Trout are such beautiful fish to simply look at. Western New York inland trout streams were nearly in early summer condition going into last weekend, with mostly clear water flows. Dozens of cars lined roadways where trout-stocked waters crossed the highway, while anglers using anything from puddle boots to chest high waders lined the stream on both sides of the bank in some places.
At Wiscoy Creek in Pike and along East Koy Creek in Gainesville, there were large numbers of anglers seeking to enjoy the warm, sunny weather last weekend, with a fishing road in hand and no snow in sight. While fly rod anglers using scuds, midge flies and stone flies were among opening weekend anglers testing the clear waters, there were more anglers using spinning rods with light lines casting small Mepp’s and Vibrax spinners, as well as the usual variety of natural baits with bobbers and sinkers.
DEC offers that if you are not planning to keep your catch, to please practice catch and release using lures, like spinners, that are trimmed to trailing just one hook (instead of the usual treble). One spinner that really works well on the inland WNY trout streams is a CP-Swing, size two or three, in silver or gold, though angler preference is usually silver for clear water. The lightweight body of this lure allows the blade to hover with a minimum of current. With such clear water that is already low for this time of year, lure “lift” is important performance characteristic to keep in mind.
It was great to see so many families fishing last weekend, with some moms joining the mix with rod and reel in hand, too. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em! The recent beautiful spring weather has allowed many anglers to enjoy the great inland trout fishing opportunities available to us. At one of the more popular local WNY inland trout streams, Ischua Creek in Cattaraugus County near Franklinville, DEC has been conducting an angler use survey. The survey covers fishing effort, angler catch rates, angler opinions and an assessment of the new catch and release section. A decision will be made by May about whether to keep or remove the catch and release regulation on Ischua Creek. The DEC is welcoming all public comment on the C/R regulation in the meantime.
From April 1 through Oct. 15, 2008, DEC fisheries staff counted anglers on the stream and interviewed anglers to learn where they were fishing. They asked what anglers were catching and were seeking to gather angler opinions on trout stream management issues. Anglers were surveyed four days per week in April, May and June and two days per week in the July through October period. The survey was also part of an evaluation of the stream’s catch and release regulation section. At the same time, DEC conducted an electro-fishing survey in the catch and release section to estimate trout populations.
Through the course of 702 angler interviews, 53 percent (372) of which were conducted in April, anglers evenly split between the two stocked stream sections (mouth to Pierce Hill Road and Pierce Hill Road to Franklinville) with 333 and 301 interviews, respectively. Some 68 interviews were conducted with anglers using the catch and release section. Overall, 56 percent of anglers interviewed rated their experience as satisfactory, while 44 percent rated it as unsatisfactory.
In the catch and release section of Ischua, 43 percent of anglers interviewed rated their fishing experience as satisfactory, while 57 percent rated it as unsatisfactory. Sixty one percent of anglers interviewed were fishing with bait, while 24 percent were using artificial lures and 15 percent were fishing with flies. Of the 425 interviewed anglers that were aware of the catch and release section on Ischua Creek and had an opinion, 388 (91 percent) said they approved of the regulation.
The majority of the anglers interviewed were residents of Cattaraugus County (54 percent), with the next largest number coming from Erie County (27 percent). Only four percent of the anglers interviewed were from outside DEC Region 9, including 24 non-residents. A total of 915 trout were caught by anglers interviewed in the survey, of this total, 726 (79 percent ) were reported to have been released and 188 were creeled. The breakdown by species of trout caught was 742 brown (81 percent released), 172 brook (74 percent released) and one rainbow. Nearly all the fish examined during the survey were hatchery trout.
When interview data was expanded for all anglers and the season as a whole, DEC estimated that angler effort was 15,464 hours (6,601 trips), or 206 hours/acre of stream, considered “moderate” fishing pressure in New York State. The estimated catch of trout for the entire season was 12,595 fish, of which 9,985 (79 percent) were brown trout and the remainder was brook trout. A total of 11,160 brown trout and 2,200 brook trout were stocked in Ischua Creek in 2008. For the stream as a whole, the catch rate for brown trout was 0.59 fish/hour and for brook trout it was 0.14 fish/hour.
In summary, two of the five objectives for the catch and release regulation were met in Ischua Creek for 2008. DEC takes into account poor survival of stocked brown trout, low wild trout numbers and surplus brook trout stocking. The objective for angler catch rate might also be considered to have been met. For anglers interviewed on the stream overall, there appeared to be very strong approval of the catch and release regulation section (91 percent), regardless of whether the anglers had fished in that section or not. The results of the angler use survey do not give strong support for either keeping or for removing the catch and release regulation.
DEC will make a decision to keep or remove the “Catch and Release Section” by May 2010, as regulation changes for 2012 need to be submitted by that time. The Region 9 Fisheries office has been meeting with angler groups during the winter and are still soliciting angler input by e-mail and standard mail to gather input on whether to keep or remove this regulation.
If you wish to comment on the Ischua Creek regulation, send to Region 9 Fisheries Manager, NYSDEC, 182 E. Union St. #3, Allegany, NY 14706 or e-mail at fwfish9@gw.dec.state.ny.us.
Spring crappie fishing
At Chautauqua Lake, the black crappie bite in the southern basin has started in the creek and marina channels, with nearshore areas providing locals with best action after dark. As usual, small tube jigs with floats or minnows have worked well, with DEC reporting some fish taken to 13 inches in length. As spring continues to evolve early this year, the crappie bite may really heat up in Arnolds Bay and farther south in Burtis Bay. The south basin islands are viable hotspots, too. Last weekend, those anglers that did not find crappies, did find lots of nice size yellow perch on the weedline, with some fish going to 11 inches.
