake Michigan friends, and most recently Lake Erie managers, have documented a connection between Walleye populations and poor returns of Steelhead. It is the single biggest reason why penning Salmon and trout got started in places like the St Joe river in Michigan, and the Columbia river on the west coast. 3) Cormorant control, or at least stocking in such a way as to lessen the losses to them. There have been many cases where entire plants were eradicated shortly after stocking by Cormorants. The disoriented yearlings are easy prey shortly after being dumped down a tube, sometimes into vastly different water temps. Thankfully, concerned anglers have helped in many ways by becoming involved. The baitfish subject is another very good point. The Niagara is currently experiencing a great smelt run. I know they try, but we don't have a very good handle on smelt numbers, or the incredible emerald shiner boom. These have been contributing mightily to our target species food source. Lastly, that 21inch Steelie minimum makes me crazy for two reasons. 1) Often, lake caught Steelies in that 21" and under range are the most vicious feeders out there. They have to be to get their share. Problem is, they gulp lures deeply, often getting the gills or tongue. They may swim away, but that spells death for them, and a wasted resource. Bothers me to have to return a mortally wounded fish, especially the exact ones that would be great table fare. I have several groups that will only harvest injured fish, and for the ones that want 'em all, we then will take a replacement of some kind that otherwise wouldn't have been taken if we were allowed to keep the one we should have. 2) We all know how important it is to introduce newbies to the fishery, and have our tourist anglers enjoy their experience. That size Steelie is very easy for them to mis-identify as a small Salmon. If they get a ticket for that, when they have only caught a couple fish, it could sour them on the whole deal. Heck, I even see Tourny competitors penalized or disqualified for not knowing their 20inch fish was a Steelie. You are right Jimski, sometimes knee-jerk actions for selfish reasons are counter-productive in the long run for all of us.

Guys, this is incomplete and should not be up yet. The people working on it are excited about what will come out, but thats not it.

Very nice Steelie!!! One of the things about trib fishing is incredible amounts of big fish can end up in very small water. Skilled anglers like yourself can have a "field day". Just a reminder, the gills area of any fish is the most fragile part they have. It is their lungs. Unless you are keeping them for the table or mounting, try to refrain from grabbing them inside the gills if you want 'em to return even bigger for you next time!

This is a common mistake made by newbies. If you shackle Bruce's hands with such a short outing, he will be limited to where he can go, and be in a rush to produce some action. He will have much more flexibility and time to show you things with at least a half-day trip, usually around 5 hrs. If after 3 hrs or so you've had enough and think you have learned enough, tell him so. People are often afraid to tell us to take them in. As long as Bruce gets his rate to justify the run to fish he will surely make, everyone will be happy. I have known Bruce a long, long time, and he is a fine choice in the Genesee area.

Day in, and day out, Raymarine makes great products and has great customer service. If you don't want to go that route, west marine is running in--store specials on their vhfs. They hold up well. Call the one nearest you, but I saw at least two left at the one on Niagara Falls Blvd( Amherst area). They were half-price.

Perhaps you have a trailer that needs some parts, or a damaged trailer. I have a Shoreland'r, combination roller/with front bunks. Has the winch, dolly, 2 good rims, 2 decent tires(one is flat). Frame is painted with some rust. Axle is broken. $200 or best offer. Trailer was originally for a 19-22' boat.

The original reason for designing the DW superslims, WAS for Steelheads. They are fantastic Steelhead producers, and with a little weight should produce just fine off your boards for you. They have many, many Steelhead colors. LaRocks in Newfane, and Slippery Sinker in Olcott have good selections. For online purchases, I'm sure DreamSteelie Pete @ GreatLakes tackle site has all the DW stuff. The NK C-5 is another great surface Steelie spoon, with or without weight. Don't limit yourself to just red with any of these, orange variations are solid producers.

Allen, there is always trade-offs. Lighter line usually means more strikes, but at a cost of lost tackle and fish. 6lb test is too light for trolling with stickbaits(floater/diver plugs) in my opinion. Spoons would be ok, because they have only one hook. The problem that arises, especially with spring Coho, is the rolling/thrashing trout and salmon get the line wrapped into the other hooks on the plugs. This often results in a break-off. I think 10lb. leader is as light as you can go and still not leave a bunch of fish swimming around with your lures. 10-15lb mainline, with slighty lighter leader, is a good compromise for Spring Browns in all but the Clearest of water conditions.

Thanks Dave, great lil' message to read Easter morning. Don't be a HATER. You have to have nerves of steel, and the stomach for livin' on the edge to hang with us. ALWAYS pack 25hrs into 24hr, even if it is a Tourny day! BTW, we made it to my daughters graduation with FIVE minutes to spare. You know what I said? "Damn, poor clock management, coulda fished longer!" Happy Easter to you and Jeannie, oh yeah, and Jessie. I have to get over there, she's probably missin' my pizza crusts.