Mid Atlantic

Quotable “Frankly, the guys catching sea-run browns want to keep it a secret. They’re afraid that the river will get crowded and the fishing will suffer.” — Greg Bogan of Brielle Bait & Tackle on the Manasquan River, N.J., sea-run brown fishery.In the Oct. 5, 2006 issueFISHING New York Niagara River king salmon * Lake Erie smallmouth * Upper Hudson River bass * Skaneateles Lake rainbowsNew Jersey Manasquan River brownsPennsylvania Erie tributaries steelhead * WB Susquehanna smalliesHUNTING New Jersey New Jersey grouse * New Jersey woodcock * NJ ducks, first season * New Jersey fall turkeyPennsylvania North-central Pennsylvania bears * Pennsylvania coyotes * Pocono SGLs deer * Lycoming County whitetails * Sullivan County, Pa., SGLsEVERYTIME Statewide Trends * Quotable * Editor’s Picks * Outdoor Lineup * Trophy Tale * Astro Tables * In the Bullseye * Photo Contest Winners * Where To Go on the Web * Where To Go * Outdoor Outlet * Gearing Up

This Issue’s Featured Article

Ron Didyk took this 5-point whitetail on the first Thursday of the Pennsylvania rifle season a few years back. (F&H; News photo by Freddie McKnight) Feed Skaneateles ‘bows worm-marshmallow treatsSkaneateles, N.Y. — Skaneateles, pronounced “skinny atlas”, like an anorexic version of the figure in Greek mythology, means Long Lake in Iroquois. Stretching for roughly 15 miles, and relatively narrow, especially in the southern half, it fits its name.But don’t let its alleged “skinniness” fool you. Averaging 145 feet deep, and dropping to a maximum of 300 feet, it offers more water than most lakes three times its size.Boat ops: The lake is best known for its native lake trout. Indeed, it’s considered your best bet in the best Finger Lakes for catching loads of frying-pan-sized lakers. While most are sought by jigging and trolling crankbaits in the open lake, a lot of them are caught incidentally right now by guys targeting rainbows with minnows.’Bows typically range anywhere from 12 to 18 inches. They come close to shore as the water cools and by midmonth can be taken by trolling silver and gold spoons in anywhere from 6 to 15 feet of water.Bank bets: Many locals prefer to bank fish. Those targeting mixed bags of lakers and rainbows generally toss 2- to 3-inch shiners or sawbellies and fish them on bottom with slip sinkers. An 18- to 24-inch leader is used so the offering can swim off the floor. You have to let the fish run a couple seconds, so leave your bail open and place a sinker on the line to prevent the wind from taking it out.The favorite bait, however, is a marshmallow-and-worm sandwich. A worm is literally sandwiched between two miniature marshmallows and fished on bottom.Experts are still perplexed over what the combination suggests to rainbows, but Fred Regin, a Syracuse native who fishes a lot from the park benches in the village of Skaneateles expresses conventional wisdom when he says, “I don’t know what rainbows find attractive in marshmallows soiled by worm juice – hell, I don’t know what fish find attractive about worms, for that matter – but one thing I know for sure, rainbows hit the things.”Some guys do well, maybe better, by substituting commercial trout baits like Eagle Claw’s Nitro Bait.Get there: A DEC launch, offering paved ramps and parking for about 25 rigs is located off NY 41A, about 3 miles south of the village of Skaneateles.— Spider Rybaak