gone_fishin

inline black bucktail... silver blade.

a buddy and i decided to go musky hunting again yesterday... he wanted to go up to Balsam first and if we couldn't get anything there, then we would head back to Scugog... So i hitched up the boat and met him at his house and we were off. we get up to what he thought was Balsam... which was clearly marked on the road sign by the bridge "Mitchel Lake" LOL... but whatever... he caught a small muskie there pre-season off shore fishing for walleye. so we launched the boat and started working weedlines up the canal. i got one small one within the first 45 minutes... a small one, but a decent start to the musky season... didn't measure it, but i figured it to be around 25 inches... then 5 minutes later on the same weedline i get a hit and see a flash in the water and a big swirl where my bait was... didn't see that fish again... worked further up the channel and my buddy had one follower and we spooked a 40+ inch fish that had it's back out of the water sunning itself... at 2pm we packed the boat up and headed for Scugog. worked some weedlines there and i had 2 hits/follows within half hour, then had another follower shortly after that was close to 40" if not just over. then my buddy hooks a nice fish... 40 inches... his new personal Best. and the release... so after he finally calmed down enough to fish again we worked our way around a small point and not 5 minutes later i had a huge fish follow me right to the boat (40+ inches). my buddy then had another small fish follow him right to the boat and then follow his "figure 8" without committing. by this time we had met up with another buddy of mine who was fishing out there as well. and he had already boated 2, with 3 follows also. then he goes and catches 2 more on back to back casts... with a bonus bass just a couple casts later!!! so now, my buddy starts running his mouth about how he is gonna beat that 40" fish before bass season... not 5 minutes later he hooks another good fish. i get the cradle out and now he has another Personal Best... 46 inches of Scugog's finest!!! Unbelievable... LOL. so, as time passes he starts giving it to me... saying that both of his fish could have eaten my fish from that morning... lol. i finally hooked and landed my first scugog musky of the year to tie the day up with 2 fish a piece. 34 inches... respectable... but still lookin for the 40+ inchers... so, my other buddy ended up with 4 muskies by himself, and our boat ended up with 2 a piece... so, it was definitely an awesome day out there! back at it on thursday!!!

it is a much more powerful motor, and it's wireless, so you'll be chewing through the batteries a lot quicker... but that being said, you should still get way more than 6 hours out of it...

THAT'S THE FUNNIEST THING I'VE HEARD ALL DAY!!! BAHAHAHA!!!

20 lb Power Pro... no line memory... no stretch... easy to use! it will also last you at least a couple years if you're only using it occasionally.

Weller's is a closer drive than West... you have to pass it to get to West.

the walleye are generally pretty small in West, so are the pike... the walleye fishing is not as good as it used to be in there... a few years ago it was really hot, but a lot of the locals would keep their limit every day, some would keep more than their limit every day (and that's not an exaggeration - i saw it first hand)... there are also a lot of bass in West, obviously not in season yet... again mostly small though. if you catch a fish over 3 pounds it is a good fish for that lake, and it should be released. if you want big fish - go to Quinte

i was down at the south end of Pigeon, launched in the river... the wind wasn't too bad there... hooked one small ski (around 30") on a bucktail, jumped twice, but spit the hook at boatside before we could get it in the net.

thanks jedi! appreciate it!

usually the manual will give you a recommended gauge wire to use... mine recommended 6 gauge. and definitely get a separate battery for your motor.

i'm a new boat owner and i want to start exploring some new water... so i need to be able to find boat launches on these lakes that i haven't fished before... this weekend the plans are to head up to the Pigeon River for the muskie opener but i don't know where to put my boat in. would anybody be able to give me directions to a launch on or near the pigeon river??? also, is there anywhere online to make it easier to find boat launches for other Ontario lakes??? thanks! g_f

a few of those fish looked like they had a bit of a white tip on the bottom of their tail... are they possibly hybrid saugeyes (walleye / sauger mix)??? from what i understand the saugeye has similar markings to the sauger but also has the white tip on the tail like a walleye...

awesome! thanks guys! the info is much appreciated! g_f

so going there for the muskie opener would likely be a waste of time??? lol. g_f

as you get older and more experienced you'll find a need for different rods for different applications... for several years when i first started fishing i pretty much used just one 6' medium action spinning rod... it was a good "all around" rod/reel combo... also as you get older you'll become really good at one type of fishing over most others (not saying you wont be good at the others, but just better at one type of fishing). my "specialty" is jerkbait fishing... but i've got a totally different approach then most people... you mentioned the 7' MH baitcaster combo for jerkbaits... i use the exact opposite... a 5' 10" medium light spinning combo (for walleye and bass at least - i'll use a 6'6" medium spinning if i'm going for bigger pike). spinnerbaits are done on one of my MH baitcasters. most of my plastics are done with a spinning rod/reel... except when fishing in heavy cover. most crankbaits i'll use my baitcasters though. another thng to look forward to... when you're finished school and you have a full time job you'll start to upgrade all of your rods and reels and start buying top end gear... fenwick, st. croix, etc... and you will feel a huge difference!!!

a buddy of mine heard good things about Raven Lake... but i had never heard even heard of the lake before he mentioned it... anyone fished there before? i can't seem to find any information on the net about it either... what's in there? is it a pike or muskie lake, or is it mixed??? thanks in advance! g_f

he'll be fishing within 3 weeks! i guarantee it! i did the same thing when i was in grade 6... full arm cast. we were scheduled to go to florida for a family trip and i fished off the Daytona pier, caught a bunch of bluefish and redfish... then went on our annual rice lake trip and fished for smallies. he'll be back at it before you know it! i hope the arm feels better soon!

the topic is titled "Rouge River Marsh" i thought that was pretty specific. i've never fished there, but if it's anything like the duffin's marsh, you'll get catfish, carp, panfish, the odd bass, pike in the spring, then obviously trout when they come in to spawn in the spring and salmon in the fall.

i never see any "fish" on that unit, i use it strictly for depth, weed growth, structure, etc... i have the fish ID turned off also. find the depth and structure that you want and fish it, let your lure be the "fish finder" it's a cheapo fish finder, you can't really expect much more than depth and weed growth... unless you're ice fishing, then set it up with the fish alarm turned OFF and you'll be able to see the fish coming through.

that is a piece of art! and i love the fish counter idea... that's brilliant! i just got back from the quinte area and me and my buddy lost count of how many fish we caught... somewhere around the 150 mark we figured... but we don't know for sure... too many to count that's for sure! i'll be grabbing a couple counters for the next time i go out.

i'll also keep an eye out for you Randy... i'll be in the area. i'll be in a Smokercraft beige/black.

i might quit watching hockey if the Red Wings win it again this year!

did you salt them before freezing??? that usually helps with the smell, as they don't rot as fast when salted.

pike like bright colours (most of the time)... red, yellow, orange... but, if that doesn't work, don't forget to try natural colours (match the hatch).

I'll drink to that!!!! LOL!