Three hundred of the best ice fishermen in the US will square off on Lake Bomoseen this March, as Vermont hosts one of eight North American Ice Fishing Circuit qualifying events held across the nation’s ice belt. Taking place March 6^th -8^th , 2009 at the Bomoseen State Park in Castleton, it will be the first time the NAIFC, or Trap Attacks as they were formally known, will have ever been this far east. 

This will be the final qualifying event of the 2009 season, giving 150 two-man teams their chance to catch their way to the World Championships. Outside of being a hard-core hard-water tourney, the NAIFC is responsible for producing some of the most advanced ice fishing techniques in the sport. It here where many anglers compete for the fish, but work together to share, develop and test new ideas so as to educate each other and better the sport overall. 

“As a competitor in Silver Lake, NY last year, I would have to say this was the most enjoyable and educational tournaments I have ever attended on the ice.” said Fair Haven native Shawn Hayes, an avid fisherman and member of the Champlain Crappie Crew. “With minimal equipment, basic strategies, short money and a little luck anyone can compete.” 

Some suggested equipment in addition to tackle would be GPS, portable fishing shelter and some form of transportation such as an ATV or snowmobile. 

Boundaries are set on the water which mark the areas to be fished, as well as makes a level playing field for all competing. Enhancing this concept of a fair, balanced and safe beginning to the day, officials allow all anglers a head start to their spots, and maintain that everyone begins and ends their fishing at the same time. This philosophy maintained by officials and participants is a testament to this being about the anglers and their skills, rather who has the most sponsors and faster means of getting set up. 

Tournament Director Mike McNett remarked, “We don’t want these events to be intimidating for beginning competitors. We are also very watchful of any potential cheating as well. There is no favoritism, and it comes down to the skill and knowledge of each competitor.” 

An attractive characteristic about this tournament in particular is that it is relaxed and educational. Top teams will never refuse the chance to help out beginners and impart some helpful tips to use not only for the day, but take with them in their ice fishing experiences. Also, the pros will spend time contributing to the community while in town, as they spend time doing in-school seminars at the local schools, Kids Ice Camp on the lake, and teaching local volunteers tactics and tips about the sport. 

McNett spoke to this in saying, “The most important aspect of the event is the education element. The seminars, classroom visits, and the Kids Ice Camp are the highlight of every event. This is for the communities we visit and for the future of our sport.” 

To sum up all of the exciting aspects of the NAIFC, here is a quick checklist of events, dates and important information: 

• In-school seminars will be held on Friday, March 6th at Rutland Public Schools.
• Friday evening seminar at the Holiday Inn Rutland/Killington conducted by Scott Brauer of Maki Plastics. Scott makes some of the worlds finest hand poured, ‘Made in America’ micro fishing baits.
• Saturday, March 7th from 10am – 2:00pm, the On Ice Kids Ice Camp will take place, where children and their families will fish and visit with the Pros. Free drinks and food provided for the children. 
• Saturday evening will be team registration and rules meeting at the Holiday Inn Rutland/Killington starting at 6:00pm.
• Sunday will be the actual tournament with teams showing up as early as 6:30am. The official start will be at 7:30 and fishing will begin at 8:00am, ending at 1:00pm.
• The Sunday Tournament will be immediately followed by weigh ins and the awards ceremonies. Food and drinks will be available.
• The event in its entirety will be televised and aired on the Sportsman Channel. It will be titled, “ICEMEN TV”.
• Special Lodging Reservations: 800-462-4810  

Many local hard-water anglers are calling this the most exciting fishing event ever seen in the Rutland area. NAIFC staff, volunteers, sponsors and anglers hope to see the local community members take some time over the three days to come out and take part in the excitement.

For more information about the NAIFC, visit www.NAIFC.org , or contact Shawn Hayes at fishwhisperer66@hotmail.com. Feel free to also leave comments on this article below, here on the Burlington Boatyard Blog.

With Ice Fishing season right around the corner, Burlington Boatyard has been working to ensure we keep the marine community aware of the many exciting and beneficial hard-water happenings taking place this winter in and around Vermont and the Lake Champlain area. 

