The Urban Fisherman

Wow! What a beautiful spot man! I'd just like to down there to see it... The carp would be a welcome bonus! Thanks for the reports bud!

Took me a while to get around to uploading this little vid... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5XjaodVLik And when I got home I put up the for sale sign..

you can use all kinds of things... I usually just use a big tube jig, Some guys use lizards or big worms...

Xplornet wireless (line of sight whatever it's called) works great for general surfing, looking at pictures and downloading MP3 songs if you want, but when it comes to video or large files it's useless. Watching You Tube works fine, but I upload and download large files on a daily basis. If you actually used and FTP program and monitored the speed it's only a 5MB burst to load web pages etc. After a bout 30 seconds or so the speed crashes to about 1MB. I have had nothing but trouble with them. They told me I had to use satellite which cost me about $800.00 to have set up only to find out that their speeds on the dish were bogus. And if I went over my bandwidth, they cut me off to compensate for a lack of bandwidth. I ended up putting up a $4000.00 tower last summer only to find out that their 5mb speeds are only burst speeds and not constant. Last month lightning hit my tower and they charged me $800.00 in parts and repairs on THEIR rental gear. Best part was they didn't inform me what or even if I'd have to pay to replace the gear, so $600.00 came out of my bank account automatically while I was away last weekend...It over drafted my account 10 bucks so the bank charged me 45 dollars. Banks were closed so I had to borrow gas money from my parents to get home. When I contacted them about the situation and asked that they at least compensate me for the $45.00 over draft charge they told me "TO BAD - READ THE FINE PRINT!" So far I'm into the internet with Xplornet for about $8000.00 YES EIGHT THOUSAND dollars in 3 years. So this is one of the reasons I'm moving to "town". Just thought I'd give an opposite opinion on Xplornet. I've got some more stories about them but won't go into it. Glad it's working out good for you though Cliff! cheers, Ryan

Thanks dude - I'd be a better photographer if I actually knew what was doing with the camera! lol I just point and shoot then tweak them on the computer after! Thanks JB - She's had the bug since day 1... Hard to believe she went from this... To this in just a few short years... Yeah like Alex said you don't need to go so heavy with the braid... you don't even have to use braid but I like the sensitivity of it... when I was in college I used old 8lb mono and rarely had any break-offs... mind you I'd loosen the drag and let the fish run with it more...and it was a sandy area with little to no snags. Also, I use 50ll + braid now because I usually fish carp in a part of a reservoir that has a lot of sunken tree's and stumps so the braid keep me from breaking off. You should definitely give carp fishing a try! Once you hook into a brute you'll be hooked! I try to get out at least 2 or 3 times a summer from my boat for big guys like this... Bring a bucket and put one of the smaller fish you catch into the bucket and he'll likely play with it for hours... or even minnows as potential bait... ive even taken the portable dvd player out on the water but havent had to use it yet! good tips alex! and nice offer! Thanks Jaques! she's starting school in sept! time flies man! she'll have to save her pennies for that rod! cheers, Ryan

Tried waking Averie up at 6 a.m. to head out for our planned carp trip. She stayed up late with dad saturday night and was to tired to go... so I let her go back to sleep and hit the road alone. Here's the view she missed on the way down to our carp spot. 6:15 a.m. and I'm down at the water setting up... here's some tips for any Carp newbies on the board... Locate some carp water... Chum the area with this... canned or cut of a cob rigged with 50lb Braid with a slip sinker, tied to a swivel, then a 3' fluorocarbon leader. Used 12lb this morning Cover your hook with corn Fire your bait out in the area that you chummed earlier, and wait. Notice my home-made rod-pod...also doubles as a marshmallow stick for fires lol And by 6:30 I had my first fish on.. not big, but put up a good little scrap. The release for you musky guys! lol 6:35 I get a phone call from Averie who's now crying hystarically because I went fishing without her! Packed up and went to get her... took her into town and fished bluegill in Lake Lisgar while we waited for Canadian Tire to open. Getting good a firing her bait out with a spinning rod... She caught a bunch of these I caught 1 also lol ...and I was once again the worlds greatest Dad! Tooks some other pix early this morning during my short bout with carp fishing... Some weeds don't get the credit they deserve....

THAT IS AWESOME! Ginny's been on me to make her a garden all summer but time hasn't been on my side! Good work with your garden man! Keep in touch. cheers, Ryan

lol no worries I fall under the "ineligible" list of people.... besides you should see the boat I got last year...

