End of the year report

[Chrisper4694]

Sorry i don't post here as much anymore, it's just such a pita with the photos and nobody wants a fishing report without photos hahaha.

anyway, closed out the end of the year with plenty of action and variety as usual... say what you want about the fishing in NJ but the fw variety is basically unmatched ANYWHERE thanks to the stocking efforts in the past.

nailed a giant fat rainbow along with dozens of smaller wild bows and browns in the streams before they started getting super low (they seem a bit better now) just drifting a jig.

finesse fished smallies and largies of decent size on metal and plastics along with panfish and dropped the hammer on some nice walleye both to end the year and already first trip of the year, Gary with his PB 25"

Also, some of you might already know, but my long time fishing buddy, Arty, passed away a few months ago so i thought i'd share this story... While squatch and I were walleye fishing, towards the end of the day, I see an old bottle of scent spray in my bag. Arty would always use and swear by this stuff, but i would usually not bother to use it. I could almost hear him in my head telling me to spray it on, so i did. a few casts later i catch my biggest one of the last few trips! 24.5" It was almost like he was fishing with us one last time! RIP buddy, lots of memories!

https://s3.amazonaws.com/photos.fishidy.com/61bc030a6e8bb807ac08c134_800

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[bulletbob]

Take it from a member in NY state... There is no where in NY I can go and catch fish like that with any regularity.. The pics don't lie... Yes there are huge walleyes in Lake Erie, but they are only caught trolling, mostly on big boats and lots of know how.... Same with trout/salmon.. We have big fish and big water, but its specialized, strictly trolling, usually large boats with extensive expensive gear..

We have some good FW fishing for bass, pike, trout, but its selected waters, that are much harder to fish than NJ waters .. My "home" lake of Cayuga is 40 miles long 2 miles wide and 400+ feet deep... Yes we can catch lake trout jigging, but things like rainbows, browns salmon, are for hard core trollers with a lot of time, gear, and know how. In early spring here the lakers are 250 feet down. Try jigging for them in a 14 foot boat with a 1 oz jig with the wind blowing 30 knots. I don't even try any more.

No where in NY do we have a Pike fishery as good as the Passaic River... Yes they are here, but try catching them in these massive lakes where they don't act like Pike,, they often suspend near the alewife schools, and are caught 60 feet down by guys trolling for salmon... The walleyes in the susquehanna river are gone, simply disappeared..

Walleyes are in the very large lakes and rivers but again, try going out with some jigs and live bait and see what that gets you.. Its a slog trying to fish these massive waters... Yes NJ lakes are tiny compared to what we have here in NY, but the management is 1000 X better.. We have NO hybrid Stripers, very few crappies in most of the lakes, although there are some good lakes for them further north such as Lake George and Black Lake, no White Perch, Almost NO Walleyes are stocked here, its all trout and salmon all the time, and almost all of those go to the tourist lakes- Ontario, Erie-Finger Lakes etc.. The fishing in a lot of the small lakes here i downright awful.. btw, NY stocks 1 YO trout in its put and take waters, They average about 8 inches.. NJ puts 2 year olds in its waters that are close to 12.. It is what it is...

However the pics don't lie... NJ for its size and limited water resources has the absolute best fresh water fishing and more importantly, the BEST fisheries management anywhere... I have lived for decades and fished for decades in both states. As far as fishing, I would MUCH rather be in NJ....bob

[thmyorke1]

Nice report, 2nd to last pic is why the fish-gods arent giving us ICE this season!! :mad: :D

@BulletBob, well said. It seems NY doesnt manage their smaller lakes like NJ does. As if NY spends more of their effort on the bigger lakes and their fisheries and then lets the smaller water bodies sort of grow for themselves. After all it's a bigger state with also bigger lakes.

Still it seems most of NY's smaller bodies of water are still great. I know a few that I would always choose to fish compared to any place in NJ, if time/distance wasnt a factor. But variety not so much; true. The upper delaware alone sort of makes up for that however.

[bulletbob]

Nice report, 2nd to last pic is why the fish-gods arent giving us ICE this season!! :mad: :D

@BulletBob, well said. It seems NY doesnt manage their smaller lakes like NJ does. As if NY spends more of their effort on the bigger lakes and their fisheries and then lets the smaller water bodies sort of grow for themselves. After all it's a bigger state with also bigger lakes.

