Billy Bob

I kind of agree with everything you're saying here except the last sentence where the fish looks up and sees "black" and I would have to agree on that if you mean the LURE is black as in what he was using. But if you mean the fish sees "the bait is black" as in not what the angler is using but rather what a fish sees in it's normal feeding then I would say NO because most fish/bait fish are white or light color on their bellies for protection against predators. BTW if I had to choose one color it would be BLACK. It is my go to jig color no matter where I fish when fish are feeding on the bottom. I have caught more walleye and smallmouth (thousands) on a ALL BLACK 1/8 oz jig than any other lure I ever used Bob

I see you mentioned Lake Ontario and that is probably one lake where downriggers are need the most. I say the most because there are times you can get away with not using downriggers there also. Now Lake Erie is a lake right now that I would recommend Dipsy Divers over downriggers. With all that being say I would first recommend just having some fishing fun this year and then next year sit down and think what direction you want to go in with expensive equipment. If and when you decide to take the equipment plunge then I would say do it right and spend what you can afford. I didn't equip my boat with said equipment until I had my third (first new) boat and new exactly what I really wanted and needed. THOUSANDS of dollars later I have everything I will ever need on "My Mistress" But if you can't wait to spend a few dollars on equipment get yourself 2 Dipsy Diver rod and reel (reel counter reels) combo's and two Large Dipsy Divers and you will immediately start catching fish you never had before. Even when and if you decide to get downriggers you will still use the Dipsy Divers along with the downriggers. Good Luck with the Bait Monkey, Bob

LOTS of info for you to thrash through but the bottom line is if the "seller" is pushing hard it's never for your benefit but rather theirs. Think about it rash-ably, on each mortgage payment you are paying a mortgage insurance payment that will pay less and less for each month going forward. Now on a "Term Life" insurance policy the payout is the same no matter when you die AND you can do whatever you wish with the money once your second half has moved on to better life unlike a mortgage insurance payment where it has to go to pay off the lender NOT you. No one has tried to steer you in the wrong direction but this is something you must spend more time on that you realize because the decision can get pricey. DON'T just throw money at a problem but do it rather well inform so you know you have made the best decision possible.

One last note is you're really insuring the banks investment not yours unless you have a HUGE down payment on the house, let's say 50% or more. Do as others here have suggested, get yourself some Term Life Insurance instead. It is a MUCH better investment especially if you are still young (under 40).

This is the beginning of the end to your gun ownership and hunting rights

Normally this is a BAD investment. I don't know all you personal info so I can't really make that call from here. However, I did not get the insurance and still wouldn't if I had were buying a home today. Don't know if it's required in Canada but it's not here in the US and almost nobody gets it here. READ the fine print very well. You might find you bought a policy that is not what you really thought is was. Good Luck, Bob

When my boat was new I spent hours and hours setting it up and of course cleaning it and then getting it ready for the next time out. I think my wife was getting jealous and she started to refer to my boat as "My Mistress" and so the name stuck to this day. Bob

Here kitty kitty, here kitty kitty. BANG: two birds with one stone

I have to ask what is a "pickerel rig" ? ? ?

What that rig is, is basically a weight forward spinner that has been used in Ohio waters of Lake Erie for about 20 years now, a Erie Dearie spinner. It's tipped with a balled up nightcrawler and casted to suspended walleyes in 40 feet and less of water. Bob

All good suggestions. They are in the weeds and ripping jigs can get them out. However, thats tough day of fishing. One other thing to think about is night trolling with floating stick baits (large Rapalas #11 and #13). Trolling just outside the weed beds and even trolling right over the top but you have to do things to make the Rapala stay up like use cheap heavy line #20-#30 test or use a round plastic bobber about 7-10 feet ahead of the Rapala. Bob

NICE man cave set up. And yes keep the women away as they will jinx the fishing

I'll second Cabela's Pro Line and just about anything with the Cabela's name on it. I have been using their line ever since I tried it about 10 years ago. To me it seems like it's Stren line which I use to use before going to Cabela's Pro Line. As far a Berkley Line their XL line stands for extra limp over their XT line which stands for extra tough but not as limp.

My guess from 150 miles away would be about the low to mid 50's. Why do you plan on water skiing

GREAT job misfish ! ! ! To see Bubba J skip ahead to the 36:30 minute mark and here Bubba J's outlook on NASCAR. Funny stuff but the whole video is funny. Bob

I fished Stoney Lake last June for the first time. Good walleye lake with a excellent population of largemouth bass and smallmouth. For walleye I jigged weedlines in about 12-15 feet of water with 1/8 ALL black bucktail jigs. It was very warm while we were there and found the bass on shallow rock piles taking top water baits in the early morning and late evening. Also caught some VERY nice size crappie while jigging. That was a surprise because of the way we were fishing. I will have to go back to Stoney Lake as my sons and I really enjoyed it. Bob

If you want to get a good take on NASCAR get the DVD of Jeff Dumham called Arguing with Myself. His puppet Bubba J will clue you in all about NASCAR. For anyone who has seen this DVD you know what I am talking about. I guarantee this is the funniest act you will ever see.

