johnnyb

What a great report...ALWAYS worth the drive to Temagami, no matter what the weather 'Specially if you get to hang out at Wayne's and hit up what is unquestionably the best Chinese food in the province

I heard the same thing, CoreyL....didn't do much for me on Friday while out on Simcoe...might have scared the fish off to the guys that were around me though...they were doing just fine

Wow---looks like you guys had the right attitude...too bad the fish didn't come through though. Seemed like with all the good trips you had at the beginning of the season this was going to be a bonanza...but you'll get'em next time. And hey -- us trout/whitefish guys just aren't cut out for catching walleye Just make sure you get out soon and chase that skunk away

Very well done...not bad at all for his first time! Do you guys use any other colours besides white for the tubes on Simcoe?

Not a ton of fish, but a trip you won't soon forget Thanks for sharing...love the pics of the boatworks!

The suspense is killing me! When are you going to drop a line in one of these lakes?!? Making us wait until the thaw???!!! Good job getting back there though...beautiful way to spend the day.

Good to see you got out there, Rick! Jessy and I were out on Friday, but got nada! We need to meet up again...it seems you were good luck for us I can't see your pics, so I'm posting 'em in here...hope you don't mind...

Awesome day...bet you can't wait 'til the lakers are in season Thanks for posting

Hey Ben and Sinker -- was talking to a guy who hauls a good sized flip-up, and he swore up and down that the addition of two downhill skiis made a world of difference pulling his sled. He simply had the bolted on flat to the bottom of the sled, and snow was no longer a problem.

I think your buddy was on another board posting about the same outing...the ice musta been melting from all that hot action!

veerrrrry interesting! *note to self: buy noodles and dye

Not a bad idea, Fang! I currently use a lightweight folding stool, but it has no back support! Always something more to buy for the gear pile, isn't there

Class act all the way around, Dale! Great fish, amazing release, and remarkable grace under so much publicity.

Very nice! Hittin' Simcoe up tomorrow -- don't think I'll be as far out as you...but thanks for the confidence boost

Shoot! Not too bad at all So pike are the only target through the ice?

KF -- I picked up liners from Canadian Tire at the beginning of last winter for $25. Can't remember if they were Sorel or Kamik, or generic, but they made my boots like new all over again!!! To top it off, when I saw the same liners later on, in the Spring, they were $12. Try 'em out...good luck!

Grimace, you're right...but from what I gather of the young lad serving me, his dad running the business might get a bit ticked off if he saw it It was more like I happened to be there late enough, and the kid wasn't interested in counting out minnows. I actually had to tell him to stop when he was about to dump the rest of the net's contents in my bucket!

Sweet deal -- and a bonus that your g/f is still keen after a skunking I've driven past Medora a bunch of times, but never fished it...do you fish it through the year, or was this a first time?

I dont know if it's just me, but, this seems to be a different kind of "slag" post. Usually someone tears a guy up one side and down the other, then everyone gets in a big fight about it. This time, the criticism was harsh and direct, but not malicious, and so far everyone agrees. Wow. Just goes to show how bad service will kill ya.

Sweet deal! Very nice fish...first or not

Also might be a good idea to call the local baitshop and have them put the word out....this has worked before in similar situations....

cool! Post some pics when you get'em

GCD -- don't worry, LJ and I will be out this Friday Bicephalic -- can't wait to do it again

Amazing report...simply amazing THanks for sharing!

The lovely Laker Jessy decided that not only did I need to brush up on my ice-fishing skills if I’m going to be of any competition to her this winter, but that I should also have a “guy’s weekend”. So this past Saturday night, my cousin Bert (on the board as Bicephalic) and I headed up to Muskoka for some Lake Rosseau trout action. It was, in fact, his first time ice-fishing, and we had been looking forward to getting out there for quite a while. I tried not to talk up my spot too much…really didn’t want to jinx anything. We stopped for bait on the way up, and ended up with an absolute gob of minnows, that was deemed to be one dozen…not bad for $5, so I figured it was a good sign. Sunday morning had us walking out to a spot I’ve always done well at…and up to our knees in snow. Made it past one slushy spot, which is almost always a bit slushy…then found our way into some really nasty stuff. Thank goodness Bert’s boots were waterproof all the way up…mine on the other hand were letting a bit of water in over the top of the rubber section. We found hard ice, popped a few holes, and my feet seemed to be staying warm enough. Bert set to cleaning the holes, which were welling up like springs! After losing only one fish and landing none, we started exploring, looking for some more firm ice. Getting around a point and into the wind, we found some solid stuff and drilled a few holes. His first time out, and Bert’s already figuring out clever ways to block the wind! Don’t know if it was that we found the right colour, after switching lures frequently, but just around lunch time, Bert nailed his first laker ever – a solid 21 incher! PB!!! Not long after, I narrowly missed becoming a statistic when I saw my rod getting pulled toward the hole – dove for it just in time and hung on to reel in a 23 incher…but forgot my Tourney sign – d’oh! No worries...I'll get a bigger one next time. After that, the action quieted down, and by about 5:00 we decided to get off the ice. We slugged our way back home through even more slush, and had the joy of discovering what sticky wet snow does to a jetsled loaded with too much crap! The upside was we burned enough calories to justify another Angus burger on the way home. Speaking of calories, the gory pic that follows is what was inside the fish I brought in…by my estimation a herring that was ¾ as long as the trout, plus a smallmouth fry and another shiner. Now where did I put my Musky tubes?...