Whitch's Brew - River Clean-Up

Travis Hartman's talk at the DWF April meeting covered a big problem appearing in Lake Erie that was controlled for a while but now has come back.
This is a blue green algae bloom caused by nutrients we put in the river. Years ago the blooms were worse and I remember seeing a video in High school showing a canoeist lifting his paddle to take a drink from, yes it can be done but takes practice and quite a thirst, as the paddle is lifted with pristine water clinging to it's sides and this person opens his mouth to catch the water a trick photography switch is made to Lake Erie algae water. Actually more algae than water and he gets a mouth full of blue green algae, which can be toxic so don't try to sample any. The old culprit was phosphorus which has been addressed.
The toxicity can be present or not which can lead to problems. We can make that decision but fish have no choice so if they eat in one of these blooms they will ingest the algae. The toxins attack the liver and can cause death. I you catch fish in the bloom areas don't eat the entrails only the flesh.
Thanks for the pics Dr. Hartwell and Feisty

The new or still existing, but in much higher concentration now, problem is the run off from farms in fertilizer and the treated waste from animals and humans. These are the out of sight out of mind things that can build up to cause problems. Sometimes we hear of untreated run off kills like this one in the Thumb:
CROSWELL, Mich. (AP) —A judge has ordered a Sanilac County farm to pay $75,000 in penalties for a 2009 manure spill that killed more than 200,000 fish in the Black River near Croswell.
The Times Herald of Port Huron reports (http://bwne.ws/GXX4hi) Sanilac County Circuit Judge Donald Teeple ruled Monday on the payout from Noll Dairy Farm Inc.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources cited Noll Dairy Farm as the source of the contamination. The runoff flowed into a creek that feeds the Sanilac County river. Smallmouth bass, catfish, northern pike, rock bass, sunfish, suckers, minnows and darters died after the spill.
A message seeking comment was left Wednesday by The Associated Press at a listing for the farm, which has said the discharge was accidental.
Nearly 20 miles of the river was affected.
If the run off was treated you wouldn't hear anything but the "nutrients" make their way to the Great Lakes and Lake Erie is a catch basin and where the blooms are evident. This is another sign and one of which points to over crowding.

Along those lines is the Detroit River Clean-Up on April 28th. Anyone interested in helping with or without a boat should meet at the Rotary Park in Trenton at 9 am. Bring gloves and dress for the weather, life jackets are needed if you have them. For more info go to www.detroitriver.org

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Spring Cleaning

A 50 year clean up I was told. It is spring but this isn't just Spring cleaning. With turkey season starting a quick check of my shotgun seemed to indicate a cleaning was due. Sticking slides or pine needles sticking out of places are a couple of signs. So off to my Wyandotte gunsmith I went. Wyandotte gunsmith? Yes I was shocked also a bit. In 50+ years of living in the area I've never heard of George Chinchak or that there was a gunsmith in Wyandotte. The shop has been in the same place for 40 years with George taking over from his father.
George has every tool needed for this work and although he may not move as fast as he once did his expertise and contacts are top notch.
Call him and find out if you're do for a 50 year clean up or you just need some insurance your gun will perform at the right moment.
Goerge Chinchak
1824 6th Street
Wyandotte, MI 48192
Home: 734-284-8107
Cell: 313-414-1644
gunsmithb@aol.com

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Breaking News

St. Walleye took me out last night for some walleye fishing. Like most outings with him it turned into something more than just a walleye trip. He knows where the walleye go much like a patron Saint knows where their charges are. So much so that even the Treasurer of the DWF uses his advice. On this trip, however, we got a new sign for fishing in the Detroit River. Thanks Wade.

The sign of:

The Silver Death



Yes the silver bass are in officially ending the best walleye season in many years and according to Travis Hartman, who's very involved in the walleye count determination for the state of Ohio, which has the lion's share of the pie. Hopefully he's right since he's using scientific data to determine this and not some gossip spun by doomsdayers. At the DWF meeting, the data he showed had an increase in the walleye catch rate per hour of fishing. This has been going on since 1990 which was a low point after the hay days of the 80s. Since 2010 was such a good recruitment year the future looks to keep the same trend. But now we won't know till next year. Unless of course you handline.

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Changing Winds

Never believe a weather forecast again especially if it for the wind prediction. After that big blow on Monday, with it's reported 3 foot waves on the river, I saw the prediction of 2 mile per hour winds for Tuesday and took the afternoon off of work. Well Mother Nature didn't check the wind prediction and made it tough on us trying to stay vertical. My son and I only got 2 walleye in 4 hours of fishing which isn't too bad but having to fight the "2mph wind" didn't make it enjoyable. Hopefully there won't be many more wind changing days this spring and summer so the pursuit of walleye can be more relaxing.
At the DWF meeting Monday Travis Hartman from the Ohio DNR said last year was a bad year for walleye fishing and this resulted in less participation from fishers. The cold, wet, windy and just lousy weather hurt the walleye fry and discouraged the bloom of plankton that the fry need. Throw in the economy and walleye fishing really took a bad hit. The winds of change however may be blowing in our favor- note, remember the previous wind prediction advice. The good news is that the 2010 walleye class was a good one, not as great as 2003 but not many are. Those fish should be near the 15" range and could be keepers this year. Add in the 2003 class fish that weren't caught last year due to the lower fishing effort and this year could be outstanding for walleye enthusiasts. Let’s hope that's a prediction that comes thru.

