Another Inland Sea report

[Lazybones]

Managed to get out a few times over the last ten days. First trip I set up and ran the old faithful route. Set up as soon as I hit 100' out of St A Bay and headed south down Georgia Shore. Managed only one salmon and had to constantly check the lines for perch. All yellows, no whites.

Next trip I turned right out of the Bay and found some bait on the western edge of the basin quite a bit farther north than I usually fish. On this day, late in the afternoon, black/purple with a white back down 31 over 100 seemed to be the ticket. Consistent action until sunset. Nothing huge but all were decent size, maybe 3lb avg. All clean.

Next trip I headed in the same direction. Found another troller circling around right on my mark from the previous trip. Giving them plenty of room I set up north of them and quickly hooked up. Same consistent action as the previous trip except that 41 feet seemed to be the right depth this day. Same colors though. Again, all the fish were good size and clean. I managed a couple screamers and leapers that probably went around around 5lbs. I thought for sure one was going to be a PB but he was a feisty 5lb class fish. The other troller remained in the same general area the entire time I was out there so presumably they were in to them too.

Next trip was the same as the the previous. Same spot, depth and colors.

In the three trips combined I saw no evidence of lamprey and not one perch caught.

Sorry no pics. I was fishing alone and I release pretty much everything I can.

[dickbaker]

Lazybones?? OK next year I will troll beside you and take all the pictures that you want??
Dick

[tamiron]

Lazybones:

Thanks for the input and the details. New Forum members need all the data that we can provide.

[Lazybones]

Dick, You can join me in the boat. We can take turns running the net. And the camera.

Tamiron, your discussion about larger lures was in my mind. I gave a large Bee plenty of opportunity. I got quite a few releases on it but nobody home every time.

A smaller Bee and a Michigan Stinger did most of the damage. I was running clean, no blades, tight to the ball.

[tamiron]

Tamiron, your discussion about larger lures was in my mind. I gave a large Bee plenty of opportunity. I got quite a few releases on it but nobody home every time.

A smaller Bee and a Michigan Stinger did most of the damage. I was running clean, no blades, tight to the ball.

.

Larger is not always the answer for sure! If I am getting a lot of hits on a spoon without hook-ups,

I will a.) sharpen the hook, b.) check the action on the spoon to be sure it is not bent, c.)bend the hook so that the point is no longer parallel with the shank ( about 15 degrees) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9RlUbA33i8 d.) change to a SMALLER spoon!!

[tamiron]

CT:

Definitely have "skin in the game".
Promote my business at the expense of the truth? I guess that might be possible for someone who is near-sighted and shallow minded

But since I have been selling winning products on Lake Champlain for a lot longer than you claim to be fishing on it, I would assume that I am in a pretty good position to give second-hand advice on the purchases of thousands of lures by hundreds of customers rather than the first hand restricted opinions of a single angler, no matter how good that angler might be. I do respect your right to disagree and even to find flaws in what I recommend, and I encourage you to point out the error of my ways and to share the learning experiences that you come by.

By the way "As far as sharpening hooks ???? They should be sharp out of the package correct?". That's the type of "two-cents" that has less value than one cent. Hooks are sharp when they are sharp! Not when they come out of a package or whenever they ought to be. Test them and if they are not sharp, sharpen them. If they are sharp leave them alone.

[Reelax]

Tamiron, your discussion about larger lures was in my mind. I gave a large Bee plenty of opportunity. I got quite a few releases on it but nobody home every time.

A smaller Bee and a Michigan Stinger did most of the damage. I was running clean, no blades, tight to the ball.

.

Larger is not always the answer for sure! If I am getting a lot of hits on a spoon without hook-ups,

I will a.) sharpen the hook, b.) check the action on the spoon to be sure it is not bent, c.)bend the hook so that the point is no longer parallel with the shank ( about 15 degrees) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9RlUbA33i8 d.) change to a SMALLER spoon!!

I think I will go with option D!
I am a newbie to Champlain. But putting my time in, as well as the advice here, I am doing better. My PB is a mere 5.75#.
I went to larger spoons, as advised here.
No positive results yet.
I can say that My personal best Salmon, as well as many others in that range have had a small spoon down in there mouth, and not just in the corner of the mouth. I have caught fish on larger spoons , but not like smaller ones.
My idea, after observation of stomach contents, has been the fish I have caught, have had bait from 1 inch -just under 3 inch in them.
I have not seen anything larger in Salmon.
I have seen larger bait in the laccers I have caught. As far as sharpening hooks ???? They should be sharp out of the package correct?

Tamirion , I understand you have skin in the game to help promote your business, as well as being a fisherman yourself.
But if you are not fishing the same water body, how can you give sound advice?
Other then theory?
I am not saying I don't read all comments, I certainly do! I think yours are some of the best.
But lately, as we hear chatter about bigger spoons, I notice a increase in your excitement.

As many others say, "it is just my two cents"

CT

CT, to question Jim's knowledge or good intentions is not something that would sit well with the vast majority of forum members. His products are of top quality and work on our salmon, his tips are spot on and just because he can't troll our waters doesn't mean he doesn't have the bait conditions well in hand. He has personal relationships that include phone calls and notes getting inside info and passing on test spoons to many
Key member of the forum. It is these relationships that help him get the info he needs to be as good as his products are...

You would do good to listen and take any info you can get from Jim and enter it into your memory banks for future use. I personally think the mp6 is the best blank on the lake, but there are days that a big spoon will take a bigger salmon, and that is why I use them every time out.

[raz]

Thanks Matt. Well stated.

