Conference wahoo::fishing

    	After this weekend and today, very few (I would think) are still
    ice fishing.
    
    	There are a couple things I look for whenever I go ice fishing.
    The first is how many of what size people are already on the ice.
    Second, how thick is it. I usually draw the line at 3".
    
    	Another thing that is helpful is knowing how deep the water
    is where your checking the ice. If I do go in when checking for
    ice thickness I am not in water over my waist.

    	RAYJ
    

    
    
    
    	I fished last Saturday at my camp on Sand pond which is
    
    just south of the Augusta plant and there is 32 inches of
    
    ice still. the week before at moosehead lake we had to use
    
    a 6inch extension on a jiffy auger to get through.
    
    
    
    
    							dan

    
    
    	 I went out probably for the last time this year 3/6/89 at the Fitchburg
    	Rod & Gun Club. The ice was about 5 inches then. This past weekend
    	I talked to a few of the guys in the club and it was down to
    	about 3 to 3 1/2 inches. So it seems to be melting fast so I
    	personally have put my tips away and started putting new line
    	on all my rods getting ready for open water. 
    
    	JK
    
    

    
    Me again, I finished reading the article at lunch and the way they
    were describing the way the ice is melting was, that when the sun
    on the warmer day's melts the ice like honey combs which can vary
    a thickness of going to 6 to 3" in a matter of feet. I'll stick
    to offshore till it's total ice out.

                                        Ronni

    The two men listed in this mornings paper, actually drowned in
    Ashburham, thru Lower Naukeag Pond.

    
    14+inches at brigham pond in hubbardston last friday. we had a real
    slow day only 7 pickerel and one yellow perch. the ice around here
    seems to be real inconsistent, lets try to stick with the shallow
    ponds and lakes they seem to ok for now. 
    
                                                         kiver
                                            

    Sunday COMET POND in Hubbardston had 6" of ice...3" of black ice and 3"
    of semi soft white ice. Lake should be almost clear of ice today.
       Good results for some of the icers sunday...saw some nice rainbows
    taken and one brown. To little ice for me to stay long. Took the
    kids and split.
       Wymans in Westminster is open. Seems a lake resident lost their
    dog Sunday. Fell though the ice and died.  
       Meetinghouse Res. is 70% open as of this morning. 
    This "old buck" told me yesterday he's teathering a rope and inner
    tube together and attaching it to his belt just in case....
    sound like a heads up plan. (no pun.)
      Note...ice out is Three weeks early in this part of Duke...i mean
    .... you make me PUKE...LAND 
    

We pulled the bobhouse Sunday from newfound, NH.  The ice varied from 29" down to 19"
depending on the area.  It's slowed down a lot.  2 perch (3/4lb, and a 1 3/4lb) and a 3lb
salmon.  i wish we didn't have to cut that salmon off.  Best one I've ever had.

    
    	Checked Chauncy Pond at lunch time today......97.5% OPEN water...
    	...yeah!   Time to strap the TED WILLIAMS SPECIAL to the top
    	of the car and go fishing.   
    
    	Gitzit'
    
    

    Delaney Project,Stow Ma. 0" ice...and it is FULL! no
    stumps'a-showin'...but DON'T run your big motor!

    Be fishin' til the 1st of April just with what's out there for ice
    right now. I went to Addison, VT. last week...eight-five lb. lakers
    in about 3 hours time....no bull.
    
    We're going to have to start tryin' for them salmon. Lakers are
    too stupid.
    
    
    Jon @Burlington, VT.

    	Went fishing last Saturday.  Lake was full iced OUT.  Not only
    that, surface water temperatures were in the lower 50 degree range.
    Pike and Bass were blasting up out of the moss to hit shallow running
    rattle-traps, crankbaits, buzzbaits, and spinnerbaits.  Wow, almost
    early summer conditions in March.  Well, back to reality today.
    High today is supposed to be near 60 with snow tonight.  

    
    re:.12
    
      Can you say more about this Delaney Project? Directions, fish
    types etc? If there is alreay a note on this..sorry. Please point
    me to it.
    		any help appreciated,
    					Robin

    
    re: .13
    
    	Hey Jon, How'd those fish look as far as lamphreys??  We fished
    quite a lot for those a few years back, but some of the stuff you
    see is greusome.  We were catching pike this year out of Champlain
    that were hacked up pretty bad.  We'll probably be fishing champlain
    for a few more weeks, depending on where you are...
    	at least 2 and 1/2 feet in some of the bays!  By the way, I
    read a biologists report on Champlain that said there wasn't a laker
    in there over 3 years old.   Maybe nonsense, but believable.  One
    pike we pulled up had a lamphrey still attached and we've caught
    quite a few lakers through the ice in the past with them still on...
    The largest was 8.5 lbs and all scarred up!
    
