The mild weather bestowed upon us this past winter has made
for an early beginning of the 2012 LO fishing season. Warm is good and I would
expect the bait population will continue to be healthy and plentiful. In all
probability, the mild winter will also help to produce a solid crop of wild born
salmon with good survival translating to a robust Chinook population in the next
few years.
As an avid Chinook
fisherman, I am happy to report that this critter has adapted very well to LO
waters all but insuring a sustainable salmon fishery. One could say that we now
have a Lake Ontario strain of Chinook salmon.
While the purist enthusiasts continue their efforts
to improve the Atlantic Salmon situation it just seems that this fish, that fell
into decline in the early 18th century, has not been able to adapt to
current lake conditions. While a modest Atlantic restoration effort continues,
progress is slow, very slow. However since this fish became naturalized to Lake
Ontario waters hundreds of years ago, and began to disappear with the early dam
construction and population expansion, the effort to successful restoration has
been minimal.Two things are for sure, native fish such as Atlantics and
Lake Trout have not done too well with regard to their restoration effort. Is it
possible that the changing ecosystem just is not conducive to the hoped for
comeback of these fish? Pacific Salmon have successfully adapted while Atlantic
and Laker populations have struggled. To date the restoration efforts for the
two species have not been very successful.
Oswego net pens will be in
place in a few weeks. Fish raised in the pens have done quite well over the
years. This volunteer program has proven that a little tender loving care goes a
long way. Long live the net pens. Right now we are looking at receiving the fish
earlier than in years past due to the warm weather.
The boat will be in the water in a few days. We
invite you to join us for some fine fishing, and an enjoyable time on the water.
We been doing it longer than most and are once again ready to be of service.
