| Capt. Dick's Fishing Journal Reports from the waters of Keuka Lake |
| Hello, All! We have returned from Florida to beautiful Keuka Lake for the summer and I am looking forward to the season ahead. |
| Take a kid fishing! Phone: Nov to May 941-637- 9258 June to Nov 607-569-2988 |
6/30/09
Fished with Bobber. Rain, thunder and lightning at 5:30, so we went for breakfast to wait out the storm. Started
fishing at 7am. No hits until about 7:45 ...caught 1 small Salmon. About 8:15 it started to rain again. We caught 3
small Lakers 18" to 19" while it was raining (about 15 minutes) from 8:30 to 9am ...nothing, pulled up and went in.
6/29/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30. Slow again today. We had 5 hits and landed 3 Lakers. All came on bait behind a flasher
and cowbells on the bottom.
6/28/09
Fished with Bobber today...5:30 to 8:15am. Fishing was slower than yesterday. We did not mark many fish or bait.
Techniques that worked yesterday failed me today. We caught 2 Lakers & 2 small Salmon all on R & R spoons.
6/27/09
Charter aboard the KBF with Dennis Petinko & Crew. I remember names of Debbie & Gus, but the fourth name
draws a blank. The catching was slow compared to yesterday, but we were able to boat 7 Lakers from 17" to 21"
long. The fish were hitting just about anything as long as it had a little piece of sawbelly on it. We fished from
5:30am to 9:30am.
6/26/09
Charter aboard the KBF with Steve and Matt Connelly....5:30am to 10 am. We went 13 for 22. We had to take a 20
min. or so break onshore due to a thunderstorm about 6:20am. The fish came from 30' down to 100' on Dipsy Fly
combo early and downriggers fished with spoons, flasher & fly and cowbells with peanuts.
6/25/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30am to 8:30am. The lake has turned over and we found the Thermal Cline has set up. The
surface temp was 67.6F, 10' down to 45' it was 66.9 to 66.0 at 50' it was 50F, a 16 degree drop. We caught &
released 11 Lakers . All were caught at 45' to 55'.
6/24/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30am 4 Lakers 2 1/2 to 4 lbs. Biggest 23", one 22", 4 1/2 lb Landlock Salmon. Salmon came
on R& R Spoon at 40' on downrigger. Lakers came on Dipsy Spindoctor Fly with 150' of wire out. See photo of
Salmon in Gallery.
6/23/09
Charter with Bobber 5:30 to 9:20. 1 Laker and 1 small Brown Trout for 4 hits. No fish, no bait. No bananas for an
excuse for today. Hard north wind yesterday afternoon and we had it start up again at 7:30am. This a probably a
contributing factor.
6/22/09
Charter aboard KBF with Don Perrotti Family and Friends. Fished 5:30 to 9:30am. 6 Lakers for 14 hits. Fish were
widely scattered and all over the water column. We caught or had hits on every pole from bottom at 140' to top
lines. Biggest Laker was about 4 lbs. Lost 2 about the same size behind the boat. Most of the fish came on
sawbelllies behind flashers or cowbells.
6/21/09
Charter aboard KBF. 5:30 to 10:30am. With Doug Babcock and his son, Doug. The day was a charter captain's
nightmare. We marked all kinds of fish, but couldn't make them bite hard enough to get into the boat. We lost 3 or
4 Lakers and only got one in the boat. We caught and released 7 or 8 Salmon. Noticed when we came in that
there was a banana peel to be discarded. There is an old fisherman's tale that if there is a banana on the boat,
fishing luck will be very poor. Maybe that was our problem.
6/20/09
Charter aboard Bobber's boat. Part of a Sunday wedding party. The groom and 3 of his college classmates.
Fished 8am to 12:30pm. Everybody aboard was able to land a couple fish....Lakers or Salmon.