DUDE! we need it to finish shooting the rest of this years show's! haha Good Luck to everybody out there! I can't win it seeing as I work for Dave, but I certainly shouldn't complain. She rides and fishes like a dream!

I fish carp with 65lb braid on a 7'6" crucial and haven't had any trouble yet Photoz... mind you I pretty much lock down the drag and muscle them to the boat so there isn't a whole lot of line going through the guides....

Thanks Harrison! Yeah my wife is pretty dead set against the drive. Kids starting school already... time fly's man! Thanks Fish! Lucky for me I've met both neighbours in the particular home we're looking at, and though I know things can change after a move - they both seem awesome so far. The current tenant (rental house) said they're awesome, and my wife's aunt who lives down the road say's they're great folks as well. Of course it doesn't mean we'll end up getting this particular house so I guess all we can do is hope for good neighbours. always strait to the point Rick! That's what I like about your posts.. thanks dude! Thanks Torco - it is nice, and finished just the way we wanted... originally we had planned to stay here, but we find ourselves looking at homes over and over again in Rowan, and are constantly complaining about living here... on paper it just makes the most sense... i'm just having a hard time with starting from scratch on reno's and such again. Open concept ROCKS... you can see hte kids from anywhere in the house... problem is you can also see their mess from anywhere in the house to! lol We'll see what happens tryign to sell privately... Thanks CJ - I understand what you're saying about the pink room, but it's my 3 year old daughters room and giving her a pink room was her birthday gift from Daddy so it's staying that way t'il or if we move. Appreciate you taking the time CPH - Good luck at the cottage this week! Wish I was headed to a cottage for the week rather than worrying about this crap! haha This is just another reason to hire an agent! Thanks for the tips TG. We're listing the home for what it's worth, no more and no less. So if we decided to go with a realtor down the road we will be listing at the same price, and by listing with a realtor we'll be targeting a whole different part of the general population. Don't want to go to far into details. Home schooling isn't an option for us, and the money spent on internet had to be done for my job. We were told when buying the house that high speed internet was possible, which it wasn't without spending a pile of money. Our fault for not looking into if further. hey buddy, yeah we can clear a pretty good profit on this house...we hope! haha It was just appraised a few weeks back so we know what it's worth...it came through exactly at what we thought, and we had 3 agents tell us the same thing. The size isn't that big a deal... we've just been spoiled with this big house being our first home. It's nice to know that you guys are good with that size of home and a smaller mortgage and cheaper utility costs would be nice also. the Take-out bills might offset the savings though! haha John the wise I always say - To much here for me to comment on, but I can say that we are going out on the bay next weekend regardless of how much advice you give me. It's been a long time coming and I owe you more than just a few hours on the water. Thanks again guys! Cheers, Ryan

Thanks guys! I'm going to get back to you all a little later tonight, but please keep this from becoming a private sale vs. realtor thread. I personally would MUCH RATHER use a realtor. John F has givin' me FREE, solid advice on numerous occasions out of kindness of his heart and after speaking with him I realized how little I really know, and how much a realtor really can help you. Unfortunately, I really can't afford to give up 10,000 in commission right now, so in this case I'm forced to go it alone on my sale. Thanks again and I'll get back to you guys tonight! cheers, Ryan

Hey Gang, Hate to tab on another NF thread, but OFC has always been a good place to go for general advice, or when looking for help when it comes to charity events and such... And who know's, there might just be somebody out there on OFC looking to buy a house in FROGMORE ontario! hahaha Anyways, Ginny and I bought this house off her parent's who ended up pretty well living with us for several years while building a new place of their own... They actually built on a lot next door and as awesome as they are to us and our kids, living with, and then next door to your in-laws is one hell of a challenge! I'm the type of person who needs my space, and for the most part likes things done a certain way, so as you can imagine, out of respect, I have to bite my tounge on a daily basis. We've also realized that living in the country has some drawbacks with young kids. Any activities,(dancing, swimming, hockey etc.) schooling or simple things like (Damn! we're out of diapers) is a bit of a pain. It's a 1hr + round trip to town to get anything we need on a whim. Local stores close before I'm done work during the week etc. etc. Averie starts school in September and we'll have to drive her 25 minutes to and from school every day, we've spent nearly $8000.00 on internet in 3.5 years and although it's much faster than anybody else's in the area, it's still slower than anything you'd get in town, and less reliable. On top of all this, we have a $550.00 a month OSAP loan that has recently kicked in. So with the renovations we've done on our current home, we can use the equity to pay off the majority of said dept. Port Rowan is a small community, but has everything we want and need. Ie: good school within walking distance, high speed internet (important for work reasons), town water and sewer, grocery store, home hardware, doctors office, the list goes on. Also, lucky for me, it's right on long point bay - a 1 minute drive to the boat launch... Down-side: We would have to down-size to a slightly smaller home, (2000 sq. feet upstairs alone, to approx. 1400 sq. feet) and we'd have to buy another "fixer-upper" as any newer homes have no yard, and a large yard is a MUST for our family. Also, I've already donated my fair share of weekends to house renovations, have this house done the way we want and am not really looking forward to renovating again. (reno's in the new house would be spread out over years though) Anyways, here's some shots of our current home... any thoughts are appreciated. I hope everyone has a great and safe weekend out on the water! I'm hoping to hit the bay for at least a couple of hours this weekend. Cheers, Ryan & Family

