FishFinder17

Where I fish in the Muskoka area I would argue the bass have been larger and in higher numbers than I have seen before. Between myself and friends we have pulled out four 20"+ fish ranging from 3.5-5.5lbs since season opener...something I haven't seen before by this point in the year but it's pretty exciting. Could be luck or as others have said, an "unscientific opinion" but so far it's been a good bass season where I fish. All c&r so far but I think I'll have to do a fry soon

Thanks for the tips guys. I may change the route a bit based on your advice. I'm thinking we might spend a night on big island, then next day head through gannons narrows and spend a night tied up to one if the islands just outside the narrows. From there we can head up to Buckhorn or just stay in that area. I'm hearing the muskie fishing on pigeon/buckhorn will be best...

Does anyone know of any good spots for a houseboat to tie up/anchor overnight? Looking for places on Buckhorn/Pigeon/Sturgeon. Would also love to know the locations of any sandbars on those three lakes. Appreciate any help. Thanks in advance. FF17

Very first thing I would do is purchase Equifax credit monitoring. They will notify you if anyone makes a credit application in your name to confirm it is you. If it is your employers fault, have them cover the Equifax cost. If I were in your position I would do this immediately. Criminals move fast...

I was in a pinch and needed to drill a hole in the storage bin of my tracker to run some wire. It was through aluminum and it ended up working. I started the hole with a self tapping screw so the threaded tip of the bit would stay in one place. There's probably a better bit for the job, but in my case I had already made 37 trips to Home Depot for this project and didn't feel like making another one...

I primarily fish for pike and always use 100lb leader. Had a 10lb pike break a 65lb leader last summer. Better to be safe than sorry!

Well I got back from Balsam yesterday and the boys had a great trip. Friday afternoon/evening was beautiful as was Saturday with sunny 16C and calm 10km/h winds out of the NE. Sunday wasn't as pleasant as the winds picked up and dropped some rain on us. We launched Friday around 5pm and fished the East/Northeast side of the lake. We had a bass and pike follow in our first few casts so we felt good about our chances. Weather was great and water temp was hovering around 50F. We fished until sunset with a few more pike follows but no luck...to be honest it just felt great to be on the water fishing so the boys went back to the resort happy. We started up Saturday morning and headed to the West bay near the river to the south. Most of this bay was 3-5 FOW and aside from a few turtles we didn't see anything in the water. The whole morning was really slow and the boys were getting a little discouraged so we headed down to the south bay in between two points and dropped the lines in. We started very close to shore in about 3 FOW and let the wind carry us out. When we got into 8-10 FOW I had one of my double 10s get smashed by a huge smallmouth! This thing was easily 6lbs but since bass are still closed we quickly released and moved on. Less than 5 mins later in the same spot I hear my one buddy go "YUP!" and he's got a fish on. We scramble for the net and he pulls in a nice 31" pike (see pic)...exactly what we were looking for! We get that one back in the water and another 5 mins passes before another guy pulls in a 4lb largemouth...unhooked and quickly back in the water he goes... We took a break for lunch feeling a little more optimistic for the afternoon. After refueling we headed back to the boat and ran into a few locals who suggested we try out the canal running towards Cameron lake. We decided to give it a shot and I pulled in another big bass and a few minutes later a 26" pike who hit my slop master spinner not far from the locks. That was it for Saturday and we called it a day just in time to learn that the leafs had landed the 1st overall pick in the NHL draft! (not a bad day...) The boys were feeling a little foggy on sunday morning and looking outside to see rain wasn't motivating us so we got back on the water by about 9am. It was windy and pouring rain so we only lasted a few hours and headed back to the resort around noon, packed up the boat and headed back to the city...our next scheduled trip is pike opener in Muskoka on the May long weekend...only a few more weekends and we are back at it!

Really cool video, thanks for sharing. What did you use to film this?

Thanks again for all the help guys. Itinerary is set. We are heading to balsam on Friday at noon and staying in a townhouse at one of the resorts on the lake. Forecast is looking good, I'll be sure to post a report when I get home. FF17

I'm not expert on this stuff but I had issues with my Powerdrive V2 foot pedal last season. Took it to a licensed minn kota repair guy two weeks ago and he took my old one and handed me a brand new one in a bag...simple as that but perhaps that's because mine is less than a year old and under warranty?.. good luck finding a solve

Thanks guys, It looks like we are going to go with Balsam. Since it's so early and none of the resorts/campgrounds are open we may be lucky to find a sport at the balsam resort. Would be nice to not have to pull the boat out each night. Mitchell scares be a bit given I have never been on the lake and the depth has me worried (I also just replaced the prop on my boat and don't want to have to do it again after my first trip of the season!) Also, a big thanks to Hank Jr. who has been extremely helpful with info on Balsam.

