muskiedreams

I just found out that the NY Chapter of the American Fisheries Society has posted some new video presentations from their 2016 meeting. This one in particular caught my eye. Timothy DePriest of the NYS DEC gives an overview on habitat restoration efforts that have been going on in the Upper Niagara River which I found to be very informative and interesting. There was actually another major project he did not discuss that was completed in January, of installing 4 different deep water fish attracting structures. Some were made from large rocks and one was made up of 17 car size boulders. That project was managed by the Niagara Musky Association. Niagara River habitat improvement projects: adaptive approaches to a high-energy system. You can see last year's presentations there as well. Manny of last year's were related to muskie and pike management. This one Presented by Jeff Loukmas gives a good statewide overview. Esocid Management in New York State.

That sucks. Is it anyone I know?

Yes. Good to get together with everyone. Some who came from a distance and a couple new members. Good food good conversations and all around very good time. Zach won the vote for the Mark Troy Memorial award which will be awarded at the May 16th meeting.

The Banquet should be a good time tonight. 6pm at Keenan's Restaurant, 1010 E. Ridge Rd. in Irondequoit. $25/person. It will be buffet style with carved roast beef and roasted chicken. After dinner there will be 2015 awards presentation and raffles. Several members will be traveling some distance to be there.

Thanks to everyone for signing up. The more data they have, the more useful it is. Even if you only fish there once or twice. It is like having more pixels on a photo.

If you are expecting freezing temps, just lower them down to drain the water from them before leaving the launch. Of course you will have to raise back up for travel. Keep them lowered when parked, especially if there is precipitation and freezing temps.

That is great Brent. If you can get others to do it that would be great too.

I am particularly asking for musky anglers to participate in the Angle Diary Study for Waneta and Lamoka lakes but this message can apply to all diary studies that the DEC is conducting throughout the state. You can check with regional offices for the water that you fish to see if they are conducting a study on those bodies of water. Diary studies are a very valuable tool for the DEC and also for participants. In 2013 Brad Hammers, DEC Region 8 Senior Aquatic Biologist came to one of our Muskies Inc, Chapter 69 meetings. We invited him because we wanted to do what we could to help with the management of the muskie fishery in Waneta and Lamoka Lakes. We heard that he was interested in starting an angler diary study specifically for the purpose of gathering valuable information from musky anglers that would help them better monitor and manage musky population there and we wanted to help him get it going. There has been a very modest amount of participation. In 2014, 12 diaries were handed out 7 were returned at the end of the season. In 2015, 13 diaries were mailed out but only 5 were returned. I know some may not have been returned because the angler fished with another participant and you can only log a trip in one diary. But weather that is the case or maybe you didn't fish there that year, you should still return it with a note in the postage paid envelope they send to you. The Waneta/Lamoka study is in danger of being discontinued if they don't get more participation. I am now asking for your help to keep this important program going. If you fish for muskies in these lakes, even if it is only one or two days per year, please consider participating in the diary study. It is simple and easy. You only need to log the date, time started, time finished, target species, # of anglers, species and length of each fish caught and fin clip info. To participate, you only need to call the Region 8 office at 585-226-2466 to request a diary. You can also ask about other waters such as Conesus Lake. For waters in other regions, call that regional office. HERE ARE SOME OF THE WAYS THE DATA HELPS 1) Assessment of growth rate, year class survival rate and natural reproduction percent (from size and fin clip info) 2) Angler success rate 3) Angler utilization. This is important to justify money spent for stocking and other management activities. Especially when Albany is looking for places to cut expenses. 4) Long term data over many years helps them to spot trends that can help better understand and manage the dynamics of the fishery as well as plan for the future. 5) All of these benefits will hopefully help to shape up the quality of the musky fishing opportunities in Waneta Lake and Lamoka Lake as well. I know there are a lot more than 13 anglers fishing for muskies in Waneta and Lamoka Lakes. This is one of the most important things you can do to give back to the fishery besides becoming involved in Muskies Inc. and other groups or helping with stocking or habitat projects.

I am not sure what you mean by winterization mode. When you pull it out at the launch or before it is subject to any freezing temps, you need to make sure there is no water left in the motor. If you don't, there is a strong possibility that any water left in it will freeze and cause damage due to expansion. If you store it outdoors in the tilted up position, water can enter the lower unit from precipitation and then if the air temp drops below freezing, there is the possibility of freezing damage. If you store it outside with the possibility of freezing temps, you should lower the motor. Some people say to crank it a little in the lowered position to get the water out. I have a 1990 motor and have never done that. The water just drains out when I lower it. I don't know if cranking is recommended with any newer motors. It might be good to consult your owner's manual or a mechanic that services them, to find out if cranking is recommended or ok. I know that you can damage your water pump impeller pretty quick if you crank or run it with no water.

Chapter 69 annual membership Banquet is next Saturday April 9th. Friends and those who are interested in becoming a member are also welcome. PM me if you are interested in attending and need more details.

Was at Conesus inlet Wed. Water was low. Some walleye along walkway and a couple pike but not too many. Nothing at the spillway.

Any hardware mounted through or into the transom or hull must be sealed. Use 3M 5200 marine sealant. Make sure you give it time to cure. Low temperature will slow it way down.

I thought this was a post about a fishless day.

I would think, run a ground cable to the motor from the battery negative terminal. But maybe there could be a problem with that if the motor doesn't have any sacrificial electrodes.

There isn't as much pressure on deer as the is on fish.