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Spanish Fly

Although not related to things Downriver some of you may have enjoyed watching the Spanish Fly TV show on the Outdoor Channel. The host Jose Wejebe has passed away after his plane crashed. Although he covered saltwater fishing his shows were very entertaining and always contained info anyone could use.
EVERGLADES CITY, Florida (AP) — Authorities say it appears the host of a popular fishing show was killed when his single-engine plane crashed in southwest Florida.

The Collier County Sheriff's Office reports that a small plane owned by Jose Wejebe crashed into a field around 5 p.m. Friday, shortly after taking off from an Everglades City airpark.

One body was recovered from the wreckage. A medical examiner still has to officially confirm the identity, but investigators believe it was Wejebe.

The Cuban-born angler hosted “Spanish Fly,'' a saltwater fishing show on the Outdoor Channel and formerly ESPN

Made in Detroit

Along the lines of the famous Chrysler TV ad this made in Detroit story is about toughness. The gritty blue collar, Joe lunch bucket, ham and egger attitude from the motor city has osmosed to other inhabitants of the area. This denizen of the deep is the spotted muskellunge from Lake St. Clair and the connecting rivers. Known far and wide as the best waters for musky reproduction and growth Lake St. Clair may now become the birth place of many of the state's musky plantings.

From Downriver Outdoors

Large fish always hold a special place in every fisherperson's heart(another blog soon to come) and especially the musky from Lake St. Clair. Homer LeBlanc told of a musky fisherman that became stranded after many hours trolling on the lake. Desperate to get back to his dock before an impending storm the inventive fellow used his recent catch to power him home. He secured a 25 pound musky to each side of his boat and set up a rod with lure in front of each. A sort of daggling the carrot ploy using the muskies' urge to engulf the offering powered the boat to shore. Supposedly in time to stay dry and for this the muskies were released for their hard work. Fact or fiction? Nobody really knows but it's just an example of one of the many stories surrounding these fish. Now the rest of the state may have a chance to create their own stories about these made in Detroit bruisers.
From the DNR:
Again this spring, the Department of Natural Resources will collect eggs from spotted muskellunge in the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair to be raised at its Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery.
The practice of collecting spotted muskellunge eggs, instead of northern muskellunge eggs, was started last year in an effort to raise a type of musky that is native to more of Michigan’s waters. Last year 174,000 eggs were collected from the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair and producing nearly 7,000 fall fingerlings (for three inland lakes in Michigan, two of which will serve as broodstock lakes for egg collections in the future) and 3,000 4-inch fish (for Wisconsin that were targeted for Green Bay through a cooperative interstate arrangement).
“Collection efforts in Southeast Michigan last spring were hampered by poor weather conditions,” said Martha Wolgamood, manager of the Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery. “If we have limited success collecting Great Lakes spotted muskellunge eggs this spring, we will request northern muskies from other states.”
To collect the eggs, trap nets are used in Anchor Bay in Lake St. Clair during late April and May and fish are captured with electro-fishing gear in the Detroit River in May. Collecting spotted muskellunge eggs is difficult in these areas because of the physical conditions associated with open waters, especially during that time of year.
As a safety issue and a precaution, boats on the water should avoid coming close to the electro-fishing boat during nighttime efforts.
“When the generator is running and the boat’s lights are on, we are collecting fish using electricity near the boat,” said Todd Somers, fisheries technician supervisor for the Lake Erie Management Unit.
To learn more about fishing in Michigan and the spotted muskellunge management effort, go to www.michigan.gov/fishing and click on “Angler Information” and then “Michigan Fish and How to Catch Them.”

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Happy New Year

No this isn't an April fool joke it's fact. It seems the record keepers would use April 1st as the start of the new year. It made sense back before the 1500's if you survived the winter and made it to spring you could celebrate a new year. Somewhere along the 16th century a pope or king agreed with some high thinkers and changed the start of the new year to January 1st like we do today. Well some don't like change and refused to do it and in the largest case of peer pressure at the time backers of the change played tricks on the disbelievers on April 1st each year. Even though we all consider the first of the year January 1st some still wish to tease on this day but don't fall for it. From alligators in Traverse City to Great White Sharks in the Detroit River don't believe them.
What you should believe and already know is that this is the first day of a new year, the fishing year. As of April 1st you must have a new license to fish in Michigan. With this walleye run it can be very easy to focus on the fish and forget about the license but don't. There are many bait shops in the area to get your license and that info is on my bait shop link. If you wish you can buy five licenses for the year and receive a 15% discount for doing so. It may be wise to consult the hunting rule book before buying a license for the fall. Particularly deer hunting which can have hunting laws change from spring to fall. If you forget to buy your license before you go fishing and you have a cell phone you may buy a 24 hour license in order to be able to fish legally without having to go back to shore.
Here's a pic of a new year deer. Not a good pic but you can get an idea. I saw this traveling down Biddle on my way to the tax preparer. At first I thought elk but it was a shaggy light brown deer eating corn cobs out of the water. Very skittish so only the long distance photo. Has anyone seen the first cormorant of the year? I can't believe this warm weather hasn't drove them north.

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