lew

Thanks for the early mornin laff Bill, that's a goodun !!

I've had a subscription to Esox Angler for a few years now, mainly for the musky stuff, but it's also got some interesting articles on pike & pickeral too.

Thanks bushart, some really impressive work there.

Good to hear the injury wasn't too serious Paul

I'll be there when it opens at 11:00 as usual, anyone else gonna be there on Friday ?? We all normally meet up for a pop in the afternoon, say about 2:00 ??

sheesh, pretty soon someones gonna say golfers & bowlers are athletes too

I think far too many of you people are putting the emphisis on how tough it is to fish all day, either as a pro OR a flunky, and thinking that somehow turns them into an athlete. My gawd, I fish 10-12 hours a day on a very regular basis, and sometimes more, and that's casting large, heavy musky baits all day long, and I'm probably twice the age of the majority of the members of this board, and I'm certainly no athlete. And someone else eluded to the fact he was an athlete because he spends all day fishing in lousy weather....so what ??...... If you want to talk to someone who REALLY works all day in lousy weather, talk to a construction worker, or a postman and see if they consider themselves an athlete because of it. And their probably not even having any fun while their out there. C'mon guys, it's a fun, relaxing pastime that we all obviously enjoy, but let's not make it out to be more than it really is. But that's just my dimes worth

Yer a good man Roger !!

Yes, I'd say fishing was a sport, but I certainly wouldn't class fishermen as athletes, pro or otherwise.

My wife & her girlfriend are down in Dominican Republic right now and she just sent me an email an hour ago to tell me that it's sunny and 83 degrees today and she's been laying on the beach for 3 days. I think she's just rubbing it in as she also mentioned that she heard on the radio that were getting dumped on by more snow up here. .........and then she laughed

Same reason some folks buy gas by the litre, but go to the store and ask for a quart of milk. And some of us still use the old imperial system for EVERYTHING Glen, just the way it's sposed to be done

Jeez Cliff, when did you ever believe the weatherman ?? Just because I can't see across the street right now because it's snowing so hard doesn't mean he's actually gonna be right this time..........does it ??

Awesome stuff Dawg, always good to see your softwater fish'n tales We've got snow up to our eyebrows and another 4-6" on the way today, so your reports offer some much needed relief from the shovelling

Guess I'm gonna miss you Mark, the St. Croix booth is always one of my 1st stops but I'll be on my way home by the time Friday evening rolls around.

I know at the Musky Odyssee in St. Catherines every 2nd year, your $10 admission fee also includes 3-4 seminars by some of the top musky anglers in the business. Each talk is about an hour long and your listening to some of the best there are.

Don't know where your located Glen, but if your in the GTA you can definetely get the Stringease snaps at JB's, BPS or Tightlines in Pickering. Be sure to get the big ones, I use #5 myself but you can go larger if you want.

Glen, stick with the Stringease, their are a proven product and won't let you down.

Take a look at the picture I posted in the thread "who's your mentor" and you'll see my dad sitting in his boat about 1955. Not only is the steering wheel on the left side of the boat, but it's also located in the rear seat, which was fairly common on cedarstrips back in the day. You'll also see the throttle & gear shift were 2 seperate levers compared to todays engines that combine them both in the same lever.

I was very lucky growing up because just about everyone in my family was into the outdoors, so I had many mentors, but of course my dad was the one that taught me the most. My folks took me on my 1st week long camping trip in the bush when I was only 8 months old and after that, most of my best childhood memories are of canvas tents, cedarstrip boats and campfires waaaaaaay off the beaten path. One of the most memorable trips was up to the French River for a week with my dad & brother with nothing more than a tarp for a lean-to and a cast iron frying pan when I was about 10 years old. If you think the French is isolated & rough now, you should have seen it 5 decades ago. He taught us how to live in the bush with the absolute bare essentials. He taught me so much about everything related to surviving in the bush & the outdoors in general and he loved to fish & hunt and was very good at both. I was one of the lucky ones and had a dad for 50 years and continued to fish with him as long as he was able. He's been gone 11 years now but there's never a day goes by that I don't think about him and everything he did for me. I've shown these pictures here before, but their some of my favorites memories of him and really show what he was all about. Dad in his cedarstrip doing what he loved best, circa 1955....this was probably taken on the Bonnechere River near Algonquin Park which was one of his favorite spots in the country. Here he's loading the same boat for a trip somewhere. I don't know where he was off to, but I'm sure I was included. And this is my favorite picture of all with my dad, myself on your right and my brother Ed and it shows what my dad was all about and the way he spent his life. War veteran with 5 years in the Navy 1940-45, a hard working man his entire life and without a doubt, the best man I ever knew.

Incredible image of the bird in the snow, thanks for that.

Glen, have a look at the Stringease stay-lok snaps. Their one of the best around and will never come undone accidentely

Saw a truck many years ago and on the rear doors was written...... "CAUTION, this truck is being driven by a blind man" It belonged to a company that sold and installed window coverings.....venitian blinds

Go with quality terminal tackle too Glen, Spro makes some great stuff.

Hilarious Paul, thanks

No difference in accidents at all in my opinion, whether it's on the road, in the air or a boat on the water, it's just that air accidents are sometimes more "spectacular" when a large airplane with many passengers is involved and it usually attracts more media coverage. Sad whenever bad stuff happens to innocent people anywhere.