HB2

We miss the dog . He use to chase the geese off the property .. We called him the goose dog

I see my cottage .

Dem salmon sure taste good I have been eating them for the last 2 weeks

When I was younger , I was looking and wanted all the latest and greatest new technology . I guess I thought that it would make me more successful. And to a certain point it did , but in a sense , it hindered me . Mostly because I was focused on that and not the basic fundamentals. At some point , and I think it was on my happy spot in the ADKs exploring a new spot in my canoe , I had to rely on those fundamentals . And thats when I truly learned to be a good fisherman. Don't get me wrong , I have a lot of the gadgets but I limit myself . I fish tribs , and won't by a pin outfit I won't buy autopilot I use to be exited about new technology , now I cringe . FFS is one . All the guess work , or most is taken out of the equation . Maybe the decreased numbers reflect the fact that the thrill of the hunt has been taken away to a large extent

And to answer your question, I've tried a few kinds on my trolling lures with no noticable difference . And I don't understand why .

It sure does work on my plastic baits for panfish bass and pike I Also put it back itn my egg flies flyfishing the tribs I swear by it. Got my friends using it . It works

Most years , you have very little chance to win big salmon unless you fish Olcott west and really ,including this year . Yup , kings are the man but if the prize was bigger , maybe more east end guys would participate . But thats just an observation . Lovin my row boat . At some point , and I have been saying this for some time , some of you guys have to ask yourself the question , " what are we really doing here , is this fishing or a video game ? "

And another thing The Brown trout prize should be bigger and more played up than it is. Maybe a lot of Kings all over this year but a lot of years most kings are west of the Oak . That way guys can enter , target browns with chance of big payout . I remember they gave a big boat for Salmon and smaller for big brown.

Could not have said it better myself I have been saying for years , salmon trolling really isn't fishing . More and more electronics and equipment make it easier to find , stay on , and catch fish . My friends really don't like it. They would rather fish bass or pike . And to a certain extent , me too . And derby entry numbers , to a large extent , prove that . I like to troll for salmon , don't get me wrong , but a lot of the mystique is gone .

The summer derby really is the Icon of the 3 IMO . The best fishing of the year , and I'm talking best weather , best waves , consistent temp once the lake stratifies and the fact the salmon are lake wide . Spring the Majority of kings are west. Derby starts show that . Fall use to be great but now with the Canadian nat reproduction , at least half of mature fish migrate there . So staging numbers are low on trib mouths that use to be great . Mexico Bay is not nearly what it was . And the prizes should be the biggest for the summer . So I would like the Summer derby to be say 6 weeks from July to mid Aug. Or 4 , second week in July to mid Aug . Out of state guys can plan vacations around it , kids , etc . But the tourny guys probably could not care less either way . And the state pretty much has its head up it ass on stuff like this so I'm not holding out much hope . Just keep calm and fish .

I love fishing these LOC derbies . I concentrate my trolling time around it . Anyone can win . And I liked the Orleans . I want nothing to do with the big boat tournament scene . I considered it long ago but I don't want to dedicate my fishing life to it . The LOC needs some long overdue tweeking. Things I would like to see. The ability to fish alone . But I doubt that will ever happen . A reasonable fee so anyone that comes on my boat is covered, maybe 200$ that's 5 guys entry . Especially the summer derby . If a guy at work, or visiting family member or your son's name is friend wants to go he has to get in the derby and pay and most don't want to . I asked Dick about this a few years back and he said no way . He and Sue Oshman together said it would cost them money ( he kind of showed his hand with that response). I said so instead of getting 200$ from me you get 80$ . And seeing how this is the Lake Ontario Counties fishing derby . How about each county kicks in and no registration fee ? Anyone with a valid NYS fishing licence is eligible . I mean we waste money on everything else why not this as it's supposed to be a promotion thing for NYS fishing. It seem like as little effort is put forth for the most profit at this point . . How does it work ? Is this a private venture by Dick Chilson or is he in some sort of partnership with county of state .

Also , there are no more door prizes to my knowlege. You could go and get your ticket punched and win some worthless item that at least you got something . Although my brother got a 47 h when they first came out I still use and I got a spinning reel . Nothing for the kids anymore . Give them A lure or hat or something to keep them interested when they visit the weigh station or sign up . Cultivate the next generation . Also I remember Lowrance and Riviera coming to the ports and fixing your depth finder or demo downriggers . No celebrity on boats fishing showing it on the news . Those bass guys want to catch bass. And the best biggest king fishing is last week in July till 2nd week in Aug. And for first 2 weeks in Aug , no derby .

LL makes a lot of good points I feel that the shine on this fishery has worn off . A lot of my friends don't like trolling for salmon . You pay the entry , which I think was 10$ back then now 40$ , get excited to go , to drive to the lake to get blown off , or its fishable but rough , troll all day and get nothing but maybe seasick . We threw cleos off the piers thinking we might win it all , but in reality all we would win was brown division . The prizes are not nearly what they used to be adjusted for inflation . 15 k grand prize now . Use to be a big boat for salmon and another smaller for the big brown . And most springs , if you aren't fishing west , you really don't stand a chance of winning it all . Unless you are super lucky . This downturn has been going on for sometime now . I don't think gas has a whole lot to do with it but maybe some . A big boat back then was 21 ft . Look at some of them now . 9 $ for a DW ain't bad . But the 10k in equipment does hit hard .

I launched my boat at a once and still popular spot on Fri , derby first day , early morning . There was one out of state boat getting ready to launch and no other trailers in the parking lot . Fishing the last 3 days I saw a total of maybe 10 boats total . Today 1 was within 2 miles of us . And the fishing and weather mostly is quite good I remember when the ESLO started .Everyone who was any kind of outdoorsman was there . Launch at every port lines very long . Arguing and yelling and a few altercations . Anything that would float . Guys on the piers. Most guys trolling in close with boards . What happened ?

I texted Avon

I kind of wonder if the cormerants are tying to grab them