EdB

One of the scary things about CWD is that a deer can carry it for up to 5 years before it shows any signs of the disease. I'm sure the DNR is going to investigate and try to trace the history of the affected deer. I wonder how complete all private game farms records of animal sales and transfers are going back 5 years? Could some records be gone of deer transfers 3-5 yrs back? Could there be other farm deer around the state who may be carrying this with no signs of the disease. Thank God that this was found inside an enclosed farm. Still, who knows if these farm deer ever had any nose to nose contact with wild deer at fences? Fences are not bio-hazard proof. They should be shutting down every big game and deer farm in the state. Everyone knew the deer farm industry was the most likely vehicle for transmission of this disease to Michigan and now sure enough it has happened. If this does get into our wild deer herd, deer hunting in MI will never be the same.

CWD has been found in our state in a captive deer herd. News releases below. 8/25/2008, 6:25 p.m. EDT By TIM MARTIN The Associated Press LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan's first case of chronic wasting disease was confirmed Monday in a white-tailed deer from a privately owned facility in the state's western Lower Peninsula. Michigan officials have quarantined all privately owned cervid facilities and banned the movement of all privately owned deer, elk and moose. There is no evidence that the disease exists in free-ranging, wild deer in Michigan. But as a precaution, the state will increase its testing of wild herds and place restrictions on hunters in some areas. "This will trigger a number of actions," said Rebecca Humphries, director of the state's Department of Natural Resources. Officials say they don't yet know how the deer, found in a Kent County facility, may have gotten the disease. Michigan has been testing for chronic wasting disease for several years, a process heightened when it was detected in Wisconsin in 2002. The fatal neurological disease causes animals to display abnormal behavior and progressively lose weight. It's been found in other states, mostly in the West, although it also has been detected in West Virginia and New York. There is no evidence that people have ever caught chronic wasting disease from infected animals. The state's natural resources and agriculture departments are reviewing records from the Kent County facility and five others — including operations in Montcalm and Osceola counties — to trace deer and elk that have been bought, sold or moved in the last several years. Any deer that may have come in contact with a herd that has tested positive for chronic wasting disease has been traced and quarantined. Officials would not identify the Kent County facility involved. But they said it was a facility used mostly for deer breeding. The DNR soon will issue an order restricting baiting and feeding of deer in the Lower Peninsula. Deer hunters this fall who kill deer from Kent County's Tyrone, Solon, Nelson, Sparta, Algoma, Courtland, Alpine, Plainfield and Cannon townships will be required to bring their deer to a DNR check station. Other hunters in Kent County, and perhaps elsewhere in the state, will be asked to visit DNR check stations so further biological samples can be taken from free-ranging deer. The deer that tested positive was a doe that had been culled from the herd by the Kent County facility's owner. Michigan law requires that sick deer in a private facility be tested for disease. The facility was audited in 2004 and 2007. There were no violations reported in those audits. No escapes of animals have been reported from the facility. DNR officials said they have tested nearly 250 wild deer in Kent County for chronic wasting disease since 2002. In the summer of 2005, some deer in the area showed neurological symptoms similar to chronic wasting disease. But testing revealed the animals had Eastern equine encephalitis, not chronic wasting disease. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Aug. 26, 2008 Contact: Mary Dettloff 517-335-3014 DNR Acts to Implement CWD Surveillance and Response Plan In the wake of Monday’s announcement that Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has been confirmed in a three-year old privately-owned white-tailed deer in Kent County, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is acting immediately to implement provisions of the state’s Surveillance and Response Plan for CWD. Among the provisions is an immediate ban on all baiting and feeding ofdeer and elk in the Lower Peninsula. DNR conservation officers will step up surveillance and enforcement efforts on baiting. Baiting and feeding unnaturally congregate deer into close contact, thus increasing the transmission of contagious diseases such as CWD and bovine tuberculosis. Bait and feed sites increase the likelihood that those areas will become contaminated with the feces of infected animals, making them a source of CWD infection for years to come. Additionally, the provisions include a mandatory deer check for hunters who take a deer within Tyrone, Solon, Nelson, Sparta, Algoma, Courtland, Alpine, Plainfield, and Cannon townships, which contain the surveillance area or "hot zone." All hunters who take a deer during any deer hunting season this fall within the "hot zone" will be required to visit a DNR deer check station so that their deer can be tested for CWD. The DNR currently is seeking locations for additional deer check stations in the area to make it more convenient for hunters. To prevent unintentional spread of CWD, the only parts of deer harvested in the surveillance zone that will be allowed to be transported out will be boned meat, capes, and antlers cleaned of all soft tissues. In addition, all transport of live wild deer, elk and moose will be prohibited statewide, including transport for rehabilitation purposes. Currently, there is no live animal test for CWD, and infected animals often show no signs of illness for years in spite of being infectious for other animals. Movement for rehabilitation purposes may speed geographic spread of the disease. The DNR will act immediately to test an additional 300 deer within the "hot zone" in Kent County. The DNR will be cooperating with local officials to collect fresh road-killed deer, and will be urging deer hunters participating in the early antlerless season on private land in September to comply with the mandatory deer check. Landowners in Kent County "hot zone" who would like to obtain disease control permits to cull deer from their property and assist with the collection of deer for testing should contact the DNR’s Wildlife Disease Lab at 517-336-5030. Permits will be available immediately upon request. Landowners who do not want to cull deer, but want to participate in the collection of deer for testing, can obtain assistance from the DNR in culling deer. DNR officials reminded citizens that, to date, there is no evidence that CWD poses a risk to humans, nor has there been verified evidence that the disease can be transmitted to humans. CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects deer, elk and moose. Most cases of the disease have been in western states, but in the past several years, it has spread to Midwestern and eastern states. Infected animals display abnormal behaviors, loss of bodily functions and a progressive weight loss. Current evidence suggests that the disease is transmitted through infectious, self-multiplying proteins (prions). Prions are normal cell proteins whose shape has been transformed, causing CWD. The disease is transmitted by exposure to saliva of infected animals. Susceptible animals can also acquire CWD by eating feces from an infected animal, or soil contaminated by them. Once contaminated, soil can remain a source of infection for many years, making CWD a particularly difficult disease to manage. More information about CWD is available on the State of Michigan’s Emerging Diseases Web site at www.michigan.gov/chronicwastingdisease. The DNR is committed to the conservation, protection, use and enjoyment of the state’s natural resources for current and future generations. ###

