crappieperchhunter

I believe Toronto is that expensive...though I have not looked. However here in Oshawa....well within the 100 KM radius you mentioned.... you can get a nice home....especially if you are handy....for much less then $400K. Don't blame the "market" on being a forever renter. There are many creative ways to be a home owner. You just have to decide what sacrifices you are willing to make to get there if you don't have a ton of income. Sorry Cliff for taking this 360 degrees off course of your original post. But I just can't keep quiet when I hear "young people" throwing up the white flag when it comes to home ownership.

That's generally Labour Day weekend up there isn't it

Depends on water depth. I fish both species the same depth wise....usually about half the water depth. 3 FOW I fish 18 inches under the float...5 FOW I fish 30 inches under the float etc etc.However if I'm specifically targeting gills I don't use plastics I just put about a 1/4-1/2 inch chunk of worm on a bare 1/32 OZ jighead. I mostly use unpainted jigheads only because that's what I have. Gills don't seem to care about jighead color. I use worms for 2 reasons. One... gills definitely go after worms more...they seem to like having meat. If you are using plastics the gills will hit them for awhile and then stop if you don't move. They seem to get used to the plastic and stop hitting it. They will not stop if you are using worms. Reason #2.... gills tend to tear plastics up. You will go through way more plastics fishing gills then crappie. I just find it very annoying having a gill pull the tail off a new plastic body on the FIRST CAST. Happens all the time. My routine for gills is I take 3 whole dew worms when I go out for them. I never need more. Even if you are getting bit every cast 3 worms will last 2-3 hours. A dozen worms in the fridge last me 4 weekends at the cottage.

Never get tired of reports with the little ones in it. Thx for sharing.

For me it was a size thing. Who wants to keep something that small? But once I learned a few spots where you can consistantly get larger ones 7.5 inches and up and actually ate a few I realized I liked them much better then crappie and really it only takes a couple more fish to make a good feed.

Hard work and dedication ALWAYS pays off. Congrats Mike.

Why don't you stick with the bluegills? I like catching crappie...don't get me wrong....but for a feed of fish I will take gills every time over crappie. If I am catching both....like in an area I fish on Little Bald....I just let all the crappie go and keep gills for a fish fry. If you haven't gave them an honest try your missing out IMHO. And they are easier to find and catch ALL summer long.

Trust me we get lots of temps who don't give a darn about what they do when they come in the door. I'm not talking about them. I'm referring to the odd few who really have something to offer and really wanna full time job. Sad to see how the system uses these individuals.

In my environment we see the other side of the coin too. Like most manufacturing facilities now we have bare bones staff and all wear many hats. When we get crazy busy we get overtime but most of it is eaten up by our company calling Temp agencies and sending in bodies to help with the workload. I understand why it is done and if I was way up the food chain calling the shots I'm sure that's the path I would follow as well. However what is sad to see is when a temp comes in and just works like an animal and puts many of the full timers to shame with there work ethic. They are hoping for a foot in the door and our company is just using them. Sad to see when we have full time "dead wood" and a keene energetic and motivated individual is just being used for cheap labour.

Sounds like a good day to me Brian. Something about being around the water early and watching the world wake up I never get tired of. And good on you for letting the younguns have all the good drifts

No need to defend yourself. I'm sure 99.9% who read that comment understood it was a joke. Some people just gotta poke the bear.

Honestly Cliff your getting a good deal at $45. Maybe 5 years ago I was at a garage sale in Bobcaygeon. Got talking to the homeowner...an older gentleman...and complimented him on his beautiful lawn/yard. He told me then it was costing him $60 a pop to get his grass cut and his yard would be 1/2 or 1/3 the size of yours. Told my mom and she said many of her senior friends have told her the same. That's the going rate. As long as my health holds up I was planning to take on a couple of lawns when we retire up there. $100-$200 a week during the summer for less then 5-6 hours work a week...will give me all the spending money I will ever need.