6/19/09
Charter aboard KBF with Walt Peterson and his wife, Judy. 5:30 to 10am. We fished the south end and headed
north. I think we caught fish on all the rods. We fished 2 flat lines, 2 Dipsy poles and 3 downriggers. Had no pattern
as to color or bait type. 6 Lakers , 6 or 7 small Landlock Salmon.
6/18/09
Fished KBF 5:30 - 8:30am. Fished as far north as Gold Seal. Marked a lot of fish between Two Mile Point and Gold
Seal. Fish were all over depth wise from 30' down. 4 Lakers, 2 Salmon.
6/17/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 8am. Fished on south end. Fish few and far between. Some off Willow Point and off the
bar stake in the middle. 4 Lakers all on Dipsy poles.
6/16/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9:30am. 4 Lakers and 1 Landlock Salmon. Took off from the marina and ran north of Urbana on
the west side. Fished from there to 1 mile north of Lakeside Restaurant on the west side across the lake to the
Bluff. Followed the Bluff around going 1/2 mile or so up Penn Yan arm and back down the east side to the Elms. We
marked a lot of fish, we didn't mark much bait. Highlight of the day was losing a Rainbow in the 4 to 5 lb range after
it had jumped 5 times and tore line off against the drag.
6/15/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 8am. 3 Lakers. Fish have scattered on the south end. We worked as far north as the
elevator about 3 miles north on the west side. No bait marked....very few fish.
6/14/09
Charter aboard KBF with Don Space and 3 of his co-workers. We fished from 6am to 2pm. We were able to boat 9
Lakers and 1 Landlock Salmon. Everyone on the trip lost at least 1 fish and more. Dipsy poles kept us busy for
awhile, but as the day went by I had to resort to cowbells and peanuts set 2 or 3 feet off the bottom to catch fish.
6/13/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 9am. 3 Lakers all on downrigger R & R spoon set @ 65'.
6/12/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9am. Zigzagged across lake from the south end up the lake three miles. Caught 3 Lakers, one
12" Salmon. Fish marked were at 100' to 120' down over 130' to 140' of water. Lakers came on R & R spoons and
Salmon on cheater line with a flat fish.
6/11/09
Fished with Bobber. Fish scarce again today. We landed 1 Laker, 1 small Salmon, and one 13" Brown Trout. All
the fish came on the same R & R spoon set at 30' on downrigger. The other 3 poles were idle. Fished 5:30 to
8:30am.
6/10/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9am 5 Lakers, 4 Salmon. Had 15 hits....very overcast until about 8am. Caught fish on all the
poles. Dipsy Spindoctor Fly, downrigger with spoons and cheaters and tried lead core with a spoon on a yellow
bird. Salmon are small, but it is good to see them here.
6/9/09
Fished with Bobber. Thunderstorms over night and going on at 5:30am. We went for breakfast and headed out on
the lake around seven after the storm had passed. Fish were far and few between. We had only 3 hits and caught
1 Laker about 3 lbs. Fish came on Dipsy Spindoctor Fly combo set with 90' of wire out.
6/8/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9 am, 3 Lakers, 2 small Landlocks One 6" the other around 12". Fish have moved about 2
miles up the lake and were not biting. The Lakers were scattered throughout the water column. One caught on
Dipsy Spindoctor Fly with 85' of wire , 1 on spoon set at 60' on downrigger and the last one on a spoon on the
bottom in 130' of water.
6/7/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 8:30am. 3 Lakers and 2 Landlocks. Fish had moved since yesterday and we didn't find
them by the time we quit for the day. Zigzagged back and forth across the lake from the south end to Two Mile
Point. Fish Finder screen was pretty bare. Oh well, try again tomorrow.
6/6/09
First charter of the season aboard KBF with Marv & Andy Drake. Fished 6am to 10am. Went 12 for 18. Boated 4
Lakers 18" to 21" and 8 Landlock salmon 6" to 13". Still looking for our first legal salmon. The bite was steady up
to about 9:00 than slowed down... caught 1 Laker, 2 Salmon and 1 Northern Pike on three colors of lead core 200'
behind boat. The rest of the salmon came on downrigger cheaters. The Lakers came on the Dipsy Spindoctor Fly
Combo set with 85" to 90" out.
