Conference wahoo::fishing-v2

              " Anglers may soon hook retired 'breeders' "

                             Trudy Tynan
                       Associated Press Writer


    SPRINGFIELD - It may be years yet before anglers will have a chance to
try for an Atlantic salmon in either the Connecticut or Merrimack rivers.
    But some lucky lake fishermen could end up making a fine dinner this
winter and spring of salmon.
    State wildlife officials are stocking, in selected lakes, 2,000
hatchery-raised salmon that have already been used for breeding, said Mark
Tisa coordinator of Massachusetts' salmon program.
    "Rather than sacrifice the fish, we decided to put them out where they
can be caught," Tisa said. The fish being stocked weigh a minimum of four
pounds and some reach 12 pounds, he said.
    The first 500 were released this week in Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester,
Lake Cochituate in Natick, Lake Mattawa in Orange, Long Pond in Plymouth,
Goose Pond in Lee and Lake Onota in Pittsfield, he said.
    They fall under the state fishing regulations for land-locked salmon,
which means anglers can take two a day year-around, he said.
    The first fish were from the White River National Fish Hatchery in
Bethel, VT., he said, with most of the remaining 1,5000 fish to come from
a state hatchery in Palmer.
    The state of New Hampshire also uses some of the brood stock as part
of its land-locked salmon stocking program, said Don Nelson, a fisheries
biologist for New Hampshire.
    Tisa said one of the reasons the lakes were chosen was to keep the
stocking separate from the ongoing efforts to restore the prize game fish
to the Merrimack and Connecticut rivers.
    Atlantic salmon, unlike their Pacific cousins, do not die after
spawning. But biologists have found the viability of the offspring produced
by the second-generation hatchery-raised fish declines substantially after
their initial spawning, making it less worthwhile to keep them around as
brood stock for a second year, Tisa said.
    The restoration program's prizes remain fish stocked out as youngsters
that have actually returned to the Connecticut River after growing to
adulthood in the sea, said Tom Nelson, director of the White River hatchery.


Disclaimer - reproduced in whole or in part without permission from
             The "Westfield Evening News  Tuesday, February 25, 1992"

    Are these Landlocked, or Atlantic salmon ?
    
    --Banditola

    RE: .2
    
    Atlantic Salmon that have no access to the ocean = Landlocked Salmon
    
    					B.C.

 They are atlantics. Having been once bred, they are being placed in lakes
and rivers that don't have a terribly direct route to the ocean (if at all.)
That makes them become landlocked salmon. Atlantic salmon and landlocked
salmon have the same taxonomical classification (salmo salar) though sometimes
landlocks have the "sebago" suffix. They are the same species, with a few
slightly different strains.

 NH benefitted from a surplus of salmon at the Nashua Federal Fish hatchery.
1,381 adult atlantic salmon were given to the state, ranging from 1.5-15lbs.
Some of the fish were put in the Pemigewasset River watershed. The remainder
were put in lakes in NH including: Lake Francis (400 fish!), Winnipesaukee,
Winnisquam, and Newfound Lake.

    re: .4
    
    *That* explains all the salmon corpses I found on the bottom of
    Winnipesaukee last year. 
    
    But this is about MA salmon.
    
    Most Atlantic Salmon dropped into water they couldn't find their way to
    by natural means seem unable to reproduce, and given that they are
    raised on farms, they seem unable to feed themselves, either. For me,
    this explained all the stories I heard about salmon being taken that
    turned out to have cigarette butts and old beverage-can flip-tops in
    their stomachs. They just couldn't recognize a natural meal....
    
    Any bets on how long people will continue to catch the salmon in these
    MA lakes? Will people catch more than they pick up floating in the
    water?
    
    An aside, for all you coldwater anglers: Do you perceive stocked fish
    like these salmon to be less "real" than naturally occuring
    populations?
    
    John H-C

    re: -.1  
    What naturally occurring coldwater species!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  This is New
    England, the only chance at naturally occurring coldwater species is
    native brook trout.....
    
    This is the main reason I have become verrrrrrrrry interested in
    saltwater species the last couple years....  There are plenty of
    naturally occurring saltwater fish available.
    
    Greg

    I have a question but I am not sure if it belongs at this note or 
    not so if it doesnt please point me in the right direction.
    When fishing for Salmon what type of bait do you use?? also any
    help would be appricated,never gone before but am looking to
    try real soon.

    
    
       Probably the best spoon for the new england landlock salmon is the 
    SUTTON 44 in copper and silver, and the mooslick(sp) wobbler. you can 
    also drift smelt, or troll streamer flies with succsess.
    
       as far as haveing no natural coldwater fishing in N.E. that is the
    reason NH fish & game has been stocking atlantic and chinook salmon in
    the rivers that flow into the ocean., but dont expect a drastic change 
    overnite, but they are trying.
    
