Wild rivers of the pacific region host blank years or even double blank years of certain strains...

Rg3, yes you have a good point. If healthy mature cohoes are showing up to spawn it does make one think positively about the lake conditions. I know its just an inflated opinion there but seeing is in a sense a way of believing. Has anyone ever heard what dec's take is on these winter coho? I've seen them in spawning pair as late as early march.

For the record though, anyone basing a trip off of some winter cohoes that showed up here and there; unpack your truck now... Its not like a river full of salmon. Just some healthy coho that started showing up in their usual winter spots... When I say good numbers that's my interpretation of good numbers based on my own sightings of winter cohoes through the years... I'd hate to see someone waste their time and money coming up based on my inflated opinion :)

Ahhh the river is full of ho's and you know it. If some nice respectable fisherperson wants to come up and spend some coin roping a few so be it. 😝😇😈
 
All that aside I have seen them in February a few times, don't know why they run late, but it is always a nice surprise getting one late (early) in the year. It's ma nature at her best, things happen and then other things. It's for a reason. Maybe she is making room for the Atlantic,s😁.

Clint S
Ahhh the river is full of ho's and you know it. If some nice respectable fisherperson wants to come up and spend some coin roping a few so be it. 😝😇😈 All that aside I have seen them in February a few times, don't know why they run late, but it is always a nice surprise getting one late (early) in the year. It's ma nature at her best, things happen and then other things. It's for a reason. Maybe she is making room for the Atlantic,s😁.

Alright clint you called me out... I'll back down from my propaghandi!!!

ENLIGHTENMENT PLEASE---
Likely knew this once but alas have lost it--along with lotsa other important stuff--
  OK--so--3 years ago there were lots of dead Hos in late winter all over Kiddie. To my knowledge nothing like it since--now it looks like the offspring are at it again--GOOD.
 My problem is that I really don't know if they actually come in late like this and spawn in the cold of winter.
 
Seems to me that the Hos that come in with the Kings spawn early -see them doing the nasty all the time in fall- then they all seem to die off and go away like Kings.
 
BUT WAIT- every now and again Hos come in winter and do it all over again.
OK -GOOD--
Are they a whole different strain that got in here somehow or has this been going on for a while ??
One may wonder as the 3 year cycle seems to be repeating although it may have been happening 'under the radar' with smaller numbers.
 
Either way it speaks great things for the SR --especially now when questions about larger fishes in the lake were in vogue.

Personally, I keep my opinion inflator behind the truck seat with the chains and flares. Some Jan. ho's scared the heck out of Nancy in one of the diversions  about 3-4 years ago. She was crossing and a few pairs started splashing where she didn't expect anything. Any fish activity is good with me, catchable or not. F'it, I'm not going to buy into the must get up at 3 am to dredge the zoo for hero shots ( Is my hat on at the right angle? Does the fish look BIG?)  So some mid winter hikes mid river  are maybe in the cards, but in the meanwhile thanks for the  useful info and conversation.  FWIW, chatter about die-off and down numbers coming from Mich., too.

Thanks for sharing charlie. Really wish I kept journals through the years on all of this stuff. But sounds about right. Did not see or hear much of any winter coho the last 2 seasons. But 3 seasons ago was the most I ever saw with the latest being in first week of march with good numbers that February as well. The season before that had good numbers as well. I do recall my first sightings of them quite a few seasons before that followed by blank seasons. Could be a 2 seasons on 2 seasons off schedule these winter coho are on. Just wondering if DEC will ever shed any light on it. Will say they are mean looking exotic cohoes once they start getting their dominant spawning features

Well the DEC put out a press release today. I am too lazy to post it. Pretty much says what we know. B12 deficiency, not much they can do with the ones on the river. Fish at the hatchery will be injected and held till spring and egg take

And lets hope they are successful in getting enough for the egg take.
http://www.dec.ny.gov/press/100233.html

Thanks, Lucky. We need to all do a fish dance or offer up a sacrifice to the fish gods.