6/5/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30am, 14 for 20. 9 Lakers 16" to 22" and 5 Landlocks 8" to 13". All the salmon came on
small spoons used as cheaters on downriggers set at 25' and 35'. Lakers came on downriggers and Dipsy
combos. Fished south of Two Mile Point.
6/4/09
Fished Bobber's boat 5:30 to 8am. 3 Lakers ...all on Spindoctor Fly Combo.
6/3/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:45, 7 for 10 7 Lakers . Had 14"-15" Salmon jump off at the boat. We fished almost 3 miles
down the lake today. Had hard time finding fish. Only 1 on Dipsy Combo today. All the rest on downriggers &
cheater set from 20' to 60' , R & R spoons.
6/2/09
Fished Bobber's boat 48F overcast, north wind came up around 7:30am with white caps, 2 for 4, fished 5:30 to
7:45am
6/1/09
Fished KBF. Cold this morning 40F. Fished 5:30 to 9am. 7 Lakers 3 Landlocks. Had 15 or 16 hits. Most of the fish
came on Dipsy Spindoctor Fly combo with 90' of wire out. Salmon were small 9" to 11". 1 Laker 4 lbs. The rest
were 18" to 20".
5/31/09
Fished Bobber's boat. Went 3 for 5 Lakers 18" to 20". All the hits came on Dipsy Diver Spindoctor Fly Combo set
with 90' of wire out.
5/30/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30am. Went 6 for 14 . 4 Lakers 18" to 20". 2 Landlock Salmon 6" and 11" long. Had 3 lakers
on at the same time. Lakers came on cheaters on downriggers at about 15 to 20 ft and Dipsy with Spindoctor Fly
Combo with 90' of wire out. Both landlocks came on cheater lines with small silver spoons.
5/29/09
Fished Bobber's boat. 5:30 to 8:30am. Went 6 for 12 . All Lakers. Hits pretty even between Downriggers and
Dipsy Divers. R& R spoons and Dipsy Spindoctor Fly combos. Heavy rain last night...water very dirty on south end
of lake up about a mile.
5/28/09
Fished KBF 6:15 to 8:30am. 11 for 15......all Lakers 16" to 21". Better than half the hits came on Dipsy Spindoctor
Fly combo with 80 to 90 ft of wire out. Had several hits on downrigger cheaters that were probably in the 15' to 20'
range. Pulled up downrigger and set a lead core with 4 colors back 250 ft with stickbait with no hits. Water
surface temp on Tues, 5/26 was 58F. Today it was 48F on the westside and 50F on the east.
5/27/09
Did not fish....rain and windy.
5/26/09
Fished with Bobber...got 3 lake trout.
5/25/09
Fished on the Keuka Bigfoot Went 4 for 6. Three lakers and one landlock salmon.
5/24/09
Fished Bobber's boat 5:30am to 10am. 4 for 4. Again using spoons on Downriggers and flies behind Dipsy and
Spindoctor. 30to 60 ft down.
5/23/09
Fished Keuka Bigfoot today. It took a couple of days to get the gear back on her. 5:30am to 9:30am. 7 for 7 with
the fish 17" to 22". Caught fish on R & R spoons, Dipsy Diver Spindoctor Fly Combo. Caught more fish up above 50
ft today.
5/22/09
Fished with Bobber 7am to 10am. Went 3 for 7. Fish were small 17" & 19". Caught on R & R spoons and Trout
Killers again around 60 ft.
5/21/09
Fished with Bobber 7:30 to 10am. Went 0 for 2. Hits came on R &R spoons set at 60ft.
Fished with Bobber. Rain, thunder and lightning at 5:30, so we went for breakfast to wait out the storm. Started
fishing at 7am. No hits until about 7:45 ...caught 1 small Salmon. About 8:15 it started to rain again. We caught 3
small Lakers 18" to 19" while it was raining (about 15 minutes) from 8:30 to 9am ...nothing, pulled up and went in.
