lew

Thanks Mike, that made for an excellent read !! Good to hear you & your bud had such a great time and congrats to him on his PB

It's a shame to see all the bad reports coming in from Merlin's this week but I'm sure it's gonna cost them big time down the road. When we were all there a couple years back for the 1st OFC fall get-to-gether, we were treated very well as far as I was concerned, infact 4 of us had booked a cottage for the weekend, and when I arrived 1st and saw it was way too small for us, I went to the office and told them, and without question she moved us into that big green cottage opposite the boat ramp ( # 10 I think ?? ) and gave it to us for the same price of the little cabin. Makes you wonder sometimes why folks who have a great thing going for them, with a regular clientelle, let it slip out from under them Good to see everyone made the most of it though and still had a great time.

Great stuff Joey and good to hear your weekend turned out so well !! Your having a great month so far with a couple nice musky last week and now a good Quinte pickeral....maybe you should take up guiding for a living Thanks for the excellent read !!

Thanks for that Kevin, reading your story was an excellent way to start my day. Sounds like the trip went well for everyone and congrats on a couple nice fish and good to hear you enjoyed your 1st Quinte g2g

Sounds like things weren't as good there as in past years, but I hafta admit I'm surprised none of the OFNers brought their own salt or sand with them for the ramps. We fish right up till mid December and always carry salt for the boat ramps wherever we go, infact I've had a bag of salt and a shovel in the back of my truck for a month aready. Once we get into November up here, you can be pretty sure some of the ramps will be icy. Not saying maybe Merlands shouldn't have had some too, but I also think folks need to be prepared to help themselves out also, rather than counting on others to do it for them. Other than that, sorry to hear all the other things didn't work out well either.

Luv those Quinte hogs , WTG Chuck !!

I'm not a sports fan at all and seldom watch any type of event on TV, but my dad was from Saskatchewan and was a BIG football fan. Every year we'd get together to watch that one game and he'd always take the western team and I'd take whoever was playing for the east and we'd put $20 on the game. I couldn't have ever cared less who won the game or even the $20 but it was always a blast watching that game together with him, and even now that Dad's been gone 10 years, those Grey Cup games always bring back fabulous memories. Just thinking about it now makes me smile .....thanks for the memories Holdfast

Kevin, this may be a long shot, but I had a 2001 Merc, 6HP kicker motor and the intake for the cooling water was on the underside of the cavitation plate and actually facing down, so the muffs wouldn't work on that particular motor. Any chance yours may be the same set-up and your placing the muffs over something other than the intake vents ??

Congrats Chuck & Shelley, WTG on winnng the tourney Great way to finish off the season in the new boat !!

Sounds like things have taken a downward turn since I was last there, sorry to hear that.

Spiel's our resident rod building expert around here and should be able to give you some ideas on who to contact when he sees this post. Tough luck on the knee, it sounds painful, hope you heel up fast

Toronto Maple Leafs ?? hahahahahahahahaha ........and I haven't seen an NHL a game in 40 years

Sorry Dan, but I'm confused by your reponse and hopefully your not trying to speak for all Canadians, at least not for me

We've lost 2 more of our best in Afghanistan. Lousy war Condolances to the families

I spent a few years cruising the Atlantic Ocean in the 60's, and we would sometimes see schools (pods ??) of Killer Whales, and that has to be, without a doubt, one of the most impressive things I've EVER seen anywhere. In my opinion, their about the most majestic looking critters that inhabit this planet !!!! Sure hope you get a chance to see some when your down east.

Funny how things change, eh Paul ?? A few years back we wouldn't buy them on a dare, but today we pay big money for them and their some of the best on the market. Same as the Shimano bicycle components, they make some of the best shifters and derailers on the market and come on most hi-end bikes.

Thanks for the update Sam, and good to hear the Dawg is keeping warm. I just got in from my mornin hike in the woods here, and while down there I was thinking what a great day it would be for the guys on the Bay, nice & cool and no big winds for a change. Hope it stays good for them. I was hoping I'd be musky fishing this weekend, but that didn't pan out and now it's too late for Quinte.......dang

This question probably gets asked around here more than any other and it's a legitimate one for folks trying a baitcaster for the 1st time, and Dan gave you the correct answer. Whatever the heck feels best to you is the one you should be using. If it feels awkward or uncomfortable in your left hand, then just get yourself a right hander and try that one out. You'll know yourself when you find the proper one. If anyone tells you your doing it wrong, that just indicates that person has NO clue what their talking about. It's like telling someone which shoe their sposed to put on 1st, or whether they should use their left or right hand to remove their hat. When I started fishing in the 50's, baitcaster's were all we had and they were all righthanders, so it was just normal to fish that way, then when I got my 1st spinning reel in the late 60's......a Mitchell 300 like everyone in the world ......the handle was on the left side, so that's the way it was fished and it never felt awkward. And DON'T be intimidated by baitcasters, their only another tool in your fish'n gear, and not nearly as hard to learn as many folks make them out to be. Just start out slow at 1st and don't try casting a mile till you get the feel of it and gradually work your way up, and you'll have no problems whatsoever. They've come a long ways since the early days and those ones 2rr's is talking about were dinosaurs compared to what we have today, and if we could fish with those ancient relics with no problems, nobody should have troubles today Good luck and if you have a problem, don't be afraid to ask.

Nice work Mike, looks like it's drawn with a fountain pen. .......Now wait'll all the young guys around here ask "what's a fountain pen ??"

What's a Gretzky ??

Guess you just had to be there Raf

The only thing I might be concerned with, would a 2 hp be strong enough to turn your boat on a windy day ?? Your saying 5-600 pounds plus people and gear, that could add up pretty quick. I had a 6 hp on my 16' Crestliner and it was tough to turn into a strong crosswind sometimes. Just something to think about

I've been using a Coleman Black Cat in my tent for the last couple years and it works very well on those cold rainy nights in the spring and fall. Can't compare it to a Mr. Buddy as I've never used one, but I'd buy a Black Cat again if needed.

G'day people We've got just enough snow falling in T.O. right now to make things white, but I spose it's a sign of things to come for a few months. OK, that's enuff for winter for me, C'MON April

It may take a few more years Gerritt, but eventually we'll have all OFNer's speaking properly