action

[lakergirl]

hey all...anyone having  some action around?  we've put away the saltwater gear and have been trying  for some late bass or trout.  news???
jan

[Fish Farmer]

Not much to report. I trolled with a buddy a couple days ago on Dunmore, no hits. I hear some salmon are down deep. Maybe this weekend I'll get out.

I was still seeing trout in my backyard that were fishable before the rain. Hopefully I'll get some stream salmon fishing in soon.

[jf5]

VT streams have been on fire the past two weeks, and usually is good until the end of the season (last Sunday of Oct)

[grasspikerel]

I thought the fishing was excellent this year for wild brook, brown and rainbow trout. 

[Fish Farmer]

Salmon and Rainbows have been showing up in Sucker Brook that feeds Lake Dunmore. I landed a 4 lb male salmon last week and have seen some sizable rainbows in there as well.

[grasspikerel]

Can you post a picture?  I need incentive to try Dunmore again.  Great job.

[Fish Farmer]

I caught a little salmon of about 15" today and missed another of the same size, I saw at least four bigger fish that were refusing my flies. The fish are holding in the tailrace below the powerplant. I probably won't fish them this weekend.

[grasspikerel]

Do you see recruitment from spawning?  I've seen a wild salmon at around 7" down here but never a legal fish ever.

[Fish Farmer]

Sucker Brook doesn't appear to have much gravel for salmonid spawning, plus where most of the fish run up into is the powerplant's tailrace which is usually dry most of the year except for the spring smelt run and for power generation or lowering of Silver Lake/Goshen Dam.

Yesterday I caught a 12" laker up there on my first cast. I saw one large fish probably a rainbow and a couple of small salmon.

This rain should get some fish moving around wherever you go, but with the inland season closing on the 31st, it's time to start fishing Champlain.

[grasspikerel]

Nice job.

Any particularly good techniques for salmon on the big lake for November?  I imagine the fish will start looking for warmer pockets.

[Fish Farmer]

I'm not an expert on finding consistant action in November, but my plan of attack is trolling downriggers from 25 feet to the surface with spoons 5 to 30 feet behind verticle blades, I'll add "cheater" spoons to the downrigger lines which generally get the most action close to the boat.

I prefer to run flyrods with sinking line or sinktips, 10 feet to the surface about 100 feet back, sometimes one close to the boat. I also will run a planer board off the side with some type of minnow plug 50 to 100 feet behind the board. I mix up my techniques depending on how rough the water is and if I have a crew to tend the extra lines.

The best thing to look for IMO is strong wave action/currents coming around points of land, which is why I usually troll from Otter Creek to Converse Bay. Lots of points and coves. Another thing that has worked the last couple of years is looking for gulls working the surface. Many times it wont put you on fish, but the last couple of Novembers I have had good action staying close to gull flocks. I've actually done very well over deeper water verses shallow warmer water this time of year. I'll be fishing over 100 feet and find fish on the surface.

[grasspikerel]

Is the shoreline north of Otter generally weedy or rocky?

[Fish Farmer]

Just as you go around the north corner it is rocky and drops off to 50 feet or so. I've seen salmon around there this time of year. Follow the shoreline to porter bay, which is shallow 12-17' and weedy. You could probably flatline flyrods in there. Furthur north from this bay is rocky ledgy shoreline all the way to Swifts Castle which is on the point, it drops off to over a 100 feet off of here. This area is good to go if the winds are from the south. There are lots of smelt schools off of this area from porter bay to swifts, 50 to 60 feet of water. People jig smelt here in the winter.

When you go around the corner there is a small bay before Kingsland bay, I've seen lakers spawing in the shallows around now. All the shoreline around here is either ledgy or cobbly with a few shallow(25') humps all the way past Kingsland. People troll this area spring and fall. The deltas around Little Otter and Lewis shallow to about 10 to 20 feet.

A couple areas that I noticed salmon/gulls on the surface this time of year was off of Kingsland Bay over 120 feet and another was off of the island in front of Lewis which was about 30 to 50 feet of water. The salmon could be anywhere now with the water temps the way they are.

Depending on the wind directions this weekend, I'll be either fishing off of Otter or out of Converse Bay. Weather is supposed to be great from Thursday on through the weekend.

[Fish Farmer]

I checked out Lewis Creek this afternoon. I landed a VERY active steelhead of about 18". I fished for about an hour and a half. Might be worth checking out after the rain.

[grasspikerel]

I got on Champlain on Tuesday and got very nice laker 25" and close to 6lbs.  The laker had a clipped pectoral fin so that if I was looking at it face to face, the clip would be on the right.

Nice to hear some acclimated steelies are in Lewis.