    - Rob
    

    Hey Rob,
    To tell you the truth, after reading that article in the BFP
    about the Canadians suppossedly catching ALL the perch (ya right!)
    in Lake Champlain I've decided to try my hand at pullin up them
    ol yellerbellies. Judas Priest what am I doing here when they're
    out pulling up $250.00-$300.00 dollars a day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    They've been selling for $1.00/lb. up in the Islands all winter.
    (My bro tells me the drawbridge is the ticket.) I may go this coming
    weekend but I haven't decided yet. 
    My cousin, who has been known to eat perch eggs right out there
    on the ice, Perch Mack, caught about a 1000 perch with one other
    friend in a weekend up in the Islands somewhere. 
    
    Jon
    

    	$1 a pound is actually not bad for some of the best tasting
    fish, bar none, that you'll ever eat. If cleaned properly, they yield
    completely skinless/boneless fillets. 
    
    	I usually fry the fillets in butter after dipping them in egg
    and then seasoned bread crumbs. If you want to try something a little
    different, add about � teaspoon of maple syrup to the egg.
    
    	RAYJ

    I can't imagine that it's $1 a lb. for cleaned fish, because I've
    cleaned a few of those fishies, and it would take a bunch to make
    a pound of fillets. But they sure taste good, I have to agree! Better
    than some trout I've had...
    
    Ed
    

    	Ed, better than any trout I've ever tried!!!  Perch is very
    comparable to Bass and bluegill/sunfish.  It does get to be a lot
    of work filleting so many small fish, but is more than worth it
    in the end.  
    
    Beak

    
    	Last I heard it was $1/lb for UNCLEANED perch.  They have to
    be over 8" long though or the price drops.  What has been happening
    is these fish are being caught and sold at a place in Rouse's Point
    N.Y. (wholesaler) who then processes and distributes them.
    	There was a good article in the Flea Press recently which described
    the heavy pressure put on Lake Champlain recently because of the
    market fishing.  They said that nearly 1.3 million perch had been
    caught last year by both sport fisherman and the market fisherman
    if my memory serves me well!  That's one whole lot of perch.  I
    know perch are abundant but it seems to me a bit of restriction
    is needed to ensure the future of the resource.  Any comments on
    this out there, maybe we could even create a new topic on market
    fishing -- pros and cons..
    
    - Rob
    

    The following is a reproduction of the 'American Pulp Wood Association's
Table for Measuring Relative Safety of Ice'

    It referes to 'the hard blue ice that forms on lakes and ponds'.

    'The strength of ice is reduced by at lease 15% for clead blue ice over
running water such as a river.'

    'Slushy ice has less than half the strength of blue ice.'



                         APA Ice Thickness Table


                   Ice Thickness   |   Permissable Load
                   ----------------+---------------------
                      2.0 Inches   | One Person on Foot
                      3.0 Inches   | Group in Single File
                      7.5 Inches   | Passenger Car (2-Ton)
                      8.0 Inches   | Light Truck (2.5 Ton)
                     10.0 Inches   | Truck (3.5 Ton)
                     12.0 Inches   | Heavy Truck (7 Ton)
                     15.0 Inches   | 10 Tons
                     20.0 Inches   | 25 Tons
                     25.0 Inches   | 45 Tons


                 Table reproduced here without permission.

     Ya I would think trying to icefish this time of year you might want to
    check this guy's chart out before breaking out your auger! Don't 
    forget to wear all those layers of clothing and gloves just in case
    it gets real cold!! (sorry I just couldn't resist!!)
    
    Bass-O-Matic