Still it seems most of NY's smaller bodies of water are still great. I know a few that I would always choose to fish compared to any place in NJ, if time/distance wasnt a factor. But variety not so much; true. The upper delaware alone sort of makes up for that however.

The small bodies of water at least in the central part of NY are virtually useless.. they are left to themselves, or in some of therm a couple hundred 7 inch trout are thrown in in spring.. Nothing else..

. There are a couple lakes locally that have Crappies.... Both have them in decent numbers but I have caught 2 keepers at 9 inches in the past 5 years... These lakes are hit HARD, and the instant anything grows to legal size its taken.. just like in NJ most lakes here are lined with homes.. Yes NJ does not have the many lakes and rivers NY state has, but NJ has that big ocean and a huge network of large tidal rivers , and many big bays that keep some pressure off the fresh water fish.. lots of fishermen will only eat salt water fish.
Up here, if you want fresh fish you eat what you catch.. .. I know there are the NY water supply reservoirs, but they are several hours from here, and more of a pain because of all the restrictions... If I want to drive 3 hours to that part of the state to fish, I simply go to NJ and fish saltwater...

NY in my opinion cares too much about the Great Lakes/Finger Lakes trout and salmon, as well as the Catskills trout streams, because those places make money for the state.. NJ seems to be a lot more interested in having a diverse, and very robust fresh water fishery for everyone, not just the tourists spending money on hotels and charter boats... It wasn't bad when I moved here, but once the invasives took over the large lakes and rivers, it KILLED the good fishing that was still here, ... The Gobies, Zebra and Quagga mussels, the Spiny Fleas, have made fishing for certain species very poor in much of NY state compared to years ago,,

[Chrisper4694]

Nice report, 2nd to last pic is why the fish-gods arent giving us ICE this season!! :mad: :D

@BulletBob, well said. It seems NY doesnt manage their smaller lakes like NJ does. As if NY spends more of their effort on the bigger lakes and their fisheries and then lets the smaller water bodies sort of grow for themselves. After all it's a bigger state with also bigger lakes.

Still it seems most of NY's smaller bodies of water are still great. I know a few that I would always choose to fish compared to any place in NJ, if time/distance wasnt a factor. But variety not so much; true. The upper delaware alone sort of makes up for that however.

you also have a strange, unexplainable, love affair for small fish....

[thmyorke1]

you also have a strange, unexplainable, love affair for small fish....

i can fit them better in my hands that way :cool:

[FASTEDDIE29]

Great fishing PHSYCHO! Love the pics, love the species. Keep em’ coning!!! Whooooo hooooooo!!!:D

[reason162]

Excellent 2021 Chrisper!

My "home" lake of Cayuga is 40 miles long 2 miles wide and 400+ feet deep... Yes we can catch lake trout jigging, but things like rainbows, browns salmon, are for hard core trollers with a lot of time, gear, and know how. In early spring here the lakers are 250 feet down. Try jigging for them in a 14 foot boat with a 1 oz jig with the wind blowing 30 knots. I don't even try any more.

Someone in the finger lakes region pining for NJ freshwater fishing...now I've heard it all :)

[bulletbob]

Excellent 2021 Chrisper!



Someone in the finger lakes region pining for NJ freshwater fishing...now I've heard it all :)
Yeah pretty weird right??These lakes are for deep water trolling . They are absolutely huge, and the fish aren't everywhere.. They are on alewives that are sometimes 250 feet down.. Guys regularly troll 100- 150 feet deep here, sometimes even deeper.... Not my bag at all...

