MJL

Brian, if you want an autograph, I can sign the new float stick that Spiel is building for you and he can epoxy right over it. It'll last forever that way

I'm getting a serious case of the munchies right now! I've only eaten smelt once but they were delicious...I'll definitely have to get in on some of that action one day

Thanks guys Not quite Dave...But I do have to admit that the guy on that cover page is one handsome looking fellow Bill, Risk = Reward...Totally worth it! I've been watching various online vids on youtube for the Canon 1D X...That, along with perhaps the new 24-70mm f/2.8 II L would be the ULTIMATE combo to dunk

Steve, I've caught redhorses in Lake Ontario, Erie and G-bay tribs and my friend caught 1 weighing in at 9lbs from 1 Huron trib last spring. So long as they don't have to jump over any dams, they can swim pretty far up the river (Furthest up river I ever caught one was probably 70-80km from the lake). After they spawn they just migrate back to the lake like steelhead and chill out there for the rest of the year. Managed to catch a couple today from 1 river. First redhorse for me in a couple years And to compare, your average, every day white sucker

Last summer I posted a carp fishing report with a few underwater pics. Someone out there spotted them and contacted me asking to use a couple for a book he wanted to publish. I didn’t think much of it but after a couple e-mails, a deal was made. 9 months later, who would’ve thought? The fish in the picture was landed by Frozen-Fire using his 13’6” Diamondback float rod and centrepin...The hair rig in the picture was tied by yours truly so technically, that makes it my fish too Pretty cool to say the least. I don’t have the book in my hands yet but I’m definitely looking forward to reading it when it makes it over from the UK. Contributing writers to the book (like Ken Townley) have been instrumental to the way I fish for carp myself - I've been reading his articles since I was 6. Unlike one former fishing magazine editor on this forum, I didn’t splurge and buy a car. I did buy a new underwater housing though...Hoping to take some timelapse pics of salmon & steelhead migrating up rivers as well as carp feeding close to shore Cheers Mike

I guess tomorrow I'll have to catch all those 20lb steelhead you missed today Just kidding...25lb steelhead Brian, if you were so keen on getting Dave onto some fish, shouldn't you have left the rod at home? Great report and pics Waders are optional Terry...You could always walk in without a pair...Like at the beach

Awesome! I've only managed to catch a few redhorses but they fight way better than white suckers. I definitely should make a trip soon to a couple rivers that I know get runs of them...Looks like great fun, especially with big ones like those.

But Brian, Wednesdays always fish better...Always As far as your custom rod goes, it's already been field tested by me to ensure it meets Mikey's seal of approval...It was Christened today on a tumor covered sucker from the Don river Great pics

Cliff, I’m sure diving in and noodling for the cats would be way more fun in the Grand...The water looks so prime for that right now Great job guys

The last time I was on Simcoe I was nailing lakers one after the other...Just before the ice started to break away from shore...

And to add to the confusion even more, you should also check out the Olympus XZ-1 if it's in your budget. Video quality doesn't seem so great (compared to the Canon S95 which I used) but the photos I took with the one I borrowed were superb - Sharpness was excellent and colour seemed accurate. Lens apperture goes down to F/1.8 and it does an OK job in lower light conditions (eg. indoors) - Still not comparable to DSLR quality in low light but you shouldn't expect it to be considering the sensor is a fraction of the size. I'm also in the market for a compact point and shoot for underwater work when I'm ice fishing...DSLR + underwater housing doesn't fit into the hole.LOL

My box is stocked with B & BB sized water gremlin shots. According to the chart below, they are equivalent to AB & #1 shots. If I ever need to go smaller, I use Sure Shot in #4 but I can't remember the last time I've had to. http://www.questoutdoors.net/gear/articles/shot-size-conversion/

Was it because you saw me land double digit numbers of 20+lb steelhead today using split shots brought to you by the Water Gremlin Company – For all your split shot needs?

Last year I biked to a few of my trout fishing spots...65-85km round trips, it was actually pretty sweet aside from roads with the hills. A water bottle and a baggy full of assorted nuts & raisins is all you need for fuel

That's OK...I still plan to head out tomorrow in search of "fiddleheads"...

