lew

No offense Rich, but you obviously have never handled a big musky. I've been fishing for muskies for 35 years and have landed many 100's of them, and I STILL wouldn't hold one in my lap in order to remove the hooks, especially if I was alone in a kayak. They have enormous power, and if your holding that fish by the tail, you have no control over her head and when she starts to use her awesome strength to twist out of your grip, there's every chance she's gonna drive that protruding hook someplace you don't want to have it. As for the lip-grip, some guys use them with success while holding a fish in the water at the side of the boat while the hooks are removed. The original Boga Grip has a swivel that MAY allow the fish to twist without breaking her jaw, but I personally wouldn't trust them although others may argue that point. Some of the knock-off lip grippers do NOT swivel and if you've got it locked on a fish's jaw and she goes into a roll....which they often do....chances are her jaw will be broken. A firm grip on the gill plate is an excellent way to hold a fish's head still while hooks are removed and can be done easily in the water, and if she starts to roll, you can still maintain control of her head......usually. Not sure what the best method would be for controlling a large fish at the side of a kayak, but I think the lip-gripper may be a bad choice, specially for the fish.

They used to have an excellent reputation at one time and nobody could touch their prices on motors. When I bought my 90 Merc in '99 I shopped all over and Boatland beat the lowest price by $400. I think over the years though, the good name has slipped and I've heard some bad stuff from different friends who have purchased from them so you may want to get some opinions before you make any big $$$$ purchases. My brother purchased a new boat/motor/trailer package from them a few years back on the condition they included a spare trailer tire & mounting bracket but when he went to pick up his new rig a week later they refused to give him the spare, even though it was written in the purchase agreement. After a lengthy arguement, they offered him a USED spare and it was only after a lot "discussion" that they finally agreed to honor their end of the deal and include the lousy $100 spare & $20 bracket. I also have a friend who purchased a new 30' house trailer from them and had trouble getting warranty work covered on items that didn't work the FIRST DAY he received to trailer. Would I recommend a purchase from Boatland Canada ?? ....NOPE....but thats only my opinion.

Congrats Mike & Glenn & well done boyz, finishing 4th out of 150 is more than impressive !!

Muskies often become very active in that transition period as the sun breaks the horizon in the morning and again as it sets below the horizon in the evening, so yesterday morning I wanted to be casting to a favorite spot at the precise moment the sun rose. The wind was blowing fairly strong from the s/w so I positioned the boat downwind and let it push me to the "spot on spot" I've often had luck with very early in the morning. This particular place is no bigger than a house yet it has 2 small points that very often hold a fish. The sun was about 1/2 exposed above the horizon and I'd only made about 10 casts as I tossed a black / chartreuse bucktail at the target and sure enuff when I got to that magic spot, there was a nice boil as the bait hit the water and then that beautiful solid hit I've been waiting for since last December. It wasn't a big fish, maybe 40-42" but it was a nice way to start off the 2008 season and get my new Calcutta 400TE slimed and ready for another year on the water. I don't take many fish pics anymore and seldom even measure them now, so as soon as she was un-clipped she was off to swim another day. I moved on to another favorite spot and had a follow from a mid 40's but she wouldn't commit and then I had another fish take a swipe at a figure 8 but missed it. Muskies can be very predictable critters and it's nice when a plan is formulated and a fish is caught within 10 minutes and exactly when & where you thought it would happen. Sorta makes it all worthwhile when a plan comes together. We had friends coming to the trailer at noon yesterday so I spent the day with them and this morning I had some firewood to stack so I never got on the water again, but the season has started off well and that's all any of us can ask for. Hopefully everyone else enjoyed the musky opener as much as I did, it was a long time coming.

Not a problem at all TJ, just lemme know before next weekend.

TJ, if there's anything you need from down this way, lemme know and I can grab it for you and bring it up in 2 weeks.

Star Marine on the east end of the causeway always had a sign that advertised boat rentals, at least up until last year, but I can't offer anymore than that.

