Victor

Great job guys! I need to go get one this weekend ...

yahhhh ... can we say... "EPIC"

Thanks for taking the time, I enjoyed it!

Found this on failblog ... based on this, sometimes I might be drunk without even drinking ... I'm sure there are others on here that's just like me

Note: Image taken from failblog.org

i see some resembrance there 8-) ....

Thank you everyone!

wow nice cats! What does this cutbait look like on the hook? I might head out and get some suckers and try this out!

cut bait is basically chunks of dead fish, google it up and you'll found alot of information.

WTG Victor...

 

Did you use your carp equipment ?

 

I can see where a bait runner and an alarm would come in handy fishing for those kitties...

Yeah I did use my carp setup (with the pod/alarms/baitrunner) but these fish just seem to hang on to the bait and sit there. They didn't run much, we just had to "set the hook" every once in a while to see if there's one on the other end of the line.

This past Sat I finally found time to head out to Dunville for some channel cats with fellow board member Sharper, we have both been wanting to go for quite some time now. The wind was going at 40km/h and it was quite brutal. We fished from about 5pm-12am. Saw only 2 other guys who left when we got there and we had the place all to ourselves. Sharper ended up going 3/6 (14, 13, 11) and I went 2/3 (11, 2). We both caught our very first channel cat ever and this was my first fish of 09 which made it that much more special after skunking 5-6 times chasing the steeles. I'll let the pic do the rest ...

Just in case if any of you are wondering, all fish was caught using fishmaster's cutbait. I brought my own but I just switched over when Sharper hooked his 1st.

I don't know what to suggest for rods but you won't need to use fluorocarbon leader for sure, they find food mostly from smell/odour (thus the reason for stinky type bait) and they aren't line shy. If anything I'd find something more abrasion resistance (unless you think FC has good abrasion resis...) because they just bulldogs when you hook them.

I actually went out yesterday and used my carp setup (Nexave 2.5TC + 4500B) and it was alright, overkill for the smaller ones but I don't want to lose that trophy if I do hook him.

edit: what I said about the FC is based on the assumption that you're fishing them at this time, I have no idea how they are when they start chasing hardware later in the year when it gets warmer (may-june from what i've read somewhere else?)

Happy Birthday Ryan!

Or maybe you can save up the "1-full-day-of-fishing" ticket from the missus and use it on a day where the weather's better? :S

I was out last saturday and people have been catching them, they're defintely not in thick yet when I was there but some has came up already.

I'm so jealous of you guys ... just started doing this steelheading thing and I still haven't hooked one legitimately ...

Thank you for the great report!

Don't worry man, I'm going through the same thing. 5 trips and counting now, i've decided i'll take a break from the pin and use the spinning reel until I get one to get my confidence back.

Good luck! I'll be out there trying as well...

i've heard all sorts of weird things people do to make catfish bait ... but if you want it to stink, put it in a container, leave it outside and let it rot for a few days.

i've never used the attachment feature so i can't help you there, but I use a photobucket account and it's very easy to use. I can post full size pictures that way and others don't have to click on the "attached image" to see the enlarged version. Take a look if you've got some time... it's free.

Nice fish kelFun, that section looked pretty promising when i was there but I just couldn't cast that far out yet lol ...

hey tknophy have you learned how to cast with the pin yet? I'm a newbie pinner and steelheader myself and it takes quite a bit of practice at first. I have gone out a couple times now and I still can't cast that far plus i get a birdnest once in a while.

If i was to start all over again, I might start steelheading with a spinning reel first, at least I am confident with the casting and I can focus more on getting the fish to bite. I'd say it might be a good idea to get a few fish under your belt as a confidence booster before you head out with the pin if you haven't caught a steelhead before, JMHO. For the record, i still haven't caught one on the pin yet lol.

Some old timers told me that with mono leaders, you are supposed to change them after dipping in the water for 15mins because it deteriates .... is it true?

never heard of something like that, seems pretty stupid to me. Sounds like they were just trying to make you re-tie and take your spot LOL.

i can't offer much advice but don't forget to check out the trailer too. That's something I forgot when i bought my boat but luckily there isn't much problems with it.

this is also my first spring "de-winterizing" ...

I'm probably going to change the plugs / lower unit oil and possibly repack/grease the trailer bearings. Just saw some great tutorials on the net that teach me how to do it, doesn't seem to take very long and it's cheap insurance.

what a beauty mike, is it common for steelhead to have that little "hook" on the bottom lip? I haven't really seen another one like that ... it's not as crazy as the brown BillM hooked earlier this year but it definitely makes the fish looks that much tougher!

if only you could use ur charm of meeting guys on the river on girls ...

now i need to stop reading anymore reports or i will start thinking about the "lack of fish fix" ....

thanks for the report terry, I'm planning to make a trip up there soon too. Just can't wait till the crappie starts biting...

Other than the licenses/registration, as sunchaser81 said you also need some safety/emergency kit on board, there are a couple items in there that include: whistle, floating rope, small bail, etc and more that i can't remember, but they do sell them all together in a package in CTC.

Obviously you will need PFDs, also you might need navigation lights if you do plan on going out when it's dark.

That's all i can think of for now...

man o man, softwater, the hot sun, and bikinis! thanks for the report, it will keep us sane for a little while !

Congrats to you and the missus on the PB!

I noticed that you started off the trip calling Megan the girlfriend... and midway through she's became the wife .... LOL did we miss something there?

Great report guys! You guys seem to be doing really well!

I fished for 10-11 hours yesterday and still can't HOOK my first chrome on the pin setup. Hopefully it'll come soon.

ah, a soft water report.

Nice slab Glen!! Sounds like it was a perfect day from the start to the end with good weather and fish to boot!

it's been a while since we've seen one of bly's reports!

congrats on the 1st of 09!

I got my TomTom One XLS last summer and have had no complaints so far. I did do a bit of research before I bought mine and the general consensus is that TomTom/Garmin are the better brands. They seem to have the best map/navigation systems, several online reviews have compared different GPS with the same trip and those two have performed better than the other brands.

I find that other brands have many different features that the TomTom/Garmin might not have, (i.e. hack-able so it can be used to watch movies), but in my opinion we buy the GPS in order for it to navigate so I think it's more important that it can take me from point A to B with the fastest/shortest route.

I'd suggest you to do a bit of research/shopping, from my experience CTC rarely has the best price, and if it does, you can always price match somewhere else.