Here's my take on things... If you own a 6-7ft medium action rod and a reel with a smooth drag (which just about everyone owns nowadays), use that and spend the money (which you didn’t spend for a new setup) on a few cans of corn, bread, quality line, strong sharp hooks and fuel (for your car). I spent my whole life fishing for carp in waters between Montreal to Windsor and north to Parry Sound (with a decent number of stateside trips to New York & Michigan). In the past I’ve used 6-7ft fiberglass & graphite spinning & baitcasting rods, 9-13’6” steelhead noodle/float rods. 8’6” – 10ft medium/ medium heavy salmon/steelhead rods, 11-14ft European float/feeder/quiver tip/specialist type rods, 12ft specimen carp rods, 9ft 8wt fly rods, 23ft elasticized poles. I've caught fish on all. Some of my observations: Rarely will you ever need to cast 100yards – If you have to and don’t have the gear, there are literally thousands of other spots to try where you don’t need to cast very far to hungry fish. Aside from the St. Lawrence and a couple lakes in the Kawarthas, I can’t think of anywhere else where I’ve needed to cast that far to fish. You rarely have to deal with raging currents found in the Niagara, St. Lawrence or the Trent system when it’s in flood – Those are the exceptions. Majority of places that carp inhabit are slow moving rivers and still-water ponds and lakes. With that said, most of my carp fishing is done in large, high current areas because I choose to fish there for fun. There are thousands of spots to fish in Southern Ontario for carp where you don’t need 4-6oz of weight to hold bottom. There are hundreds of bodies of water in Southern Ontario where carp don’t grow bigger than 3-5lbs and don’t peel off 125yards of line on their initial run. One of the best places to catch carp is right under your rod tip a couple feet from shore – Especially in spring. Free-lining a worm, bread, a doughball or corn on the hook (with no weight on the line) is often more effective than standard bolt rigging. People were catching carp for decades on all sorts of tackle before the British/European ex-pats were trading the specialty carp tackle at the Mississauga Stacks back in the 90’s or when Shimano started to bring their European carp gear back In the early 2000’s. If specialty carp gear might be you’re thing, great – A 12ft 2.5-3lb test curve rod will handle just about 98% of the conditions you will ever face across the world. If not, don’t sweat it...Carp fishing isn’t rocket science.

They were made in Burlington I believe in the late 90's/early 2000's? The first ones were a blueish colour in 3.5". After they were made in the 4.5" sizes in a pewter grey colour. See first reel in link http://www.questoutdoors.net/gear/articles/centerpin-reels/

If money is not an issue, nothing says “I love you” more than a 4” Angling Specialties Might be a little big now, but she’ll grow into it There's the 3.5" ABI but haven't seen one around for many years. There's also the 4" Milner Kingfisher.

You'll need some soft plastic minnows (Gulp, Fin-S, etc), soft plastic eggs (exude, Trigger-X, Jensen egg, etc), box of coloured beads, various streamer flies that imitate smelt and emerald shiners, a variety of Kwikfish, spinners and spoons, pink worms in sizes 3" to 6", marabou & bunny jigs, tons of leader material and split shots (just in case you lose lots), hooks in sizes 2 through 14, a new centrepin reel and a new float rod (make that 2 combos) Phil said I get a 25% commission on each sale made from you

Hey Brian I was in your neck of the woods on Sunday evening doing some "walking" myself...Didn't see any fiddle heads yet either.

GSP’s are beautiful dogs...High energy is an understatement! One of the property owners along the Notty has a male that just loves to play fetch...When you stop, it’ll dive right in and chase your float up and down the pool until you pick up another stick and toss it into the bush

I have ZERO issues with line capacity on my Shimano LongCast I’m just looking for a lighter reel with line capacity and the same dependability...When you gotta hike 30 minutes down and through a rocky gorge (including jumping boulders & climbing over fallen trees) to get to your swim (with all your gear), every bit of weight you can save from your pack is critical...I can’t use the baitrunner function anyway because of the heavy current...

Very nice Chris I may be calling sometime this summer for a reel seat with some custom specs...

I’ll be stocking up on some new carp gear in a couple weeks. Baitrunners are useless where I plan to fish this season...Looking to pick up a new Daiwa Big-pit reel, a few snag ears for the alarms and I should be set to fish the gnarliest waters the Niagara has to offer

Back in the day I remember watching an In-Fisherman segment on cooking suckers...The chef ground the meat and turned it into a burger. Never tried eating suckers myself. My neighbour (now passed) used to pickle and can them back in the 1940's.