Spiel

I did have trouble the other day, couldn't upload a picture? I think we'll have to wait for TJ to get home and look into it.

Great story Dan, thanks for taking the time to relate it.

Thanks guys, much appreciated. I'm pleased that you're happy with them Mike, I too will be waiting for a report on how they perform.

That's two thumbs up Simon, priceless pics all worthy of framing.

My memory sucks but I'd be willing to bet that's better than my first outing with a center pin reel.

Hey, you keep'n tabs on this Dave. I'm in.

I don't see any blood Rob. Damn fish might be in the way though.

Port authority says bye, bye birdies Cormorants' Farr Island to disappear Apr 10, 2010 ERIC MCGUINNESS / thespec.com Hundreds of double-crested cormorants will have to find a new nesting place when the Hamilton Port Authority turns an artificial island into an underwater shoal next fall. Plans are to make the 30-by-35-metre Farr Island disappear by spreading out the crushed rock with which it was built until it disappears beneath the waves. More stone will then be added to expand the resulting shoal to create a spawning bed for lake herring, whitefish, smallmouth bass, walleye and other warm-water fish species. The cost of the expansion will be covered by a $150,000 grant announced yesterday by the U.S.-based Sustain Our Great Lakes Program, financed by ArcelorMittal, parent of Hamilton steelmaker ArcelorMittal Dofasco. John Hall, co-ordinator of the Hamilton Harbour Remedial Action Plan (RAP), applauded the multinational company for its grant, saying, "This money coming out of the U.S. recognizes on an international level that our harbour has a role to play in the fishery of all western Lake Ontario." Jim Bowlby, a biologist working for the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, says it's estimated the harbour once had 3.5 square kilometres of shoals. Those on the south shore were lost to filling while 19th-century stone-hooking vessels are thought to have hauled up shale along the Aldershot shore for building material. A new fisheries management plan says harbour cleanup is bringing back a healthy sport fish population, but that will increase angling pressure. It also says fish spawned in the harbour will contribute to the health of the fishery around the whole west end of the lake. Farr Island was created as a platform for a long-gone hydro tower about 250 metres out from the mouth of Burlington's Indian Creek in the northeast corner of the harbour. Shoreline residents won't miss the cormorants, whose smelly waste prompted a vigilante to trap and kill several with a grid of fine fishing line strung across the island in 2008. Bowlby and other members of the fish and habitat steering committee of the RAP say they considered keeping a portion of the island for terns, another water bird, but determined that fish habitat was needed more. Besides, young fish will have a better chance of survival away from hungry predators. Marilyn Baxter, environmental manager for the port authority, said only one tender was submitted for demolition of the island last fall, but expects more interest in the larger project this year. Money from the Sustain Our Great Lakes Program is also going this year to the Credit River Anglers Association to build a fish ladder at the Norval Dam to allow passage of American eel, Atlantic salmon and other fish.

Fillet, skin, remove lateral line and bones then stuff the left overs in the recycling bin (garbage). Pan fried with a little lemon pepper is the best IMO.

Looks like your clicking on the "reply" button to add a quote then hitting "add reply" before you've typed anything.

You're a good man Bernie!

Can you dumb it down for me a little Wayne.

Not always, if the rain that blows out the small rivers is driven by hard westerlies the Niagara will also get blown.

Nope, still no problems. FYI I'm using Google Chrome.

No issues like that here Dave. Mind you I'm using the IP. Board skin. I'll switch and see what happens.

jeep

Can't say I've ever dealt with them but there's one here in Hamilton and also one in Barrie and one in Newmarket. Supposed to be discount pricing. Might be worth looking into with a phone call. http://www.endofther...m/newmarket.php http://www.endoftheroll.com/barrie.php

Burrrrrrr, this pic reminds me of going ice fishing.

LOL....yeah well at least there was no rod spinning yesterday..

No problem Don. Actually it kind of reminds me of how my day ended yesterday.....

Actually what you've posted is just a jpeg image from the clip, I think this is what your looking for..... http://s123.photobuc...ngle_alcolo.flv

I pasted the link in my browser and came up with this....