Cliff I'm sorry to hear your woes. The world is different today and that's all there is to it. The problem as I see it can't be blamed entirely on the kids. I grew up doing farm work and having exposure to many different forms of physical labour and reno/repair work as most of my generation and older generations did as well. My son on the other hand grew up in the city and lived in a brand new house that never needed anything done other then painting, so I never got to share any of my knowledge with him. He's smart and not afraid to work....he's just out of his depth. He could cut your grass for you and that's just about it. And don't be too harsh on your own son. Maybe he really wants to go smelt fishing and looks forward to it every year or he's just exhausted and wants to enjoy his downtime from work. We are crazy busy at work and I told the boss when I worked my last OT shift on April 9th please don't ask me for the rest of the month. I got some seasonal fishing coming up I enjoy, I got my veggie garden and yard work to get done, tiller and lawnmower's to service, boat to get organized. And we are preparing to move back into the cottage the 1st of May. Extra hours at work just don't fit into my schedule right now. All I'm saying is perhaps your son has lots on the go now as well. Being laid off doesn't necessarily mean he isn't busy or doesn't deserve to enjoy his downtime at his own leisurely pace.

Dara I was actually more impressed with how technology was used in a positive matter. Before cell phones the CO would not have even had that option. I was also impressed that he took the time. He also watched me from 30 feet away throw 2 perch in my bucket while he was checking those around us and never even walked over and talked to me. To me the whole episode showed he was there to show everyone that there was an MNR presence...so please follow the law...and that he wasn't just there to be a prick and generate revenue.

Out shore fishing yesterday for a feed of perch. My fishing partner had forgotten his wallet at home...who among us hasn't done that at least once.... so of course just after noon a CO appears and starts checking everyone. My partner quit fishing and walked to the CO before he got to us and explained the situation. He just got on his phone and called in to verify me friend had a card and that was it. I was happy for my friend because I'm sure the CO didn't have to take the time to call it in. I'm thinking he could have just said sorry no license here's your ticket. Just thought I'd share this on here in case someone else runs into a similair situation. Treat the man with respect and maybe he will do the same for you.

Glad to hear the good news Brian. Vision loss or severe impairment would be very high on my list of unacceptable things. It would be very sad to never see a float go down again.

LOL. No weight lost here Beansie. I think I have to get back on track though. And no I have never owned a speedo so you don't have to worry about seeing me in one when we get out for some crappies/gills in a couple of weeks

Glad your work is done Cliff....my speedo just doesn't fit like it used too My IOU list is still very long for all you have done for me. One of these days I will get to help you out in return.

Worms out for picking is unreliable..no offence intended...seeing as that was possible 3 weeks ago here in Oshawa. Plants seem to be a better barometer. I go by my tarragon plants in my herb garden. when they are about a foot high I head out bullhead fishing, in this area. With this cold weather they have not even poked out of the ground yet Edit to add and perhaps help answer azens question better.... like mentioned by fishwilly ...keep an eye on the dandelions in your area. I'm guessing a minimum of 2 weeks away.

Just watched the video Brian. It would seem he has found his passion and is a very busy man.

The bees must love our cottage in Bobcaygeon. Almost more dandelions then grass in the spring. One of these years I'm gonna try to make a batch of dandelion wine. I've already done some research on the internet....it actually looks pretty easy.

LOL thx for the laugh

Nothing doing at any of my spring shore fishing crappie or perch spots yet Bruce. Glad to hear someone is getting out and getting bit.

Mom has moved back up to Caygeon for the summer so we where up there visiting yesterday Cliff. And of course we did a little tour around while we where in town. I agree the water is as high as I have ever seen it in the 25 years we have been going up there. It is just roaring through the channel in town between Pidgeon and Sturgeon, the surges are just slamming into Gordons Yacht club. Half our back yard at the cottage is still underwater as well. I really can't believe the difference from last spring when they let everything drain so low. Especially after the winter we had with far less snow. Where's all the water coming from?

Good idea. I used to do a lot of carp fishing and needed buckets for my feed. Kawartha Dairy in Bobcaygeon gave me all the food grade buckets I needed just for asking. Maybe some syrup guys could squirrel some as well.