6/29/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30. Slow again today. We had 5 hits and landed 3 Lakers. All came on bait behind a flasher
and cowbells on the bottom.
6/28/09
Fished with Bobber today...5:30 to 8:15am. Fishing was slower than yesterday. We did not mark many fish or bait.
Techniques that worked yesterday failed me today. We caught 2 Lakers & 2 small Salmon all on R & R spoons.
6/27/09
Charter aboard the KBF with Dennis Petinko & Crew. I remember names of Debbie & Gus, but the fourth name
draws a blank. The catching was slow compared to yesterday, but we were able to boat 7 Lakers from 17" to 21"
long. The fish were hitting just about anything as long as it had a little piece of sawbelly on it. We fished from
5:30am to 9:30am.
6/26/09
Charter aboard the KBF with Steve and Matt Connelly....5:30am to 10 am. We went 13 for 22. We had to take a 20
min. or so break onshore due to a thunderstorm about 6:20am. The fish came from 30' down to 100' on Dipsy Fly
combo early and downriggers fished with spoons, flasher & fly and cowbells with peanuts.
6/25/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30am to 8:30am. The lake has turned over and we found the Thermal Cline has set up. The
surface temp was 67.6F, 10' down to 45' it was 66.9 to 66.0 at 50' it was 50F, a 16 degree drop. We caught &
released 11 Lakers . All were caught at 45' to 55'.
6/24/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30am 4 Lakers 2 1/2 to 4 lbs. Biggest 23", one 22", 4 1/2 lb Landlock Salmon. Salmon came
on R& R Spoon at 40' on downrigger. Lakers came on Dipsy Spindoctor Fly with 150' of wire out. See photo of
Salmon in Gallery.
6/23/09
Charter with Bobber 5:30 to 9:20. 1 Laker and 1 small Brown Trout for 4 hits. No fish, no bait. No bananas for an
excuse for today. Hard north wind yesterday afternoon and we had it start up again at 7:30am. This a probably a
contributing factor.
6/22/09
Charter aboard KBF with Don Perrotti Family and Friends. Fished 5:30 to 9:30am. 6 Lakers for 14 hits. Fish were
widely scattered and all over the water column. We caught or had hits on every pole from bottom at 140' to top
lines. Biggest Laker was about 4 lbs. Lost 2 about the same size behind the boat. Most of the fish came on
sawbelllies behind flashers or cowbells.
6/21/09
Charter aboard KBF. 5:30 to 10:30am. With Doug Babcock and his son, Doug. The day was a charter captain's
nightmare. We marked all kinds of fish, but couldn't make them bite hard enough to get into the boat. We lost 3 or
4 Lakers and only got one in the boat. We caught and released 7 or 8 Salmon. Noticed when we came in that
there was a banana peel to be discarded. There is an old fisherman's tale that if there is a banana on the boat,
fishing luck will be very poor. Maybe that was our problem.
6/20/09
Charter aboard Bobber's boat. Part of a Sunday wedding party. The groom and 3 of his college classmates.
Fished 8am to 12:30pm. Everybody aboard was able to land a couple fish....Lakers or Salmon.
6/19/09
Charter aboard KBF with Walt Peterson and his wife, Judy. 5:30 to 10am. We fished the south end and headed
north. I think we caught fish on all the rods. We fished 2 flat lines, 2 Dipsy poles and 3 downriggers. Had no pattern
as to color or bait type. 6 Lakers , 6 or 7 small Landlock Salmon.
6/18/09
Fished KBF 5:30 - 8:30am. Fished as far north as Gold Seal. Marked a lot of fish between Two Mile Point and Gold
Seal. Fish were all over depth wise from 30' down. 4 Lakers, 2 Salmon.