Steelhead action tops
Steelhead anglers are still finding large numbers of steelhead in our WNY tributary creeks, with some up to 41 inches! Most fish are the usual 25 to 26 inches and four years old. Some are finished spawning and are already dropping back towards Lake Erie.
Mike Todd of DEC suggests that steelhead will usually not strike when actively spawning. He adds, “If anglers observe active spawners, they should take care to avoid these fish and take special care not to disturb the redds (gravel nests) as natural reproduction helps our incredible steelhead fishery.”
Smaller creek water levels were dropping through last weekend and were reaching the low to clear stage. After the rains through early this week, water color will smudge and still be fishable if rains diminish by this coming weekend. Anglers can use a variety of baits/lures for spring steelhead such as egg sacs, egg pattern flies, small hair jigs tipped with grubs, minnow patterns, bugger patterns, nightcrawlers/worms and minnows.
Buffalo Creek, Cayuga Creek, Cazenovia Creek, 18-Mile Creek, Clear Creek, Silver Creek, Walnut Creek, Mud Creek and Delaware Creek are amongst local smaller-stream Lake Erie tributary favorites. The large stream favorite is Cattaraugus Creek. Good luck to all!
Firearms interest rising
A new National Shooting Sports Foundation poll conducted by Harris Interactive found that more Americans are target shooting now than six months ago, and that “home and personal defense” were the main reasons Americans recently purchased firearms.
The poll also showed that 43 percent of respondents, which equates to nearly 98 million people, expressed some level of interest in participating in the shooting sports or hunting. According to Steve Sanetti, NSSF president, “Last year was a banner year for lawful firearm sales, and the results of this poll suggest the desires for personal security and recreation were drivers of most of those purchases. The poll also reaffirms something we’ve known for a long time, that many millions of Americans want to try target shooting or hunting and are just waiting for an invitation from an experienced shooter to go to the range or afield. So, firearms owners should make that invitation and share the enjoyment of recreational shooting or hunting with someone eager to go.”
The online survey was conducted March 16-18 by Harris Interactive, which performs periodic surveys for NSSF on shooting and hunting participation. The questions were asked of general population adults ages 18 and over.
In general, findings from the NSSF/Harris poll include that some 18.4 million Americans “currently participate” in handgun target shooting and 14.8 million in rifle target shooting, an increase from the 16.8 million and 13.9 million, respectively. That participation in the shotgun sports of “skeet/trap” and “sporting clays” was 4.2 million in each of those categories. That in response to a question about why Americans made their most recent firearm purchase, 40 percent of respondents said “home protection” followed by 36 percent citing “personal protection.” Target shooting (30 percent) and hunting (28 percent) came next.
Continuing, the main barrier to people going target shooting more often? “Cost of ammunition” was cited by 50 percent of the respondents, followed by “not enough free time” (43 percent). The survey highlighted the power of a personal invitation to motivate an individual to go target shooting or hunting as some 45 percent of respondents said an “invitation from friend or family” would most encourage them to participate, ranking this personal interaction far ahead of all forms of advertising.
Once invited by a friend or family member, respondents said they would want to shoot a handgun at the range (77 percent), shoot a rifle at the range (69 percent), go plinking (55 percent), fire shotguns at clay targets (54 percent), take a self-protection class (54 percent), go hunting for various game species, which was cited by an average of 25 percent of respondents. For more about the shooting sports and firearm safety, visit nssf.org.
Bassmaster Elite to Smith Mountain Lake
In postcard-pretty southern Virginia, Smith Mountain Lake promises to fish as good as it looks during the April 15 to 18 Evan Williams Bourbon Blue Ridge Brawl. The lake’s beauty, however, has nothing to do with the amount of looking that Bassmaster Elite Series professionals will be doing. Most pros will be busy watching for bass on their way to, or already on, spawning beds. It’s not a long drive from WNY. Look for bassmaster Matt Spahr, WNY native from Pavilion, to score well here.
Outdoor Calendar
April 8: Handgun Permit Class, Gander Mountain Lodge, 5:30 p.m., call 778-9431.
April 8/13/15: Firearms Hunter Training, Tonawanda City School, 150 Hinds Street, Tonawanda., must pre-register, call 695-5501, must attend all sessions.
April 9/11: NYS Firearms Hunter Safety Education, West Falls Conservation, 55 Bridge St., West Falls, 7 a.m. – 10 p.m. on April 9, 9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. on April 11, call Art Segool to register at 662-5657.
April 10: Sportsman’s Swap Meet, Alden Rod & Gun, 12 County line Rd., Alden, free admission, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., call 937-7324.
April 10: US Coast Guard Aux Safe Boating and Jet Ski Class, McKinley Mall, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., call 681-3889.
April 11: John Long fund-raiser and dinner, Niagara River Anglers, St. Joe’s church hall, Military Rd., Niagara Falls, call 731-4780 for informatio.
April 12: West Falls Conservation, monthly meeting, 55 Bridge St., West Falls, call 652-4650.
April 15: Southtowns Walleye monthly meeting, David Woodworth, 7:30 p.m., Armor Fire Hall, Hamburg.
April17: Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper Spring Shoreline Sweep, 9 a.m.-noon, need lots of volunteers, fun day, time flies by, visit: http://bnriverkeeper.org/get-involved/cleanups.
April 24-25: NYS Youth Turkey Hunt weekend (for 12-15 year olds with guardian).
Calendar Items: email Forrest Fisher at nugdor@yahoo.com
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