Fishnwire

A Zara spook makes a distinct sound when its walking properly. If you learn the sound you can work it blind, no problem. I use topwaters all day long...they're not just for night-time, by any means. Have fun.

I use a flouro leader for just about everything other than big pike, which I use a steel leader for. I like to use a good quality barrel swivel to join the two foot leader of flouro to my braid, not a knot. I find its stonger (or at least as strong) and it really helps minimize line twist. I like to use flouro at about 150% of my braid strength. For example, if I'm using 8 lb Firewire I like 12 lb Seaguar. Hope that helps.

I don't like it either when posters feel the need to make a comment that adds absolutely nothing of value to the thread. I think in this case they offered what little advice they could. They could have been a little nicer about it, but saying you were "run down" might be being slightly oversensitive. I'm pretty sure the crack about your car never having any power to start with was meant as a friendly joke. Basically nobody could offer you any particularily useful advice, and that's that. Hopefully you won't stay away long. Cheers and tight lines.

I've used those sinkers and haven't had a problem. I think all for walleye (with a rig simular to your) and I can't remember whether or not I fought any bass with one on. They're made with that O ring like that so that they can come on and off without retying but I used to buy them made out of solid lead. Once you put it on it couldn't come off unless you broke or cut the line. Try to find some of those. They're more snag resistant than egg sinkers. I once caught a pike that would have been quite comfy in my fish tank. It too hit a minnow bait fully twice it's length.

I've been doing it almost all summer. When I have a night shift on the picket line, I borrow my Dad's caravan. It has no back seats and an air mattress just fits in there perfectly. The guys on the line usually take shifts having a nap in the middle of the night and its so comfy I always hate getting up. It'll get a little steamy in there, bring some paper towels or something to clear your windows. An air mattress is the way to go. Another poster suggested foam is warmer...I don't know about that but I do know a decent air mattress is more comfy and better on your back than any peice of foam. With the mattress in there, there won't be a lot of room left. You might not have anywhere to put your heater but if you have a half decent bag you might not need it this time of year.

So unless someone can guarantee that they leave absolutely no carbon footprint, they shouldn't even try to minimize the impact that they have? That makes no sense at all. That's called a "nirvana fallacy" and it's a completely backwards (that's the most diplomatic term I can think of) way of thinking. Just because perfection is not attainable, it doesn't mean that positive steps can't or shouldn't be taken to achieve a better outcome. It would be like if I pointed out that massive electoral fraud has just taken place in Afghanistan, and then suggested that the Canadian military has been completely ineffective in establishing democracy, and should all be called home tomorrow. (I'm NOT saying that...it's a parallel example) I'm fairly certain you would disagree with that, am I right, holdfast?

The closest camp to mine is about three KMs down river. It's owned by a guy named Omer who's about sixty, but in really good shape and still driving truck about 50 hours a week. His house is a lot closer to our camps than mine is, so when the shackles connecting the leaf springs to my trailer broke on the way home, I dropped it off in his yard. I asked if it was OK if I left it there and that I'd be back the next day or two to work on it. He said no problem. I called him today to see if it was OK for me to use his tools, or should I bring my own. "Oh that's all done," he says. "It's ready to go. I can drop it off if you want." Then he goes on to tell me he didn't like how it was put together and made a change or two...manufacturing the parts he needed from stock. "You should be able to beat the hell out of it now," was what I was told. Now what do you say about a guy like that? He's just an amazing person. I'm humbled to know the guy, because I realize that I'm selfish by comparison. I know someone who's getting the biggest bottle of the best Wiser's on the shelf.

Even if you don't mind breaking the law...trying to fish with two rods is probably just asking for trouble. The chance of losing an unattended rod or getting lines tangled is reason enough not to bother. If you can't catch fish with one rod having a second is not going to help you...you just need to learn how to fish.

I know there are black crappie in Ontario, but are there any white crappie? They're two different species. Also, aren't there two or three different species of catfish?

When I'm at camp I throw it in the wood stove. I have a bag of it at home for when I do it there. I bring it into the tackle shop for recycling every now and then, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if all the line they collect just ends up getting burnt somewhere eventually anyway. Could they really recycle a bunch of different makes and types of line back into something like monofiliment? You'd think the constituents of a product like that would have to be very closely controlled.