    
                                  Lee
    

re:       <<< Note 134.8 by UNYEM::GEIBELL "IN SEARCH OF ELUSIVE SALMON" >>>

>       Probably the best spoon for the new england landlock salmon is the 
>    SUTTON 44 in copper and silver, and the mooslick(sp) wobbler. you can 
    
I can vouch for the Moosalock (or whatever it's called) wabbler.  Works
great.    Salmon seem to like orange lures.   I picked up a 3.25+ lb landlock
opening day at Quabbin trolling with a jointed orange/chartreuse crankbait 
behind a davis spinner.  

>    also drift smelt, or troll streamer flies with succsess.

I think smelt are illegal to use as bait in Mass.   At least they are 
in Quabbin.

Ken    

The Good Lord gave my friend and I a day we will never forget, last Saturday.
We decided to hit a pond in Mass. for rainbows, trolling some bright streamers
we tied. When we got there, we were told some of the salmon brood stock
had been put in there 3 weeks ago. I really didn't expect we'd hook any of
those, however. We trolled for a couple hours in high winds and snow, amid
floating ice chunks.

Then, my friend hooked a salmon, which proceeded to jump clear of the water
4 times. When we landed him, he proved to be 21" and 4 lbs. Then, after a few
rainbows were caught, I had my chance at a salmon. I hooked a fish that
simply could not be moved ! I could not horse him, because the line was
only 4 lb. test. After 30 MINUTES and some terrific runs, plus one end-over-end 
leap, we got the fish into the net. It was 27", and 8 lbs!
It was truly great to get a big one on my own fly and light line. Awesome!

These fish were in extremely fine shape, and very vigorous. We decided to keep 
the fish and eat 'em.  Although they were hatchery fish, they were incredibly
delicious. I will be smoking some of the pieces of mine, with hickory and cherry
wood.  MMMMMMMMMMM !

My hat is off, to the the Mass. Div. of Fish and Wildlife for making this
rare opprotunity available for sportsmen.

The only thing I'll say about location, is we were at one of 13 waters in which 
they were placed. I would think they'll hit at all those locations. We saw fish
taken on flies, spinners, and bait.

SPRING is HERE !!! (just ignore the snow!)

Dave

    re.4 Does anyone know what part of the Pemigawasset the salmon were
    placed?  Upstream or downstream from the Bristol dam?
    
    I'm heading up there this weekend to open up camp for the summer and
    would like try my luck at them.
    
    Thanks
    Bruce

    ************************************************************************
        FISH  FISH  FISH  FISH  FISH  FISH  FISH  FISH  FISH  FISH
    ************************************************************************
    
           Right at the dam is where i catch them,keep your ears
           open for the flood gate warning or you'll be washed
           down the river
    
                   
    
    
    
                                        P.S 
                                            Nice brown trout there to
    

    	I've tried fishing the dam a couple times this year.  Drove in by
    	the ball field and down the hill around the state garage.  No luck.
    	However, it does look like a nice spot.  
    
    	I had very good luck in the Smith River this year above Profile
    	Falls.  There are a few nice holes that hold some good size salmon.
    	Also was luck enough to land a 2 1/4# 18" Rainbow from one of these 
    	holes.  It has slowed down since the beginning of August.
    
    						Bruce

	Salmon are running in the Merrimack right now, a friend was
	fishing below the Hunts falls bridge in Lowell and hooked
	a 17lb 25" Atlantic Salmon on a night crawler last Friday. 
	This was a tagged fish. I was with him Sunday and you could
	see them (3) in the shallows but the weren't biting anything we
	thru at them. You could see the red tags on thier backs. I went 
	again on Monday, but I think they continued thier journey up the 
	fish ladder.

	-r

	p.s.
	Hi Bob M.

    re: .last
    
    	Is that legal?
    
    			Robert.

    Roger,
    
    Are you still offering your guiding services for shopping carts on the
    Mighty Merricmak�  :^O
    
    Bob

    	Mass rules state:  1 daily, 15" min., Merrimack River upstream of
    Essex Dam (Lawrence) only.  Conn. River closed.
    
    	Note: This is from the '92 abstracts.
    
    						B.C.

    Hmmm. Must be legal then. Seems strange though - I would think every
    single fish that returns at this point would be critical to restoring
    the run.
    
    			Robert.

	RE: .16

	Bob, you come see me. I'll take you Shad fishing where you
	can practically grab them with your hands...

	They are running like crazy right now...

I heard on the radio news last night that they have found fertilized salmon eggs
in the Westfield river.  They said this was a first in the past 200 years for
the state of Mass.

There may be some hope yet.  Rivers seem to be getting a lot cleaner.  I know 
that I had many more barnicles on the boat this year than past years.  Cleaner
water must mean more of these critters.  Now if someone could figure out what
barnicles use to stick to things and make a glue out of it.

Gordon