I also would have to third John's statements, I have def. improved my catch rate in the last couple years that i have been a Dedicated visitor of Fishlakewinni.com, Only problem is as busy as the site has become we're going to have to rent a HUGE hall for our next Gathering LOL I don't think the Mug will be big enough But that's a Good Problem, Many New friends all great people and looking forward to meeting many more, Let all enjoy the rest of the Season and Catch some Big-Uns Take Care God Bless and Tight Lines LOL Dave From up NOrth

I would also like to thank my fellow sportsman for sharing thier thoughts to this web site. I must say that the information I have obtained via this site ha s improved my fishing for salmonoids ten fold. it is true we have a mere thirty days left to fish for these creatures of the deep,However that is only until January first when we can fish for the mighty laker again (ice fishing). My quest for these beauties will only last for only fifteen more days, for I will be setting my the bar a little higher, by that I mean the majestic of all the "white tail" by what I gather I will not be alone. therefore let this be a good luck wish to all of you who do hunt and a continued good luck to those who remain on the water

John Viar and I have talked many, many times about Winni Vs Squam. Squam is a tough Lake by design, perhaps a little tougher than planned lately. These two Lakes are managed with a whole different approach
and end result in mind.

I hope I can explain this with some accuracy.
Squam is what they would like to consider a Trophy Lake. I guess less fish and more bait, which unfortunately can add up to a big "0" now and then and of course an occaisional monster. It would be nice, as it's been the past few years to catch a few other fish now and then with the bigger fish allways a strong possibilty. Add to this Squam has had some problems a few years back and I'm not totaly sure exactly what they were. But the Smelt count for some reason got criticly low a couple of years back and I think one year they had some Salmon dying off. I'm told the "fish kill off" has been played up allot more than it really was, so I don't know how much a factor it played in the Lake ???

What I do know is the low Smelt count prompted lower stocking rates to let the Smelt population recover and thrive again, which it has.

These two problems have no doubt added to the difficulty to get the correct balance of fish and bait
and keep on track with the Trophy Lake goal.

Fish and Game are working very hard to make sure all the Lakes provide the type of fishery desired/planned for that particular Lake. And certainly with Squam's additional problems it could not reach it's goal in a single year or two, "it's a work in progrees" type of thing.

Now Winni on the other hand must be exactly where they planned as it has been a super Lake all year for all who fish there.

Add to these equations "fishing pressure". On Squam I can count the boats fishing for Salmon on most weekend days on one or two hand, weekdays you can be the only boat out there sometimes. Of course there are also many transient fisherman that come once in a while or maybe only once ever in quest for the big one. Very little pressure, so once the lake gets balanced it should be back to where it was when I first started fishihg for Salmon there. A few fish now and then with a big one allways a possibilty.

Winni on the other hand has a tremendous amount of fishing pressure and still growing, so much that powers to be are wondering how much pressure can it take ??? Myself, my gut feeling is it's doing fine at the moment, but for how long. Of course many (most)of the fish caught are returned to the Lake, not sure if this is a good thing or bad ????? It must be very difficult for Fish and Game to plan from year to year for Winni, if they keep putting in 20,000+ Salmon a year and we only actually take out a smaller percentage, is there going to be enough bait ???? Right now I was told it looks good.

The forage counts are critical in their management plan as well as the netting counts and evaluation of fish growth, etc. in the Fall.

All in all we owe it all to the Fish and Game for what we have, they work very hard (night and day) to provide the best fishery possible and are to be applauded at every chance we get..

Did you know the forage counts are done at "night" by the biologist and their team, not an easy task I'm sure.

We are all very fortunate fishing in NH and that comes from a guy with "Mass" plates.

John S.

we went to the restauraunt just past the lights on the left in Center Harbor heading towards ossipie

Like forry said... hunting season is coming. In fact the first of the month is the opener for bear season. I never miss it! Or should I say never used to? I'll be fishing instead this weekend... at least one day, if not two. I'm hooked (pun intended) on fishing Winni.
Can't say much more than others have said already... this site has helped me tremendously. I've gone from the days of one or two fish... to days of over twenty or thirty.
But the biggest and best thing of this site is the people. I've met quite a few of you and have made some friendships that extend way beyond fishing. As they say... priceless.
Thanks to AJ and Trav for keeping this board going.

Speaking of which... Travis, where are those darn t-shirts you keep teasing us with??? LOL

like others have said, this site has also helped me catch fish and meet others who enjoy the sport. from taking a charter w/ Travis, meeting Adrien and asking alot of ?'s, doing buisness w/Alan & Beth Nute, getting good info for a Sabego family vacation and fishing from Fishlessman and Adrien, talking on the radio to Salty, Matty and Rock+Troll, posting w/ lol Dave, John S., Slipnot, Richfromsalem, heck i never even posted on message board before this site. thanks to all

ilucas

p.s.
thanks Travis for a great day of fishing, learned some
new tactics that i know are going to help. can't wait to get on the lake again (don't know when). oh ya we SHOULD have gone to Guiseppies (spelling)for lunch.