Author Archives: Eric_LaMontagne

Homemade Fishing Lures

Entertain the kids by making some homemade fishing lures!

 

homemade fishing lures!

Even if you’re one of those “fishing is always in season” types, there will inevitably be times when you just can’t make it out. You’re stuck at home, twiddling your thumbs, the kids are bugging you for something to do. These dreaded in-between times can be an angler’s worst nightmare.

If you find yourself in one these situations, why not use the time to make some new lure and jigs for your next outing? It keeps those of us who are antsy to go fishing preoccupied, plus you’ll have some neat (and probably very inexpensive) lures to use when the fishing is good again! Making homemade lures will keep kids interested in fishing and excited to get back out on the water casting a line.  For both kids and adults, I bet you’ll find it much more rewarding to catch a fish on your homemade lure than it is on a lure you buy from a store.

You can get creative, and plenty of directions can be found online by searching Google with key words such as “how to make a fishing lure” or something similar.  Here are some tips and ideas to get you started.

Homemade Fishing Lures

homemade fishing lures!

Remember, fish like flashy. Anything that will catch the light is a good bet. Bottle caps, can tabs, and old spoons work well and are likely to be hanging around the house. If you want to be more official, blank spinners and flashers can be purchased online.
Add some color! Beads, nail polish, or feathers will brighten a lure up. Craft store and tackle shops often sell colorful, reflective tape that can be cut in various shapes.

 

 

Be sure to use a strong wire. One that will remain stiff should be used as the main shank to which the spinners, beads, hook, etc. are attached. Jewelry wire or strong thread can be used to hold on feathers and other add-ons.

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homemade fishing lures!

Put the hook on last! The last thing you want to do is explain to your spouse how her son ended up with a fishhook through his finger…

The most important thing is to have fun and be creative! It’s a great feeling to catch a fish on your own lure. Remember, you never know what a fish will strike. The original fishing spoon was discovered when a utensil that had dropped over the side of a boat was attacked by a fish as it fluttered to the bottom. Who knows, maybe you’ll make famous lure…

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  Image Credits (from top to bottom): stripersonline.com, sloshspot.com, worldfishingnetwork.com

Freshwater Drum or Sheepshead

When I was taking my open-water diving certifcation in Lake Champlain I bumped into a freshwater drum near Oakledge Park in Burlington. It was a bit of a shock to see something so big and unexpected in lake Champlain. – Tom

This article by Eric LaMontagne originally appeared on the LCI blog.

Battle the Brute: Freshwater Drum

Freshwater Drum or Sheepshead

It is common knowledge that Lake Champlain is home to many different species of fish. From miniscule minnows to monstrous muskies, the diversity held within the waters of Lake Champlain is impressive.

Of the more substantial fish, the Freshwater drum is a brute. Commonly known as a sheepshead, the current state record stands at 20.46 lbs from Lake Champlain, the only body of water they are found in Vermont.

The Freshwater drum is scientifically unique. It is the only member of the genus Aplodinotus and the only member of the family Sciaenidae that spends its entire lifecycle in freshwater. Mature male sheepsheads have the rare ability to “vocalize”; a set of muscles within their body cavity vibrate against their swim bladder to create a grunting sound thought to be used in mating.

Freshwater drum spend their days in the deep water where they can stay cool. At night, and on very cloudy days, they will move upwards to the shorelines to search for food. Females spawn in early June, choosing warm, shallow water to lay their eggs.

These fish are a favorite of anglers on Lake Champlain because of their size. Being a bottom feeder, the most common way of catching them is to cast a live bait with a heavy sinker; minnows, nightcrawlers, and crickets work well. Small, shiny lures fished slowly can work as well. They are much more active at night.

For more information:

http://fishbase.org/summary/Aplodinotus-grunniens.html

http://seagrant.wisc.edu/greatlakesfish/drum.html

Adsit Cabin: Think You Know Champlain? December 2012

Adsit Cabin

Photo: Chris Sanfino

Lake Champlain and the surrounding lands are home to a ton of history. From massive battles, slave smuggling, and the development of revolutionary transportation methods, there are myriad stories to tell.

The Lake Champlain shoreline is home to one of the oldest (or the oldest, depending on who you ask) log cabins in the US still at its original location. The home was built by a man named Samuel Adsit. Originally from Connecticut, Samuel served under Peter Van Ness in the US army during the Revolutionary War. Upon retiring, he wanted a place to live out his years on the lake. He selected a spot in Willsboro, NY and in 1778 constructed his home.

Once settled in, he and his wife set out to start a family. As the children came, so did the need for more space. Gradually Samuel added bedrooms, living rooms, and other rooms until the entire cabin had been built into a large farm house big enough to fit all of their 16 children. Looking at the lofty structure, one would never have known the cabin ever existed.