Oh man I miss fishin for small water eyes! Living next to lake Erie and having a small boat doesn't offer many opportunities for walleye fishing! Thanks for taking the time to post! Enjoy your holidays! Cheers, Ryan

I second the Xterra! I've got a 2000 4x4 which has 250,000 km's and tows my 15 foot aluminum boat motor trailer with ease. Only down-side is they hold their value so they aren't usually cheap... Good luck!

Whitson it is Will... We took a quick drive over while my mom and Averie were shopping... There's a beach and some nice looking water all in one spot! Cheers, Ryan

Hello from Hanmer Ontario guys! I grew up in sudbury but always fished lakes that are an hour or two north of here. So we're google mapping lakes that are close to my parents new house in case I'm able to convince Ginny to head out in the boat for a couple of hours tomorrow.... Has anybody ever fished Whitson lake or Onwatin lakes? Would 1 or the other be worth a short trip? I'm looking at Whitson because there's a beach for the kids, but Onwatin is closer by and smaller, which means the fish could be easier to find! hah We got a new potty for Averie for the boat, and she tested it out on our 7 hour ride north! hahaha no more peeing in a bucket! K9's Ridding Coach! Northern ontario sunset Northern Ontario wildlife haha And a northern ontario fire - Man I LOVE being here. Any advice on local lakes from local folks would be great, otherwise I'll just post what happens! Hope everybody had a great Canada Day and enjoy your weekend! Cheers, Ryan & Family

Cudz ... Never really saw you as the kind of guy that refers to a punkinseed as really pretty... but hey you could easily pumble me so pretty they are! Haha great report-love the stash and it's nice to see that you get out with your homies once a year! Cheers, Ryan

Blaque - I've been targetting carp for 5 years or so and though I've slowed down on carp angling since I've gotten a boat, I still make a point of going out after them at least a couple times a summer. Wait until you hook into a 20 to 30 lber, they run and bulldog like nothing else! I've tried nearly everything for carp, and from my experience nothing has out-fished canned corn. Good work and keep the reports coming! cheers, Ryan

Fidel - Mad respect for gettin out and catchin some fatties from the float tube. I'm do damn lazy for those things! haha Even when I had my tooner I put an electric motor on it as soon as it was in the budget! You're always welcome to come out and slay some fishes in my motorized vessel. oh yeah... and there's no better way to catch bass than with a crank bait - good work. cheers, ryan

Buddy - those are some awesome lookin' fish! I'd love to hit them up someday! Keep the reports commin'! cheers, Ryan

haha yeah Tj - I'm heading to Sudbury this weekend and plan on attending a couple of northern ontario camp fires myself! dude - you drove home?!? I'd live at the cootage on weekends if I were you! Thanks dude - hard to beat any day out on the water.. I hear ya Johnny...I grew up dragging an in line spinner with worms, minnow's or leeches for smallies and walleye up north. Never really touched a lure until I moved to London for college. I have nothing against live bait, I'm just to lazy to deal with it! lol Gulp minnows live a little longer!

hey guys - i'll take a multi species trip with zero target fish caught over getting skunked any day! Glad to hear you got out and caught some fish! Cheers, Ryan

hey Timmeh, if you look up any of my older reports that aren't from Long Point you'll likely find me smashing largies, panfish or trout on the Deer Creek conservation area. It's a beutiful little lake to fish...holds some GIANT largies, but they don't come easy. You should be able to catch 1 to 2 pounders all day, but the big ones you have to work for. Let me know if you're interested and I'll dig up some pictures and info for you later tonight. cheers, Ryan

we got hamered at around 3 p.m. out this way.... crazy wind, the lights were flickering, trees looked like they were going to uproot... but it came and went quick... 1/2 hour tops...