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maker a laker

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Everything posted by maker a laker

  1. Cookes Bay off Rayners Pier in Keswick has 6-7 inch of solid ice, no pressure cracks or other issues found during walk out. Decent perch action with 75 in 3 hours, 25 keepers, 12 jumbos amongst them.
  2. Dave, In the Sutton River, in Polar Bear Provincial Park, the speckles go steel head and spend much of their time feeding in Hudson Bay. When they return to spawn in late August, they are green in colour compared to the red/orange natives who live in the river all year. Same could happen if the tributaries to Lake O had an excess of speckles and a shortage of food, forcing them into the lake to forage. I don't think that has happened in our lifetime with all the migration obstacles and damage to habitat. Stocking them into Lake O may be discouraged by their short life span compared to Lake Trout and Rainbows.
  3. Guys, I only use bait for ice fishing, but I see an issue. If I buy bait in one BMzone, the same zone I am using it for ice fishing, then take it back to my house in a different BMzone, keep it alive in an aquarium and use the survivors a week later in the same BMZ they were purchased in, am I violating the rules? If so, I have to waste my unused minnows from every trip I make to a BMZ that is different than my residence. That's a great idea! So the MNR has investigated the wholesale distribution of baitfish and ensured that bait wholesalers are not delivering minnows across the BMZ borders? Sellers in remote locations are likely also harvesters. That can be confirmed through the licensing data. Kind of defeats the purpose of the whole project if a retailer is getting minnows in one BMZ that were grown or harvested in another.
  4. Bobowski, You will see guys fishing all over Maple at a variety of depths. Deep 100 foot hole in the middle of the lake always has portable huts. Permanent huts are on the 35-40 reef off the north west end. On the north shore, guys fish off the parking area in 20 feet of water. Same for the south shore. I have caught wallys in 20ft and 50 ft of water. Lakers & Wallys hang around the reef. Watch for thin ice around the Gull River exit on the west end. Good luck.
  5. Guys, The research article paints a bleak picture, but involves one lake only. In 50 years of cleaning dozens of lakers, pike, walleyes & bass every year, I have never seen a fish I would call 'distressed' from a plastic bait. Cleaning a 12 pound laker from a stocked lake, I found 2 double tailed 4 inch long plastic grubs, along side a fresh 4 inch rock bass and my ice fishing minnow. Grubs were very old, partially decomposed, but clearly not stopping the fish from feeding & growing. Full length worms blocking the intestine are a different issue. Good luck with designing a plastic bait that does not decompose in warm water during the fishing period, but does breakdown in the stomach acid of a fish. Caught many a steam speckle with a snelled hook monofilament leader sticking out of its mouth. Give it a gentle tug and find that the steel hook is completely dissolved by the stomach acid and the leader removes issue free. Those fish clearly survived many months with a hook & line impairing feeding activities. The fish are tougher than we think. I have never found a dead fish floating on a lake, with a plastic lure blockage. I have found several dead fish that suffocated when they bridged a spiny backed bait fish across their gills while feeding. Just a bunch of observations on the issue.
  6. Simcoe ice off Keswick was 16-18 inches thick this past Saturday. Rayners road launch had 20-30 cars parked on the ice beside the peer. A bit of a hump at the end of the ramp, but ice was rough with thin snow for decent traction. Walked out about 1km, saw another 30-40 vehicles on the ice. Side by Sides, Corollas, Civics, Jeeps, SUVs of all kinds. No pressure cracks off the peer like last year to stop people. No snow drifts to bog you down, so lots of cars all over the place.
  7. Walked out 1km from Stanley House launch to the main basin by Burnt Island, last weekend. Ice was 8-9 in thick, solid and dark. According to NASA satelites, Lake Joe froze over Jan 20th. Good Luck, I have heard from veterans on the lake that results are poor and action slow so far this season.
  8. Guys, A few things to keep in mind: A 4HP 4 stroke will run 35-45 hours, so a 3-4 day fishing trip, on just 15l of high octane gas. Will a 20lb of propane tank that weights roughly the same, last that long? You can buy a 5lb bulk propane tank that weighs only 15 lbs full, that refills at any bulk location for 6-7$. This is 80% cheaper than 1lb bottles with zero refill risk issues Questions for Members Whats the fuel consumption and thrust like on a propane engine?? a 4HP 4 stroke will push a 16 ft aluminum canoe at 12km/hr so you can travel and troll a long way on a small amount of fuel If power & speed were similar on a propane unit, whats the weight saving?? 50lb for a 4HP 4 stroke gas engine If a 3-4 HP propane unit is 30lbs and runs a whole long weekend on a 5 lb cylinder, then you are talking some weight savings on both the engine and the fuel I look forward to some numbers for comparison.
  9. A few big pike to add to the collection. Some real beauties from various members.
  10. Lou, Lots of outfitters offer flyin housekeeping arrangements that are more affordable than full American Plan to outposts on lakes that have size and pike are the only sportfish. Check out Air Ivanhoe out of Foleyet. They have at least 2 large pike only lakes, Rush Lake & Rice Lake where they show guests with 20lb + pike all season. You make find that area a little less remote and less costly compared to Northwest. Kesagami out of Cochrane used to be famed for large pike. Lots of options for sure.
  11. Gull Lake, Minden area, Rackety trail launch 3.5 to 4.5 inches only. Water on top of ice with dangerous pressure cracks mid lake. Deep Bay barely frozen with lots of open water at creek entrance. Only 1" of snow cover on Gull so cold will thicken ice quickly. Tread with caution in many areas of lake still.