First 10 years here, I had good fishing and did not miss what I left in NJ all that much. Great SMB, perch, huge sunnies, Pike here and there, and enough big Salmonids within reach to keep my interest, and keeping me from becoming just another troller putting 50 miles on the boat every trip... Then, the invasions started, Zebras and Quaggas first, then the masses of spiny fleas, then the hordes of Gobies, not to mention massive population spikes of lampreys, and huge devastating lake wide die offs due to VHS.... Fishing is a sad shadow here of what it once was. The trollers aren't as affected because all the salmonids are stocked, and as long as the alewives are here, they grow quickly... Near shore/shallow water fishing in many of these lakes is dead.. yes I can go to Lake George, or Black Lake, but the NJ shore is actually closer, so thats what I tend to do most often... bob

[Chrisper4694]

Yeah pretty weird right??These lakes are for deep water trolling . They are absolutely huge, and the fish aren't everywhere.. They are on alewives that are sometimes 250 feet down.. Guys regularly troll 100- 150 feet deep here, sometimes even deeper.... Not my bag at all...

First 10 years here, I had good fishing and did not miss what I left in NJ all that much. Great SMB, perch, huge sunnies, Pike here and there, and enough big Salmonids within reach to keep my interest, and keeping me from becoming just another troller putting 50 miles on the boat every trip... Then, the invasions started, Zebras and Quaggas first, then the masses of spiny fleas, then the hordes of Gobies, not to mention massive population spikes of lampreys, and huge devastating lake wide die offs due to VHS.... Fishing is a sad shadow here of what it once was. The trollers aren't as affected because all the salmonids are stocked, and as long as the alewives are here, they grow quickly... Near shore/shallow water fishing in many of these lakes is dead.. yes I can go to Lake George, or Black Lake, but the NJ shore is actually closer, so thats what I tend to do most often... bob

I know a guy that moved from NJ to guide cyuga lake (spelling?) he doesn't troll...fishes similarly to how we fish the deep lake trout lakes here... jigging and casting for smallmouth and lake trout... gets a good amount of salmon or browns (can't remember which) and musky too sometimes.

[AndyS]

Do you eat any of the walleye and perch that you catch ?

[Hookmanski]

I know a guy that moved from NJ to guide cyuga lake (spelling?) he doesn't troll...fishes similarly to how we fish the deep lake trout lakes here... jigging and casting for smallmouth and lake trout... gets a good amount of salmon or browns (can't remember which) and musky too sometimes.

If its who I'm thinking of, its Salmon! hahaha :D

[bulletbob]

I know a guy that moved from NJ to guide cyuga lake (spelling?) he doesn't troll...fishes similarly to how we fish the deep lake trout lakes here... jigging and casting for smallmouth and lake trout... gets a good amount of salmon or browns (can't remember which) and musky too sometimes.

No Muskies in Cayuga..The "deep" Lake Trout lakes in NJ are 60 feet and a mile or two long.. Cayuga is 435 feet deep and 40 miles long... You can catch fish jigging, but trollers outcatch jiggers by a wide margin... There is one or two guys that guide here jigging for lakers, but the SMB in Cayuga is dead... there was a massive die off of SMB, Rock Bass, Sunfish, Carp, Bullheads Suckers, Perch,Pike, Pickerel, due to VHS, and in much of the lake they never recovered.. In the 90's it was nothing to catch 100 rock bass to 12 inches, along with dozens of big SMB, huge sunnies and perch, just with a worm and bobber.. The big die off was massive... They used bucket loaders and trucks to take the huge piles of dead fish off the shorelines.. Then the Gobies came, and now nothing can reproduce.. As soon as any fish nests, the nest is attacked by hundreds of gobies.. There are videos on YT.. The fish cannot reproduce... I haven't caught a sunfish in Cayuga in about 13 years.. I caught 2 rock bass there last year, the first since 2008.. They say the north end of the lake isn't as bad with gobies as its mud/sand bottom, but I dunno.. I was there last year and the bottom was simpy swarming with them.. What has happened to the fishing in this section of NY is a shame..

Most guys here aren't even aware because they troll only, and since the alewives are still ok, and lake trout eat gobies, all is well.. The fish are stocked, and grow quickly, and are caught most readily by trollers...

