DanD

Strawberries!!!!!!!!! Gotta love having them in your garden. Depending how many seasons they've been in; you should dig them out and separate the smaller plants from the mother plant. Toss Mom or turn her into mulch and replant the kids; if you don't do this, after the 3rd or 4th season the plant will go wild and the berries will become smaller and smaller. The first season with the fresh plants won't produce as many berries; but the 2nd and 3rd season you won't know what to do with all of them. We use to have a couple acres of berries; that we'd sell to the local country store. It was mom's job to pick them and she'd put the money away to buy that next year's Xmas presents, for all her grandkids. Those brats got some real nice stuff. LOL Dan.

If I were going to try this and especially for the first year of prepping the soil; rent a good sized rototiller for a day. One that'll have the strength to chew through anything, short of rocks. Get all the compost (whatever you decide to use) spread it out on the plot; right on top of the lawn, weeds whatever. Then rototill the whole mess together; getting as deep as the tiller will go, 12 inches would be ideal. While talking rototillers, I would also look into getting a small one; that will fit in between the rows. They're great for weed control and it will aerate the soil, allowing your plant's roots to easily spread. Even those $200.00 electrics that Cappy sells; believe me, it'll be your best friend out there. Dan.

I copied the below from a site that supports pre-germination of the grass seed. It promotes faster rooting and more stable grass, during the first few weeks; out in the environment . My dad (a tobacco farmer) always sprouted the seed, before seeding the greenhouse. Doing so it only took 2 or 3 days before you would see a green haze over the beds; without it took 1 or more weeks, before the seeds took and began to grow. For the broadcast material/spreading media they speak of below; my dad used a mixture of cornmeal and vermiculite. The cornmeal was a binder and fertilizer as it decayed, the vermiculite helped hold the moisture in the seeded area. Hope this helps? Dan. - Put just the amount of seed you plant to broadcast in a burlap permeable or nylon sack and set it in a canning kettle or other container you can cover. If you have no lid for the container or are using a transparent container such as an old aquarium, pre-germinate seed in a dark room. - Fill the kettle with tepid (room temperature or slightly warmer) water and cover. If necessary, weigh down the lid until the sack of grass seed soaks up enough water to remain fully submerged. Keep your grass seed “incubator” in an area where the temperature ranges between 65 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. -Remove the sack from the kettle each day and allow it to drain as you empty and re-fill the kettle with clean water. - Check the seed each day when you change the water, beginning on the fourth day. By the sixth or seventh day, you will find little white shoots, called cotyledons, on one end of many seeds, signaling successful germination. - In a large plastic tub, spread sand or compost across the bottom to serve as spreading media for your growing seed. While you’re at it, sweep out the garage and add the dust to the mix. - Drain the sack of germinated seed one more time. This time, allow it to drain until no more water drips. - Add the moist seed to the tub of broadcast media and spread it gently over the surface. Let it set for 30 to 60 minutes to dry the seed further, and then gently incorporate it into the spreading media. - Broadcast the seed over a prepared seed bed and rake gently to distribute the seed evenly. Keep the area moist, as with any seeding. Your grass will begin to appear in a few days.

To keep the "heat" in horseradish; try vacuum sealing the stuff. "Foodsaver" make containers for use with their machines. If you can keep the the air from getting at it, it will slow the fermentation process; that causes the chemicals in the root to break down and evaporate, changing its flavor/heat. Dan.

Here's a couple of closer pics of the ladder's transformation into a pair of skies. Dan.

Good call, if I were going to leave that short vertical on the front; but it's temp, until I build the hut on top of the trailer. Going down the road, I'm not to worried as long as it stays together, doing a buck 10 down the hwy. At the 15 or 20 on the ice, I don't think aerodynamics will come into play? There's a propane tank for up front hard piped to the RV furnace and possible gas lighting? Dan.

Thanks Brian. That means a lot coming from Mr. Gadget!!! Dan.

You gota love Kijiji at times; 16 foot extension ladder 30 bucks. Trailer's not for sale yet; but up for any friend, that need to borrow? Dan..

I had a chance on Friday to make up a pair of skies for the trailer. Instead of the 5' ski length, I went with 9' thinking that I can always cut it shorter if need be. Saturday morning we get to the lake, unload the snowmobile, connect the trailer to the snowmobile; then added the skies. Toss all our gear on the trailer/sled and the two guys that were with me jumped on. With fingers crossed I hit the throttle, had to look back thinking it had become unhooked; nope it just pulled that easy. After about a 1/4 mile, I stopped to ask the guys how the ride was? They said it was nice and smooth; that they could feel the trailer's suspension was doing its job and that they didn't even have to hang on. I was happy that it worked as well as it did; wasn't sure whether the ladder runs would hold up; they did with only a few dents in the sheeting, between the rails. The fishing itself was slow; like it's been all winter on Long Point Bay; only 2 perch for our efforts; but it was a good day and no equipment got broke. Dan.

Dan. @jds63; it was the fish and video I was praising, that Kevin posted; not that you lost your fish. Sorry!!!! Dan.

