kisutch

Lake Michigan is in a resurgence stage in alewife recruitment. Something like five year classes of alewife now exist. No the lake is not dying nor is it looking even remotely like lake Huron. I believe the lake has also produced two fish over 40 lbs the last two summers. We are on a pretty good the upswing in alewife biomass.

If anything New York and Ontario should get way more serious in getting a handle on how much natural reproduction is occurring in the watershed. Lady O is definitely not in the need of an icrease in king stocking. Actually a sharp decrease in stocking, like what took place on Lake Michigan, would go a long long way in taking pressure off the alewife stock. It hurts not seeing leaderboards covered in 30 plus pound kings. This is what really needs to happen. Seeing way to many big head skinny kings the last few years. Having days of 30 to forty bites a day is not reality. It is signs of very hungry and stressed fish. They need more food. The lake needs less predators.

Kisutch

Drink more Kool-Aid. Who sits in these backrooms and comes up with this crap. Oh, I missed it. The USGS. These fish, Salmo Salar, are a non starter. But still they get pushed along thru the pipeline. Somebody please take a boat ride across the lake to the Credit river and take in their nonexistent "world class" atlantic fishery. Enough of this garbage. Fix the steelhead problems and you will "right" the river fishery. Anything to put another chink in the body armor of Dr Howard Tanner. Please take all the Atlantic brood stock to the dump.

Kisutch 

South Sandy Creek was to be treated end of May first part of June. I have the treatment schedule right in front of me.

Maybe our neighbors to the north have decided that they no longer have to poison their streams.

Kisutch

10 hours ago, Tall Tails said:

What information can you provide about the impact of the reintroduction of the "native" species of Cisco/whitefish by the federal government that it has had on the food web/pyramid for the Alewife?  They compete for the same source's correct?  is there a correlation in your data that shows a drop in Alewife biomass with an increase in your Cisco/whitefish biomass over the last 8 to 10 years?  Also is there another similar correlation with the smelt that you have found?

Ah the introduction of lake herring and further pressure on alewife. Up here in Michigan the tribes have decided to take that ball and run with it. With the blessing of the feds but not Michigan DNR. Yes the state was wanting to let the survivors, that existed in the straits, do their thing and let nature run. But the tribes have been dumping God knows how many in for quite some time. Now up in Grand Traverse Bay, east and west, you can't catch a salmon or steelhead. But you can go sit in 100 feet of water and jig up some nice inedible alwife consumers. These fish are probably the most voracious fish that swim. Period. They consume the same biomass that our young salmonids need to grow. Up here the moron public have bought into this new fishery. Cisco have replaced what was once a salmon fishing destination into a "Look I caught a fish" fishery. It is a mess.

I won't even get into the purse seine situation. Yes purse seines. Cant wait.

It has been another nail in our coffin. Just more and more pressure on the alewife. It is all part of the plan.

You can go to meetings and voice your opinion or you can do what I did over here in Michigan. You come to the realization that some people in far away places have figured out what's best for your fishery. As my byline says "Former Lake Michigan Stakeholder". And yes I have been to meetings. At some point you just have had enough.

So let them know how you feel about your coming lake herring fishery. I ask everybody if they have ever had a Cisco rip 100 yards off a spool. My buddy caught one on a 3 inch alewife during an upwelling event last summer. Boy was he happy to send that pic to my phone. 

Kisutch 

God Bless Dr Howard Tanner 

Former Lake Michigan Stakeholder 

Lake Michigan Lake Trout Gillnetters Association 

Alewife what?

14 hours ago, jimski2 said:

Many 40 pounders were not weighed in for contest entries.

On the north shore 40's were weighed but not an everyday occurrence. Started fishing out of Bluffers in 87. Those Canadians never bothered to evening fish. Had Lady O to ourselves for the late shift. What a time to see a dynamic ecosystem in ebb and flow. One morning in 125 feet of water the screen was top to bottom alewife. Still, to this day, the largest school of alewife I have ever put on the graph in my life. Oh and it was one line per man. The Yogis were always present and you didn't cheat. Try fishing like that. 

So I went and drug up the weekly standings of the Toronto Star Great Salmon hunt pre internet. Yes I clipped the info out of the paper. Yes I had axbuddy who collected the rag for me. One little tidbit from 1989. I have a large collection of data. For the week. Yes this is for the week. For the week of July 22 to the 26th the top 55 fish. Once again this is for one week. The top 55 fish including two 40 lbers went down to 32.18 lbs. 55th place during that week would damn near win the ESLO the last few years. On the north shore that last week and a half of July I could not sleep. The majority of monster fish, even today, are caught over there during this time frame. So now you can get  a feeling what was going on back then. I'm grateful to have lived thru this time period. You guys see 30 foot bait balls and get excited. We were looking for 60 and 80 foot bait balls that looked like a bomb went off in them. If they were tightly packed you kept searching. When you ran over that obliterated stack of bait you put in your effort there. The big boys were there. What an era of this once great fishery. When the Yogis flew up on my  boat they always wanted to know what a guy from Michigan was doing over here. Clueless. Just clueless.

Just found a missing clip for the weekly standings. The following week there were three 40 lbers weighed. So Jimski that makes 5 in two weeks.

Kisutch 

God Bless Dr Howard Tanner 

Former Lake Michigan Stakeholder 

Lake Michigan Lake Trout Gillnetters Association Join now 

Alewife what?

 me 

The 2001 monster class of kings was brought about by the largest documented spring alewife recruitment which occurred in 1998. That was an epic alewife year. Lake Michigan showed the same survival. This occurred just before the quagga invasion. That year class of alewife carried the fishery for 5 years and it was astounding the size of those kings. On Lake Michigan that late summer you had to show a coho pushing 20 lbs to turn heads. It was that incredible.