  12. Nice ones, especially the big guy. We've had a good start to the season with 13 in 2 mornings, but nothing that big. They are stuffing themselves on freshwater shrimp right now, see the fat ones below. Meat is red like a speckled trout or sockeye salmon. Very tasty. Good problem to have.
  13. Fished Fri-Sunday on North Pidgeon Lake, just south of Minden. South end was solid 5-6". Middle was only 3" thick when I stopped drilling holes. North end flooded between Sat AM and Sat PM, fully 1/2 the lake turned black with 1-2" of water on top of the ice. There was not that much rain Friday ,mostly wet snow, so there had to be a large amount of water coming up through pressure cracks, or creek runoff. Less than half the lake was fishable so ice conditions still not stable. More cold weather required at this point.
  14. A couple of perch pics to share. Never saw anything that fat from Simcoe last winter. 45 one day were typical of the set below. Over 5lbs of perch fillets, so many were 12-13". One guy showed us a 15" size perch, but never weighed it.
  15. Rizzo, Just fished the area last week, caught 5 lakers on a smaller stocked lake. 18" of solid ice still intact. Morning fish, sunrise for 2 hours was most productive in 50ft water. 3 smaller fish on live minnows, 8lb mono, small lead weights, just like the guys have already stated. 2 nicer fish on jigged blades, mepps Cyclops, using braid, with minnows hooked through the head to maximize retention on the lure. Other guys in the party left minnow lines out all day while they watched from the warmth of a firepit. Holes froze and snowed over every 45 mins. Minimal action the lazy way. I caught my fish from a shelter, where the holes are closely watched & do not freeze. Buddy caught a 4lb largemouth in 20ft of water. That's rare. Good luck.
  16. Guys, No issue walking out from Keswick park Sunday AM. Melt and rain from mid-week were solid on top of 18-20 inches of quality ice. Cold and breezy for sure. Hardly anyone on the ice compared to the week before, given all the huts were pulled on time. Boot traction strap ons necessary for sure. Lots of quality perch to be had as well.
  17. Gentlemen, Fished perch Saturday afternoon on Cooks Bay off Keswick. Non-stop action for 3-4 hours in 20ft of water. Many small ones, caught on small minnows, but jigs with medium minnows provided 12-15 keepers in the 10-13in range. Saw another angler with 2 perch in the 14-16" size, beauties. Most huts being removed that day, as 18" of ice was still solid for transport.
  18. Guys, Tried the salted emerald shiners from SAIL this past weekend. Added them to a Williams ice blade & various jigs. They stay on as well as fresh live minnows without the thrashing around. Stiff enough to hook through the head no shredding or tearing. I cut a few into small pieces to salt various drilled holes over night as well. Did not specifically help with catching fish though. I will try them again on different lures.
  19. Guys, I have seen this with pickerel as well. On a stringer out of the water and into the back of a station wagon for a 30 minute ride home, into the sink to soak off the slime while we catch the end of a hockey game with a beer. Sudden splash from the kitchen and the sink is full of live fish. Biologist buddy remarked that fish can absorb oxygen through their skin, so 19% oxygen in the air on their wet skin is almost as good as being submersed in water with ppm levels of O2. Provided their gills stay wet and their skin stays wet, they can revive even after 20-30 mins out of water.
  20. Guys, Catch lakers from May through Sept on open water, with lots of photos to compare colours over the years, you see a definite trend. In summer and fall fish are 50-65ft down in Northern Ontario lakes, they are almost black when they come up from the dark depths. After 15-30 mins on the stringer in Sept with 50F water, they change from coal black to light grey in colour. We keep our eaters and limit in a fish cage 10 feet down when water is 50F spring and fall. They live for 3-4 day trip. Black fish as caught are light grey when we clean them. They change shades/colours to match their surroundings over a period of 10-15 mins.
  21. Hello, Where did you get the dog harnesses for the sled? I have an 80lb Lab that could use the exercise when we go out on the ice.
  22. Guys, Also interested in the lake. Studying the bath charts you notice about 70% of the lake is very deep, suitable lake trout habitat. Had a detailed discussion with MNR staff at their sportsmans show booth about the park. Officer had spent time at the park so he knew many details. They rent boats & 20HP motors so there is a backup for transportation if you have a motor issue. I forgot to ask if they sell gas to park goers. I understand you have to make a phone call ahead to confirm space for camping, as opposed to standard on-line booking. Would be very interested if others know about camp crowding levels of other fisherman as opposed to canoeists launching down the river.
  23. Guys, Nice camp, decently maintained over the years, until the ice got the dock. Rocky beach is fine for daily launches of boats. Fish numbers noted above are real from my 4-5 week long trips there over the past decade. Watch for golden eagles when you go all the way upstream to the rapids. Bald eagles hang out downstream from the camp. Great place, I plan to book again in the next few years.
  24. I've been to several of the places noted above, but never caught multiple 20lbers. Try Air Ivanhoe website. Foleyet area 1 hr southwest of Timmins. They have Rice Lake and Rush Lake outposts on big lakes, exclusively pike. They are at the Sportsmans Show every year. Talked with guys at the show who had caught 2-3 20lb pike in the same week at those camps. Flyin, remote, much closer than Geraldton/Nakina area lower cost than many other options listed. Good Luck
  25. Check your regulations and open seasons. Speckles in the rivers usually close labour day weekend or Sept 15th latest. October may also be too late for salmon run. A buddy has done the trip twice, with success in mid August. Atlantics in the St Marys River were his interest, but also went north to Agawa, Sand & Montreal rivers. He spoke with the fly fishing/tackle shop guy right in SSMarie for advice.
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