Sign of theTimes?

[C-Hawk]

As I was coming across the causway tonight at 6:00, on a beautiful evening with a light west wind, looking north at the Beautiful Inland Sea, I saw all of 2 boats trolling. On the weekend before the LCI, there should be 50 boats in sight. Something has defiantly happened to our great fishery. We can blame the birds, but I think that there is a lot more going on than just that. I am starting to wonder if there is a combination of things going on. When I talk to people that have full freezers yet they still keep a limit just to give fish to their buddies, I have to broach the subject are we also partly to blame?

[fishingmachine]

it's cormorants,alewives,overfishing,commercial fishing,climate change,pollution,or just the fact that no one works anymore.Launch areas are full on weekends and almost full on week days.the internet is a key player.The salmon have been getting hammered since February.too many charters?Too many fishermen,not enough fish? Who knows? Maybe the states have
to step up stocking programs?

[Smitty]

Would be nice if we could get the State Fish Biologist to give a report as to what there prospective is.
anyone have a connection to them or are they just as dumb founded as the rest of us..?

[pfu]

I was thinking the same. Have seen the UVM boat out and about. Wonder if they have any insights?

[riddlervt]

I agree. I experienced the decline of the walleye fishery back in the early 90's. I was diehard back in those days fishing almost every day. I would fish salmon until the sun started to set and then change up for walleyes. Some nights we caught 6-8 fish between us. IF the bite was good we fished till midnight and beyond and still managed to get up and go to work the next day. Then it happened. We caught nothing but mature fish, no shorts, all 6 pound and up class fish. We wondered what had happened. We made comment at the LCWA meetings, the lamprey control meetings and every opportunity to be heard.
We did not have this forum, or another like it at the time. The state decided they would do creel surveys and collect more information to be sure it was really a problem. Subsequent years produced no fish. The state along with the feds realized there was a problem. They changed the bag limits. They created closed spawning waters in spring and instituted a season with an opener May 1st. It has been almost 20 years and they are slowly making a comeback. I made comment of the lack of shorts last year on this forum. I have also read others reports in regard. Is it the invasion of white perch, alewives, cormorants, lampreys, mortality from being impaled with 1/0 hooks? Lack of spawning waters with sufficient water flows and gravel to generate reds. Silt laden rivers and power dams on every river? Yes. It is all of these contributing to the problem. Question is, when will they recognize it? More importantly, what are they going to do about it before its too late? Walleye are a very slow growing fish in comparison to a Salmonoids. That fact coupled with the readers of this forum might be enough to turn the tides in time to save our salmon fishery. I liked the idea of a forum survey to generate enough data to convince the controlling powers there is a problem.
Riddler

[Reelax]

6 hrs of trolling 6 lines on broad lake today targeting salmon in 3 different know salmon hot spots... Yield....... 6 lakers 0 salmon.

This should be the best bite season... Something is drastically wrong...

[MWM]

Same slow times here. Trolled 5 hrs today around Barber point, 2 releases all day. 1 salmon and 1 laker. Definitely not an anomaly with everyone's low catch rates. On the plus side both fish were clean, health looking fish. Laker was around 10lb, lives to swim another day.

[DreamWeaver]

As a Canadian, I have been enjoying fishing your waters, Lake Champlain, for the past 4-5 years. Strangely enought today, as I put my boat in the water at South Hero, a member, Mike, of the Lake Champlain Waters Organization asked me a few questions about invasive species. After responding, I offered my compliments on how the State of New York and Vermont maintained the fishery by stocking and putting a lamprey control program in place. I did mention that I am a member of this forum, which he didn't know of, and that their is a growing concern about the fishery and the cormorants.
As for fishing today, we fished along the outside shoreline of Shelbourn, we caught 1 small laker and put him back in the water.
I do hope that their is increased attention and comeback to what your comments are saying. I wish to continue to come and fish your beautiful Lake Champlain. Fishing evidently means spend $$$ on buying a yearly license, gas, restaurants, hotels/motels... etc.

[spinner]

The state should change the bag limit to zero then everyone would get there limit. I've been a out every chance I can and it's not been productive at all. 8 hours fishing and my best day was 2 fish. Been in the dead sea,Stave which is always good and Friday trolled from ausable to Willsboro 1 laker and 1 salmon. Time to put a 12 gauge in the boat for something to do.

[Hairbone]

6 hrs of trolling 6 lines on broad lake today targeting salmon in 3 different know salmon hot spots... Yield....... 6 lakers 0 salmon.

This should be the best bite season... Something is drastically wrong...

[Hairbone]

I am just going to blame the Canadians. .

[Crazy Ivan]

Don't dispare, the weather has been ruthless. Moon phases for the last two derbies were at 14%,the Lci looks to be no better this coming Saturday should be ok with a 70% moon phase dropping to 28% on Sunday and 14% on Monday, that is very low for anyone who had high exspectations . Add some really crazy weather patterns with no time for salmon to set up in the normal spots and you have crappy fishing.
With all of these unfavorable conditions, wind.... rian.... cold weather then warm weather and bad moon phases it makes for scattered fish. Hopfully the lake will settle and the fish will cooperate.
The 1 place Datillios salmon and 1st 2nd and 3rd salmon in the Rotary derby were all caught within a 3 mile square useing many different techniques. Think out of the box... wire, lead, glow, smelt right, dodger fly. You only need one 8lber to make it a great day.
Todd

[C-Hawk]

I feel better after your wisdom Todd and also catching a decent fish today, but I dont think it would hurt to implement possession limits to be the same as daily bag as it is in many states.

[riddlervt]

CI I agree that the weather has not been cooperating, however that does not replace last years
stocked salmon. That does help explain why we can't catch the 3 and 4 year class fish. If you
consider how many 5 pound and better fish you catch in a typical season and then limit this years
catch to just those 3 year class and up plus this years stocks then it makes sense. No clones,
i.e. cookie cutters, the 17-19 inch 2 year old fish that make this worth pursuing.
I also have been fishing Lake Ontario for over 30 years . They too have experienced missing year classes.
Problems at the hatchery, problems collecting eggs, over stocking and decimating the bait fish populations, flooding, cormorants, goby minnows, did I say cormorants, just to name a few of the known culprits.
As long as you like fishing for Lake Trout and white perch your all set.
Riddler

[Santiago]

FWIW my "area" of concentration is the mouth of Converse to TF Bay, Split Rock and Whallon Bay. I just hooked my first salmon of the season yesterday, throwing the hook on its 4th dance. I was thrilled to see it and didn't mind not netting the 2-3 lb.'er. I started fishing for salmon in 2011 and have seen the catch dwindle every year since except 2015 when the catch was mostly new "stockies".
I have no solution but I wonder what one season of mandatory "catch and release" would do to improve the salmon bite. I personally practice CaR and know it's not for everyone, keeping only fish that will die of their injuries.
The practice would not be welcome by charters as it would likely cut deeply into their bottom line (no pun intended). For the individual sport fishermen the impact would be one season's worth of fasting. I don't mean to stir the ashes but our salmon fishery seems depleted. My apologies if some folks take offense.