When a seasoned togue fisherman fine-tunes his skills, the end result is success on almost any given day. I know a few such veterans and personally witnessed the rewards of their labor. One name that stands tall in this category is Steve Greenleaf.

Landlocked salmon are not always cooperative to the angler but still remain high in popularity. They can pass up the best presentation from the angler without reason, not to mention constantly adjusting their depths, to escape the heated surface water from the summer months.

Togue, on the other hand, are almost always ready for action, and bring on a fight that can more than capture your attention. They’ll strike on days salmon won’t even consider it, and the bottom is always their resting place.

Greenleaf knows this as he started pursuing togue back in the early 1970s, focusing much of his energy on the waters of West Grand Lake. It’s a sport from which he never took a leave of absence and judging from the records he has kept of his success on the water since 1984, the years of experience have paid off.

“My goal is to catch at least one fish an hour,” said Greenleaf.

He’s definitely conquered that task. Since ice-out on Cold Stream Pond, where Greenleaf lives, he has logged 230 hours of fishing in 60 trips. On only two occasions did he fail to successfully bring in a togue. However, last Tuesday was not one of those two days.

“Any fish I catch other than togue is strictly by accident,” said Greenleaf, after releasing his first togue, which he caught within 15 minutes. It was obvious years of experience were shining through as the hands of a seasoned togue fishermen constantly worked the reel, maintaining that critical depth adjacent to bottom.

He went on to boat two more fish, which only tied up another 20 minutes of his time. He then caught three more fish to close a successful 21/2-hour day. There were no heavy hitters and they didn’t leap and dance on their tail like salmon. But the potential was there for a real battle even the landlocked salmon would envy.

“Pound for pound I think the togue is a better fighter in the water than the salmon,” said Greenleaf.

However, even though togue are quick for a battle, you still have to meet their requirements for success, and do so quite precisely.

These bottom-dwellers insist on having dinner brought right through their front door. They also like an inviting presentation of their meal, but not delivered so fast that they’re required to make a split-second decision about whether to indulge.

At times, salmon like to start fighting when they’re nearly to the boat, Greenleaf explained, but togue pour it all on from the moment they’re hooked. In 1994, Greenleaf witnessed that when one of Cold Stream Pond’s heavyweights did this. He hooked up with a 12-pound togue for 25 minutes that stripped more line from his reel than he cared to give up. However, that day still belonged to Greenleaf as his experienced prevailed.

Illegal bass discovered Down East

A look a last week’s report from the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife shows two Down East waters have received illegal introduction of bass, according to fisheries biologist Greg Burr.

It was confirmed 12 days ago at Donnell Pond in Franklin, where Burr viewed a smallmouth bass about 75 feet from the old dam.

This sighting verified a report a fisheries biologist had received about a month ago of a smallmouth bass caught in Donnell Pond, said Burr. Second Pond in Blue Hill was the next on the list.

Fisheries biologists captured eight largemouth bass while sampling fish from the pond. Biologists are very concerned about the consequences the bass in Second Pond pose, said Burr.

First Pond and Billings Pond are just down stream from Second Pond, while a number of beaver dams are the only obstacles stopping these bass from advancing into them, said Burr. He explained that bass compete for the same food and space as trout, and Billings Pond is one of the finest wild brook trout fisheries in the Down East region.

Outdoor calendar

The Any Deer Permits will be draw on Wednesday at 10 a.m. The 2001 hunting and trapping regulations are now available.

Question of the week

True or false. Northern pike feed less frequently when waters temperatures rise above 60 degrees.

Answer to last week’s question: Largemouth bass in Maine don’t grow as large as those in some states in the far south. True.

Terry Farren’s outdoor report is published each Friday. He can at reached at 990-8067 or by e-mail at outdoorreport@bangordailynews.net