As has been pointed out several times...those denying climate change have much, much more at stake than those suggesting that a problem may exist. Follow the money. The money Al gore and his bong-water-brigade are making is insignificant to the trillions at stake by various powerful industry interests who want to maintain the status quo. If a doctor who was employed by the tobacco companies told you smoking is good for you, would you believe him? Just as the negative health effects of smoking are universally accepted today, so will the science behind man-made climate change be accepted tomorrow. The idea that some people continued to deny the problem will be laughable. I find it ironic that the same people who consider the idea of global warming to be nothing more of a "scare tactic" are often the same types of people who refuse to believe that the "war on terror" is being used as a one. This notion that attemptuing to address climate change can only result in "draining what's left of the taxpayer's disposable income" is wrong. For example, there are tax breaks available to home owners who make their houses more energy efficient. You add value to your home, save money heating it, and pay less taxes. That's all good. I certainly don't have a lot of answers about what should be done, and I'm guilty of contributing to the problem in my own way. I burn gas, use plastic, etc, etc, etc. However, I'm certainly not going to bury my head in the sand and pretend I don't see the problem just so I can sleep better at night, which is the only motivation I can think of that someone would have for agreeing with the oil companies.

That might be going a little far...a sense of humour is usually a good thing. However, I do find it a little surprising when I encounter people who still think there's not a problem or anything to worry about. I really have to laugh when others suggest that people trying to raise awareness of climate change are only doing so for their own economic self-interest...but are prepared to believe studies conducted by the oil and gas industry as fact. C'mon...who has a bigger ecomonic interests? The internation oil industry, or a bunch of "hippies" and Al Gore?

I've noticed this year and last that there seems to be a bit of a small mouth bass nursery in the shallow water under and around my dock. There are dozens if not hundreds of little (two inches or less) bass that I can see when the light is right and the water calm. Yes, I'm sure they're bass. I have two questions though: 1) Besides the juvenille smallies, there are several two pounders under that dock that instantly hammer whatever comes their way, with the exception of their younger brotheren. They seem to pay no attention to one another. I see the little ones right in the strike zone and the big ones leave them alone. What's up with that? It would make sense that they're genetically programmed to not be canibals, but how do they even recognize their own kind? 2) Is there anything I could do to make the "nursery" more desirable or effective. It's gravelly with few rocks, should I add a little structure or cover? Is there anything I could fed them, or provide them with that might increase their survival rate? Any theories? Thanks.

I read that the United States has more coal in the ground than the Middle East has oil. They have no plans to stop building coal-fired electric generating plants, and probably won't until they've burnt every ounce of the stuff. That probably won't help.

As happens every year around this time, the unbeleivable small-mouth bass fishing on River X (north of Sudbury) on which my camp is located, tapers off quickly. A couple of weeks ago I was catching fish between 16 and 20 inches pretty much every second or third cast. Along rocky and/or timber blown shorelines and weed edges they just hammered top-waters and soft plastic like they were starving. This weekend I probably saw two or three fish for every hundred casts...and the average size is a lot smaller. Now I know lots of guys will tell you that September-October is the best time of year to fish for big smallies, but I've had that camp for about five years, and every season, by September 1st, I have the hardest time finding fish on that river. There's not a lot of deep water to be found...there's one decent sized area where it gets to almost 30 feet but quite frankly, I don't know how to fish for bass that deep. What would I use? Heavy lead and tubes? Is that where they might be? Where else should I look for them and what presentations should I use? Do they suspend? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

I have to admit I didn't read the whole thread...that said, people who think they own public property because they happen to be standing near it at the time are way off base. If someone is standing so close to you that your lines become tangled in the normal course of fishing, that's one thing. However, some posters on this thread have suggested purposely casting your line at your neighbour's, thereby intentionally causing a tangle to send them a message. It would seem to me that purposely fouling another angler's line is a much, much bigger example of "poor fishing etiquette" than crowding others at popular public fishing areas could ever be. Basically, if there are two anglers, one minding his own business and the other trying to tangle lines...the second guy is clearly the bigger jerk of the two. No doubt about it. You want to see a crowd? Try smelt fishing during the spring run on the Magnetawan river, south of Sudbury. It's shoulder to shoulder with almost no room to work your net...and if you don't like it, your only other option is to stay home. Often times in this province, there are more anglers than there are desirable angling locations. Unless you own lake-front property, or are prepared to travel off the beaten path, sharing space is a part of angling.

