2011 SALMON RIVER - SALMON AND STEELHEAD Thread

[draketrutta]

Yea.. but the fact is... the cookie cutter fish that come with the limit change.. SUCK !! Might as well fish the fingerlakes and keep my money here. 

x 2000

I've fished many a winters for SR steelhead going back to the 80's.

Call me greedy, call me a crusty old curmudgeon,

BUTT

personally I prefer the "good Ole Days" when you were lucky to encounter more than a handful of Steelhead Diehards on the river (all dressed like the Unibomber), and were lucky to get to play with a fish or two or three per day. Sure the numbers were not there, but you had a good chance of hooking into a Bruizer that approached that magical 20lb mark.

Flash forward to today - the upper river looks like a walmart parking lot, the same fish are caught over & over & over again, some of the best mid-river waters have become privatized, more stupid regs being written every year.

Used to be that I had to stand on the Rte 52 bridge and look upstream to witness a pack of sjoulder to shoulder jokers.
Now it seems you a get a 360deg view of the nonsense no matter where you go on the river.

I have no interest in driving 5.5 hrs to Erie to catch small fish and battle mind-numbing crowds and posted property signs everywhere, (made one trip and that was enough for me).

I am at the point where I have no great desire to make the 3 hr drive to catch Poolaski Practice-Dummy Steelhead.

Darn shame if you ask me - the SR is a beautiful stretch of water, the folks up there are cool, but the decisions being made are not good for the overall fishery.

Another perfect example of how special interests screw things up.

Sure, my money won't make a big difference - but I have a funny feeling that I am not the only long-distance fisherman that finally thinks enough is enough.


I agree with Esox and Snagger 100% - the DEC and ELISTISTS have screwed the pooch - AGAIN.

[draketrutta]

 bring me one to try... i loved landlocks, used to fill the freezer when I lived on Cayuga Lake, i bet these ones don't taste as good though, probably be my first and last, worth a try though..

just smear some of that "1000 herb & spice" Mudshark glaze on the fillets,

it makes anything taste great... 

[GAMBELL]

The 1 brown limit will help the lake fishery.  With the kings not showing up in the East end of the lake until late the past couple years, charter captains have been forced to chase browns.  Gotta have something for them to catch to keep the business going.  On the other hand,the Oak, Sandy Creek (hamlin) and Bert get raped every fall and then the following spring / summer are horrible fishing in the lake.  This past fall, the brown runs were late and they were left alone in the West tribs (thanks to the early cold and freeze).  This spring, the West end of the lake has been awesome for Browns.  Just like the 1 steelhead limit, everyone will complain at first but when they see how much better the fish numbers will be, they will be pleased with the outcome. 

[bcons]

Charter boats need something to fish for?  Spring browns are easier to find than Hemp clothing at a PETA rally.   Look at the posts.  For more than a month anyone can grab em off the jedi's with a spoon.  I took my kids down a few yrs back for their 1st shore casting for browns, and they were using some no-name brand wally world cheapos, before I even set my stuff down one yells "Got one".  Look at the vids on youtube of spring trolling, even on a bad day you can find a few fish.  Everyday can't be good sorry.  Without those tough days what defines a good day? Besides personally I thought fishing was fishing, & while tough bites can be frustrating, for some of us it only makes the sense of accomplishment that much better when you do overcome it.  No matter how hard you try you can't legislate or regulate fishing success.  What if you turn the place into a giant fish bowl, some people will still suck, they'll still complain they're not getting as many. 

[bcons]

I already said I don't keep river fish, but I've met lots that do, to each his own.  You all have seen the trucks from downstate, PA, & NJ with the coolers on the storage racks.  Bad economy, expensive gas, $70 licenses, etc?? Now tell them they can keep 1 fish?  How many local biz's depend on those guys with the coolers?  How much does Oswego county depend on the tax revenue?    Every yr it seems someone comes up with another way to tell these guys to Get Bent, while poking a stick in their eye.  It's simple if ya wanna see 900000000 fish in the river, look at the river between Labor day & Oct 15.  Then ask yourself why do you fish for trout anyway?  Are they bigger? Hmmmmm, me it's because they ARE in fact harder to get.  If everyday was as easy as Salmon would trout fishing be as much fun?

[cNr1day]

I'm not really sure where I stand on the proposed regs. changes, but I'm surprised not one person brings up the fact that it is still not recommended that you eat ANY brown trout over 20" harvested from Lake Ontario or the surrounding tribs - let alone, 3, 6, or 387 a year.
http://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/outdoors/fish/fish.htm

[tree-on]

I e-mailed my comments in. These are proposed so if you don't like it, be sure to let DEC know. There is a link under each reg that will fill in the reg # for you. http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/73762.html

[esox v]

 OMG !! SEE guys the lake needs more fish so Fisherman and Charter captains that SUCK.. can have an equal opportunity !! This crap is happening with everything... because we have a generation of  babies and losers... That have to have everything handed to them.... I wanna puke 

[draketrutta]

Without those tough days what defines a good day?

Today's "Instant Gratification" crowd requires it..

bcons - your posts HIT THE BULLSEYE...

unfortunately, your words will fall on the deaf ears - including the big ones at the DEC.

