adempsey

I use Trilene Big Game 20/24lb. It's cheap and effective. You want a stiff line to keep things straight and moving. I personally don't think fluorocarbon makes any difference with respect to "clarity", but you can probably use a lower pound test line, relative to mono, to get the stiffness you need.

I use a folded clevice because they are cheap and work just fine. If I want a different color I just change my harness. Besides, it gives me the option to make a ton of them!! Of course, I have so many now I haven't made any new ones in a long time. I think I've made a harness version of every single color of the Reef Runner minnow baits, including the special editions. Was a fun project.

If there was a noticeable difference, it would go against the laws of physics. Of course, I suppose differences between the tires, suspension and the centrifugal forces of the centre of mass from the truck might make some difference.

Thanks for the write up! Looks like an amazing place. Was always curious about North Caribou and truly enjoy the first hand reporting!

I have a young daughter and this is a current topic of conversation. Some of you may be able to relate, others probably not at all....... The video is hilarious though!

It's a boy! Lol. Lookin good! Probably should stop buying Starbucks and saving up for something like that myself. Can't beat a good Cafe Americano.

I used to use a Tite-Lok transducer mount but just couldn't stand it. It ALWAYS moved and was unnecessarily cumbersome. I did use the suction cup for a while, but it did come off occasionally and made me too paranoid to keep using it.

So, I recently took a piece of 1X3 and mounted the transducer to a 2' section. I actually have two portable sonars and did them both the same. I tested one of them briefly on Saturday and seems to be just fine. I didn't have an old hockey stick, otherwise I'd probably have used one. I am using a 4" C-Clamp that I picked up from Canadian Tire.

I am sure you can get cheap "truely" polarized glasses with 100% UV. The $20 sunglasses I bought at BPS seem just fine to me, although I cannot test to UV protection myself. You can test the polarization in the store by putting two pairs of sunglasses together at 90 degree angles, much like in that video with the monitor posted above.

The differences are going to be in the quality of the optics, not necessarily the polarization & protection. You will likely [hopefully] get increased clarity and better color with more expensive lenses. So, you have to gauge if that is important enough to spend 10x the $. For myself, it's not. However, I don't sight fish either. If I did, I'd probably invest in a better pair of shades.

I thought this was a reasonable article related to the discussion in this thread:

http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario_election/2014/06/10/how_to_choose_from_three_evils_at_election_time_cohn.html

The last few paragraphs of the article are the most important.

Also, to answer the original OPs question, I am still deciding and the campaign ads are pointless to me. Instead, I try my best to read and understand each platform as well as various "unbiased" editorials on them. I normally check out my local MPs as well, to see what they have to say beyond the party line.

Please vote. At the very least take a look at your local MPs and what they can offer you without worrying about the party leadership. Maybe that will help make a decision.

There will never be the perfect candidate, party or party leader. Besides, half the problems lie within the government itself and your vote has nothing to do with them whatsoever.

Looks like a fantastic spot! Thanks for the report.

I'd also say the fish eating guide and perhaps if the lake still has a reasonably sized natural population of trout in it. Maybe it's untrue, but I've always considered trout to be the canary of water bodies. Of course, many lakes don't have the required habitat that trout need so they were never there, but plenty do.

Regularly, I visit just a couple all season long. During Ice fishing I stalk three boards. Otherwise, I visit about 10 others on occasion - mostly US state fishing boards, like MI, MN and OH.

Seriously kids, the only way to really avoid getting eaten alive is by wearing a proper bug suit. Period.

 

People will smear all sorts of stuff over themselves trying to avoid bites, but nothing saves your hide like a lightweight mesh bug jacket. You can buy one for less than you would spend on Muskol and Afterbite over the course of a summer, it will last for years, and you simply won't get bit.

 

Every year I see guys trying some secret formula that someone told them about, or that they read about on the internet. And they get mauled. Just buy a suit and be done with it. Once you have a jacket, bugs no longer exist.

Well, I own a suit and still got bit through it. Guess I need a better suit?

I own this one:

Have you tried an oral anti-histamine, like Benadryl?

Apparently Burt's Bees makes a poison ivy soap that contains jewelweed.

My HB565 portable runs for about 40 hours off a 7AH 12V SLA AGM. I had to replace the original battery and purchased a 9Ah battery instead which gives an additional 10 hours. I actually had a lot of problems with the various 7Ah batteries/chargers that I bought. No problems when I switched to the Vexilar branded 9Ah battery/charger combo... so far.

The 12V AGM SLA battery is the ideal choice. However, if you need to, you can use 8 AA- or D-cells [or two 6V lantern batteries]. Might consider installing an inline fuse as well if it's not a portable unit. I can't say how risky it is without it, but the manual will indicate you need a 1A or 3A [or XA] fuse between the battery and the unit. For my soon to be portable sonar, I picked up an inline blade fuse holder and some 1A blade fuses from Canadian Tire for a few bucks each. I will hook that up to an AA battery pack and will be using rechargeable NiMH batteries. Haven't put it all together yet though. Of course, I may not even bother with the AA batteries because I am not sure it's even worth it just to save a couple of pounds.

I keep overseeding but the results have not been impressive. It's most likely due to the amount of shade or not watering enough, but I wanted to try different grass seed this year. Any suggestions? I've used several types of Scotts and CIL. Was thinking about using Pickseed.