Gas just like anything else will charge what the traffic will bear. Once people REALLY start cutting back on unnecessary traveling the price will level off and may even drop a bit. Thinking European ? ? ? NEVER happen here the Great USA ! ! !

Water temps are really just a gauge to where active fish of any species will be found, however they can also be found and caught out of there optima temperatures if there is a boom in forage be it a insect hatch or bait fish. To be honest you will not accomplish all that much with the pool temp gauge other than waste valuable fishing time. You are going to be there anyways no matter what water temps you find. You just have to find fish, match the hatch and have a good presentation. FISH + LOCATION + PRESENTATION = SUCCESS Good Luck, Bob

Once you have a mounted depth finder like you already have you might find a portable to be a pain in the butt. Keeping the transducer mounted especially with a suction cup can be VERY challenging at any higher speeds above trolling. Also if you plan on using it on the ice you will have to get a good power supply because dry cell batteries don't last long at all on the ice, when I tried mine it wasn't even 1 hour with two 6 volt dry cell batteries. I had to get a small motorcycle battery to keep the thing working for a day on the ice. Just something to think about before you dive in head first on a portable unit. Bob

If they move I highly doubt they will keep any name sakes from Buffalo. After all it's about marketing money, with that said the market will now be in Toronto and only the craziest Bills fan will travel 90 miles north to watch something that will be on TV. Oh, wait gas hit $4.07 per gallon today so I guess only a handful of nutty fans will head to Toronto. It makes MUCH more sense for the new Toronto team to change everything involved with the football team in regards to marketing (SELLING) jersey etc......... BTW when I look at the Sabres jerseys I always think the emblem on the chest is Barny Rubbles hair from the Flintstones.

OK 2 dozen Canadian Crawlers that Walmart sells here for $2.88 NASCAR....... NASCAR............ you got to be kidding me right Well that is only sport you can follow when you're hammered. LOOK another LEFT turn. They can go to commercial and come back 10 minutes later and you didn't miss a friggen thing

That's only until the NFL has a home team there. The NHL is little league compared with the money in the NFL. Like I said you don't want to hear that but that's the truth. The NHL doesn't even have a major television network here in the US. The NFL is coming if you like it or not. It's not what you want but what the big business men want to separate you from your hard earned cash. I'll bet you a dozen nightcrawlers and a bucket full of minnows that in five years you will have the Buffalo Bills in Toronto. So what are you guys going to call them. Maybe the Toronto Trojans. Think about the endorsements that has to offer

I myself would stay with mono but your problem is not line memory but rather line twist that all spinning reels get. The way line is spooled onto a spinning reel can and will cause twist even if it is spooled on correctly. However, you can correct this problem very easy by either walking the line back off the spool with NOTHING on the end and reeling it back onto the reel or just letting the line out the back of the boat (with nothing on the end) while the boat is going slow and then of course reeling it back in. But over time from just casting and reeling back in all spinning reel will again gather some twist causing loops and what not at the reel after a cast. But now you know how to remove said twist. BTW go down to 6 or 8 lb test. This will help a LOT also. Bob

WHY ? ? ? Because NFL football is the BIGGEST Game in town. It trumps all other sports especially hockey. Hockey is a regional game that only flourishes in Canada and a few selected US cities. I know you Canadians don't want to hear that but that's the way it is. Like I said Money Talks and the NFL has a LOT of money. If the Bills were for sale Toronto is the most likely city to go after them fast and hard. Toronto has LOTS of BIG businesses that will buy the corporate boxes. This is where the big money is for owners. Corporate box revenue is money that is NOT shared with the other teams. The team owner basically puts that money right into his pocket. REGULAR seat money is shared with the visiting team with 60% for the home team and 40% for the visiting team. Each team also gets their split from television revenue. After that all other money the team can make is their own, for example money received from radio broadcasts, jersey sales, parking etc....... you get the idea. When the Bills move to Toronto they will be the ONLY NFL team in Canada so the extra market revenue is HUGE for the owner. They figure fans from all over Canada will be interested in the only Canadian NFL team with money pouring in like Niagara Falls. There are no other BIG cities left in the US that can support a NFL team with LOTS of money with the exception of LA but they have repetitively turn their nose up to the NFL. LA figures they don't need a NFL team and is not willing to make the accommodation's to house a team. If you know of another US city that can support a modern money hungry NFL team please share with me. Like it or not the Bills are coming to Toronto. What happens to the CFL is anyone's guess. Bob