I think you have more depth and less crowded conditions on the your end of the lake Storm Warning. You should see some of the yee haws that run some of the boats in the western basin. Most people are ok but a few can sure cause some problems. Had a first this year. Another boat was on a parallel troll next to us a couple hundred feet to our starboard. He makes an inside turn toward us. We start scrambling. His planer board was well inside ours now coming at us. We had 4 lines on ours and everyone grabbed a rod to clear. I started cranking in the board but knew I wouldn't make it. The two boards would pass inside each other. Then the miracle happened. Our board caught a wave and the ski hit his planer cable and our board jumped over his cable and we made it. If you run your leads or divers more than 100 back, you're risking your tackle the way some people run their boats here.

http://www.ludingtondailynews.com/news.php?story_id=41134 Boat lands on south breakwater Confusion over lights, speed, improper GPS waypoint cited Brian Mulherin - Daily News Staff Writer Thursday, August 21, 2008 It’s been just more than a year since the last boat parked on Ludington’s breakwaters. That streak ended about 11 p.m. Wednesday as a 19-foot Sea Ray captained by a man from Ann Arbor collided with and became perched upon the south breakwater. Majed Hussein El-Awar said after fishing Wednesday night he was “speeding” toward the harbor from the south, aimed between a green and a red light — unfortunately they were the green and red light marking the channel that leads from the outer harbor to Pere Marquette Lake. He said he slowed to check his GPS moments before the accident, but his waypoint was set for the Loomis Street boat ramps. “We were speeding full speed and then we got close and thank God we were slowing down,” El-Awar said. El-Awar suffered a cut on his forehead that required stitches, while his passenger, Bou Fakreddine Imad Sami of Milford, suffered a bruised shoulder. “We are very lucky,” El-Awar said. “We are very happy, to be honest with you, that nothing happened to us.” El-Awar did not say how fast he was going at impact, but the boat sat up out of the water on the south breakwater, perched on a section of cement that angles up at 45 degrees. Asked about setting a waypoint at the boat launch instead of a half-mile out from the pierheads as authorities recommend, El-Awar said he learned that lesson. “We learned it the hard way,” El-Awar said. Boatswain’s Mate Second Class Dustin Storm of U.S. Coast Guard Station Ludington said it was a clear, calm evening and no evidence of alcohol was found. Mason County Sheriff’s Office Marine Patrol, City of Ludington Police and Life EMS also responded to the accident. The boat is the second to hit a breakwater on Lake Michigan in the last two weeks. A boat hit Manistee’s breakwater Aug. 8. Retired Coast Guard Senior Chief Tom Rau, who writes the “Boat Smart” column for the Ludington Daily News, said he believes the boat is the 69th seawall collision between Chicago and Frankfort in the last 10 years. “In every case, notwithstanding alcohol, it astounds me, it’s speed,” Rau said. “And you hear, just like that guy, the same thing ‘I was confused with the harbor lights.’ Well, that is more reason than ever to bring back the throttles. I liken it to entering a Kmart parking lot at 60 miles per hour.” Ludington’s north breakwater light was changed from a white bulb to a green bulb in 2006 after a rash of collisions with the breakwaters. Wednesday’s crash was the third since the light changed, with the first occurring in August of 2006 and another following last August. Both of those boats hit the south breakwater.