2010 Lake Erie Sport Fishing Outlook Good April 5, 2010 / www.great-lakes.org COLUMBUS, OH - Lake Erie anglers should experience another year of diverse fishing opportunities during 2010, according to biologists with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Wildlife. "We expect fishing to be generally good this year, especially if you are willing to take advantage of the best opportunities," said Roger Knight, Lake Erie fisheries program manager for the Division of Wildlife. "While fishing success will vary among species and seasons, the lake's populations of walleye, yellow perch, smallmouth bass, white bass and steelhead are in fair to excellent condition." Lake Erie walleye and yellow perch fisheries are managed through an interagency quota system that involves Ontario, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio jurisdictions. Each jurisdiction regulates their catches to comply with their quotas and minimize the risk of over-fishing these species. Quotas for the upcoming fishing season are determined through consensus agreement by these jurisdictions through the Lake Erie Committee of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and are announced publicly in late March of each year. Beginning this year, walleye and yellow perch bag limits will be set after the quota announcement, and will go into effect May 1, 2010. The daily bag limit for walleye remains four fish per person during March and April, 2010. As a result of the 2010 quota allocation, the walleye bag limit will be six from May 1, 2010 to February 28, 2011, and four from March 1, 2011 to April 30, 2011. A 15-inch minimum size limit is in effect during the entire season. The daily bag limit is 25 yellow perch per angler in the waters west of Huron and 30 perch per angler from Huron eastward to the Pennsylvania border through April 30, 2010. As a result of the 2010 quota allocation, the yellow perch bag limit will be 30 perch per angler lake wide from May 1, 2010 to April 30, 2011. There is no minimum size limit on yellow perch. Lake Erie anglers can find walleye and yellow perch bag limit information at ODNR offices, in special publications at bait and tackle shops, and on the Web at wildohio.com. Lake Erie anglers have great access to fishing in the Western and Central basins due to the numerous public boat ramps, private marinas and shoreline areas. They also benefit from having the largest charter boat industry in the Great Lakes. Walleye Ohio walleye anglers will catch fish mostly from the 2007 and 2003 hatches, with some contributions from the 2001, 2005 and 1999 hatches. Walleye from the moderate 2007 hatch will range from 14-19 inches long and will complement the larger 20- to 28-inch fish from the strong 2003 hatch as the major contributors to the Ohio catch. Fish from the fair 2005 hatch should be in the 19- to 23-inch range. Large walleye from strong hatches in the 1980s and mid-1990s still persist in the population, providing "Fish Ohio" (more than 28 inches) opportunities. "Fish from the 2007 hatch grew faster than expected last year and showed up prominently in our fishery in 2009 and they should dominate the west basin catch this summer," said Knight. "The 2003 hatch is still holding strong and will likely carry most of the Central Basin fisheries, particularly as the waters warm up and large fish migrate eastward to cooler waters." Yellow Perch Perch anglers should encounter fish ranging from 7- to 13-inch fish from the 2007, 2008, 2005 and 2003 hatches in this year's fishery. Lake wide, perch numbers should be similar to levels observed in 2009 in the Western and Central basins. Small fish from the weak 2009 hatch may show up in the fishery in the fall. "Overall, we expect to have good perch fishing in 2010, with the largest fish coming from the eastern part of the Central Basin," said Knight. Smallmouth Bass Smallmouth bass fishing in 2010 is expected to be fair. Although bass abundance remains below desired levels, those caught should be of excellent size (15 to 22 inches, weighing 2 to 6 pounds). Bass fishing is best in areas with good bottom structure, which is available across much of the entire Ohio near shore area. A closed season remains in effect from May 1 through June 25, 2010, during which all black bass (smallmouth and largemouth) must be immediately released. Beginning June 26, 2010, the daily bag limit for bass will remain at five fish, with a 14-inch minimum length limit. Steelhead Steelhead anglers should enjoy another year of great fishing in Ohio's Lake Erie tributaries throughout the fall, winter and spring months. Good fishing opportunities will also exist on the open lake when schools of fish can be located. Peak summer steelhead action on Lake Erie can be found offshore from June through August between Vermilion and Conneaut, with catches measuring 17 to 29 inches. Most Lake Erie anglers troll for steelhead in deep waters using spoons with dipsy divers or downriggers. The daily bag limit remains at five fish per person from May 16 to August 31, and two fish per angler between September 1 and May 15, with a 12-inch minimum size limit throughout the year. White Bass White bass will continue to provide excellent seasonal fishing opportunities in the Maumee and Sandusky rivers and in the open lake. The catch will be dominated by hatches from 2003 and 2005, which will include many 13- to 16-inch fish. The 2006 and 2007 hatches were moderate and should contribute 10- to 14-inch fish to the fishery. Anglers should focus on major Western Basin tributaries during May and June and near shore areas of the open lake during summer months. There is no daily bag or size limit on white bass. Anglers are also advised of numerous fishing opportunities in the bays and harbors on the Ohio shoreline. These inlets offer excellent fishing for panfish including crappie and bluegill, as well as largemouth bass. In early spring, anglers may also catch an occasional Northern pike or muskellunge in vegetated areas. Anglers are reminded that fishing conditions on Lake Erie can change hourly and adjustments are often necessary to improve success. Anglers should take into account factors such as water temperature, cloud cover, water clarity, boat traffic, wave action, structure and the amount of baitfish in the area. Anglers are also reminded to carefully monitor Lake Erie weather and to seek safe harbor before storms approach. Updated Lake Erie fishing reports are available online atwww.wildohio.com and by calling 1-888-HOOKFISH.

