smitty55

8 hours ago, CrowMan said:

It's been a strange spring. I think the warm weather last week really accelerated things. We had almost 30c for 5 days straight. In some of my places for Fiddleheads they were already almost a foot high yesterday.  I had to go looking in some of the shady north facing spots to find young ones.

You must be ahead of me where you live. From the look of those you may be sol. Some places I know along a river there can be an extended pic as water recedes but that hot spell sped things up for sure. Creeks around here are way down this past week. It's a good thing you posted that pic as it pushed me to go check that spot and I got a decent pick in, at most some of them were maybe 4" but usually there's a few short ones in the middle of the clump along with some clumps that were just starting. I only ever take short ones or right out of the clump and only 2 or maybe 3 at a time so it takes awhile. I got 3lbs in maybe 40 minutes and that was plenty as I have some other spots I go to as well. Calling for rain but I'll go anyway as one real good roadside spot has a couple of guys that go there and they take every damn one from the clump, really ticks me off. I'd have gone there today if I'd realized they were ready. Fortunately I have permission on the private property across the road along the same creek and it's always good for 5lb.

Good luck finding some late starters. It's not uncommon for many spots to have some areas that are a bit behind, as you said with less sunlight. Cheers

https://www.howtogeek.com/346403/what-to-do-if-your-facebook-account-gets-hacked/

Good size fiddleheads. I just checked along the north foundation of the house and there are now two ferns up so I'm thinking I better take a little tour up the road where there's a creek with a decent population of ferns that are always early. Then I went over to the side of the property to check out the leeks and woohoo, they are starting to swell so I picked a few for my first snack of the year. They are so mild and almost sweet when this young, I just dip them in salt and munch away.

5 hours ago, SirCranksalot said:

I'm not sure if I am reading this right. I have only tried mine once or twice and did not get a hit. My understanding of the 'proper' way of using them(if there is such a thing as 'proper') was to attach them a short dist from the bait---maybe 5-10 ft?----and that when you did a vigorous hook set they would slide down the line. I may well be wrong on that

You can put the sinker as far away from the lure/bait as you want. So lets say you let out 50ft of line and then attach it making sure the pinch loop is facing the rod. That way when it reaches the rod tip you can give it a quick tug with your hand to release the line from the pinch and it will free slide down. In a way it's kind of similar to how they use lead core spliced in between your main line and a leader for depth control or as CM mentioned using snap weights. As you said there may be no proper way, you could reverse the weight and then hope the fish strike is hard enough to release the line but then that loop would slide into your line tie. Speaking of which, a bead would be a good idea to protect the knot too. I saw one site that used them for bottom fishing, while another site called them a poor mans downrigger. Go figure. I saw one site that only used a 2-4' length of heavy line just ahead of the flasher. Perhaps CrowMan can elaborate as to exactly how they used them for mooching when he was out. From what I thought they use a long rod and line counter reel and mono to a bead chain keel sinker and a 5' to 8' leader with a 2 hook system to hook an angled cut bait so that it spins rapidly. I also saw one setup that used a similar bead chain and bead with a keel type sinker but it was a slider with a teflon tube attached.

Cheers

2 hours ago, CrowMan said:

But to answer your question...neither of those for Lake Trout...I like to keep a minimum of terminal tackle between me and that kind of fish.

I'm talking inland lakes in Ontario and Quebec for Greys, I've used those slip weight sinkers for Lakers to get a spoon down earlier in the season and also the 1oz later in the summer with small gang trolls for Rainbows and Specks in back lakes. The best thing to do is actually remove them but after losing a nice Speck while buddy fiddled with it I said never again.

So I'm curious as to how they were used when you were Salmon fishing in BC. Did they just let them slide?

3 hours ago, SirCranksalot said:

anybody use these?

