ozaibak1

I definitely agree with you there Irishfield, better safe than sorry, I've found CO's to be quite friendly and understanding in my limited experience with them, I had one phone in to HQ because I didn't print out the piece of paper that should accompany my license on Simcoe, they confirmed I had renewed my license, he didn't have to do that but he did and saved me $150 fine, something like that leaves a lasting positive impression, kudos to them. I would think they'd take the situation into consideration most times but definitely not all.

Holy moly, wow! Definately would not have imagined those still exist in eerie considering the fishing pressure, but that's why its a 'Great' Lake. Wonder how many that size have broken off due to equipment failures?

Great point Irishfield. There is a choice though you can keep them and break the law, but is that 'ethical?' I think it depends on defining ethical. Definately no arguing that would be breaking the law. The 'but it was dead' excuse in my opinion would make it unethical for simply lying, which is why the intention of the angler is so important, albeit next to impossible for us humans to accurately judge it. But laws are imperfect in judging the intention, so a better safe than sorry could be a good argument here. I'm all for the regulations I think they are in the best intentions (preserving our fisheries) and that's what really counts.

You raise an interesting question, but I think the question itself is somewhat loaded, and Gerritt hits it right here. Ethics and the law are not necessarily a 1:1 relationship. That is just because something is the law does not necessarily mean it is ethical and vice versa. In this case, I personally would have most likely kept the fish to eat. The fish is already dead, something is going to eat it, and as long as the intention wasn't to catch / kill it in the first place, why not that something be me? The regs are for the preservation / protection of our fish resources, but if the fish is already dead... it's sort of like a debate on jaywalking in my opinion it really depends on the intention and situation, I don't think there's a clear cut answer to this question and wouldn't say mine is one either.

Well it's been a long time coming (August 08) but had my first soft water day since then. Conditions were somewhat extreme (0 degrees C, 40km/h wind gusts) but we were shore fishing, still quite tough, but I've been through worse. (thankyou highschool rowing team for toughening me up in tough freezing conditions on lake O and others, um as well as the time I got caught on Pigeon Lake in a freak storm that was hell bent on eliminating us (in a rental motor boat) , as lightning came to our boat the rental motor shut! The fix? Flicking the stupid red on/off switch a few times, yes I'll say it screw you Mercury 2008 9.9 hop motors, you're very hard to start and could have killed us, but maybe you're cheaper for the rental spots! (Luckily I was introduced to my first experience of boater's code, a jetskier was out on the lake during a brief reprieve in the thunder/lightning storm on the water (I thought we were going to fry) as we were rowing back to what I estimated was a 2 hour row back, took about 20 mins by jetski). Side fact: I enjoy walking in pouring rain and no longer use umbrellas because of the number of times I've experienced great fishing in bad conditions. The rain triggers a positive response in my brain due to association with FUN. ) Sorry for the side note, Target of the day today was the sometimes elusive crappie. I've mentioned this in previous posts that I've caught these fish last year off well lit docks at night, they were much bigger than the crappie caught today, but it was still very satisfying. First time I caught them thought they were a deformed bass, but hit me within a few hrs wow thats prolly a crappie. Fished in Keswick, from about 8am-12pm. First time I bobber-fished productively thanks to some helping guides, I eventually got it setup to detect the slightest bite. I was using 1/16 oz white glow in the dark jigs, tipped with a 1" white/pink lil'hustler tube, as well as a berkley gulp maggot. Really hard to cast out even 10 yards (with a 6'6 rod, others who had 9 ft rods didnt find it so tough ), the width of the inlet was about 25 ft. Most productive bites came in around 10:30 am. The bigger crappie have not yet moved in, it was quite the cold front, I would say within 1-2 weeks you'll see much larger sized crappie in there (I hope). However numbers wise, they're moving into the shallows, just make sure you got a really light setup. All in all got a mixed bag of about 15 keepers in 3 hrs fishing, the others were some niced sized blue gills and pumpkin seeds, they're gonna have an introduction to mr. mazola within several hrs. I've heard it from others, and experienced it myself, I really like pink and/or white for these crappie, panfish, and fish in general. My PB bass was caught last summer on a 5" kuhuna pink kut tail worm, and the crappie about a pound size last year were caught on 2" mister twister white. I think the pink / white tube w/ white glow jig excelled and outproduced others today due to the overcast conditions, providing better visibility / attraction to the fish.

Well yesterday it depended on which part of Simcoe you were on, its a fair sized lake, and the winds were pushing the ice around. Where are you planning to launch from? I would say considering the winds today, and warming temps overnight, you should be safe to launch from the majority of the lake. If you mention which part of the lake you plan to launch from can give you more details, but most of the lake is now open, just stray ice floes around but not big enough to impede venturing out of almost anywhere in the lake.

From what I've heard the tackle shops are out of smaller shiners, some have bigger shiners, but the gas station on the 400 should have some but may be out of the way. Call ahead to make sure they gotem.

Hey, I get that 'blue' color coming off of fish if its been about 12 hrs since they've been cleaned, anyone know what that's from? The perch would leave blue stuff in the white bucket I'd keep them in.

Great pics and fish thx for the post

Yeah I was reading a few years ago how lampreys were / are a delicacy in China for hundreds of years. But do a google search on 'lamprey eating' and you'll see sites that say they taste even better than lake eel! Wouldn't mind catchin one myself, although I don't know if I could get myself to clean it, I have trouble with catfish as it is.