The banned herbicides likely contain three compounds - 2-4D, MCPA and likely Dicamba (product names - Trimec Turf Herbicide, Trimec Bentgrass Formula, Triplet Selective, Triplet Hi-D, Triplet SF, Three-Way Selective, Bentgrass Selective, Ortho Weed B Gon, Spectracide, Weed Stop, Bayer Advanced Weed Killer for Lawns). There are plenty of different combinations, including those with MCPP and Triclopyr as well.

I've been lucky with the dandelions myself, but creeping charlie is a whole other story. Over the past two years it's taken over half my lawn!!!!! Might have to just destroy it with a broad spectrum compound and reseed. Not sure what else to do about it.

The nice thing about the Piranhamax units is most of them only draw 100mA, so your battery really lasts [some of the older ones draw <25mA]. So that makes switching to AA battery packs much more feasible. Sure, they are basic, but the only units I've seen that actually "find fish" are the high end units [unless you're in water over 40 feet deep], but maybe it's just me.

I looked around a bit today and saw the Lowrance X-4 Pro on clearance at Canadian Tire for $98. Walmart had the Garmin Echo 150 on clearance for $88. Walmart also had the Piranhamax 143 for $78 and the Piranhamax 165 portable for $149, which isn't too bad. No clue if those prices are at all locations.

The X-4 Pro draws 170mA of current without the backlight on, while the Echo 150 supposedly draws 600mA - according to Garmin support. The Garmin draw seems way too high to me for a black and white unit, but it's hard to find any reputable info about that online. So, without testing it, I would be apprehensive about using that unit as a portable unit. I may buy one and test it though.

For comparison, my Humminbird 565PT draws 200mA [although, in practice it looks like it draws closer to 150-160mA] and runs for 12 hours off of 8 Duracell NiMH AA batteries, 14 hours off of 8 Duracell Alkaline AA batteries, ~45 hours off of a 12V 7Ah SLA battery and 90 hours off 8 Duracell Alkaline D-cells.

I am actually looking around myself for an inexpensive model. Going the used route. I think the Humminbird Piranhamax series are a good choice for units around $125 and less. They draw low power, which is great if you want to use AA batteries instead of the larger SLA's. Other inexpensive alternatives are the Lowrance X-4 and X-4 Pro; and the Garmin Echo series. Not too sure about the Garmins, but the X-4 seems alright and it seems popular with the Kayak guys..

Check Radioworld, they have reasonable prices and a decent selection.

BTW you can make any sonar portable.

It only costs $30 per year for Photobucket Plus20 for "unlimited" bandwidth.

Although, you could also just up your own website, which you should be able to do for a similar price [or less] plus the domain registration fee of ~$10. Your own website would most likely have unlimited bandwidth as well.

Thanks. A few local stores carry those brands so I will check them out. I never knew Bogs even made anything but those brightly colored winter boots with flowers an butterflies on them. I bought a pair for my daughter last winter because they looked like they would be great winter boots [albeit, a bit on the heavy side as the now worn out sole demonstrates].

I really don't think you can treat those two things as equals. The app is nice, but it doesn't really compare to having the map in your GPS/sonar. At least in my experience [with my phone]. Also, I recently tried to run my installed app and it failed to work. Not sure what happened but I think an update to my Android OS messed it up and Navionics no longer supports that version. So, I had to buy it again. It was relatively inexpensive at $15 so I just re-purchased the new version. Annoying and not something I would normally tolerate, but it's cheap so I just sucked it up.

Also, you can always use the free online Navionics app to scout out lakes.

Looking for a new pair of waterproof boots for hiking/fishing in Spring, Summer and Fall.

Any recommendations for something in the $100 to $125 price range?

My last pair was a BPS brand (Red Head) and they fell apart fairly quickly. I did visit BPS last month, but couldn't find anything that I liked.

For reference, I do love my Baffin Titans that I use for ice fishing. They cost me $100.

My local stores are TSC, CT, Mark's Work Warehouse, MEC and Sportschek.

Thanks!

All my experience was at the south end in the summer. I doubt you need to venture down that far though. I almost went back there this year, but chose another place. It's a nice lake.

I have a compiled list of spots from who knows where...probably surfing the various forums....so I don't know how good it is. I never manage to get to most of the spots myself. Most probably aren't relevant for fishing in May anyway.

Joe's Island
Gil's Island
Schist Bay
Alligator Point (for pike)
Alligator Alley (for pike)
Rapala Island (W and S of for pike)
+Rapala Island (N of and along E coast)
+Burnt Island (W and N shoreline)
Sandy's Rock (S point weeds for pike)
No Fish Bay (N of)
Melanie's Bay
Beaver Bay
Elmer's Island (S side)
Davey's Bay (back of)

Boot Bay
+Poplar Point
+Poplar Point (Isle N for pike)
+Heather's Bay (weeds for pike)
Breezway Islands ("Sharkback" hump near)

Hiawatha Gold Mind (Rock Pile off of)
Birch Island (NE of)
Kaby Lodge (point N of with large rock)
+Windy Point (shoreline all around)
+Fern's Bay
+Picard's Point (west shore)
+Carlson's Bay (weeds for pike)
+Little Kaby Bay (weeds)
+5 Mile Bay (for pike)
Little Kaby River (go into river for Perch)

Whitefish Bay (Ermine creek outlet for pike)
Whitefish Bay (weeds and rocks off of point)

Have a good trip!

You probably already have one, but here is a map (not to be used for navigation!):

 

 

Rennie and his wife have sold Muskie Bay resort, and resort is under new ownership

That's too bad. I always liked them. My last visit was in 2011 [or 2012, I forget]. Hopefully the new owners keep the camp up to the same standards.