I fish open water lakers the same way I do the ones through the ice.. 18-24in leader and go to town. Great job Drew, I've been talking to some friends up there, we might give it a go next winter (I'm flying, no way I'm driving, lol)
Emissions testings in this province is such a scam. So it's got a valid e-test on file (Which is good for a year) but now requires another one because it was sold, lol. What a crock of you know what.
Ospreys are great, when shore fishing in Florida we'd toss all the ladyfish we caught into the tidal pools. These things would come down and scoop them up and carry them away, lol!
In a similar boat as you.. Chinnies out in the lake are a riot, in the rivers no thanks. Same goes with steelhead. I'll chase them in the fall when they're fresh with the pin, rarely in the spring (I'll take residents over scruffy holdover fish any day of the week) and never in the lake unless I fluke one in the spring. I love me some spring lake trout action on the southern shore though!
You're legally allowed to target them. Same idea as fishing for a species in a FMZ with no possession limit. Get them in the boat, unhooked, back in the water.
I don' t know if the fish is enjoying the moment too much though. You need to get these fish in and released, you're not making much of a headway with 30lb braid and a spinning setup meant for bass. Can you land a muskie on this? For sure.. Should you be chasing these fish with a setup like this? No. All that heavy gear isn't just about not losing expensive lures...
Just a sec... You don't fish for steelhead, but you're in here telling us that stocking is the answer? And that if we don't stock, the fishery would crash hard? That's a bit ironic no?