11-01-2004, 10:47 PM
Brian,
Even though this spring the Fish and Game reported a small winter kill, I thought that it was normal deaths from spawning. About 80% of the fish that spawn die from the stress of spawning. The last major fish kill was in 1992 when it was wide spred throughout the lake.
I am not worried about a fish kill on Henrys Lake for several reasons. #1 - We have had a month of horrible east winds that have ripped a lot of weeds out of the lake and there are windrows of weeds all along the west and north shorelines. That will help with some of the rotting vegitation and the depletion of oxygen this winter. #2 - Many of the areas which are full of weeds did not have any this season and we did not have any algea bloom this year!!! None at all. #3 - The lake is rising very very fast right now. During October we got 6.2 inches of rain and the lake has risen about 3% in the last week. If you will call up the graph compared to last year, this October and historically, you will see that in the next two weeks, we could be equal last year. Just keep praying for rain before the snow comes. #4 - I will start worrying when the ice gets 3 feet deep. We have never had winter kill when the ice has been thinner than three feet. #5 - With all the water and no frost in the ground, all the rain that we have should recharge the springs and we should good flows during the winter. #6 - The fish are very healthy and have moved out of Staley Springs which means the water is good out in the lake and they do not have to bunch up over the spring areas. If the fish are bunching up around the springs, we are in trouble - not so this year.
Now for your comment about early ice out. I love it when the ice leaves in April as it gives the fish a chance to scatter, moving them from around the shore where they are hammered by open-day fishermen. Traditionally the opening day fishermen harvest about a fourth of the fish harvested. Some years the Fish and Game will write over 200 tickets for over-limits during that weekend. Not good to harvest all the fish on the first four days of the season!!!!
Right now I am very optomistic about the fishing next season. We probably won't see as many huge fish as we did this year, but we will see a lot of three-, two- year olds early and one-year olds midway through July. I hope those huge fish that we have been releasing will survive the winter and we will have them to play with again.
Thanks for the interest - I hope that I haven't bored you!!!!
Bill
[signature]
Even though this spring the Fish and Game reported a small winter kill, I thought that it was normal deaths from spawning. About 80% of the fish that spawn die from the stress of spawning. The last major fish kill was in 1992 when it was wide spred throughout the lake.
I am not worried about a fish kill on Henrys Lake for several reasons. #1 - We have had a month of horrible east winds that have ripped a lot of weeds out of the lake and there are windrows of weeds all along the west and north shorelines. That will help with some of the rotting vegitation and the depletion of oxygen this winter. #2 - Many of the areas which are full of weeds did not have any this season and we did not have any algea bloom this year!!! None at all. #3 - The lake is rising very very fast right now. During October we got 6.2 inches of rain and the lake has risen about 3% in the last week. If you will call up the graph compared to last year, this October and historically, you will see that in the next two weeks, we could be equal last year. Just keep praying for rain before the snow comes. #4 - I will start worrying when the ice gets 3 feet deep. We have never had winter kill when the ice has been thinner than three feet. #5 - With all the water and no frost in the ground, all the rain that we have should recharge the springs and we should good flows during the winter. #6 - The fish are very healthy and have moved out of Staley Springs which means the water is good out in the lake and they do not have to bunch up over the spring areas. If the fish are bunching up around the springs, we are in trouble - not so this year.
Now for your comment about early ice out. I love it when the ice leaves in April as it gives the fish a chance to scatter, moving them from around the shore where they are hammered by open-day fishermen. Traditionally the opening day fishermen harvest about a fourth of the fish harvested. Some years the Fish and Game will write over 200 tickets for over-limits during that weekend. Not good to harvest all the fish on the first four days of the season!!!!
Right now I am very optomistic about the fishing next season. We probably won't see as many huge fish as we did this year, but we will see a lot of three-, two- year olds early and one-year olds midway through July. I hope those huge fish that we have been releasing will survive the winter and we will have them to play with again.
Thanks for the interest - I hope that I haven't bored you!!!!
Bill
[signature]