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Re: Squam weekend tubing report

Salmon are very scarce, not even yearlings, but hang in there, we got a real nice one Sunday, just one but it was an nice one. 6 lines, 7 hours, so don't expect much with 1 hour 2 lines. Also the bite is from first light til maybe 8:00, then the screen on the fish finder is blank.

Maybe try 5:00 PM til dusk, should be a better bite than during the heat of the day, I did notice fish showing again late afternoons when we were pleasure boating ourselves.

Nice to hear the tubing and pan fish action is still going strong.

Big John

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

Thanks for the support John. I'll admit, I haven't really been fishing seriously, else I'd get up at O'Dark Thirty and do it right. I've mainly just been fooling around for an hour here or there as I wait for family/friends to arrive for pleasure boating. But, I wanted to post so everyone knows what not to do if you want to catch bows or salmon. :-) I'm planning to get more serious with a lowrance and g2 planers for next spring's open water. Hunting season starts in 2 weeks so my priorities will be shifting again. Also, everyone should know that the channel is very, very shallow right now. I learn things the hard way and now need a new prop. Another boater was hogging the middle and forced me over but I was actually still just within the buoy 'line' but still grounded (I know, I know, I should have trimmed it up). Now I know.

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

HammerFish
Thanks for the support John. I'll admit, I haven't really been fishing seriously, else I'd get up at O'Dark Thirty and do it right. I've mainly just been fooling around for an hour here or there as I wait for family/friends to arrive for pleasure boating. But, I wanted to post so everyone knows what not to do if you want to catch bows or salmon. :-) I'm planning to get more serious with a lowrance and g2 planers for next spring's open water. Hunting season starts in 2 weeks so my priorities will be shifting again. Also, everyone should know that the channel is very, very shallow right now. I learn things the hard way and now need a new prop. Another boater was hogging the middle and forced me over but I was actually still just within the buoy 'line' but still grounded (I know, I know, I should have trimmed it up). Now I know.


OK, now you got my dander up as far as Squam and the DES, this was going to be part of my Squam report that I have yet to write. The DES dams division web site says Squam is drawn down for winter levels on Columbus Day, however every year that I can remember they start the middle of August. I've called them e mailed them, etc. to no avail. This year with all lakes so low, I figured they would leave it as is for a while longer, wrong. They have beem drawing it down for at least a week or more.

They say it is for lake homeowners to fix the beaches, etc. Bull, can you imagine what would happen in these times of conservation, etc. if someone brought in a load of sand for their beach. I have spoke with Squam Lakes Association, they have a very big bat and they were goin to look into it as many people have complained the last few years. Well if they did they got far as I did.

I don't keep records on lake depths, but I think I can get the numbers very quickly, as a matte of fact I think the Dams guy may have sent it to me once to prove his point, trust me we got into it pretty heavy a few times.

At any rate, it's lower than I can ever remember in 15 or more years for Augist 15th and it wil get allot lower. There are rocks showing that even I don't know existed, every weekend it's a different landscape or waterscape. Even I'm getting nervous in some areas that I never travel, like Squaw Cove that I took some friends on for a tour of the lake last Saturday.

At any rate perhaps Senator Gregg wh lives on the lake will ruin his prop, someone that may carry a bigger stick.

I have watched many boats hit bottom in the channel this past weekend sitting in my boat at the dock changing leaders, etc. I did myself (a few weeks ago) but I swing wide to the right coming into my dock. It mostly sand in that area, sorry you found a rock, several boats ran aground and had to get out and push of the bottom. I sit there sometimes and yell at them to raise the motor, some do, others don't.

Maybe Misty Morning can show my post around to a few folks at the State House. Fish and Game have been fighting with them for years about this stuff, one year they drew it down and left all the Laker eggs high and dry on Newfond.

Some lakes are never drawn down, some every 2 or 4 years while others like Squam are drawn down every year ?????????????????????????

I'm done, can't fight city hall, even divisions within the state can't agree on it.

Big John

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

Hey Big John,

I was out on Squam this weekend myself. The channel from the river to little squam is super low right now too. Did not venture from little to big. It is crazy how low it is right now. I was driving someone elses boat to make it worst. Its bad enough to screw up your own boat/prop but to screw up someone elses. Fortunately I know where the deepest part of the channel is and I was ok. My buddy ran his aground in the channel and had to get out and push off. He didn't know the channel so well. If we don't get some rain I don't think you will get a boat out to litttle squam in a couple more weeks. We'll be fall fishing out of a canoe!

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

If they close the **** dam, we will be fine. Check out the Squam River just before the 2nd dam, looks like spring time, full to the brim.

Not much we can do excpet someone decides to use some common sense and do what's right for the Lake and it's users.

Big John

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

I would think Asquam, Squam Livery, and Riveredge Marina would be ****** about this. Obviously most of the boats are on Big Squam. Nothing like busting a prop on the way to fuel up.

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

Tom (from Michigan)
I would think Asquam, Squam Livery, and Riveredge Marina would be ****** about this. Obviously most of the boats are on Big Squam. Nothing like busting a prop on the way to fuel up.


Well they will sell allot of props, it's LOW-LOW-LOW, it's a very, very busy channel as you know.

We need someone with a very big stick to hit bottom and it will stop.

Marine Patrol and Fish and Game don't have any influence at all with the DES.

Big John

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

Yep, dropped my boat off today for a new prop and a little skeg work. There goes the few hundred bucks I had been saving for my lowrance and g2 setups. Originally, I blamed the other guy for forcing me wider than normal (but still in bounds, technically) and my own stupidity for not trimming up high enough. Ignorance was bliss; I usually roll with the punches and don't get easily upset. After reading all the background details here however, I'm now f'n pis'd off about the whole thing being poor and/or incompetent management (what a surprise, not). I read in yesterday's Concord paper about some public hearing for Waukewan/Winona. Per the article... something like 70 plus percent of survey participants are in favor of higher (traditional normal?) water levels there. The opposition was complaining about some floods in 2008 that could not be anticipated and managed appropriately? Something to that effect.. Anyway, I know you can't please everyone all the time but enough is enough, this issue is way out of balance at Squam right now. End of rant. (thanks for listening, I feel better now).

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

Send DES the Bill. They should be responceable if nothing was posted that they were drawing down the lake.

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

I'm not sure they are drawing down the lake yet or if it is only the summer heat evaporation.
I did argue with DES last year about the draw down, but to no avail. As John said, they do what they want regardless of their guideline.

I do beleive the lake is very very low, but I have seen it lower, and we may get there before October!!!!


Louis

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

Lou my boat wont stay on the dock it keeps pulling away towards the little lake, hasn't all summer til recently, so I'm only assumimhg they are drawing it down.

I think SLA might have a slight chance at reasoning with them, accoding to DES it's done for the benefit of all property owners to fix/repair the beaches.

I realy thought they would leave it as is for the summer with the dry conditions, but

Big John

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

I still think they should be responceable for people"s safety. Its there job to monitor the lake level"s. And its still summer.At lease warn people of the lake levels.

Re: Squam weekend tubing report

triple D
I still think they should be responceable for people"s safety. Its there job to monitor the lake level"s. And its still summer.At lease warn people of the lake levels.


I COULDN'T AGREE MORE, MAYBE WE CAN GET SOME HELP.

Big John