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Post by dominodaves on Apr 14, 2014 9:50:57 GMT -6
Fresh, congrats....I bet you can't wait now!
Shredder, I see you've been lurking around a bit. Do you have that custom net ready to throw out and give us some sampling feed back soon?
Vee, Where've you been? Are you ready to hang out again this year? Won't it be nice not to be the newbie this time around?
I know this cool spell is a bit cruel, but I don't think it's a bad thing. The smelt are not quite ready yet anyway....but real soon I think.
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Post by 2fresh on Apr 14, 2014 10:19:56 GMT -6
Haha yes! very excited and can't wait. Checkin out the cam, and wow it looks great! I just hope ill be on fish when I do come up to duluth. Haha
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jeff
New Member
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Post by jeff on Apr 14, 2014 16:48:31 GMT -6
Hello all,I just found this site I will be watching this daily. I have not smelted since about 1978 so i am gonna give it a shot this year. I have a cabin over on lake minnewawa by McGregor, when might they start running 10 to 14 days?
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Post by dominodaves on Apr 14, 2014 17:19:07 GMT -6
Welcome aboard Jeff!
We are completely at the mercy of the weather right now. I would say they should start in about 10-14 days like you were saying, assuming the weather continues to warm on schedule. But now we are in a winter storm watch again! 4-8 inches maybe? That happened way too much last year and had things starting in May basically. But if we get some proper winds that can break up more ice on the point, and then blow it out, maybe we can start earlier....maybe!
But we did learn last year that a real late start is not necessarily a bad thing. It will compress the run and make for a real good season again.....we hope. We are glad to have you, please share as much as you want. You sound like an old timer ready to get back into it. Any good stories from the old days?
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jeff
New Member
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Post by jeff on Apr 14, 2014 18:11:56 GMT -6
I was about 10 years old at the time, I went with my dad and uncle. I do remember a lot of people getting really drunk stand by a fire and more fish then i have ever seen in my life.. Question 1..should i go to the lester river if i just wanna use a dip net? Question 2..how do you guys transport them..coolers with ice? and if i get into some how many coolers should i bring? I just watched the weather for the citys and we should be at 60 by monday and going up from there with possible 80 by midweek..so i just might go to the cabin for the week starting monday,by that time the 4 to 8 inchs of snow should be gone!
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Post by captainkirkduluth on Apr 14, 2014 18:59:37 GMT -6
Nothing new to report here. Conditions are about the same, a few open patches and floating ice all over. Maybe things will look better by the end of next week, don't think things will change much this week.
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Post by shredder on Apr 14, 2014 20:20:14 GMT -6
Hello all! You too, Domino! Yes, I've been lurking...thing is, I'm going on vaca soon, coming back on May 4th, add to that I sold my house in Two Harbors to live at my cabin in Schroeder, makes for new elements in my smelting. It will be a while before it happens, though, and with my mobile app, I'll know when to hit the breakwall and watch you guys get blitzed by the waves! I will also be be spending more time at the Temp and some of the other rivers up the Shore. I will report on doings this way for sure and good luck to all!
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Post by chhemv01 on Apr 15, 2014 7:33:25 GMT -6
Dave - I'm ready! I've cleared out my freezer space and ready to start smelting I'm really excited about this year since it won't be trial and error - thanks all to your helpful tips and updates! I do have to try and pick up some wooden handled dip nets at some point this season.
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Post by dominodaves on Apr 15, 2014 8:40:45 GMT -6
Vee, I will call my son at UMD and see if he can track you down some. How many?
Shredder, You said you felt bad for us down there! I knew you were laughing at us you dog! We appreciate your info as always. Your early test results are a big key for timing our trips up! Thanks again.
Jeff, Yes the dip nets are for the rivers. But be patient, you will need the rivers to do their spring melt, then let the water levels come down, and clear a bit before you can get in there and get your smelt. They can be dangerous early on or if we get heavy rain. The beaches on Park Point will likely be one of the first places to bring them in, along with Ashland. Then the rivers will kick in after that. So you have plenty of time before you need to make plans regardless of how warm it is down here in the cities. Besides, maybe you can hang out with us on the beach and see how things get done there too! We would be glad to have another body out there for Shredder to feel "sorry" for!
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Post by chhemv01 on Apr 15, 2014 9:31:17 GMT -6
Hey Dave - 3 nets would great. I can pay pal you or him and pick up the nets when I see ya. Let me know when you might do a test run might have to run up with you.
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Post by MrBialke on Apr 15, 2014 9:36:52 GMT -6
Hello everyone I am a new member to this forum. I live in Brookston and work right here in Duluth. I am looking to get a few smelt this year and it will be my first year. I've done a lot of seining for minnows growing up. I have all of the gear from hip waders to dip net to seine. Looking for a partner to help get a few buckets of smelt this year! Let me know if you're looking for an extra hand!
Thanks,
Aaron
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Post by Smeltreason on Apr 15, 2014 14:31:25 GMT -6
Is it safe to assume smelt netting will never be close in mn. People been saying so but I try to find information online and couldn't find anything at all. Dnr website stated nothing at all. The people that said smelt is close for netting saw in on the news. Can someone point me to any news source that say smelt netting is close?
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Post by dominodaves on Apr 15, 2014 15:09:02 GMT -6
Ok, I will tackle this for you. Smelt are an invasive species to the great lakes. They have now been there for almost 60 years. But will likely always be classified as invasive. The season never closes for them. However, catching them any other time than the spring run would require you to train lake trout and salmon to bring them to you. Here is the MN DNR link to them. I'm quite sure that whoever you heard this from is a bit confused. They may have seen some signs that are placed on certain streams along the north shore that say no smelting. These are also listed in the following info provided by the MN DNR. www.dnr.state.mn.us/areas/fisheries/lakesuperior/smelt.htmlI hope this clears things up for you.
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Post by smeltreason on Apr 15, 2014 18:59:06 GMT -6
Thank you so much. That's what I understood too from the dnr site. Since smelt are a invasive species they are not consider a game species.weird wonder who's letting this rumor spread like a wild fire.
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Post by captainkirkduluth on Apr 16, 2014 7:56:16 GMT -6
Ice on the beach again. Looks like the snow is coming as well. Not too worried though, the extended forecast is looking promising, better than it looked at this time last year.
Thanks Domino. Yeah, don't need to worry about the smelt season closing. Like Domino said, they are an introduced species. In any case, I haven't heard anything about their numbers being lower or higher than the past few years. Yeah, there aren't as many around as their used to be "back in the day" but it's not necessarily a bad thing.
Smelt numbers gradually declined in the late 80s and 90s and now they have leveled out at relatively low abundance in the lake. The reason for this would appear to be the uptake in lake trout numbers during that same time period (Lake trout really like smelt when they are around). As smelt have declined, the lakes native ciscos (herring to some) have increased in abundance and taken up their former position as the primary planktivore and forage fish in the lake.
Although it's kind of a bummer that I'll never experience smelt fishing like it was in the 70s, I'm pretty happy that we have such an amazing native fishery, unique to the great lakes. Anyway, sorry to get a little off track. Bring on spring and smelt!
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