What made it happen? It is pretty easy to figure out if you look at the late  spring weather patterns. Temperature!'Temperature and temperature alone. The alewife are always spawning but what makes it highly successful. The fish need to spawn in their preferred water temp and the we need a heat wave. I'm talking 80 to 85 degrees plus in early June. This gets what's left of the plankton doing their thing which in turn allows the free swimming, but not very mobil, emerging alewife to fuel up. 2010 was a great year and 2012 a nice bump but those back to back harsh winter did a number. Then 2016 happened, which was another strong year class on Lake Michigan, and up here in 2019 we were putting up 30 lbs fish left and right. It didn't happen for Lady O and it still bothers me why it failed in the healthiest lake per biomass.

So pray for a normal spring and then a nice hot early June. It can do special things for alewife recruitment. 2020 was pretty damn good for alewife up here in Michigan. By far the most little dudes I've seen in the harbors and in the shallows along the shore in 10 years. I hope it happened for you guys.

One thing you should understand the Feds are out to destroy your silver fish fishery. They have given us almost 50 million Lake Trout over the last 20 years. They have consumed our once great brown fishery and now it appears they are inhaling the steelhead plants also. This will be my 45th year pursuing these great fish. If they continue to tell you that Lake Ontario needs more lake trout please tell them to go pound sand.

Kisutch 

God Bless Dr Howard Tanner 

Former Lake Michigan Stakeholder 

Lake Michigan Lake Trout Gillnetters Association 

Alewife what?

One other thing. The second run kings last year on the Kenai was one of the worst returns ever recorded. Don't expect that river to be opened for the targeting of kings for many years. It's a mess.

Kisutch 

The two easily accessed towns are Ketchikan and Sitka. Alaska air drops you into both. My choice would be Craig, Alaska on Prince of Wales Island. That is either a ferry ride or float plane trip from Ketchikan. You might not get the bear viewing you seek but the whole southeast part of the state is stunning. The Kenai peninsula is just run over with people now and just not the same. 

Kisutch 

Southeast Alaska is where you want to be for kings these next two summers. They had great recruitment the last two years with this year being exceptional. The young kings were looking like they were finding plenty of forage. I feel that 30 and 40 lbs fish are going to be very common down that way. Anywhere along this coast will get it done. 

The halibut situation is a GAF fishery for large butts. This is not cheap. You are paying for a commercial quota that was bought buy your charter outfit. They did raise the size limit for non residents last year that really helped putting more white meat on cleaning tables. But for a true "barn door" and being non resident the GAF program is the only way being guided.

Kisutch 

Bluffers park east of Toronto. You will have the the lake to yourself in the evenings. Oh and that bottom structure.

Kisutch

A lake trout can swim that distance? Which research boat took it for a ride? This study is a pure waste of my tax dollars. 

Kisutch 

1 hour ago, Gill-T said:

They do well in Lake Michigan 

They are doing extremely well on Michigan. I have personally talked to the Wisconsin bio running there seeforellen program. They are quite happy with their trophy brown trout fishery. Check out the Racine Salmon a rama website. They still put up some gorgeous fish.

Kisutch

7 hours ago, jerryriggin said:

Not buying the size decrease isn't because of bait fish. Lake michigan went years without producing 30lb kings. Now the last couple of years size has came back in a big way with even a 40+ lb king being caught.

Been fishing both lakes for over 30 years. First trip to lake o was in 1987. What I witnessed on my graph was truly remarkable. 100 foot plus school of alewife. The water clarity was nil which allowed those big fish to move into trolling spreads and not be spooked. Your lake is now totally out of balance on the predator prey situation.  Over on Michigan my managers were very lucky after 2012 that natural recruitment took a serious crap or we would be looking like huron. Lake Michigan over the last three years have definitely produced larger fish than lake o but the numbers of matures has been greatly reduced. Thus making us having to work much harder for our fish. 

Kisutch

My roses have never looked better. I appreciate my tax dollars going towards a worthy cause. The feds are out to destroy  your fishery it has not sunk in yet. 

Kisutch

Hey Trump Build That Wall

Lake Michigan Lake Trout Gillnetters Association Join now

I speak from first hand knowledge

I see the feds are giving you guys an additional 300,000 Lakers this year and the next, and the next.... We are hammered with 2000 consent decree which is up for a redo in 2020. I can't wait to see how we get slammed with this one.

After BKD struck our fishery I started fishing the north shore out of Bluffers in the mid 80's. What a fishery at the time. The Canadians didn't fish the evening's and to have that structure all to yourself was just awesome. 100 foot schools of alewife and absolutely no visibility in the water column. Truly special.

Kisutch

Hey Trump build that wall

Lake Michigan Lake Trout Gillnetters Association join now

God bless Dr Howard Tanner

Over here on lake Michigan we get stuffed with over 3 million worthless Lake Trout every year. It is absolutely deplorable what the Feds are doing to our silver fish fishery. I have been to many meetings and nobody listens to what the real fishermen actually want. As a matter of fact I now club every laker and leave them for the gulls. That is how tired of the situation I am. My main biologist for lake Michigan owns a cartop boat with an 8 horse kicker. This is what I deal with.

Kisutch

Hey Trump build that wall

Lake Michigan Lake Trout Gillnetters Association join now

God bless Dr Howard Tanner

Was that the same Italo who got nailed for filming in a closed section of River because he could not help himself.

Kisutch

Esox I'm looking for 28's in black and white tape color doesn't matter.

I'm not a fishery biologist, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. That there fish is a coho. Noway that is a king. That is one helluva of a fish.

seiche