As the cooler temperatures of late fall arrive and the Atlantic salmon spawning run winds down on Lake Champlain’s tributaries, some salmon anglers have thoughts of retiring their gear for winter. Most large trolling vessels are shrink-wrapped and in storage, in anticipation of the approaching chill. Many outdoorsmen are ignoring the water, entirely focused on the woods. What some fishermen are unaware of is that some of the best salmon fishing occurs on the broad lake from late October, until the mid-winter ice forms. With a modest boat and motor, the proper tackle, and an enthusiastic mindset for brisk fishing, a hard-core Lake Champlain salmon angler can take full advantage of the year round open season. It’s an opportunity to experience bountiful fishing well into winter. With the exception of an occasional bald eagle or two, the salmon angler will encounter little competition on the water.

 On the broad lake during late fall and early winter Atlantic salmon are often foraging aggressively on baitfish in the upper portion of the water column. A young adult class, from 15 to 18 inches, is most prevalent, but larger stock occasionally joins the mix. Pound for pound, these Atlantic salmon are every bit as energetic as their Pacific rivals. When hooked, they frequently make powerful, lightening-fast runs and exciting acrobatic leaps of amazing height, invigorating a cold angler’s heart. The occasional bonus brown trout, steelhead or lake trout may be caught, complementing the big water experience.

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As a follow-up to our article ”Winterizing Your Boat On Your Own: A Checklist“, avid sailor and fellow Burlington Boatyard member, Eliot Beck has compiled a quick guide focused solely on winterizing your sailboat…

• Make sure to get any water & other liquids that may freeze out of the boat, and find ways to let air circulate.  If covered, make sure there are vents (even if shrink-wrapping, you can provide venting).
• Gas tanks should be filled to prevent as much air in the tank as possible. Alternatively, you could make sure the tanks are thoroughly drained & left totally dry.  Keep in mind however, more often than not the method you chose depends on the fuel system.

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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

The 9^th Annual LCI Bass Open was yet again another well run and exciting day for all anglers, staff and volunteers involved. There were 120 participants that took to the water in sixty bass boats, and Burlington Boatyard was there to cover the day’s events, launch to weigh-in.

At 4:30am, myself and Jimmy arrived at the Malletts Bay boat launch to start filming what seemed to be an endless line of pick-up trucks trailering their bass slayers down to the water and quickly going through check-in to get situated. As they manned their boats, many guys were setting up their ten or so rods, taking a coffee break every few minutes, only to get right back at it making sure all gear was in check and ready to reel in the winning fish.

As launch time drew near, we hopped on a pontoon boat provided by Jim Salter of Vermont Home & Marine, with James Ehlers of LCI to get footage of the teams taking off as their numbers were called out. Past the no wake zone, the guys were sure to “showboat” a bit and display what their rigs could do, which stirred cheers and jeers from those still in the launch.

After a long six hours on shore, it was 2pm and time to prepare for the return of the anglers. The LCI staff and volunteers had the weigh station all set up, everyone in place, and myself, Jimmy and Nick took the pontoon out on the water to check return times and collect the numbered tags of the teams as they returned. Finally, when all the participants had lined up with their bag of bass and continued sharing stories of their day, we had our winners and the check presentation followed. This year’s 2008 LCI Bass Open champs were J.J. Judd and Mark Hickory, who are members of the Green Mountain State Bassmasters. We had the chance to interview them and we thank them for their time. You can see the coverage in our video.

Overall it was a great day for everyone involved, and we were proud to be a sponsor as it allowed us to meet some really great people as well as get some awesome footage for a complete video that will be released soon!

Congrats again to J.J. and Mark on their win, and a special thanks to all the anglers that came out this year to make the LCI Bass Open another great day of celebrating fishing.

Please feel free to comment on this post below!

-Guy