Quick Quip...

Haul or Hang Back With all the new advances in fishing rods, reels, terminal tackle and particularly the new lines, we often forget one of the basics of successful angling: bringing in a fish should not be a tug-of-war (a point driven home to me once again last summer when a muskie straightened out my snap-swivel). The new hi-tech lines and stiff, fast-action rods do not give nearly as much 'play' as older tackle did. All the more reason to remember that when the fish pulls, you don't. Wait for the slack before bringing in that trophy!

What's New...

Travel Update: We've got some great summer specials to Austria - for much less than you might think! Just imagine wading in a fast running Alpine stream, or at the edge of a crystal-clear Alpine lake, fighting trophy trout, pike and other species while the non-anglers in the family spend a day in Salzburg or Munich! Check it out on the Austrian Fishing Vacations Page.

Interactive Update: WebTV still hasn't called us back with an answer to the problem with the Forums. I guess it's time to go after them again. For those of you not using WebTV, the Forums and Chat are fun areas, and the interactivity is free, so why not join in the Fun! And remember that Tuesday Night is Chat Night. But if you can't make it, and want to get together some other time, send an email to our intrepid Forumsmaster, Max Huber to get your scheduled event posted for others to read.

Send in those stories! As I said before, "Ya can't win if ya don't play!". Check out the Hooked on Bass contest and send in your stories to win a free CD ROM filled with bassin' info, video, audio and diagrams from In-Fisherman™! And remember - we also have the same contest running for Walleye stories - you could win the Way Of The Walleye CD Rom!

Comment...

It's March, and the winter season is waning. If you live in the Northeast of North America, you may not think so, but spring really is on the way. The big late-winter fishing and outdoors shows have been running their usual course, and they too are about to pack it in for another year.

Here at TFN, we couldn't be happier to see this winter pass. With the strange warm - then cold - then warm - then cold again weather over the past four to five months, ice has been poor, and in many places not safe. Whether or not we have been under the effects of by La Niña, or just trying to get used to global warming, it seems that winters here in Ontario have been just plain weird since 1993. In fact, if you think about it, the last five summers have been a bit strange too.

Now, I'm not that old, but I do remember when I was a toddler in the sixties that summers were hot and fairly dry and winters were cold enough to have a skating rink flooded in the back yard that we had to shovel every second time we used it due to the consistent snow. Who knows if our climate will ever be the same again.

One other thought that comes to mind is how this changing climate will affect fish. There is already talk among the government environmental types that some waters are going to have problems with their lake trout fisheries due to the warming of the environment. It would appear that just one or two degrees warmer water forces this species off its traditional spawning grounds.

On the other hand, the slightly warmer water causes the bass and walleye to spawn earlier. The result in areas where there are closed seasons for these species is that there is less chance of angler-interference with the spawning process. This non-intervention could result in a lower mortality rate among the fry, which could be great for anglers, but not so good for the species that spawn later.

And what about those other species - such as muskie, which tend to spawn later? Will there be too many predatory competitors for the same water? Will the water be too warm and the mature fish not spawn? Will the spawn occur earlier, resulting in less safe water for the fry?

These are all questions that will be answered in time, and hopefully by researchers, not by nature herself. In the meantime, do not fish in known spawning areas until the fish are finished their annual procreation. Not only is this the law in many areas, but in those areas where there is no closed season, it is more important now than ever to make sure that as many fish make it to the adult stage as possible.

Anglers can't unilaterally change the effects of global warming, but we can make sure that those effects have as little impact as possible on the future of our fisheries.

Until next issue...
(tight lines, get it wet, good fishin', see you in the slush, etc., etc.).

Scott M. Binnie, Managing Editor