smerchly Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I posted some info about the 12 Mile water levels & new pipes being installed at the Decew hydro yesterday ( enviro. thread) & they mentioned eels being a factor holding up the smaller dam they want to build near 4th Ave. , but I don't know how they can get into the upper dam at Port now as they were able to use the old lift canal at Port to migrate into Martindale many yrs. ago , same with lake suckers. There are a few members here who are old enough to remember the big eels we caught locally from Port Dal. harbour to the upper reaches of the 12 Mile . We caught them up to 4 ft. long & they were great fighters . Some people cringe at the sight of them , comparing them to a big snake ,& very slimy at that ! I have eaten smoked eel & they were very tasty . Most of the younger anglers here may have never caught an eel & probably aren't interested in seeing them return . But ,I was wondering if there are some anglers who would like to see the eel population increase to a point we could legally take them as we once did ? I would like to see this happen as long as the eels would not cause other species to diminish . Whatdoyasthinks ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisb Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I caught an eel once (20 years ago) in lake Erie. As I remember it was about 2 feet and big pain to get off once it was lifted into the boat. Couldn't imagine getting a four footer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted April 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 Joe.....A Latvian guy living a few houses away from me smoked eels from Port Dalhousie harbour . Some of those eels were as big around as my arm . I also caught some big ones in L.Ontario near Niag .on the Lake . I rolled them in sand to stop them from going snakey ....or drop them on newspaper to keep them still . Their slime would stick to the paper .......but they could not be released after that since they would prob. die . The smaller ones would twist around your line & tie themselves into a knot & many anglers would just snip off the hook . I hooked one 42" in Jackson's Flatts creek when the water was muddied up from a good rain , but that was many years ago (like 55 ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 Joe.....A Latvian guy living a few houses away from me smoked eels from Port Dalhousie harbour . Some of those eels were as big around as my arm . I also caught some big ones in L.Ontario near Niag .on the Lake . I rolled them in sand to stop them from going snakey ....or drop them on newspaper to keep them still . Their slime would stick to the paper .......but they could not be released after that since they would prob. die . The smaller ones would twist around your line & tie themselves into a knot & many anglers would just snip off the hook . I hooked one 42" in Jackson's Flatts creek when the water was muddied up from a good rain , but that was many years ago (like 55 ) I don't know what the hold up is but the Shickluna was orringinally supposed to have a fishway built right in. If they tried to drop that it would likely hold up the project. You know how the big boys work. They promise candy to get everyone on board then quietly try to drop it because it's unfeasible. I don't know if that's the case here but it wouldn't surprise me either. But here's where you can find out: http://www.shicklunahydro.com/ The Heywood generating station will help the eels bypass the dam in Port Dalhousie. An eel trap is to be made and staff are being trained on how to separate invasive lampreys from native ones and eels. They will ensure them to the next step then its on to Shickluna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron4blues Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I've never caught an eel in the Great Lakes. I've tangled with many over the years on the East Coast, where sadly, they are also diminishing, but at least there they can still legally be taken. Stewed or smoked, eel is very tasty, and since they are all muscle, they are very strong fighters. I'd love to see them in sufficient numbers in the Great Lakes that they could be de-listed as a protected species, if only for the fact that they are, like all creatures, worthy and deserving of respect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I was checking out the NY fishing regs and I believe they still have a limit of 50 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron4blues Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 50? That's insane. Even 5 would be more than enough. Two would be more like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pike212 Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I've never seen or heard of eels around here. I've got a snowflake in my aquarium, but that's it. I'd love to catch one, bring em on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I've never seen or heard of eels around here. I've got a snowflake in my aquarium, but that's it. I'd love to catch one, bring em on! We've definitely got weaknesses in our regs here in ON but here's the regs in NY http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/31421.html 50 American Eels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted April 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 How old are those NY regs Dan ? They still have black bass and pickerel there ? And I agree with Coachman , 50 eels seems very high , unless they have a problem with too many in some of their waters . No limit on lampreys is fine ! Pike 212 . there are some eels in our area , anglers don't target them as they are protected . If the eels can regain a good population in L.Ont., they can access some of our waterways through the Welland Ship Canal . As Chilli said , the Heywood hydro dam can net them and lift them into the upper 12 Mile ........When eels were plentiful in the 12 , there was also a fish ladder beside the Lincoln Fabric building which is now a parking lot . The first thing to get started before we talk of eels migrating up the 12 is to get them into the lake . some good info...... http://www.gulfofmaine.org/council/publications/american_eel_low-res.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry b Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 Last eel i caught was about 10 years ago in jordan night fishing at baily bridge, used to be tons in port d when i was a kid.fun to catch but impossible to get hook out lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmate Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 you're right smerch....as one of the younger anglers on here I've never came across an eel or even heard of them caught in my lifetime..My dad told me stories about when he was a kid and would catch them in the lower niagara but thats all i've ever heard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted April 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 From this....... To that ...... Reading about their life cycle is very interesting . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron4blues Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I found this to be an interesting read. Ontario's Recovery Plan for the American Eel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heatmiser74 Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 Chilli dig a little deeper into the NYS regs and check the regs for the Great Lakes, specifically the Lower Niagara and Lake Ontario and you will see that the American Eel is closed to fishing and Possesion is Prohibited. http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/31425.html http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/31423.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesse Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I pulled up a beauty from queenston dock's.I caught it in my smelt net the year before it was fenced off! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisb Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I also remember as a kid visiting my uncle in Cornwall. He had a cottage down river from the big hydro dam we used to see chunks floating down the river. I was always told they had gone through the turbines. Some of them seemed to be a big as a leg off a person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spottedGARRR Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 I would love to see the American Eel make a comeback. Unfortunately if they did start to show up in numbers the poaching would begin. Eel is fantastic smoked, seared, or raw. Mmmmm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted April 17, 2011 Report Share Posted April 17, 2011 Chilli dig a little deeper into the NYS regs and check the regs for the Great Lakes, specifically the Lower Niagara and Lake Ontario and you will see that the American Eel is closed to fishing and Possesion is Prohibited. http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/31425.html http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/31423.html Thank you so much for those links. You may have just saved me some fines Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted April 20, 2011 Report Share Posted April 20, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron4blues Posted April 20, 2011 Report Share Posted April 20, 2011 And people thought Steve Irwin was crazy! If he'd slipped and fallen, they would have been all over him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted April 20, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2011 Try smearing your body with fish guts and walk into any of our northern lakes wearing only your trunks . You will soon be covered with "minnie " eels, called leeches . Those eels followed the scent and decided that man was dinner . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron4blues Posted April 20, 2011 Report Share Posted April 20, 2011 LOL. No desire to try that, Smerch. Maybe another day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted April 20, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2011 Coach......we used fish guts in a tomato juice can punched full of holes with a spike to catch leeches . Any kind of liver , or meat that leaches some blood will attract those blood suckers . The fish love those things ! . I used to fish gate 12 often for pike , bass and carp . One day while fishing for pike ,using a big red & white float and with a 3-4" chub , down about 3-4' , a big eel took the bait ! That surprised me ,but I soon learned that eels love minnows just like most other fish . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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