The chu

[taxid]

Might be something worth harassing dcr over. Thanks for the information, I will keep it for further use.

Hope you have better than we do out here.  . We can't even get a bag limit on bluegill that are fished to death out here. Most want it and it's proposed in a rule change protocol and it just doest happen 

[stripernut]

Improving smelt population are not something anyone will get any traction on, as in the past they have clogged water intake screens (Quabbin) and effort was put into elimination smelt... Both Quabbin and the Chu will always be managed first for drinking water, the fish and fishermen are way down the list. Congrats on the lakers!

[taxid]

Improving smelt population are not something anyone will get any traction on, as in the past they have clogged water intake screens (Quabbin) and effort was put into elimination smelt... Both Quabbin and the Chu will always be managed first for drinking water, the fish and fishermen are way down the list. Congrats on the lakers!

Then the other course of action may be to keep more of the lake trout to reduce pressure on the smelt. More smelt will mean larger fish.

[Bass to mouth]

We're actually encouraged to keep them. Free dog food and my dog loves them. I do a quick filet, I dont mind the pin bones, poach it and he wolfs it down. Great for his skin and coat

[taxid]

We're actually encouraged to keep them. Free dog food and my dog loves them. I do a quick filet, I dont mind the pin bones, poach it and he wolfs it down. Great for his skin and coat

Funny how that works. Out here they are considered quite good. But you need to put them on ice right away. If not they turn to mush. As a kid in Mass I used to catch brook trout in the deep water of a pond and then put them on a stringer in warm shallow water probably close to 80 F.  It's a wonder I didn't make my family sick. 

[lowaccord66]

Improving smelt population are not something anyone will get any traction on, as in the past they have clogged water intake screens (Quabbin) and effort was put into elimination smelt... Both Quabbin and the Chu will always be managed first for drinking water, the fish and fishermen are way down the list. Congrats on the lakers!

This.  That laker looked bad like an Otsego laker.  The state does like the fishermen but not over the drinking water.  We help employ a lot of rangers and I was discussing this with them yesterday while getting the boat washed. 

[CMD1987]

This.  That laker looked bad like an Otsego laker.  The state does like the fishermen but not over the drinking water.  We help employ a lot of rangers and I was discussing this with them yesterday while getting the boat washed.

O well. I did find some washed up dead smelt, either from breeding or being fed upon- so they are still in there. Part of it is definitely cyclical. Hopefully some of these rats will starve to death soon and then fewer lakers = fater lakers. 3-4 years ago the lakers were as fat as ive seen. The opposite now. I predict in 3-4 years they will be looking good again.

[LENZ]

They are frail 

that's why i/ (fish and game in the day) say throw them in the woods. 20+ years ago, anything under 5lbs was considered a dink. size has gone down steadily over the years as the lakers are over populated. i remember waaaay back when 20+lber's were caught every year
burp

[SalmonAndStriper Stalker]

The Lakers keep getting smaller but the browns just keep getting bigger and bigger....

[swamp hawgs]

wow 5lb laker considered small. i havent broken 5 at the chu. dying for my first 10 plus i really want it at the chu.
Q lakers are fat and healthy. caught a 7lbser when i went there 2 years ago.

[lowaccord66]

wow 5lb laker considered small. i havent broken 5 at the chu. dying for my first 10 plus i really want it at the chu.
Q lakers are fat and healthy. caught a 7lbser when i went there 2 years ago.

Every year they shock 20lbers at the Chu when they do the survey.  Quabbin's last survey was even better.  I bet there is a 30lber in the Q.  They shocked a few in the high 20lb range.  We usually get a couple over 30" every year.

[SalmonAndStriper Stalker]

You need to be really strategic when targeting big ones at the chu. In the spring they could be anywhere but the key in the fall is to locate the spawning areas. that will give you the best shot at a big breeder.

[elevatorman]

Be great to reel in a 20 lb boot

[swamp hawgs]

You need to be really strategic when targeting big ones at the chu. In the spring they could be anywhere but the key in the fall is to locate the spawning areas. that will give you the best shot at a big breeder.

yea i've seen the creel survey. those big lakers are so hard to catch tho. whens the last 20lb caught from the chu. i hear of a 10 plus every so often. but it seems like its the guys that live there.

wish we had lake trout fishing like they do up north when a 10lber is small!

[swamp hawgs]

if i didnt live 1.5hr away down by the cape id fish it all the time. but come on its the cape. 10 plus boot would be nice but its the cape