No carp in Chicago waters after six-week search April 5, 2010 / www.great-lakes.org Chicago(AP) — An initial six-week mission to catch and kill Asian carp lurking on the Great Lakes' doorstep turned up none of the despised fish, suggesting few if any have eluded an electric barrier designed to block their path to Lake Michigan, officials said last week Beginning in mid-February, teams of biologists and commercial fishermen combed a network of Chicago-area rivers and canals where Asian carp DNA has been detected in numerous spots over the past year. They spread netting across large areas and used electric stunning prods where they believed the carp were most likely to gather, said Chris McCloud, spokesman for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Field crews set approximately 5.6 miles of net and sampled for a total of 60 hours using electrofishing gear in the main channels,barge slips, marinas and other channel areas. Speciescollected in highest abundance were common car(1,000) and gizzard shad(+1,000. Other species observed or collected included bluntnose minnow, drum, pumpkinseed sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, channel catfish, yellow perch, green sunfish and yellow bullhead. All fish collected were returned to the channel. No silver or bighead carp were found. "What this tells us is if they are present above the barrier, they are in very low numbers as we've said before," McCloud said. The barrier's effectiveness is a key issue in the debate over whether to close shipping locks in the waterways to keep the invasive carp from entering Lake Michigan, as sport fishing interests and most states along the Great Lakes would like. In order to validate the sampling techniques upstream, field crews also sampled in areas far below the electric barrier where Asian carppopulations are present. DNR biologists recovered 36 Silver carp and four Bighead carp near Starved Rock Lock and Dam,approximately 70 miles downstream from the electric barrier. The Regional Coordinating Committee is developing a three month monitoring plan to extend sampling efforts. Illinois and the Obama administration oppose closing the locks, siding with Chicago barge and tour boat companies who say doing so would devastate their businesses. They contend the electric barrier is performing well and closing the leak-prone locks wouldn't be a foolproof measure. The U.S. Supreme Court last week refused for a second time Michigan's request to order the locks closed. Early sampling efforts were focused on areas where warm water was being discharged from industrial operations, including power plants and wastewater treatment plants. Fish tend to congregate near warmer water during winter. As spring approached and ice receded, the search area was broadened. Ashley Spratt, a spokeswoman for the fish and wildlife service, acknowledged the failure to catch any Asian carp above the barrier didn't necessarily mean none were there. "They are hard to catch and this is a big area we're looking at," she said. John Sellek, a spokesman for Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox, said Monday that although no Asian carp were found, Michigan still wants the locks closed. "What did they expect? (Illinois') own court filings say they are not likely to catch Asian carp using nets or electro-fishing," Sellek said. Biologists plan to continue searching over the next three months as part of a $78.5 million Asian carp control strategy. "Intensifying our sampling and monitoring efforts in high-risk areas for Asian carp provides us with critical data on population dynamics, potential range expansion and movement of the species," said Charlie Wooley, deputy regional director for the USFWS.

Reducing fish kills Editorial April 05, 2010 / toledoblade.com EVERY year, tens of millions of fish, hundreds of millions of fish eggs, and billions of fish larvae are killed by being sucked into the cooling water intakes at FirstEnergy Corp.'s Bay Shore power plant. The problem has been evident for years. It's time for a solution, not experiments. Sportfishing directly and indirectly adds some $800 million to Ohio's economy every year. Recreational fishing adds millions of dollars to the economies of the other seven states bordering the Great Lakes as well. No place is more important to that multibillion-dollar industry than the warm, shallow waters of western Lake Erie, including Maumee Bay and the Maumee River. Lake Erie produces more fish than lakes Huron, Michigan, Superior, and Ontario combined. Lake Erie's most productive spawning grounds are on Toledo's doorstep. But Bay Shore, which sits at the confluence of the river and lake, kills 60 million fish every year, more than all the other power generating plants in Ohio combined. That the lake's population of walleye, yellow perch, white bass, and other fish has managed to thrive is a testament to the lake's immense fertility. Power companies, including FirstEnergy, have been aware of the problem for years, but have shown little inclination to do anything about it. Toledo Edison's parent company has succeeded so well at dragging its feet that a decade after the U.S. Environmental Agency decided to stop the killing, nothing has been done. Even now, instead of implementing a known solution, the Akron-based electric company is being allowed to waste at least another two years experimenting with louvers it hopes will divert fish from the intake channels.A better path would be to embrace a known, environmentally friendly solution. A cooling tower would reduce the plant's need for water, thus slashing fish kills by more than 90 percent. Doing anything else is just swimming against the current.