Sterling

I've been out 7 or 8 trips this winter, only once was there no keepers iced (averaging 2-3 a trip between the group)

There's definitely better fishing out in deeper waters, north of south bay and whatnot is where I did best years ago. Now all I need is a sled or a reliable truck to make my way out there .

PS: Went out tonight, got 6 and missed a bunch, definitely not as hot as the past few days.

Anything that could be kept?

HH

Only 2 keepers this year. Nipissing is essentially C&R for walleye. Which I don't mind.

Great news, I'm heading up next week, you fishing callander bay?

Yeah. I didn't place my shack in a scientific location either. Asked my then-pregnant wife which area would be the safest/easiest to access. Hit me up when you're down maybe I'll join you or you can join me.

Guys are telling me they're having success in the shallows (3-4ft) but to my understanding that's where the males go pre-spawn, and males are small.

Anyone else been out recently? Looks like the end-of-season blitz has started.

These past 3 days have been nuts. Thought it couldn't get better but yesterday was the best day I've had out on Nip, ever. Blew through 3 dozen minnows in the space of 2.5 hours (6 lines). Even got a quadruple header which is totally unheard of.

Phew this article scared me for a second.

It seems that most species of asian carp fit well within the ecosystem (I think) aside from the silver ones.

Somewhat related, the US government has re-introduced the alligator gar in the Mississippi in an effort to reduce asian silver carp population;

http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2016/08/08/conservation-of-ancient-fishes-reintroducing-the-alligator-gar-and-what-about-those-carp/

Ice looking good on Nip. About 5-6 inches of slush/water froze over (but not everywhere). So we're making ice. Will measure black ice next time I go out.

The good news is that the forecast calls for COLD weather until mid-March.

Somewhat related, I read this today: https://www.baytoday.ca/local-news/police-warning-of-open-water-in-callander-bay-546885

Supposedly someone went "through the ice". I think they just busted the top layer and nothing more. Especially in that area... it's solid ice everywhere, unless I'm mistaken.

My bad man, I thought you were referring the tablet/navionics setup some people use just for the lake maps (ie no sonar)

No worries. I think it's a waste to just run the maps, unless you're cruising and not fishing. By default any tablet will hook up to a signal though and give you splitscreen sonar + maps.

Where it really shines in my opinion, is when you take it to an uncharted lake. The unit will chart it for you, on the go. Super useful for back lakes. That's a feature you only get on $1000+ units.

 

You can find a decent used graph for $400. I don't get all the hype behind the Tablet/Navionics. I'd hate to rely on that instead of seeing what's actually below me.

Most people don't get the hype because they don't know what the unit does.

Of course you can see what's below you. The raymarine unit has CHIRP downvision, it's pretty sweet;

At $15k the biggest you'll want to go is 17ft, yes.

You may need to sacrifice engine size. A 60hp can easily move a 17 footer, so consider that.

BUY USED. The US dollar is strong right now, so if you buy new it will be at a massive premium. People like to sell their boats based on what they paid (previously), so you can get some deals there. They forget to factor in the value of their boat now that the US dollar is so strong.

Another place you can save is by going with a tablet + navionics setup which will cost you around $400 for everything and give you all the features of a fancy unit, including bathymetric maps on the fly which only the Onix units can do (and I believe maybe 1-2 other units).

Dennis Johnson runs a pretty tight operation: http://icebungalows.com/

You're going to hear tons of mixed reviews about Nipissing but that's the nature of fishing.

The truth is that Nipissing fish are biting more now than in the past 30 years. Forget the anecdotal stuff - Nipissing is hot right now. However keep in mind if you're targeting walleye, keepers are 18.1in+ and represent only 2% of the walleye population.

Reeds is great too, located right on top of perch. So your day won't be slow if the walleye aren't biting. Bit cheaper too.

Personally I'd do Reeds if you want perch, Dennis Johnson if you want more walleye. But both will be pretty close.

Oh, and bring your own pickerel rigs. It'll make a huge difference.

Edit:

Regarding Callander Bay, my ice shack is there, I catch the evening bite 2-3x a week, only been skunked once in 3 years. Lots of fish there. Caught 8 + 1 keeper on saturday with 6 lines. That's 6 hrs of fishing.

I posted a solution to this problem here.

Essentially the site has a spot for ads, but the forum's content was accidentally put in this spot too, hence why so many browsers block the content.

It's not a problem with the browsers, rather, with the site . Easy fix too.

I really don't want to talk about my trip from Hell. We went out for the dusk bite the first afternoon we arrived. On the way back I felt my back tighten up from the people mover trailer smacking the ice. Woke in the middle of the night writhing in pain. My back was twisted like a pretzel and pain down the front of my thighs ending a 2 swollen knees. I knew it, I knew it, I knew my body wouldn't take the ride on the ice. I laid on the floor for 2 days while the guys fished. I couldn't even cook for them. I didn't think I would be good to travel yesterday AM. But I made out OK. I rode back in a mini van laying on my back. I loaded up on meds and a few sleeping pills. 8 hour ride that took 5 1/2 up. I'm not using a cane today. The boys took good care of my old ass.