[draketrutta]

I wanna puke 

don't do it in the riva - one of the "witnesses" that talked the DEC into proposing the 1 Brown Limit may see you and drop a dime on you for illegal chumming 

[drowndin dots]

OMG !! SEE guys the lake needs more fish so Fisherman and Charter captains that SUCK.. can have an equal opportunity !! This crap is happening with everything... because we have a generation of  babies and losers... That have to have everything handed to them.... I wanna puke 

  i got sompthin thatl' calm you're stomach  the kind that makes a tough day on the river tolerable 

[SNAGGER]

I'm not really sure where I stand on the proposed regs. changes, but I'm surprised not one person brings up the fact that it is still not recommended that you eat ANY brown trout over 20" harvested from Lake Ontario or the surrounding tribs - let alone, 3, 6, or 387 a year.
http://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/outdoors/fish/fish.htm

          I think people are well aware of these guide lines, when I was younger a personel from Cornell told me that they grind the whole fish for these guide lines.  People who visit my fish cleaning station say with 12 salmon at a pop are there once a year and once back home divi up the portions to friends and famillie members. I don't think anyone is really eating too many meals, shoot the surgeon general said the benifits of fish and fish oils outway trace elements of mercury/dioxin in tuna if eatin in small amounts. Our Food supply is getting poisioned from every end all over the world. I've got a guest who will be turning 90 this year he still takes back about 20 salmon per season, he tells me him and his 88 year wife eat about one portion every 3 weeks. He's been coming here since the mid 1970's.

[SNAGGER]

The 1 brown limit will help the lake fishery.  With the kings not showing up in the East end of the lake until late the past couple years, charter captains have been forced to chase browns.  Gotta have something for them to catch to keep the business going.  On the other hand,the Oak, Sandy Creek (hamlin) and Bert get raped every fall and then the following spring / summer are horrible fishing in the lake.  This past fall, the brown runs were late and they were left alone in the West tribs (thanks to the early cold and freeze).  This spring, the West end of the lake has been awesome for Browns.  Just like the 1 steelhead limit, everyone will complain at first but when they see how much better the fish numbers will be, they will be pleased with the outcome.  

         Theres so many browns at are end it's "Stupid" has been for nearly a decade....if you are having poor returns, maybe cornell should do a study on why your end has suffered, the one fish limit may be needed where you live , but it makes no sense at our end except to keep already spoiled fishermen even more spoiled, if or when this lakes crashes i hope everyone remembers these debates.

  I want to add something to this..I fished Maxwell creek near Sodus my whole life, do you really think harvesting say 300 browns really is more important than say what the boats do in the lake, those fish will still get harvested ... it will just take longer. People keep forgetting these fish are here for us. EVERYBODY.

[ErnyeJSES]

One of the proposed changes is to cut out the use of sinking flies and fly lines (already cant use split shot from may to august) during the summer in the UFZ, their rationale which I completely agree with is that these fish will chase flies on or just under the surface when there is a suitable water temperature for them to be active. In other words if they arent biting you're just gonna have to wait until they decide to. Instead of putting on a sink tip...orrrr throwing on a few split shot and 'bouncing' the bottom.

I understand this train of thought but why is there such a disconnect from this regulation and the regulations during the winter months. I know during winter some type of sink tip is needed to get a properly swung fly into a fishes cone of vision, but swinging flies and bottom bouncing nymphs are two totally different animals. In my opinon if you're bottom bouncing nymphs you should just use a noodle rod with a spinning reel....or maybe to some using a spinning rod setup is a sin, and fishing anywhere but the designated fly zones is just a waste of time......

I say get rid of the use of split shot at all times in the fly zones, and limit the length and grain weight of sink tips. Lets see how many fish are landed when there is no more sliding of the slinky. Instead of decreasing creel limits and having fly zones catch and release, why not make it more challenging to catch a fish. It is fly fishing....

[SNAGGER]

One of the proposed changes is to cut out the use of sinking flies and fly lines (already cant use split shot from may to august) during the summer in the UFZ, their rationale which I completely agree with is that these fish will chase flies on or just under the surface when there is a suitable water temperature for them to be active. In other words if they arent biting you're just gonna have to wait until they decide to. Instead of putting on a sink tip...orrrr throwing on a few split shot and 'bouncing' the bottom.

I understand this train of thought but why is there such a disconnect from this regulation and the regulations during the winter months. I know during winter some type of sink tip is needed to get a properly swung fly into a fishes cone of vision, but swinging flies and bottom bouncing nymphs are two totally different animals. In my opinon if you're bottom bouncing nymphs you should just use a noodle rod with a spinning reel....or maybe to some using a spinning rod setup is a sin, and fishing anywhere but the designated fly zones is just a waste of time......

I say get rid of the use of split shot at all times in the fly zones, and limit the length and grain weight of sink tips. Lets see how many fish are landed when there is no more sliding of the slinky. Instead of decreasing creel limits and having fly zones catch and release, why not make it more challenging to catch a fish. It is fly fishing....

  I say get rid of the FLY ZONES PERIOD.. this ain't Missoula Montana in 1912 , make anything above the Altmar bridge an artifials , barbless hook ,  catch and release area... now that would be a change for the better.. fish the way you want but without bait and you can't take pictures.

  The Volvo guys wouldn't like the construction worker fishing next to him.