If your talking about Clear Lake north of Peterboro, I've heard good things about this place. www.kawarthapark.com

Thanks FT, but unfortunately things have changed somewhat over the past 45 years

Well said John and I'm proud & thankful to say that both my Dad, in the Navy, & his brother in the Army, took part in the invasion on day 1 and the days that followed and they both survived the horror of those days. My dad didn't talk about the war too much, but he sometimes talked about D Day and the unbelievable number of ships & planes involved. He was on a ship just off the coast of France and said there were so many planes in the sky that it was almost like clouds blocking out the sun. We all owe an awful lot to the "kids" of that generation.

Never got to Scotland but I spent some time in Ireland in the mid 60's and it's an absolutely gorgeous country and you should enjoy your time there. Most of my time was in the dockyards of Belfast, but it's definetely a city you should try & visit if you have the time. Very old and beautiful buildings with a lot of history attached to them and the people are as friendly as your gonna find anywhere. Fortunately, my time there was before the real serious trouble started with the IRA and I understand alot of the places I'm familiar with are no longer there, but it would probably still be worth your time to plan a visit. That's a statue of King Billy on top of the building in downtown Belfast And this is me (on your right) & a bud in 1964 heading out on the town to check out a few of the pubs Belfast used to be so famous for......ask the barkeep for a pint of skrumpy

Everything seems to be workin OK over here Will

I agree with you 100% Gerry, I use an 01 Merc 4 stroke and always use Mercury products in it. It may not be neccessary, but as you say, why take a chance in order to save a couple measly $$$$ over the course of an entire year.

Lew makes 9

The Saturday fish-fry is always the hi-light of the trip every year and I must admit, TJ makes just about the best fish batter you'll find anywhere.

Excellent stuff Cliff, it shows what this place is all about

Thanks Dan, that makes me feel a LOT better hahaha

I actually received my Fathers Day gift early this year, infact it was given to me in time for my camping / fishing trip to Quinte in May. I'm a real coffee fanatic and need to drink a pot before starting my day, but have always been stuck with instant, which I hate, on my many yearly camping trips, so I was given this Coleman coffee maker and it's every bit as good as your coffee maker at home. Joey had one at Lakair last year and it made fantastic coffee, so I told the family about it and sure enuff, I got one Sitting at the early morning bonfire will be even more enjoyable now. And Joey, I'll have a cup waiting for you in 2 weeks

That's good to hear Holdfast, you'll be a great asset to your reserve unit. I spose you heard we lost another soldier today.

The color of the bucktail in your picture will work just fine. Just be sure the rest of your equipment will also handle a musky if you happen to hook one. You don't want her breaking your line and swimming off with those trebles locking her jaw shut.

Sometimes you just leave yerself wide open Pete, but I won't say it

Wheel locks were purchased & installed the same day as the wheels, too many sticky fingers in this world anymore.

I somewhat agree Mike. I've been using the Frabil Big Game for several years now and find the handle & hoop much stronger & far superior to the Beckman, but even after a lot of use the bag is still extremely stiff, plus it tapers to a point basically. I prefer the Beckman pen-style square bag in that it's much softer, yet still fish friendly, and I find it easier to work on the fish with it rather than the Frabil bag. I'm thinking very seriously about ordering a Beckman bag & using it with my Frabil frame, giving me the best of both worlds.

Yup, looks like it's time to invest in a new dictionary

I know when the kids say something is bad, they actually mean it's really good, and if it's bad azz, it's even better, but I'm not sure what they mean about something being sick. I've got some really nice chrome wheels on my truck...at least I think so...and last evening I was stopped at a red light and 2 kids were standing at the bus stop, and the one kids says to me "Heyyyyyyyyyy doooood, those wheels are really SIIIIIICK MAN" I dunno if he was complimenting me or taking a shot at me That's one of the problems with getting older, I never know what the heck the kids are talkin about anymore