Any species that lives near shore and is not stocked is either gone or close to it... Nothing can be done at this point really.. All the invasives are well established, and the system is part of the Great lakes .. all connected.. Next up??... Grass Carp.... bob

[Chrisper4694]

No Muskies in Cayuga..The "deep" Lake Trout lakes in NJ are 60 feet and a mile or two long.. Cayuga is 435 feet deep and 40 miles long... You can catch fish jigging, but trollers outcatch jiggers by a wide margin... There is one or two guys that guide here jigging for lakers, but the SMB in Cayuga is dead... there was a massive die off of SMB, Rock Bass, Sunfish, Carp, Bullheads Suckers, Perch,Pike, Pickerel, due to VHS, and in much of the lake they never recovered.. In the 90's it was nothing to catch 100 rock bass to 12 inches, along with dozens of big SMB, huge sunnies and perch, just with a worm and bobber.. The big die off was massive... They used bucket loaders and trucks to take the huge piles of dead fish off the shorelines.. Then the Gobies came, and now nothing can reproduce.. As soon as any fish nests, the nest is attacked by hundreds of gobies.. There are videos on YT.. The fish cannot reproduce... I haven't caught a sunfish in Cayuga in about 13 years.. I caught 2 rock bass there last year, the first since 2008.. They say the north end of the lake isn't as bad with gobies as its mud/sand bottom, but I dunno.. I was there last year and the bottom was simpy swarming with them.. What has happened to the fishing in this section of NY is a shame..

Most guys here aren't even aware because they troll only, and since the alewives are still ok, and lake trout eat gobies, all is well.. The fish are stocked, and grow quickly, and are caught most readily by trollers...

Any species that lives near shore and is not stocked is either gone or close to it... Nothing can be done at this point really.. All the invasives are well established, and the system is part of the Great lakes .. all connected.. Next up??... Grass Carp.... bob

He def outfishes the trollers jigging trust me on that one… jigs them at will multiple headers consistently, insane. As for the smb and muskie, it could be a nearby lake i never asked, but it’s consistent too and the smb are big. Muskie mostly smaller.

[Chrisper4694]

Do you eat any of the walleye and perch that you catch ?

Sometimes

[henro]

Sometimes

#delicious #clapthemcheeks

[bulletbob]

He def outfishes the trollers jigging trust me on that one… jigs them at will multiple headers consistently, insane. As for the smb and muskie, it could be a nearby lake i never asked, but it’s consistent too and the smb are big. Muskie mostly smaller.

If you can get on them jigging lakers can be very good in Cayuga... When they are suspended and on bait, it can be tough unless you troll.. When the bait is oriented close to bottom, and shallow say under 125 feet, you can get a lot of them...

SMB? I would have to see it to believe it.. They have been decimated in Cayuga.. I have not caught a single one in about 13-14 years.. I used to catch 30- 40 in a morning, standing on shore , never moving 50 feet from where I started. For YEARS until the 2008 die off..

If he is catching Muskies, they are not pure strain, they have to be Tigers, and I think Otisco Lake is where he's getting them.. Thats a smaller finger lake, managed for Tigers,and although it does have invasive mussels, I don't believe the Gobies have made it there as yet. The bass and other warm water fish can still spawn there.. The reason the lakers are ok in Cayuga is because they are stocked and have plenty of food, and they eat gobies, so it has actually increased their food supply.

Cayuga is stocked annually with approximately 60,000 lake trout, 25,000 brown trout and 40,000 Atlantic salmon.,,,,bob

[Chrisper4694]

If you can get on them jigging lakers can be very good in Cayuga... When they are suspended and on bait, it can be tough unless you troll.. When the bait is oriented close to bottom, and shallow say under 125 feet, you can get a lot of them...

SMB? I would have to see it to believe it.. They have been decimated in Cayuga.. I have not caught a single one in about 13-14 years.. I used to catch 30- 40 in a morning, standing on shore , never moving 50 feet from where I started. For YEARS until the 2008 die off..

If he is catching Muskies, they are not pure strain, they have to be Tigers, and I think Otisco Lake is where he's getting them.. Thats a smaller finger lake, managed for Tigers,and although it does have invasive mussels, I don't believe the Gobies have made it there as yet. The bass and other warm water fish can still spawn there.. The reason the lakers are ok in Cayuga is because they are stocked and have plenty of food, and they eat gobies, so it has actually increased their food supply.

Cayuga is stocked annually with approximately 60,000 lake trout, 25,000 brown trout and 40,000 Atlantic salmon.,,,,bob

Yes tigers