[imardmd1]

I lived on Cayuga Lake of the Finger Lakes in Upstate central es York. The boat dock was within 20 feet of my back door. If I wanted fish forsupper, I just grabbed the flyrod and pooped for bluegills to filet, skin, and fry right away. There were so many of them and hungry like piranhas so that you didn't need live bair. Only a little cork- odies fly. But when I got seious, went for the big-mouth bass that were dying of oldage on the shallow north end of the lake tke that had the branches of shoreline drooping over the water. If I caught a bass less than 3 lb, iI tossed it back. Took more bluegill filets to make up a good meal, but they tasted better than the bass.

If you wanted a good fight, you casted out a Mepps #3 bucktail spinner, and dragged it in as fast as you could wind the reel. When a 26 inch angry jack pickerel hit it breaking water at full speed, it would skim over the water fully exposed maybe a couple incheshigh about three or four feet and started thashi g on the way down. You'd better have something a littlebigger than a trout net to get him into the boat.

There was a lot if meat there, but even fileted the flesh had so many of those little Y-bones that it was no fun to eat.

[Paul R.]

Very cool!

Thing is, tho’, the smaller bass taste better and have less toxins, plus, in most lakes the bigger bass are needed to help balance the overall fishery. Maybe Cayuga Lake was an exception?

Did the lake have walleye? When, as kids, we went to Canada with my Dad and Grandpa, we targeted walleye more than pike, partially because of that bones issue. Those walleye were GREAT eating, esp. fresh over a campfire. A good size pike was a heck of a fight, tho’! :-)

[Paul R.]

Your post reminded me of a time when my Dad was fly fishing for bluegill, and a several pound channel cat clobbered his fly. THAT was quite a battle, but he eventually landed the fish.