I've used those a lot over the years, I even have an 8oz one. Mostly the 1 and 2oz size. For those not familiar with them your line hooks underneath those clips on the far side and then up under those loops so it can slide along your line. So you had let out as much line as you want then attach the sinker and then lighty pinch your line in that ring loop to hold it in place. When you have a fish on once the sinker hits your rod tip the line pops out of the pinch and slides down to your lure, or you or preferably a buddy could remove it manually but for that period of time your rod isn't in play to fight the fish so that can be touchy. Just have to make sure your line is heavy enough that it doesn't get damaged by the pinch. They work quite well for their intended use.

7 hours ago, CrowMan said:

Hey Smitty....are those ramps ? This year's crop ? Seems a little early...usually another week or two at my spots.

I'm hoping to forage fiddleheads and morels this coming week.  I have a couple of patches of each that I've found over the years while trout fishing. The ramps I find are a little closer to home. Looking forward to some wild spring eats !

No that's my garlic curing in late July a few years back. I'm a tad surprised you call them ramps actually, to me that's more of an American term. Around here in Lanark most just call them leeks or sometimes wild garlic. As you said it's way too early yet for around here. This pics is from beside my house 3 days ago. Too early for fiddleheads too for sure. I grow lots on my property and nothing showing yet even right along the foundation where they come up first.

15 hours ago, Barry Willis said:

I do remember you mentioning this before Smitty, and I appreciated it then and I appreciate it now. All my pics are from a sd card best money can buy. I done a few tests and I can put any other pics on the forum. I can email them to my friends, myself but I can't get them on the forum so??? I checked out imgur and they want money that I don't have and being so computer illiterate I wouldn't know how to do it. So I don't know, I'm buffalowed. 

I never paid a cent to join and use imgur. Maybe things have changed. Once signed in you can just drag and drop your image onto your image page and it will upload to there. Then when you click on an image it will show up with numerous options to load it in forums etc. Simply click on copy BBCode and then go to the forum post and simply paste. I just did this pic and it took only a few seconds once I was signed in.

That seems so strange that you can't post pics off your hard drive. Have you tried to copy and paste them on a flash drive or sd card and then transfer them to the forum? Or else as I mentioned earlier join imgur and see if you can upload to that site and then paste them from there into your post here.

2 hours ago, Barry Willis said:

Looks like ya had a pine marten pay s visit. I love them little guys. Nice black bear if I'm not mistaken  looks like he just needs to grow a little more. Nice pics man.

Pretty sure that's a Fisher judging by the length of it compared to the barrel and the lack of a light coloured throat.

2 hours ago, Barry Willis said:

Oh well I won't be posting anymore pics, maybe you's don't want them any way. LOL. I have a couple more really nice ones but can get them to download onto the topic page.

Have you tried using imgur, it's always been trouble free for me.

Seafoam is rated for two years as a fuel stabilizer and will also prevent phase separation due to any efuel. I use it religiously in all my small engines and fuel cans. Plus it will help keep your engine clean.

12 hours ago, captpierre said:

What the heck is “moping”?

Down south they call it a Damiki rig. Ive also heard Jeff call it hanging a minnow. Basically you just hang the bait under the boat above the fish you find on sonar instead of using a float. Doesn't get much more basic.
https://www.wired2fish.com/fishing-tips/how-to-fish-the-damiki-rig-beginner-to-advanced

Buddy of mine with a large glass boat swears by Power 1 Hull cleaner.

3 hours ago, Reelpro said:

If you like secluded spots - check out a map of Lake Kipawa .

2000 kms of shorelines, and only a few camps/cottages on the entire Lake.

Hundreds of secluded, protected bays for anchorages.