Brings back so many memories, from when my son was that age. Thanks for sharing the story, pics and video Simon. Dan.

I'll check into it; trying to do the project on the cheap? Once I get to the point of insulation, I think I may go with spray insulation; if my customer who owns a business of, comes through for me? If not I'll stuff in the cheapest styrofoam board that I can find in between the suds and then line the inside with Reflectix. I can get 4'X10' rolls of the stuff from another customer of mine at a fairly decent price. Dan.

I haven't made anywhere near the progress I wanted too on the trailer; not complaining but work got in the way of playing. Got the deck on and that's about it, other than some temporary things (A front vertical as a stone guard); so I can use it as my Ski doo trailer for now. 7'X10'x 3/4" plywood with a 2X4 skirt around the underside of the plywood. There will be metal braces from the trailer frame to the edge of the plywood to support the 18" overhang on both sides and the rear. Here's what I'm thinking for a floor plan. I'll be using the framework from a 20'X10' portable tarp garage, for the wall studs and roof joists. A buddy has donated it and I'll modify the piping to fit the deck. Still not sure what I'm going to skin it with; but I've been offered 22 gauge galvanized sheet metal at a very good price? I'll update as I go along. Dan.

This silicone sticks like baby crap to a blanket. Dan.

Go to any automotive exhaust shop; they'll have the tubing and can put the 90° bend in it. I wouldn't think it would cost you any more than 20 or 30 bucks; then finish it off as ironmaker has suggested. That's what I made a set of boat guides out of; the 20 gauge tubing was more than strong enough. Dan.

Like I said sorry and no I don't understand all of this? OK; that's my last comment. LOL Dan.

Sorry manitoubass I've also edited this response; but that's my last comment on this subject; I hope the guy gets his boat back. Dan.

There are no race barriers when it comes to thieves; but thieves (again regardless of race) that know the OPP and the courts are afraid of them; sure must make it more comfortable being one. Google "caledonia wake up call" and see how the police have dealt with the situation in Caledonia. There is a lot of propaganda on the site; but read through that and it does show that there is two tiered law enforcement here in Ontario and the cops are afraid of acting. Dan.

I was just in St Lucia a month ago and had a chance to do some shore fishing; off a breakwall at the resort. Didn't catch anything, just fed a lot of cut squid to whatever was down there. One of the groundskeepers came over for a look see and said that my #4 hooks were to large for the fish in that area. That I should be using a #8 or 10 because the fish were likely only 1 or 2 pounders? I didn't bother looking for tackle down there, so I just kept feeding the fish, with what I had. LOL So I guess just because we're fishing the sea, it doesn't mean you have to go with big tackle to shore fish. Dan.

Enjoy these times guys, they grow up fast! What I mean by fast is, the next 20-25 years are going to slip by without you even realizing it. I started fishing with my son at about the same age as yours Nick; I couldn't get out the door without this little shadow following. It was like that all the way through his local school years; oh the fights I had with the wife from pulling him out of school to go fishing. Than University, an automotive engineering degree, a full time job and marriage, put a big dent in our fishing time together. We still get out whenever we can; but it's harder and harder the more he get established in his adult life. So like I said, relish these times; because your son will never forget them; he'll just run out of time to always be there to go out with you. It's kind of like the Harry Chapin's song "Cat's In The Cradle", in reverse? http://music.famousfix.com/tpx_4883935/cats-in-the-cradle/ Dan.

Maybe check out Provincial Parks or conservation areas? They may not have all the amenities as a private park; but I don't think there's a trailer age restriction? Dan.

8 stitches might be a bit too much for this; but I always take a fresh tube with me on a fishing trip. Dan.

I met Dave a few weeks back; he and his kids were great with helping us get our trailer parked (16' cargo trailer) on his lot. They then just pitched in helping to unload our gear, snowmobile and pack our tow behind sled. We took up two of his few parking spots that he has; but he had to be forced to take the money for two spots. My brother in-law insisted and stuffed the money in Dave's pocket. Most of the people we met in Gilford were very helpful, even the other hut operator (Peter); he knew we had our own pop up hut; but he still escorted us out on the ice giving us a few suggestions of where he thought we should set up camp. Fishing was a bit slow, with us only keeping a dozen or so of keepers and throwing back 30 or more little guys. Dan.

Barefoot on a floating dock on a windy day; dock bobbed up and the boat bobbed down, just as I stepped off the dock into the boat. Yup missed the boat and 99% of me went into the drink. The 1% that didn't, was my right big toe that was stuck through one of the D rings on the dock. After untangling myself and back on the dock, it wasn't hard to see that the toe was broke. It was like it was saluting the other toes on my foot. Here's the good part, this happened the second day of a 9 day stay at Eddie North's fly-in camp, on the Attawapiskat river. My brother and I had dreamed of a fly-in for years and there was no way I was letting this cut the trip short. I wrapped the toe tight against my foot with a cloth and black electrical tape. My brother has an open script for percocet; so I dove into his stash. A couple of percs, a couple shots of rye and I was good to go. Dan.