Recently, BBY has been working together with Shawn Hayes, a Fair Haven resident, active ice fisherman and member of the Champlain Crappie Crew (CCC), to provide exposure and promotion of the upcoming North American Ice Fishing Circuit qualifying tournament which will be coming to Lake Bomoseen in March of 2009.

Shawn, as well as other local anglers like Scott Blair of Burlington (fellow CCC member), have enlisted BBY to aid in developing press releases and getting regular coverage out to the community as the state prepares to welcome what will be the first nationally televised ice fishing event of this scope to take place in Vermont.

We welcome you to be a part of the action as we bring you the latest articles, updates and further developments as we prepare for what is shaping up to be an exciting hard-water season.

- Guy

As a follow up to our original article, “9^th Annual LCI Bass Open: Recap and Coverage” – and after many hours of editing footage - we finally have a full length feature of this year’s LCI Bass Open. Our newest video is dedicated to all the anglers, volunteers and sponsors that participated this year. See you all next year and hope you enjoy the film!

- Jimmy

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services issued a Finding of No Signifigant Impact (FONSI) and have approved a plan to expand sea lamprey control efforts on Lake Champlain.

An Environmental Assessment (EA) that was released in late July recommended lampricide treatments on two streams and the trapping and removal on another.  New lampricide treatments are authorized on the Lamollie River in Milton, Vt., and on Mill Brook in Port Henry, N.Y.  The trapping of lamprey during spawning migrations is authorized for Pond Brook in Colchester, Vt. as well.

Another stream lampricide treatment is scheduled to occur on Mill Brook in Port Henry, NY on Oct. 14, to be followed by a delta treatment on Oct. 15.  There is no lampricide treatment currently scheduled for the Lamoille River.

Sea lamprey are a parasitic fish that have had devastating impacts on the fishes of Lake Champlain.

For more information about the Lake Champlain sea lamprey control program:
Read this information from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

There are many factors that come into play when it’s time to store your boat for the winter or when you are taking a season off (yeah right!). How convenient is the spot? How much will it cost? When will you be able to get to it next season? I’m sure you all thought about this before buying the boat, but it is a reoccurring situation that every boater has to think through as each season comes and goes.

For those with larger boats or who just want to drop it off, wave and say, “See ya next season!”, a reliable option is always the marina route. Winter storage and service packages allow you to let your boat head on in for some much deserved R&R, as their techs will check out anything and everything you ask. While this option does require you to fork over some dough, you can be confident that the proper care and maintenance will prep your boat for another great season come spring.

Moving on from the big guys with their 32′ Cabin Cruisers, you may be the owner of a smaller vessel, like a fishing boat or nice size bow rider, and want to take on the storage process yourself. And to you I say go for it! This is by far the least expensive way to keep your boat cared for and stored effectively if the size is manageable and you have the space. Also, in New England you never know what you are going to get weather-wise, so should there be a few warm days popping up in November or winter ends early, you will be able to access your boat right away by grabbing it out of the side yard or pulling it out of the garage and getting on your way.

If choosing the self-storage route, and you haven’t had prior experience with winterizing your engine, you can search the Burlington Boatyard Marina & Service sections to contact a local shop that could help guide you in the process. Also, check out our free “Ask The Tech” service, where your questions will be answered by Jeff DePaul of Jeff’s Boat Repair in Williston.

While there’s still some time left before calling it quits, properly storing your vessel is a vital part of its maintenance and I hope whichever method you chose makes for a convenient and relaxing off season for you and your boat.

Feel free to comment on this piece below, or use our forum to ask your own questions or help out others that may need some insight on other boating issues.

-Guy

This Sunday, come out and catch all the action at Malletts Bay in Colchester at the 9^th Annual LCI Bass Open.   See some of the top two person angling teams battle it out for first place and the guaranteed $3,000 grand prize.  All boats must be in the water by 5:30 am and tournament hours are from 7:00 am till 3:oo pm.  Pre-fishing is allowed up until Midnight on Saturday, August 30^th.  If you haven’t already registered and you want to get in on all the action, you are still able to register up until 6:00 am, the morning of the tournament, and the fee is $200.00 per team. You can read more about all the specifics here, at the LCI website.