Terrific fishing for Walleye,Smallmouth Bass, Lake Trout and Pike

Only 3-4 hrs from the GTA

 

I can only imagine how quiet it is up there now in the hub area with so many lodges closed. Most of my close to 20 times up there were back in the 80s and 90s, and even back then there were only a couple spots where it got "busy" on weekends. Some day trippers would take the 10 mile ride up to Corbeau and troll the Corbeau run for Lakers. In the evenings for Walleye there'd be certain spots of course that lodge clients would visit. Sandbank would be good for a few weeks and it was close to both Corbeau and Alwaki lodges. Corbeau is long gone now and Alwaki is still functioning basically but is for sale in 3 different parcels. They already sold their real nice outpost cottage, that was another 4 miles away up Turtle Chute. That leaves Kipawa Lodge as the next one and that's a 22 mile run so you sure won't be seeing many people all week long. Definitely seclusion without the fly in. One of the best features in my mind of the huge Kipawa watershed after it's raw beauty is it's unique basic X shape and numerous off shoots and islands means you can always find areas to explore and fish out of the wind. Cheers

1 hour ago, jnic said:

Excellent will give them a gander

If you decide to go the Kipawa route let us know, I can help you out with maps, Laker runs and Walleye spots. There's also a great Smallmouth fishery there now. Cheers

6 hours ago, Reelpro said:

Kipawa Outpost - Houseboat rentals - fish all day/night from the back deck 

 Wow, I remember them from back in the 80's so they've been around forever. Would often see them moored behind the small island in the shortcut near Corbeau.

 

 

 

On 2/26/2023 at 9:20 PM, mike rousseau said:

Hey gang 

Well finally planning one of my bucket list trips and heading to Miramichi NB next spring for striped bass 

 

I am towing my boat down and gunna see if we can’t get on em 

Lots of info out there to filter through and getting a decent grasp on things (I think)

 

I was wondering if any OFCers  have made the trip and if so any interesting info or tips to share? 
 

From what I gather I’ll drive/troll around until we find a concentration of fish then cast swimbaits and top waters 

FishnCanada has a couple of videos from trips they took.

4 hours ago, AKRISONER said:

This article seems to imply there will be no advancement in ev tech for the next 15 years…

You can assume that if you like. I just saw it as stating the results from testing of the present lithium battery EV technology.  Kind of hard to assume what advancements there will be. Bottom line is that all batteries don't perform well in cold climates like most of Canada has. Add heavy loads to them and it just gets worse.

Here's a good article from FP. https://financialpost.com/opinion/tried-pulling-camper-electric-truck#Echobox=1676989775

2 hours ago, CrowMan said:

. And again to clarify...most Lithium comes from Australia, not China...

 

If you look back on my post I said nothing about producers of lithium, I said supplies. However I was wrong, I should have checked before posting. That being said, as far as supplies go, Australia is 5th and China 6th. Here's the list https://www.nsenergybusiness.com/features/six-largest-lithium-reserves-world/

5 hours ago, CrowMan said:

I'm confused. So...a TV commercial from an automobile manufacturer is "propaganda" ? Isn't that called "advertising" ? Like all businesses big and small have done for 100's of  years ? The same "advertising" that is governed by laws that prevent "half-truths" and "lies" through false or misleading advertising, ie. fraud in the criminal code or state legislation. What are the "half-truths" or "lies" that Chrysler, Hyundai, GM, etc are promoting in these commercials ?

My original statement was just an observation that the mfgr's currently can't keep up with demand for EV's. My wife waited a year for her EV...I'm sure BMW would have preferred to have her money much sooner. So my point was why do they need to bother to advertise EV's at great expense if there's already a waiting list.  Well perhaps I should've elaborated...yes, in business there are other reasons to advertise than just getting the immediate sale...building the brand, protecting market share, customer awareness, etc.

I just think using the term " propanda" implies something  nefarious on the part of these mfgr's. They, like any business simply want to promote their products. There is obviously a big demand for EV's...for a lot of people (not everybody) they make sense. The mfgr's see that's where the market is headed. I'm sure the last thing the auto mfgr's want to do is to spend a bunch of cash re-tooling their plants and re-training their workers in switching over from ICE vehicles...which they were perfectly happy to produce for the last 100 years or so.

