Weekly Fishing News

Last week

Weeks of October 31 - November 14, 1999

Record Brown Trout & Steelhead taken in Trail Creek.

Low water levels didn't affect Great Lakes Fishing season.

Even though marinas may have had to dredge more than usual, and the propeller repair business was brisker than normal, low water levels across the Great Lakes region didn't affect the quality fishing we experienced this year. In fact, IN DNR fish chief Bill James alluded to the quality of this year's fishing successes when he stated "1999 will go down in the record books as the year of the big fish." Many of us can vouch for that, so can the anglers stream fishing Trail Creek, Indiana with their records.

Steve Bay of South Bend landed and then gave away a giant brown trout from Trail Creek in Michigan City, on Sept. 25, 1999. Bay, an avid stream fisherman, caught the 24.18 lb. fish on a home-made wooly worm fly. It broke the record set by a Lake Michigan angler last spring by 1.18 lbs. The fish measured 36" long with a 23" girth.

Louie Stout, staff outdoor writer with the South Bend Tribune states Bay was quoted as saying "Some guy who was fishing near me weighed it on his digital fish scale and it registered 25 pounds, but I didn't think much about it. I figured the record was well over 30 lbs. so I asked a couple guys from Fort Wayne if they wanted it."

Stout added "They took the fish to U.S. 20 Bait and Tackle where owner Jeff Long later summoned Bodine Hatchery Assistant Manager Bob Bell to verify the record. In fact, the fish was offered to Long who will have it taxidermied and displayed in his store.

That's fine with Bay, who says he takes satisfaction in knowing he has the record. He's caught many other large salmon and trout and stated "I'm having a 14 lb. brown mounted that I caught a week ago. It's got a lot prettier markings than the big one."

Bay caught his fish on 10lb. Trilene XL line and a 9 1/2' spinning rod he built. His spinning reel was a $14 Shimano.

Earlier this year , Evan Nicholson of Bridgman, MI. broke a nine-year state record when he landed a 26.62 lb. steelhead on June 23, 1999. The record steelhead measured 38' in length with a girth of 23".

Trail Creek, a LaPorte County tributary of Lake Michigan, again offered up another record fish, this time to a fly-casting angler. Nicholson's record steelhead took a simple red yarn fly, tied to resemble the egg baits frequently used by other anglers.

DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife biologists report that this year's Skamania run was strong and included a fair number of large fish. Skamania is a strain of trout named for Skamania, Wash. where the fish originate.

The many large fish caught this year out of Lakes Michigan and Ontario are being attributed to the large numbers of alewives that have been available throughout the 1999 season to make these feisty game fish all the more desirable. Clean waters and bigger & healthier classes of bait fish could provide more and healthier game fish for Great Lakes anglers into the new millennium.

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CORMORANTS: A GLSFC SPECIAL REPORT

ISLAND PHOTOS

Ontario keeps One-Day license

Ontario's Ministry of Natural Resources will not do away with its non-resident one day fishing license for Great Lakes Anglers. Communications Specialist John Cooper for the ministry's Lake Erie Management Unit said the decision to keep the one-day license was based on concerns from sort anglers from the Ohio side of lake Erie.

Walleye Study looks at northern lakes for clues
Seek insight into best candidates for stocking success

Spooner, WI - Researchers are wrapping up the 1st of a four year study on 24 northern lakes they hope will ultimately identify which lakes are best suited for stocking and which are best left to natural reproduction.

"This study will give us an overall idea of how well our walleye stocking program is contributing to the fishery on this type of lake," says Marty Jennings, DNR ecologist heading up the study. "We can look at individual cases among the 24 lakes and use this information to direct stocking to where it's more successful and steer away from lakes where it's not successful. The idea is to maximize the effectiveness of the program."

Superior produces strong herring year class

Preliminary information from early forage trawl surveys show an improved forage base for Lake Superior. These surveys are conducted annually by the USGS Biological resources division for every Great Lake, this one out of Ashland, WI.

In the Minnesota and Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior the catch of age 1 + lake herring was well above average and was the highest catch reported since 1990, while Michigan and Ontario waters were slightly higher than average. Biologists, anglers and commercials were all concerned over the lack of a strong lake herring year class since 1990.

More detailed information will be available over the winter as the season's catch data are analyzed. This positive news is welcome after a long drought of poor year classes of herring.

Merger will produce bigger Chicago Show
Problems with McCormick Place still not resolved

"The National Marine Manufacturers Association's Chicago Boat, RV & Outdoors Show will become the largest outdoors show in the nation through a merger with the Chicago sportsman's Show" according to a recent press release.

The show runs Jan. 26-30, and will occupy both floors of the McCormick Place North Bldg. It will feature 900 powerboats, 300 recreational vehicles, 300 travel destination and outdoor products retailers, 100 marine accessories retailers and 20,000 Sq. ft. of fishing tackle exhibits.

The agreement to merge was announced by NMMA and Chicago Sportsmen Show personnel, and will retain the name of Chicago Boat, RV & Outdoors Show.

Did you know:
The number of privately owned firearms in America increased from 122 million in 1973 to 231 million in 1994. Yet the homicide rate fell 10 % during that period. And in the Monday October 18, 1999 Chicago Tribune, the FBI reported serious crimes declined for the seventh straight year, as both the murder and robbery rates reached lows not seen in three decades. The FBI report showed the use of guns to commit murder and robbery is decreasing.

"For seven years now we have seen serious crime go down in each region of the country, and in cities and towns large and small," Atty. Gen. Janet Reno said.

Words to ponder:

Avoiding failure isn't the same as achieving success.

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