Karma Dude...karma.

I bought an electric one years ago (it works OK) but I prefer the diamond file I have with a little crease down it's entire length that the hook rests in...works like a dream. If my hooks don't easily scratch my thumbnail I know it's time for a pass with the file. Sharpen a hook, catch two or three fish on it and test that hook...it will be noticeably duller and in need of a sharpening. When it comes to presentations like top-waters, anything less than sticky sharp hooks will mean less fish in the boat.

I remember when rattles inside crank baits first started to become popular. Only a few makes and models came with a rattle, but consumers (and fish too) seemed to love them, more and more manufacturers included rattles in their minnow-type crank baits. Everything from deep running plugs to top water cranks come with a rattle now...it's hard to buy a bait that doesn't have some kind of "clacker". Now, we all know fish definitely get conditioned...as fishing pressure increases, the fishes' aggressiveness towards presentations they're familiar with dwindles. I`m starting to wonder if fish aren`t getting conditioned to the sound of a rattling crank bait. If a fish has been caught two or three times on a crank bait, it almost certainly has heard the sound of a rattle at least once. If the fish associates the unusual sound with the experience of being caught and released, that rattle may as well be a fish warning alarm. Any thoughts?

"no one wants those anymore" means "we're all out of those, but we've got a lot full of something else which my boss wants me to push" in dealer-speak. The dealer thinks you're going to be swayed based on the "fact" that what you would prefer to purchase is considered unpopular amongst consumers. If 6 cylinders were unwanted, then the lot would be full of them, not 8s. I would have told the dealer, "I don't know about what other people want nowadays, but I want a six banger. Can you sell me one or should I look elsewhere?" A dealer at Toyota was trying to sell me a new car, when I asked about 2-4 year old used cars, he said, "I wouldn't even look at those...they're not safe, barely road-worthy." I asked him, "So if I buy a new Toyota off you today, it will be unsafe for the road in 2-4 years?" It was one of the few times I ever say a salseman speechless.

Take a good hard look at the Tacoma.

A couple of years back I bought a 4 pack of ratcheting tie-down straps from Costco. They were OK, lasting two seasons...I'd have preferred they lasted longer, but I allowed them to rub in a certain spot and eventually they broke where they were worn. It was pretty much my fault that they broke. I went to Costco to buy more, but they no longer carried the same (yellow) ones I had previously purchased. Instead were nearly identical (I believe made by the same company) red ones going by the name "monster" brand. I foolishly bought two packs that day. These things are total garbage. The ratchet part includes a little spring, required for the mechanism to work at all. This little spring is the diameter of a pin. It's obviously going to break...if you saw it you'd laugh. Not one of these things have made more than two round trips into camp and back. Did I mention that they are total garbage? I nearly dumped my quad off the front of my trailer when I was going downhill the other day and touched the brakes. Just by dumb luck the broken strap got hung up on the back of the trailer, otherwise, my bike would have slammed into the back of my Jeep, and then fallen to the ground, probably landing on it`s side or worse. I was alone in the middle of the bush and I would have had a heck of a time dealing with that. I`m just so angry with those %&$* straps! I`d return them but I lost a some of them when they broke, I don`t have the package they came in or the receipt, so I`m pretty much screwed there. DON`T BUY MONSTER BRAND STRAPS FROM COSTCO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Unless you enjoy owning useless garbage, because that`s what they are.

Buy the smallest bobber stops you can find, put the stop on, then a bead, then the float. The little stop will run through your eyes and onto the spool no problem...and the bead will prevent the stop from running through the float. I'm more into top waters and plastics now, but there was a time when I would almost always use a slip float set-up. Watching a float go down all afternoon is one of life's sweetest pleasures. Good luck.

You guys are all wrong. It's the little get-together that you and your friends have after you lose a favourite lure. Close friends gather to have a few drinks and remember the life and times of the missing lure. Unlike the lure's funeral, the lure's wake is intended to be a celebration of life, where food and drink are consumed in large ammounts and joyful memories of the recently departed are recounted.

I always assumed that any photos or info that I posted on Facebook was there for the whole world to see and that once posted, I'd have no control over who uses the content or in what capacity it is used. Anyone who thinks otherwise is being a little foolish. If you don't want the world seeing a certain picture...don't post it on Facebook, of all places.