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Greetings. Fished Silver Lake again and it is about the same. 10-100 fish per rod and 10-100 hole fisherman on the ice! 10 or 100 fish depends on what you use, how long you stay and how often you move. I caught 25 in 2 hours and counted 37 people in the 2 hours I was there. Only 5 of the 25 I got were over 9 inches and I had to change methods to get them. I got bored with the small guys so I spent an hour targeting big perch. I found them. Got a couple pushing 13 inches and one just under 14. I released the big girls because they are fat and full of eggs. The little 6-8 inchers are also full of eggs. Does anybody know if they actually have a spawn that produces when they are that small? The pressure on the lake is very high and there is so much waste. Wether it is feeding the Blue Herons or plucking out eyeballs and throwing a bucket of blind (dead) dinks on the ice or back in the hole. One guy was fileting up his 50+ 5-6 inchers on the ice and the filets where smaller than my kids pinky finger. Does anybody know if this is atually a good thing for the perch population? Weeks of hot fishing and there seems to be plenty left...so maybe it is good that they are getting thinned out? I dont like seeing GOOD food go to waste but maybe it is good for the lake. I did take home 14 little perch. I skin them, dip them in batter and cook them whole so there is no waste. Even the tails are great extra crispy! Hey take care and have fun out there.

hewesfisher

1/10/2010 7:00:00 AM

Your fried perch almost look like shrimp in a basket! No matter, they definitely look like good eats. Glad you had a good day on the lake. Stay safe!

BMGW

1/10/2010 8:59:00 AM

The reason WDF has put the Tiger Muskie in this lake is because it is a "high nutrient" lake and produces vast amounts of fish fast, I would not worry too much over big vs small hens as they all reproduce at a very high rate in this lake. Eat fish ~ live long!

scottpratt

1/10/2010 9:01:00 AM

Thanks hewesfisher.....yes they are like giant shrimp but you have to suck them off the bone!!! LoL!!! You had asked about how far Rufus Woods/Seaton Grove is on another report. It takes me about 2 hours from Nine Mile Falls and I want to say it is about 120 miles. I like launching at the indian reservation because it is only 1/4 mile below the first set of pins but it adds about 20 miles to the trip. Get a big trip next week!!!!

afk

1/10/2010 9:09:00 AM

Great pics, great questions & great report. Thanks

scottpratt

1/10/2010 9:19:00 AM

BMGW: Great information.... Thanks!

bionic_one

1/11/2010 8:05:00 AM

Oh wow, hewesfisher you're right. I had to do a double take as I thought the picture was of battered shrimp :-) Sounds like fun catching all those little fellas

Jay K

1/11/2010 11:44:00 PM

Scott- I skin 'em and fry 'em whole like you do; Seems to be the best method for these smaller perch. I used to fillet when I fished Lake Michigan- lake perch in the summer were consistently 14-16+ inches. These sizes are similar to the winter perch fishing off Navy Pier though and IL had 15 man limits - not like the limitless bucket brigades available here. I think BMGW's post on the WDF & tiger muskie is relevant, and possibly the lake could do with some selective harvest to increase sizes. Wanton waste however IS punishable by fines as stated in the regs, so if you see that going on, feel free and justified to call up the game wardens to issue some fines.

scottpratt

1/12/2010 7:10:00 AM

JayK: I would love to hit the big guys in Lake Michigan! I have caught many 14 inch perch in this area and my best was 16.5 inches out of Eloika lake. But I dont typically catch buckets of the big perch around here. As far as reporting someone for perch waste I probably wont go that far. As you mentioned it is probably healthy to get this lake thinned out of these little fish. We should hook up sometime and share some tips. I bet you know how to get the big walleye coming from Lake Michigan????

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