6/17/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 8am. Fished on south end. Fish few and far between. Some off Willow Point and off the
bar stake in the middle. 4 Lakers all on Dipsy poles.
6/16/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9:30am. 4 Lakers and 1 Landlock Salmon. Took off from the marina and ran north of Urbana on
the west side. Fished from there to 1 mile north of Lakeside Restaurant on the west side across the lake to the
Bluff. Followed the Bluff around going 1/2 mile or so up Penn Yan arm and back down the east side to the Elms. We
marked a lot of fish, we didn't mark much bait. Highlight of the day was losing a Rainbow in the 4 to 5 lb range after
it had jumped 5 times and tore line off against the drag.
6/15/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 8am. 3 Lakers. Fish have scattered on the south end. We worked as far north as the
elevator about 3 miles north on the west side. No bait marked....very few fish.
6/14/09
Charter aboard KBF with Don Space and 3 of his co-workers. We fished from 6am to 2pm. We were able to boat 9
Lakers and 1 Landlock Salmon. Everyone on the trip lost at least 1 fish and more. Dipsy poles kept us busy for
awhile, but as the day went by I had to resort to cowbells and peanuts set 2 or 3 feet off the bottom to catch fish.
6/13/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 9am. 3 Lakers all on downrigger R & R spoon set @ 65'.
6/12/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9am. Zigzagged across lake from the south end up the lake three miles. Caught 3 Lakers, one
12" Salmon. Fish marked were at 100' to 120' down over 130' to 140' of water. Lakers came on R & R spoons and
Salmon on cheater line with a flat fish.
6/11/09
Fished with Bobber. Fish scarce again today. We landed 1 Laker, 1 small Salmon, and one 13" Brown Trout. All
the fish came on the same R & R spoon set at 30' on downrigger. The other 3 poles were idle. Fished 5:30 to
8:30am.
6/10/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9am 5 Lakers, 4 Salmon. Had 15 hits....very overcast until about 8am. Caught fish on all the
poles. Dipsy Spindoctor Fly, downrigger with spoons and cheaters and tried lead core with a spoon on a yellow
bird. Salmon are small, but it is good to see them here.
6/9/09
Fished with Bobber. Thunderstorms over night and going on at 5:30am. We went for breakfast and headed out on
the lake around seven after the storm had passed. Fish were far and few between. We had only 3 hits and caught
1 Laker about 3 lbs. Fish came on Dipsy Spindoctor Fly combo set with 90' of wire out.
6/8/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 9 am, 3 Lakers, 2 small Landlocks One 6" the other around 12". Fish have moved about 2
miles up the lake and were not biting. The Lakers were scattered throughout the water column. One caught on
Dipsy Spindoctor Fly with 85' of wire , 1 on spoon set at 60' on downrigger and the last one on a spoon on the
bottom in 130' of water.
6/7/09
Fished with Bobber 5:30 to 8:30am. 3 Lakers and 2 Landlocks. Fish had moved since yesterday and we didn't find
them by the time we quit for the day. Zigzagged back and forth across the lake from the south end to Two Mile
Point. Fish Finder screen was pretty bare. Oh well, try again tomorrow.
6/6/09
First charter of the season aboard KBF with Marv & Andy Drake. Fished 6am to 10am. Went 12 for 18. Boated 4
Lakers 18" to 21" and 8 Landlock salmon 6" to 13". Still looking for our first legal salmon. The bite was steady up
to about 9:00 than slowed down... caught 1 Laker, 2 Salmon and 1 Northern Pike on three colors of lead core 200'
behind boat. The rest of the salmon came on downrigger cheaters. The Lakers came on the Dipsy Spindoctor Fly
Combo set with 85" to 90" out.
6/5/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30am, 14 for 20. 9 Lakers 16" to 22" and 5 Landlocks 8" to 13". All the salmon came on
small spoons used as cheaters on downriggers set at 25' and 35'. Lakers came on downriggers and Dipsy
combos. Fished south of Two Mile Point.
