GLF

An exceptionally large number of dead fish are littering Lake Erie beaches, disturbing lakefront residents and raising concern among state wildlife officials. "It's much more extensive than we've seen," said Jeff Tyson, fisheries biologist supervisor with the state's Sandusky Fish Research Unit. The dead fish are primarily freshwater drum, or sheephead, which is not a popular sport fish. The concentrated kills have been found in the western basin of Lake Erie, in Sandusky Bay and as far east as Vermilion. Last week, Tyson sent samples to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office in La Crosse, Wis. Preliminary reports indicate the fish died of a viral infection, but more testing is needed to determine the strain. "My worst fear, I suppose, is that the virus was transported by ballast discharge" from foreign ships, Tyson said. If so, fish native to the Great Lakes would not have a natural resistance to the disease. Scott Doty, manager of the Lake Erie Islands State Parks, said he has gotten several calls from lakefront property owners curious about all the dead fish. His staff has had to clean the beach at Catawba Island State Park. At Cranberry Creek Marina, between Huron and Vermilion, the beach and surrounding shallow waters are not a pretty sight. Is the smell bad? "It's going to be. I was out in a boat last night, and you can see freshwater drum with their tails up and heads down," said Chris Woods, vice president of sales at the marina. Large numbers of dead fish also have been reported in Michigan's waters, including muskellunge in the Detroit River. The last big fish kill in Ohio was about five years ago, when large numbers of carp washed ashore. Samples of those fish were sent for analysis, but the tests were inconclusive because the samples were too decomposed, Tyson said.

Thanks for the donations. Did the automation process work OK?

Nice job Steve! I did not get one this year You really get excited when you hit one of your calls and get a gobble in return.

Thanks for the tip Frank!

I have set up a "Supporting Member" usergroup for the site. This is for people who would like to make a donation to the site. The donations will be used to cover the operating expenses of the site. There are few perks for becoming a supporting member. Supporting members will be allowed: 150 private message allowance. Rregular members are allowed 50 private messages. 2 mb of storage space in the gallery. Regular members are allowed .5 mb of storage space in the gallery. Access to a private area in the forums for supporting members only. Your own Great Lakes Fisherman email account. example: [email protected] I set this up on a subscription basis. After the duration of your subscription, you will revert back to regular member status. $5.00 donation for 3 months $10.00 donation for 6 months $20.00 donation for 1 year I have a PayPal account and everything is automated if you have a PayPal account. This means instant access. Click here for PayPal information. If you would like to donate to the site and do not have a PayPal account, send me a private message and I will get you an address to send a personal check or money order to. Thanks, Mike

This is a private area. What is talked about in this area, stays in here. Do not discuss anything from the private area on other sites. If you are found to be posting private area information on other sites, you will have your access to this area removed.

You are allowed to share private fishing hole information here.

What are some of the things you should look at on an alluminum boat when looking to purchase one?

What are some of the things you should look at on a fiberglass boat when looking to purchase one?

Sorry for your luck Steve. I have a first mate I can loan you to steer the boat....if he is not sleeping

These have been sold.

Thanks for the report!

Welcome to the site Dan. We look foreward to having you around and sharing your knowledge. Mike

Thanks for the report Jim!

I am not sure about the scum line, but I believe wd-40 is a known fish attractant.

I learned something I never new before yesterday on my trip. I was told the salmon we caught was one that was the result of natural reproduction. I was told that all stocked fish have a fin clip or the adipose fin clipped. My question....how do they clip all of the fins of the fish they stock?

When you go fishing on the Great Lakes, are you fishing for quantity or quality? Please explain your reasoning. Also state if you are a charter captain or not.

They say, this is a fish of 1,000 casts. Just curious....how close are you to the 1,000th cast Good Luck!

Heck Steve...In 1 hour you can get your limit on the big lake and then head out and catch some eye Nice job Spawnwalker! What fow? How far down?

Went out of South Haven with HEAVY ACTION, DIRTY DOG, and my future first mate after work. Ended up 4 for 4 with 3 lakers and a 12lb king. We got the lines set around 5pm. We started fishing in 70 fow and headed West. The first fish(laker around 5 or 6 lbs) came on a magnum size Raider spoon, Chicken Pox in flavor, in 90 fow on a rigger set at 70 fow. We picked up our second laker(non legal size) on a regular(I think) size DW, Michigan Blueberry in flavor, in 100 fow on a rigger set to 60 fow. We trolled out to 120 fow without another bite and turned the boat towards shore. Once we hit 75 fow we pick up a 12lb king on a full core. This fish came on a regular size DW, Michigan Dolphin in flavor. I tried my hardest to knock this fish off with the net after it wrapped around a rigger line behind the boat Glad we got it in. We picked up our last laker(5 or 6 lbs) in 65 fow on a magnum size Raider spoon, Chicken Pox in flavor, on a rigger set at 60 fow. We pulled lines around 8:15pm and headed in. From the little bit of radio chatter we heard, it sounded like there was a few kings being caught. We marked a few fish in the 70 - 80 fow range. We were Straight out/slightly South. We cleaned the fish at the boat launch. There was nothing in the kings belly, and one of the two lakers had a 6" alewife. Thanks for the trip HEAVY ACTION and DIRTY DOG.

Who can tell me what port this is?

I took my oldest(amost 5) on his first big lake fishing trip today. He will definately be a Great first mate. Here he is prime form behind the wheel of the boat. I suppose none of you have ever fallen a sleep on a fishing trip I put him in the cabin after this photo, where he slept until we put the boat on the trailer.

This one is less than 3 weeks away. Anyone fishing it?

I am still looking to see some results from this posted

They are just coming out with the 9' and 10' with a swivel tip. I have seen this rod at the Sport RV show in Grand Rapids. On Shimano's website it shows a price of $189.95