Winni derby

[ishoot308]

Based on what F&G is doing I highly doubt the derby will happen.

https://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/about/covid19.html

Dan

[ishoot308]

Originally Posted by Top-Water

I seen the same thing. I'm guessing this will kill all the early season tournaments includung bass tournaments.

That would be my assumption also Top...

Dan

[dt5150]

fine with me if they do cancel it, i hope they do. they should anyway just for the sake of the salmon.

[Hillcountry]

Originally Posted by dt5150

fine with me if they do cancel it, i hope they do. they should anyway just for the sake of the salmon.

Me too!

[Sunseeker Jimmy]

Just got my email from the Derby and it has been Cancelled for 2020

[MikeF-NH]

Some will be happy and some unhappy with the derby cancel. It certainly will impact many businesses in the lakes region. With the gov closing all hotels until May 4 and risk of it going longer, the cancel made sense and had nothing to do with fishing quality. Personally, the quality of the fishing this year has been superior. All I’m catching is 4 and 5 year olds and definitely the largest salmon I’ve ever taken.

Since I already rented my house for the weekend...I’m still fishing that entire
Weekend. The fishing should be better than it is during a derby year with less boats on the water. Now if this wind would only die down so I can get out a few more times before mid May...

[ishoot308]

Originally Posted by MikeF-NH

Some will be happy and some unhappy with the derby cancel. It certainly will impact many businesses in the lakes region. With the gov closing all hotels until May 4 and risk of it going longer, the cancel made sense and had nothing to do with fishing quality. Personally, the quality of the fishing this year has been superior. All I’m catching is 4 and 5 year olds and definitely the largest salmon I’ve ever taken.

Since I already rented my house for the weekend...I’m still fishing that entire
Weekend. The fishing should be better than it is during a derby year with less boats on the water. Now if this wind would only die down so I can get out a few more times before mid May...

Agree on the 5 year old salmon. They are absolutely beautiful! The days of catching double digit salmon will be gone for a while but if you put your time in, the fish you do catch are beautiful.

In 2-3 years Winni will be a fantastic fishery!

Dan

[hilltopper]

Originally Posted by ishoot308

Agree on the 5 year old salmon. They are absolutely beautiful! The days of catching double digit salmon will be gone for a while but if you put your time in, the fish you do catch are beautiful.

In 2-3 years Winni will be a fantastic fishery!

Dan

You guys are killing me... Pictures of these 4 and 5 year olds please!

[Hillcountry]

Here’s one from last season... No boat this season...yet.

[Hap]

I am disappointed but also glad they are cancelling the derby. I think its the right thing to do. I did not have very much luck fishing salmon last summer and hope that the lack of pressure from the derby gives the salmon a deserved break, and will improve fishing this summer. I do feel for the Naswa where I stay every year and the other resorts that lose their income.

[MikeF-NH]

While I don't want the conversation to turn ugly, I just get frustrated when so many feel like this: "that the lack of pressure from the derby gives the salmon a deserved break".

There is no question that putting 1000 boats on the water for a single weekend targeting salmon from daybreak to sunset puts a LOT of pressure on the fish. Anyone fishing in the weeks following the derby will support that assertion.

However, I talking to some of the organizers (and if you don't believe me - speak to them yourself) about how many fish are brought to the weigh station...his answer was "hundreds" as in 300-ish he said was a good estimate.

Now if you follow Winni trolling boards as I do, you see that the overwhelming majoring of anglers are taking home their limits of these beautiful 4-6 year old monster salmon this year. If we do some simple deductive math we get this:
-100 anglers on the lake each weekend day bringing home a limit (legally and ethically). That's 400 salmon a weekend (probably less because weather keeps some off...lets just cut it in half...200 salmon a weekend.
-6 weeks leading up to the derby would be 1200 salmon lifted out of the lake and filleted....just before the derby. Lets not count how many more are killed from June-Oct.

If we accept these number as reasonable...how can we suggest the derby is a major factor in the salmon numbers?

Hook wounded fish need to go home. They are a drain on the resource and need to be harvested but I'm seeing beautiful healthy fish being hoisted with no hook wounding. With the numbers down as they are this year. We should be encouraging folks to put healthy fish back while understanding they have a legal right to take 2 home rather than bashing the derby.

My told you so moment will be when we don't have a derby this year and in late May we are still reporting the fishery declining. It won't recover until the new age class fish take hold.

All this is one mans opinion but I'm hoping all can see the math and logic and I welcome any adjustments to my numbers based on anything observed or learned from reliable sources. I really wonder what Rick Davis would say about all this - RIP.

Tight lines all and be safe out there!

[Hillcountry]

Originally Posted by MikeF-NH

While I don't want the conversation to turn ugly, I just get frustrated when so many feel like this: "that the lack of pressure from the derby gives the salmon a deserved break".

There is no question that putting 1000 boats on the water for a single weekend targeting salmon from daybreak to sunset puts a LOT of pressure on the fish. Anyone fishing in the weeks following the derby will support that assertion.

However, I talking to some of the organizers (and if you don't believe me - speak to them yourself) about how many fish are brought to the weigh station...his answer was "hundreds" as in 300-ish he said was a good estimate.

Now if you follow Winni trolling boards as I do, you see that the overwhelming majoring of anglers are taking home their limits of these beautiful 4-6 year old monster salmon this year. If we do some simple deductive math we get this:
-100 anglers on the lake each weekend day bringing home a limit (legally and ethically). That's 400 salmon a weekend (probably less because weather keeps some off...lets just cut it in half...200 salmon a weekend.
-6 weeks leading up to the derby would be 1200 salmon lifted out of the lake and filleted....just before the derby. Lets not count how many more are killed from June-Oct.

If we accept these number as reasonable...how can we suggest the derby is a major factor in the salmon numbers?

Hook wounded fish need to go home. They are a drain on the resource and need to be harvested but I'm seeing beautiful healthy fish being hoisted with no hook wounding. With the numbers down as they are this year. We should be encouraging folks to put healthy fish back while understanding they have a legal right to take 2 home rather than bashing the derby.

My told you so moment will be when we don't have a derby this year and in late May we are still reporting the fishery declining. It won't recover until the new age class fish take hold.

All this is one mans opinion but I'm hoping all can see the math and logic and I welcome any adjustments to my numbers based on anything observed or learned from reliable sources. I really wonder what Rick Davis would say about all this - RIP.

Tight lines all and be safe out there!

All good points but...in a “normal” season, with the derby, the regular fishermen of Winni are still out there doing their thing. This year, with no derby, you can deduct all the fish that would be killed/wounded during the derby, therefore, less of an impact on the fishery.
As you know, I’m not in favor of any derby or tournament on any body of water, so I’m biased in that respect. I don’t think our little New England fishery can support them as the huge southern and midwestern lakes and reservoirs can.
Just my humble opinion.