Burlington Boatyard will be at Malletts Bay covering the tournament all day.  Check out BurlingtonBoatyard.com for all of the exclusive highlights and interviews of the 2008 LCI Lake Champlain Bass Open.  Best of luck to all the anglers!

-Jimmy

Guy Mitrano’s Burlington Boatyard Blog post highlighting a recent Wall Street Journal article on Yo-Yoing on the North Atlantic focuses attention on lead contamination here. Yo-Yoing, or using heavy sinkers placed in live baits for striped bass and other bottom feeding fish is not only bad for the environment, it’s a bad reflection on anglers. It happened on Lake Champlain folks, but on a smaller and less intentional scale. Vermont’s program to “Get The Lead Out” was the beginning of an effort by wildlife officials to minimize lead contamination on Lake Champlain. In Vermont it is now illegal to fish with lead sinkers weighing less than one-half ounce. New York has banned the sale of lead sinkers smaller than one ounce. There are not many cases of Yo-Yoing on Lake Champlain that fisheries managers know of, but lead sinkers were a problem for wildlife, especially loons and other waterfowl. It’s up to anglers to refresh their stocks of sinkers with the various options now available like tin or tungsten weights. The old sinkers can be recycled.

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Today on the front page of the Wall Street Journal there is a story entitled “For Massachusetts Fishermen, A Weighty Debate About Fair Play” which discusses a recent event involving a common baiting technique called “Yo-Yoing”.

The article highlights a gentleman who caught a 57lb Striped bass last fall during the annual Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass & Bluefish Derby, and while he was under the impression this was the winning fish, his hopes were deflated after the judges opened the Striper to reveal two pounds of lead weights.

The gentleman was not the angler to have caused the presence of these weights, but rather it was the work of those seeking out the fish on prior attempts with this technique of yo-yoing, where the bait fish is filled with a single lead sinker, enabling it to rest on the ocean bottom and move in the same way that would cause a Striper to go for the kill. As those who have been Striper fishing before may know, often times the line may break when trying to land the fish, or more commonly the fish will make off with the bait, leaving just the hook behind. Beyond the fact of causing “fake weigh-ins” for derby results, the issue has raised much attention regarding the presence of the lead that could cause harmful consequences for the fish and those that eat them later on. Much controversy surrounds these theories, amongst anglers, general public, and state health and wildlife associations alike. Some feel the lead leaders are spit out by the fish more often than swallowed, where others feel the lead will contaminate the water, fish and the next angler to reel him in and make a meal of it.

While there is no Striper fishing taking place on Lake Champlain, this is an issue that can cause opinions to be heard by all anglers regardless if it is fresh or salt water locations that they primarily spend time fishing. We would like to know your stance on the practice of “yo-yoing” and others like it, that may or may not increase the chances of catching fish while possibly posing environmental concerns that can occur thereafter.

For the full story, visit the Wall Street Journal article here, and watch the video to see a Massachusetts fisherman give his opinion.

We encourage you to comment on this piece below, as it could provide insight to the many opinions out there regarding fishing practices and health in general.

-Guy

Robyn Comstock, from the Vermont Special Olympics, sat down with Burlington Boatyard at the Lake Champlain Maritime Festival to chat about their involvement on a number of initiatives within the Vermont area.

For more information on the Vermont Special Olympics:

Read the information below and head to their website: Vermont Special Olympics.

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Guy Mitrano (CEO), Jimmy Farah (CCO) and Nick Cifuentes (CTO) from Burlington Boatyard saying hello, live from the 2008 Lake Champlain Maritime Festival.  The crew started early this morning, setting up and awaiting for the masses.  Although, a few clouds are lingering around, the weather has turned out quite favorable and all the festivities are in full gear.

The Burlington Boatyard crew will be here all weekend, keeping you up to date on all the action down here on the waterfront in Burlington.  So, take advantage of those summer office hours and come on down! Stay tuned, throughout the day, for continuing coverage of the 2008 Lake Champlain Maritime Festival!

- The Burlington Boatyard Crew