Thanks Rizzo..what is Mitchell like depth wise? I read that its very shallow with lots of hazards. Something to consider or no?

I'm thinking we might do balsam since I can't find any camping space on the other two. Likely going to book a cabin at shorlea cottage resort...anyone heard of it?

Based on the fact that I have a 16ft tracker with a 30hp maybe mitchell would be a good idea (because of it's size....)?

Thanks Garnet. Would you suggest not fishing it while it is drawn down? We're thinking last weekend in April - do you know if the dam will be out by then? Thanks FF17

Thanks Chris. Yes I am towing a boat so would need somewhere to launch and either beach/tie up at night. And you nailed it, its an excuse to get the boat in the water...but would love to boat a few pike in the process. I'll shoot you a PM if I don't have any better options. Thanks for your help

I typically fish Zone 15 where pike doesn't open until the end of May but I just don't think I can wait that long. I target a lot of pike with my fishing buds and we would like to get a trip in towards the end of April/Early May... I've been doing some reading and it seems that pike have made their way into Canal/Mitchell/Balsam (Zone 17) where pike is open all year. I know this is a bit of a heated topic for the hardcore muskie fisherman but hoping we can steer clear of that discussion. Since I've never fished these lakes I'm wondering which of the three might be our best bet? Also, we would like to spend a night so if anyone knows of a good camping spot it would be a huge help. I've checked the crown land atlas but didn't find much... A lot of questions, I know..but I'm just trying to do my research to avoid wasting the boys' time, and this forum is always my best source of information. Thanks in advance for the help. FF17

saw my barber yesterday. He brought up this story because he also cuts the guys hair who was dating one of the girls who passed away in this tragic accident. Said they had been together for 10 years and recently had an argument. They both agreed to patch it up when she got home from the cottage... So so tragic I cant even put it into words. My thoughts are with all those affected by this.

hahahahahahahahah that made me laugh!

Awesome pics, a 300 pike day is a dream! What exactly is that in the pike's stomach from your first post?

Really cool video, thanks for sharing. Getting those hooks out doesn't look easy!

Thanks Capt I'll make sure we get some good hours in on pigeon. It's my usual destination when I head to the kawarthas so hoping that helps. Thanks Old Ironmaker...would you have an estimate of how long it might take us to get there from pigeon (on a houseboat...)? Thanks FF17

Again, thanks for all of the great tips guys. I think Big (Boyd) island will be destination for sure. And just to reiterate, we may be a bunch of hooligans but we are responsible and respect the water/law. We have created a schedule of drivers and whoever is behind the wheel will be completely sober. I really appreciate all of the help here. I'm fairly new to the forum and I'm amazed at how helpful everyone has been. Based on your advice I'm thinking we will avoid spending the night at the locks and find somewhere to anchor or tie up to shore. Still not sure if I should head east through buckhorn or west through bobcayegon though....Where are the bigger Muskie? (million dollar question) Thanks again all, truly appreciate all of the help (I'll make sure to post some pics after the trip!). FF17

Thanks Tom, I like the idea of using the houseboat as base camp. We probably won't spend any full days fishing since it's only a few of us that are into it but definitely will start each day in the tracker . How concerned should I be about hazards/rocks heading out to the east? I know how to navigate a lake but I don't want to put any pressure on some of the less experienced guys who will likely do some driving. And thanks for the heads up on Pigeon winds. I had the tracker out there last September and it was not a fun ride once the winds picked up. Scared the hell out of my buddy lol! Again, thanks all for the help! FF17

Thanks Rick. I'm not dead set on heading west and I do see your point on sturgeon being a long and slow drive (I have to remember that these houseboats don't move quick!) If you say the east has better fishing then I will definitely take a look and see if that makes more sense. As for the booze, I'm going to be very strict with the boys on that one. I've been boating my whole life and I know the old "water on the water, beer on the pier" lesson. We will always have a sober driver or else the anchor stays on the bottom! Really appreciate all of the help and input. We will have an even better trip with all of the tips you guys have provided. FF17