6/4/09
Fished Bobber's boat 5:30 to 8am. 3 Lakers ...all on Spindoctor Fly Combo.
6/3/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:45, 7 for 10 7 Lakers . Had 14"-15" Salmon jump off at the boat. We fished almost 3 miles
down the lake today. Had hard time finding fish. Only 1 on Dipsy Combo today. All the rest on downriggers &
cheater set from 20' to 60' , R & R spoons.
6/2/09
Fished Bobber's boat 48F overcast, north wind came up around 7:30am with white caps, 2 for 4, fished 5:30 to
7:45am
6/1/09
Fished KBF. Cold this morning 40F. Fished 5:30 to 9am. 7 Lakers 3 Landlocks. Had 15 or 16 hits. Most of the fish
came on Dipsy Spindoctor Fly combo with 90' of wire out. Salmon were small 9" to 11". 1 Laker 4 lbs. The rest
were 18" to 20".
5/31/09
Fished Bobber's boat. Went 3 for 5 Lakers 18" to 20". All the hits came on Dipsy Diver Spindoctor Fly Combo set
with 90' of wire out.
5/30/09
Fished KBF 5:30 to 8:30am. Went 6 for 14 . 4 Lakers 18" to 20". 2 Landlock Salmon 6" and 11" long. Had 3 lakers
on at the same time. Lakers came on cheaters on downriggers at about 15 to 20 ft and Dipsy with Spindoctor Fly
Combo with 90' of wire out. Both landlocks came on cheater lines with small silver spoons.
5/29/09
Fished Bobber's boat. 5:30 to 8:30am. Went 6 for 12 . All Lakers. Hits pretty even between Downriggers and
Dipsy Divers. R& R spoons and Dipsy Spindoctor Fly combos. Heavy rain last night...water very dirty on south end
of lake up about a mile.
5/28/09
Fished KBF 6:15 to 8:30am. 11 for 15......all Lakers 16" to 21". Better than half the hits came on Dipsy Spindoctor
Fly combo with 80 to 90 ft of wire out. Had several hits on downrigger cheaters that were probably in the 15' to 20'
range. Pulled up downrigger and set a lead core with 4 colors back 250 ft with stickbait with no hits. Water
surface temp on Tues, 5/26 was 58F. Today it was 48F on the westside and 50F on the east.
5/27/09
Did not fish....rain and windy.
5/26/09
Fished with Bobber...got 3 lake trout.
5/25/09
Fished on the Keuka Bigfoot Went 4 for 6. Three lakers and one landlock salmon.
5/24/09
Fished Bobber's boat 5:30am to 10am. 4 for 4. Again using spoons on Downriggers and flies behind Dipsy and
Spindoctor. 30to 60 ft down.
5/23/09
Fished Keuka Bigfoot today. It took a couple of days to get the gear back on her. 5:30am to 9:30am. 7 for 7 with
the fish 17" to 22". Caught fish on R & R spoons, Dipsy Diver Spindoctor Fly Combo. Caught more fish up above 50
ft today.
5/22/09
Fished with Bobber 7am to 10am. Went 3 for 7. Fish were small 17" & 19". Caught on R & R spoons and Trout
Killers again around 60 ft.
5/21/09
Fished with Bobber 7:30 to 10am. Went 0 for 2. Hits came on R &R spoons set at 60ft.
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7/1/09
Worked back of boat for a Bobber Charter 6 to 10am. The lake was full of debris this AM from the heavy
thunderstorms overnight and yesterday afternoon. We had four hits and did not get any fish to the boat. This is
the first skunk on a charter trip since 2005 when we started. We marked very few fish and went 4 miles up the
lake and back.
Worked back of boat for a Bobber Charter 6 to 10am. The lake was full of debris this AM from the heavy
thunderstorms overnight and yesterday afternoon. We had four hits and did not get any fish to the boat. This is
the first skunk on a charter trip since 2005 when we started. We marked very few fish and went 4 miles up the
lake and back.