Chris Purdy

Hi Loïc I think there may have been a translator tube failure somewhere Matt has been pretty busy putting together the prize packages and finishing all of the paperwork. There is a letter in the mail to you, that will give you the contact information for your prize package at Pinecrest. I would ask your indulgence for a few days - at least long enough for Canada Post to get the information to you. In the meantime, please feel free to give me a call - Andree will be happy to give you my number Chris Purdy President Muskies Canada Inc

Good Morning A while back, I responded to a post about the Lake Simcoe Muskie Restoration Project (LSMRP). In some of the ensuing replies, several OFNers indicated they would like to volunteer to assist OMNR biologists with the netting that is done to gather eggs for the stocking programme, and I promised to provide some information when it became available. I've now received the dates from Brad Allan who organizes the volunteers. The netting will take place from Monday, April 28th through to Friday, May 16th EXCLUDING weekends. If any OFNers would like to volunteer, please send an e-mail to Brad at: [email protected] and let him know the dates you could be available. I think it's a good indication of how much folks have enjoyed the work, and how much support this project has, that Brad has already warned us he will likely have more volunteers than he has days available, so sign up soon if you'd like to spend a day netting! Sorry about the short notice, but the timing all depends on water temperatures - tough to predict anything weather related this year! Chris Purdy President Muskies Canada Inc.

Hi Mike Just so you, and any other OFC folks are aware, anyone with an interest in Muskies Canada is always welcome to come out to a monthly meeting and see what the club is all about. You can find all the information you need about any of the Chapters through our website (www.muskiescanada.ca) as each of the Chapters has a webpage with meeting times, locations (with a google map link) and in some cases, specific information about the subject of any particular meeting. You can also find a list of the Chapter executive that includes a means of contact (e-mail or phone number). We try to encourage folks to let us know if you're going to attend so we can make sure we say hello and make some introductions if you'd like. Feel free to call ahead or just show up at a meeting. Unfortunately, it's still gonna be a while before we are out after our favourite fish. Chris Purdy President Muskies Canada Inc. [email protected]

.... and here I thought Ron was only a big trouble maker on the MCI forum

For those who are interested in helping out next spring: either Ron or I will post something a little closer to the time (Apr/May - depends on the weather). At the risk of sounding like I'm flogging the site, keep an eye on the MCI website (www.muskiescanada.ca) for more reports about the project as well as a heads up about volunteers next spring. While Ron captured the highlights of Jason's presentation, he barely scratched the surface. Had we all not kept quiet at one point, I'm sure the meeting would have lasted 4 hours - great to see the level of interest and enthusiasm that the project is generating. I was especially mindful of the questions that had been raised here regarding habitat in the Lake. Jason quickly allayed any concerns when he described a number of area's that were "excellent" habitat for the stocking that has been completed and for what is planned in the near future. Thanks to all who came out and congratulations to all of the folks who have worked so hard on this project. Chris

I'd like to start by saying "Thanks" to Ron for his post(s) on this thread - seems there was a need to do a better job of explaining where the Simcoe project was at, and how it got there. It's also great to see a few folks express an interest in helping with the project and I'm sure you'll be more than welcome next spring. As for the questions that have been raised about the condition of the lake habitat and its ability to sustain the fish that are being restored to Simcoe - I'm neither a biologist, nor am I personally familiar with the lake; however, I am pretty confident that the biologists who are guiding the project would not have undertaken the work if they had thought it wasn't a viable option. But don't take my word for it. This Wednesday evening (7 Nov '07), the Toronto Chapter of Muskies Canada Inc. will be hosting a presentation by Jason Borwick on the status of the project. Jason is the lead OMNR biologist on the LSMRP project. I have had the pleasure of hearing Jason do a couple of presentations over the past few years and he is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive, scientific knowledge of the project. I'm sure he would be in the best position to address the concerns that have been raised here about muskie habitat and the potential for the project to succeed. As always, the public is welcome to attend the meeting - who knows, it might be an opportunity for folks to learn about MCI as well. Timings, location, etc. for the meeting can be found on the website (www.muskiescanada.ca) and follow the link to the Toronto Chapter page. Chris

Though I have not been a member of this Forum, I do occasionally read the posts to stay in touch with what's happening in the Ontario fishing community. As the current President of Muskies Canada Inc. (MCI), I am also interested in those threads that involve our club; good and bad alike. Normally, I avoid comment on threads that are critical of MCI - everyone is entitled to their opinion and, unfortunately, not everyone is a fan of our club, despite our good intentions for improving and protecting the fishery that all muskie anglers benefit from. However, the post by Mr Thorpe cannot be ignored for the simple reason that it is blatantly inaccurate. The Lake Simcoe Muskie Restoration Project (LSMRP) is an initiative of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR) and MCI, to re-introduce muskie to a lake that was apparently an amazing fishery once upon a time. As Mr Thorpe correctly points out, MCI has raised tens of thousands of dollars through hundreds, if not thousands, of hours of volunteer work both in the form of fund raising and in direct hands on assistance to OMNR biologists. All of this money has been accounted for and any insinuation that money has been not been spent on the project is entirely untrue. As for the "wasteful" nature of the stocking efforts so far - that is a matter of opinion. It is true that previous years efforts have been disappointing. However, the lessons learned from those efforts have been a big part of the reason that this year's work has been such a success. Well over 1,000 "fingerlings" (some 8" to 10" in length) have been stocked into the lake so far, with more to come. Critical to this success has been the role played by Sir Sanford Fleming College. Without doubt the professionalism and dedication of the folks at the college has been a huge factor in the success of their breeding program. The aspersions cast upon their work and their motives is completely uncalled for. Mr Thorpe's tenure as President of Muskies Canada Inc, ended almost three years ago. His membership in the club ended shortly after that. Apparently, he no longer has a very high opinion of the club or it's work to preserve, protect and enhance the muskie fishery in Canada, but he would be well advised to get his facts straight before sharing his "opinion" in a public forum such as this. For those who are interested, I would invite you to visit the MCI website (www.muskiescanada.ca) and read about the project via the links and project updates on our home page. Chris Purdy President Muskies Canada Inc. [email protected]