Quick question. Why does someone who posted a picture of a pike a few weeks ago with some dirt on it get flamed for improper / imperfect handling, but no condescending remarks about treating another creature of the water (this one) like dirt? Because they look ugly? Sure they're an invasive species but shouldn't they be treated with a bit of respect? It's like when humans say one species / race is more superior to others. I think all fish should be respected and treated equally. Not to say I haven't been guilty of flinging a sunfish or not handling it with care, and I'm not criticizing anyone here, and Kemper I'm not criticizing you on how you handled it either, and hope it's not taken that way, just wondering what gives. Does a rarer catch like a muskie deserve to be so holy, with ppl getting flamed the hell out of if it hasn't been treated like a queen in a picture? All fish should be treated equally in my book (ideally). Hope I don't get flamed for this, not my intention to stir the pot just interested to know why certain fish are the second coming of the messiah, while others are hell spawn. Just looks? How rare they are? Eels from what I've heard are quite tasty btw! I'm not saying don't kill them, but don't let them suffer either! Takem out with a quick blow

Master of the Universe

Well I have to say I've been using the internet ever since it became 'mainstream' in 1993. It takes a damn good site with relevant, fresh, and interesting content to keep me as a daily visitor. An even better one to make me visit several times a day. I can truly say there are only about 8 websites that accomplish this, and about four that accomplish this best, and OFC is one of them! Yes I love to fish, and have not found a site better than this one related to it. The wealth of knowledge shared here is priceless. Am I addicted? Yes, just as much as fishing to this board! But its a GREAT addiction. I just forked about 500 bucks on gear, I am a frugal spender, but have never regretted a fishing related purchase!

From my understanding, sitting on the starboard side gives the motor a wider range of motion without interfering with your body. I don't know about a 'code' but this is what was recommended to me when starting out and it makes a lot of sense.

Supporting the troops means bringing them home from a war based on proven lies and deceit which is unjust. I respect the troops, which is why I would not like to see further Canadian lives wasted in an unwinnable war, Stephen Harper just said it today. The war is bankrupting our nation.

Nice report, I'm going nuts in this transition time no ice for hardwater, and tough to catch fish from shore! Another week or 2 and all will be fine. I got checked 2 or 3 times out of about 6 or 7 trips on Simcoe this year, I find they have quite a few resources to that lake. Other lakes I pretty much know the only times theyre likely to be on are the may long weekend, and right around season openers. Not a problem tho, those lakes don't get much traffic compared to others.

Amen!

Wow, very well said on a delicate topic. I show appreciation for dedication to the country and its citizens to the soldiers serving when that is their intention. I show detest for any government that deceives its population as to the reasons for war. In my opinion there is never a 'good' reason for war, it's surprising how despite that it's always the 'last option' its always present throughout history, and will continue through imo. In the end I believe it is always about the real intention of the individual and the govt that determines their level of balance. RIP to all fallen soldiers defending what is dear to them and humanity.

Yep I'm just getting into pike fishing this year, but your setup sounds fine. I don't think you can go wrong with dead bait under a float, as long as the pike are around. If they're more active spinners are a good bet, I think dead bait under a float would be good for right now though, from what I've deduced... this is mostly theoretical with just a slight bit of practical knowledge. Minnows, shiners, dead oily fish all seem to do the trick, the pike don't seem to be very picky when they are 'on.'

Hey Bruce, not bad! Got out on the soft stuff, got some NICE perch, and a pike. I'd be ecstatic if I got those results tmrw, hopefully I can toss a few crappie in the mix

Well, I can't see anyone heading out in the water in those pics unless they had a death wish, some people do! I know.

That's too bad, I enjoy seeing our Southern neighbors up here having a good time, I find most of them to be some of the more well-mannered, 'educated', and likeable Americans. I'm sure I'd be welcome and get along with them fine if I was on a trip down south. It annoys me to see that our border with America is being so heavily regulated, as much as Mexico's even, under the guise of 'security' which could be true but I see it to be Bull, the 'security' thing is just an excuse. If it wasn't so much of a hassle to fly and travel down there I'd be doing so much more often, it's a shame they have the fortress mentality, I guess us Canadians are quite the threat... to America?? Rly? I'll tell ya if our border wasn't so tight I'd be down there fishin and huntin and minglin ALL THE TIME, I love Americans and their personality, but hate the policies of their government that don't represent noone but themselves! End of Rant.

Way to go, you've become professionals! Happy bday to your daughter she's cherubic.

Great post and great stories to read. For me, this one was real easy one memory stands out much more than any other, I have a good memory it seems like it just happened yesterday. The second time I went 'real fishing', meaning with a group who could teach me, it was with a group of some of my closest friends who I didn't realize fished! I'm 26 now, this was about 4 years ago. We got up to Clear lake in the morning, launched from a rental place and headed to Stoney Lake in the Kawarthas. We fished a bay between the junction of stoney and clear lakes, our first spot of the day. The weather was beautiful, the sun was shining. I'm fishing with a real worm. Well I toss it down, and wait a bit. That is when I caught my first ever bass, and first fish of the day! It's hard to describe my exhiliration. This thing bit it, and swam straight up in 10 feet of water and launched out of the air! Its jump, the glistening of its skin against the sun, seemed to last for 10 seconds. It's still frozen in my mind. I couldn't believe it, my first bass! To top it off, the next cast I caught another, while my friends were having some trouble. Those were the only 2 we caught in that first spot, and I got hooked into fishing much deeper than I already was! I don't think ANY future memory will top this one, unless it ends up involving family

I tend to agree with you, I shouldn't have said it applies specifically for Ontario I think what we have right now is working extremely well. I think though that depending on the place, population, and situation either way could be suitable. I don't think banning would work in many places, but here in Ontario I think the results speak for themselves (ie good)