Please take no offense...like I said, I'm just confused on why you would use the word "propaganda" to describe an ad for a pick-up truck.

If you notice with all those ads pushing EVs they never talk about any of the negative issues like replacing 25-$30K batteries after 7 years or the fire issues with electrical shorts that even firemen won't touch because its so dangerous, let alone dealing with a northern environment like Canada and having enough power to drive the car along with all other power demands like heating, lights at night and availability of charging infrastructure. It's all about alarmist climate change and making money. I believe China has the biggest supply of Lithium in the world too so that's another huge issue.
Here's an actual study and it didn't have to get very cold before performance dropped big time.https://tnc.news/2023/02/10/rcmp-evs/

5 hours ago, akaShag said:

tagged for interest.  I had proposed a Kipawa trip this year, but the guys want to fish Loughborough  For bass of course, not walleye.......

Doug

Doug well over 20 years ago a huge beaver dam between a lake at the north end of the watershed and Kipawa blew up and smallmouth were accidentally introduced into the lake. They have since migrated south at a rate of a mile or two each year and by now have reached well past Hunters Lake with the odd reports of them reaching down to the south end by Red Pine Chute. There is now an excellent fishery there with Smallies 3-5 lbs being common. If your buds want to have great Bass, Walleye and Laker fishing in a pristine environment then that's where you should be going, Loughborough won't even compare so far as a fishing adventure goes. I follow Alwaki and Kipawa lodges and as far as I know Alwaki is still taking bookings. Same offer goes for you, I can really help you out with maps etc. I guaranty you and your buds would never regret it. Check out some of the pics here. https://www.kipawalodge.com/  

Cheers

 

On 2/8/2023 at 9:39 AM, CrowMan said:

We always stayed at Alwaki...gonna miss the place.

Were you there when Carl and Mary ran it or after they sold it in 01/02?

On 2/3/2023 at 4:11 PM, CrowMan said:

 Lac Kipiwa...just across the border in Quebec. 90 minutes from North Bay.

Couldn't agree more about Kipawa. By far all of the best fishing memories of my life are from the yearly trips up there. Paved road to the government dock in the village of Kipawa. Started back in the 80's single, and it was always about Lakers. Used to be many lodges back then. Corbeau Lodge was dead center at the hub of the whole massive system. It's like a huge X.That was a 10 mile due north boat ride. Stayed there many times through different owners. Now it's privately owned by Lindros.  Spent most of our times at Alwaki lodge though another 4 miles away around the horn. It was a bit more rustic and better suited for just the boys, so once an opening came up we jumped on it. Often had 2 cabins and one year even 3. Alwaki is up for sale in 3 parcels now but still functioning in a limited fashion, as in no transportation. But even back then the highest rated lodge was always Kipawa Lodge, another 6 miles across Hunters Lake. They are now even better still offering full service. So you are now 20 miles from the dock in what I consider a magical place of sorts, it's hard to describe. You might as well be in a fly-in, only boats you might see for the week will be few and local. Being able to bring your own boat is a huge bonus too.
So Huey, if you were to ever actually consider Kipawa as an interest I can help you out big time with info and maps I already have done up. There's a great forum too. I really have to warn you though, if you do go up, expect your experience to be on a far different level from the other places you mentioned. It was always about a Lake Trout week mostly, with Walleye as as a good bonus. For the Americans though it was more about the Walleye fishing. For me it was an evening thing mostly, whether back trolling with bottom bouncers and spinner rigs, anchoring and slip floats on structure, or dragging a jig'n worm even. My pb Walleye ever came from a late June full moon 10:30 at night dragging an Ugly Bug and a worm. 11 1/2 lbs and well over 31". Here I am with my bare bones 14 ft tinny and we win the biggest of the week against all the rich American boats. We also won the Trout award that week as Jim caught a 10 1/2 Laker on our way to have a beer at the Alwaki one afternoon..

Cheers