[fishmaster176]

I would still be scratching my head and wondering how to use a downrigger if it weren't for the sage advice I have received from Jim and so many other forum members. Attending the winter seminars and participating in the Shootout and DYP, all created by forum members, has made my cold water fishing experience worth every penny I've invested. I tend to patronize the vendors that support us. I have a tacklebox full of Honeybees, MT's and Crazy Ivans. Glad to buy local, when I can. Jim seems local to me. He's always sharing great info. and asks us to do the same. It's a great partnership. Not trying to create any bad feelings, just stating my experience with a great group of fishermen. Fred

[charlietuna]

CT:

Definitely have "skin in the game".
Promote my business at the expense of the truth? I guess that might be possible for someone who is near-sighted and shallow minded

But since I have been selling winning products on Lake Champlain for a lot longer than you claim to be fishing on it, I would assume that I am in a pretty good position to give second-hand advice on the purchases of thousands of lures by hundreds of customers rather than the first hand restricted opinions of a single angler, no matter how good that angler might be. I do respect your right to disagree and even to find flaws in what I recommend, and I encourage you to point out the error of my ways and to share the learning experiences that you come by.

By the way "As far as sharpening hooks ???? They should be sharp out of the package correct?". That's the type of "two-cents" that has less value than one cent. Hooks are sharp when they are sharp! Not when they come out of a package or whenever they ought to be. Test them and if they are not sharp, sharpen them. If they are sharp leave them alone.

Tamiron,
My apologies if you and others took offense to my post.
I certainly did not intend for it to be that way.

I am a person who questions things all the time. I guess I did not now that you have many fisherman here who talk with you regularly, and in turn you are able to give advice on the area, while being many miles away.

Next time I will check my facts before I say anything.

The few Salmon I do catch, all seem to have smaller bait in them.
I have had better success with smaller lures. When I do hook up, most times, at least on the fish over 3 pounds or so, the lure is pretty far down in the mouth.

I guess that is not much information to share? But It what I have seen over and over.
Lazybones said he had releases with nobody home, with larger spoons.
So is it smaller fish hitting these large lures? Is it they are as not as interested, as they do not "match the hatch"?

Once again, I apologize to anyone who may been offended by my post.

CT

[Lazybones]

The fact the larger spoon was getting whacked consistently inspires me to not give up on it. My first thought was 'smaller hook' and I will try that just because that's part of the fun of fishing. As well as the offset trick. I did switch it out for a smaller spoon after a bit. I've got a few large spoons in my box that I bought at the beginning of my salmon fishing endeavors. I didn't have a clue back then and there was no internet. "Big lure, big fish" made sense to me so why not. The experienced guys I was learning from never ran the bigger spoons though and they were catching fish. I liked to catch fish so I got with that program. Things have changed though. Alewives are now in the picture. Nothing to lose but a little time and a little gas to try something out of the box. I enjoy that. If I'm not mistaken the large HoneyBee I was using was a freebee thrown in by Jim on an order a couple years ago.

Certainly didn't mean for this thread to take a contentious turn. I am not a regular contributor, mostly because between not getting out as much as many and being less experienced than many I really don't have much to contribute. I fished a new to me area, found bait and fish, didn't have to fight the perch. Figured I'd try to contribute that with enough clues to get you in the area, short of posting the numbers.

[tamiron]

CT:

No harm ... no foul! We are all working for the same thing. The best possible fishery and the best possible experience for every angler that tries their hand at Champlain.

My excitement over large lures this year co-insides with the larger stomach contents found by many of my customers / friends. This appears to differ from what you are experiencing.

If the area you are fishing in produces better with smaller spoons, and the stomach contents match, I would also stick with the smaller lures, until you or someone else who fishes the same area, sees a change that warrants trying something else. One of those changes could be less hits and/or hookups./ Jim

[Bearcat]

As far as a lot of strikes on big spoons with nobody home: before I read this thread, I came up with a theory this morning while boating a handful of lakers on Otsego lake between lightening strikes - at least three of the 25"+ fish I landed that hit big spoons (bees and Sutton copies) had the single hook lodged in the top of the head, in the nose or near the eye. I think some of these fish hit from beneath, aiming for the body of the spoon. Not getting hooked by the spoon, I think that as the spoon moves forward, the hook sometimes grabs the fish somewhere on the way past. I've seen these hookups a lot before and here's the clincher: I had a rainbow trout needlefish on one main line that landed two fish, hooked in the nose and the eye, not the mouth, yet the lure, being used for the first time today had the paint trashed by the slimers teeth - the body of the spoon must have been grabbed first from the side or bottom and slipped through. I just ordered some #3 Bees and cant wait to wash them but in past seasons on Champlain I have had better luck with the #1's and MP's - I think that the success others have had with bigger spoons this season is certainly translating to a trend of bigger fish - and I agree, bigger lures catch bigger fish - my biggest laker today came on a J9 jointed Rapala on 5 colors!

[Shaye D Winds]

As for the short strikes I agree with Jim on his list, just a small amendment. Check your release. You may want to tighten it up so the hook gets a set on strike. The trade off will be dragging a short or small laker if you are not paying close attention to the action of your rod. It may or may not help. Good luck out there.

[tamiron]

As for the short strikes I agree with Jim on his list, just a small amendment. Check your release. You may want to tighten it up so the hook gets a set on strike. The trade off will be dragging a short or small laker if you are not paying close attention to the action of your rod. It may or may not help. Good luck out there.

Agreed! Great point.

Light hits will then not force you to reset, leaving the lure with more time in the "zone"!