 

The kid from Atlanta could not believe a lake that big could freeze. He also never felt cold like that and we told him it wasn't cold at all. The nutbar stripped down to his gotchees and went outside to time himself until he couldn't take the cold anymore. Of course they locked all the doors.

 

The boys caught a few small Pics the first afternoon and only a few Monday and Tuesday. I lost a nice Pike at the hole the first afternoon. The fishing was terrible, no more Nipissing for me unless it's the West Arm and that saddens me, it's where I caught my first real fish and learned how to tie a knot.

 

The "cottage" we stayed in was a luxury vacation home we got through a friend of a friend, granite counter tops, stainless appliances, jet tub, 4 bedrooms 3 baths, it was a surprise as we were told it was a shack before we got there. We told the southern boy all our camps are like that. They all had a good time though and that's what it was all about. That's it for me ever going out on the ice again unless I can walk out.

 

I'm so happy you asked TJames and now I'm having a anxiety attack.

When did you go and who was leading the trip? Sounds like you might have been with my father in law, name's Mike?

This time of year Nipissing really slows down. There's a good 2-4 week lull where the catching isn't so good. But it shouldn't have been that bad. I was at the shack with the wife last night and did fine. Last weekend I went alone and blew through a dozen minnows in no time.

I would suggest moving your trip to the 1st or 2nd week of opener. I guarantee you'll do muuuuuuch better.

Hope the back improves though .

A hallmark

I should upload a more recent picture... the place is in shambles now.

am i reading this correct? On nip an eye has to exceed 23.6 inches just to be able to keep one? holy crap...

 

how long was that one man?

18.1in+ is a keeper.

These fish account for less than 2% of the walleye population.

Nice EYE.........even nicer to see an Ice report as all our ice got killed with the warm up down here

Getting dicey even here in Nipissing. The holes under my shack are 14 inches now...

Holy cow lew! Those are some monsters!

Awesome fish. Nipissing really is producing like crazy now.

As Trump will find out, and possibly O'Leary, running a business and a country are 2 different things. In a business people are just another number on the spread sheet to do with what you may to meet the bottom line and keep the share holders happy. Not so much when you run a country, province, or state, the people are a share holder. I'm not a NDP'er, Liberal or a Con, just a human who wants a descent life, and is tired of getting screwed over so someone else can make another buck, and is very thankful I'm a Canadian and not living in what may turn into an ugly mess south of the boarder.

I can sympathize with that, however sometimes I feel like I'm being screwed because the country isn't run like a business. Certain parts of it, at least, can't be run as-is (energy sector for example).

So a bit of both can't hurt. Unfortunately it'll always be one extreme or the other.

For some lakes, panfish are in direct competition with the most targeted species (walleye) and so the MNR want angling pressure on perch.

Even with such liberal limits for perch, 90%+ of angling effort goes to other species, so as far as larger lakes are concerned, perch are in no danger. In fact they're thriving.

The downside of course, is that smaller lakes suffer.

Just beware, I remember reading a thread about "best & worst fishing purposes you've made" and the aquavu was #1 worst purchase for many people.

Guys keep in mind the people going door to door are just ordinary people like you and I. Doing their job & putting bread on the table.

My sweet mother was a census worker for a couple years and did some door to door. I don't see the need to give them trouble/attitude. It's not like these people are trying to sell you something. The information gathered is purposeful, or at least that's the intent.

Also keep in mind that it's our legal duty to fill out any census requirements. Just like some speed limits, I may not be in agreement, but it's the law anyway.

Since when does the goverment send people to YOUR door to interview for stats canada?

 

Anyone else have them come to your door?

They've been doing that for at least a decade.

@manitoubass

Looks like the post was real, based on my latest investigations

Signed covert agent Sterling, over.

Those posts maybe. But hes been in direct contact with my friend that works for the ministry of natural resources and hes sending the gnarliest crap. And its two people not just one.

 

Not even sure what his motives are? But its apperent hes an idiot.

 

Im not gonna post what was sent to me as this guy is up to his neck legally speaking.

 

Doesnt effect me one way or another but id stay away from this company if your in the area.

Definitely an idiot and I'd never do business with him. Just think if we're going to crucify the guy it should be over true crimes

@manitoubass

Those posts about shoving things seem fake. Maybe I'm wrong, but they just strike me as fake.

Plus I ran a search on those youtube addresses and the dates don't jive.

Tonight wasn't so good. Pulled up 4 fish within the first 30 minutes, then nothing at all until sundown. Had 4 extra lines this time too.

Once again the average size seemed better than last year. The population is growing up!

Joey how did you do with perch???