And that is how it stayed until 1927, when the property was purchased by Dr. Earl Van DerWerker. Dilapidated and broken from over 100 years of weathering and use, Van DerWerker began to raze the old farm house in 1929 with the intentions of builing his own, new summer home. As the machines tore through the old buildings, the workers uncovered the cabin which had been built into the house. Van DerWerker ordered the rest to be dismantled by hand and, piece by piece, they removed the rest of the house until just the cabin stood.

It was remarkably well preserved, undoubtedly due to the fact that it had not experienced any weathering since being built into the farm house. It instantly became a cultural icon for the area. The cabin changed hands until it was deeded to the town of Willsboro, NY, which carried out a $70,000 renovation project.

The cabin is currently a popular destination for people exploring the Lake Champlain region of Vermont and New York. Stocked with local artifacts and items from the Adsit family, a visit there offers a rare glimpse into pioneer life. Volunteers are on hand to give tours, tell stories, and answer questions. In addition to several other historical markers in the area, there is great hiking and boating nearby for those looking to make a day of it.

For more, check out these links!

http://www.lakestolocks.org/content/adsit-cabin/ltlB07558115FB756854
http://www.aarch.org/resources/map/county/essex/window/adsit.html
http://www.aarch.org/archives/leeman/040917aVLPWillsboroPoint.pdf
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~havens5/p250.htm

Birds Everywhere!

Birds Everywhere!

by Eric_LaMontagne

Photo: Neil Phillips, Flickr

We all know that Lake Champlain has a huge variety of fish species, including some that can be found nowhere else in Vermont.

This time of year though, fish aren’t the only thing that are plentiful: thousands of birds descend on our lake for their annual migration.

According to the Lake Champlain Basin Program (www.lcbp.org), 318 species of birds live, breed, or use Lake Champlain as a resting point along their migration routes. Fourteen of those are listed as endangered or threatened by New York, Vermont, or the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Both New York and Vermont have some well managed areas that make for great bird watching. The NY DEC has the Lake Champlain Marshes Bird Conservation Area which includes six Management Areas along the western shore of Lake Champlain. These areas are located at Kings Bay, Montys Bay, Wickham Marsh, Ausable Marsh, Putts Creek, and East Bay. Each area has a wide variety of habitat which will ensure a broad selection of species. For a map of these areas, seehttp://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/31955.html

Vermont is home to several conservation areas as well. The Dead Creek WMA is specifically managed for migrating birds, and is a great place to see dozens of species of birds. Other great locations to check out include the Sandbar WMA in Milton, East Creek WMA in Orwell, and The Narrows WMA in West Haven. Visit www.vtfishandwildlife.com for more listings.

If you’re planning on heading out on a birding trip, consider taking a look at the Lake Champlain Birding Trail brochure. It is a good guide to get you started, regardless which side of the lake you want to explore. Find it athttp://www.lakechamplainregion.com/files/public/LkChampBirding.pdf.

Seiches

Seiches

Lake Champlain Seiches

photo: Minnesota Sea Grant
http://www.seagrant.umn.edu/superior/processes

Even when the lake seems dead calm, there is still a lot of movement going on. Storming along at nearly 30 miles per hour, is a surface seiche. And below that, an internal wave the length of the lake is rolling.

When you blow on a coffee or bowl of soup that is too hot, you see miniature waves build up against the far side of the container. Now take this effect and amplify it to fit a windstorm on Lake Champlain. This is how a seiche forms.

As wind blows across the surface of the water, it creates friction that drags the water with the wind. Across a lake as large as Champlain, a significant amount of water will build up at one end of the lake. When the wind stops, however, gravity takes over and the water is free to rush back. As this oscillation continues, a single standing wave is formed. On Lake Champlain this wave takes approximately 4 hours to make its trip back and forth.

Any good fisherman knows the importance of taking into account temperature and depth. The deeper the water, the colder the temperature. This change is not gradual, however. There are very distinct boundaries where it drops. These temperature layers are called thermoclines and are created by differences in the water density at varying temperatures. Cold water is denser, so it sinks. Warm water is less dense, so it sits on top of the cold.

As the seiche flows along the lake, it pushes the thermocline with it, changing the depth of the temperature boundaries. This means two things: one, the thermocline, and therefore temperatures, are always moving. And two, the variable bottom structure of Lake Champlain causes a secondary seiche to occur. As the surface seiche moves, the thermocline will run into shelves, reefs, and other objects that restrict its flow through the lake. This disturbance in the flow causes a wave within the layer of the thermocline that was obstructed. Due to the differences in water density, the denser water along the bottom pushes up against the warmer water, resulting in colder water near the surface. Gravity, of course, will push the heavier water back down, creating the wave. In Lake Champlain, the secondary seiche, which can get from 10-20 meters tall, takes approximately 4 days to complete its end-to-end journey.

What does this all mean for fisherman? Seiches can cause drastic changes in water temperatures in a very quick time. Temperature-sensitive fish are likely not going to be staying put through the fluctuations. A temperature gauge is essential to find out where the thermocline is, and where the fish are.

For more information, check out these resources.

Originally posted September 25, 2012 by Eric_LaMontagne on LCI’s ‘So You think You Know Champlain?’