I don't think you could run it on Erie with the heavy boat traffic. The best way to let it out is to keep your clicker on and a thumb on the reel and strip it out until you get about 15 ft of copper in the water, then just leave the clicker on. The 150 ft coppers have been rocking on the inshore salmon on Lk Mi lately.

Great job on your high finishes in the two tournies over the last 2 weeks!

Great job Tim and your team!

Sounds like some great action, nice catch!

Wow, I'm sure his tackle wasn't rigged for that fish. The angler must have done a great job on the rods, especially if he got into the rest of the spread.

You're having a great season, way to consistently hammer them! Nice job!

Lake Effect, We were on the bubble Sunday morning on going to the Little Point. We made the wrong call going north. We couldn't get the trout going down there when we fished there Thursday even though our kings came fast. What did you get your trout on and did you get both steelies and lakers? Maybe we'll see you around the marina in Pentwater, I saw your boat slipped down from my buddies boat the Last Cast.

Sounds like you had some great action Saturday. Thanks for the report. Maybe we'll see you around next year.

Had a lot of fun this past week at Ludington. Fishing was on the tough side during the week leading up to the Gander Mountain Offshore Classic. Most of my prefishing was ruling out water instead of finding the place we wanted to fish the tourney. On Friday for the ladies tourney, we made a long run north about half way to Manistee. We put it on a north troll and only had one king in the first two hours. We finally hit some cold water and the fish started hitting. Riggers were deep, 130, 140 and 150. Blue bubble spin doctors, an OKI casper flasher and aqua gold KRW meat rig and a meat head behind a chrushed white spin doctor where best. Couldn't get the divers going. Full coppers took a few fish but riggers were best due to the depth. The best was when we needed some trout and put down a tin can dodger and mirage fly and a set of moonshine cowbells and a white and black dot peanut down 150 and 175 and they took 3 trout in a half hour. We ended with 12 fish and took 2nd in the ladies tourney. We went to the same water Satuday but only pulled 8 fish to weight. We ended the day in 25th, still in striking distance if we could put a big box together Sunday. We fell flat on Sunday only boxing 6 fish and fell to 38th place. We started farther south and worked deeper but could not get it done. We had a great time. It is one of the best weeks to spend in Ludington. The August crowds are down and it is a fishing focused week. Most of the tourney anglers understand cores and copper and don't run it over. The marina's and tourney tent are a lot of fun. Great job to Lake Effect on 3 days of solid fishing and wins in the Friday and weekend tourney. They also placed high in big fish and 333 and cashed some big checks.

Great catch over 3 straight days!

Lake Effect had another great box and leads after day 1. Nice job guys! We are in 25th and need a big box tomorrow to improve. Looking forward to another great day of fishing tomorrow.

Congratulations to Lake Effect and their team on their first place today in the Ludington Gander Bud Light Ladies tournament am division! They put a great box together after what has been a tough week for fishing around here. I have to thank the ladies on our team who landed a great box too for a 2nd place finish and a $700 check! Since I'm one of our teams sponsors and rigger monkey, a nice chunk of that change when into my pocket:D It was sure fun to fish with one of my great lake mentors from the Mermaid here in Ludington. Terry and Jan have been in the game since in started in 1966. Jan and her daughters were part of our crew. Nice job to Riverside Charters from Manistee who won the Pro division! If I told you where I was fishing or what we used, I would have to kill you or my team for the weekend would kill me. The Ludington Gander Mountain Offshore Classic starts tomorrow! I'll share the details on Monday when it's over. We are competing against a big field and if your boat's one of them, hope to see you at the tourney tent and I wish you Good Luck!

I bet it's tasting delicious about now, enjoy! One more day in the hole at work and I'll be up for 9 days of fishing:D

I used to use Alberta Clippers a long time ago when we used to have big kings. I've had big kings shred them. When they would hit and run, they would rip the mainline throught the clipper release and drag it down to the swivel and lure at the end of the main line. The main line would cut grooves into the plastic in the clipper release. After a few of them, it would start to nick the main line. Maybe they have improved them in recent years or our smaller kings now don't do the damage as the 20+ pounders used to do. I threw all the clippers off my boat. You may want to inspect them after you hit some nice fish on them.

Congratulations!

Great job, sounds like the bay is on fire! How are your year classes on the bay? We seem to be missing a couple year classes of fish between 10 and 16 inches down here on Erie. You don't need a tape measure, all the keepers are 16" on up. The boxes are nice due to the overall size. We are getting some spikes from 7 to 10 inches on every trip but those fish won't be legal for a couple years. I think we might have 1 or 2 tough years on Erie coming up unless the "legal next year fish" are hiding somewhere out there.

Good job on the fish! Wire's back 300, can you explain that rig? I'm with you with the 3 way rig on the end. A wire diver or just a wire long line...back 300 ft? Off a board? I run wire, copper and cores for salmon but I've never ran wire for walleyes.

That's a nice box!

Yeah that, nice job!

Nice catch!