icefisherman

Hey Don, you can email me for more specific info on lakers as I just came back from Temagami last week. But they are there and waiting for your presentation Bud. Lots of them too and good sizes.... Get a downrigger though,...you'll need it as they are 80-85' down and you need to be in 95-115 fow...deeper than that doesn't work. Blue and silver is the name of the game. Jim( at Dad's is great guy and will give you good up to date info) but at this point I can do the same for you Hundreds of vehicles are parked at the end of the access road so no problem there as it has huge parking lots. I'd sugges towing your boat to there launch there and go North to Racoon point area......lakers are waiting there ;-))) Even more of them if you go into Rocky inlet. I've got the maps and if you want to stop by I can let you use them for your trip.... Cheers, Ice Fisherman

And here is my reply to Bill again on the "other forum you are quoting"...very strange you didn't see it there while copy/pasting Bill thank you for passing my comments and posting the response. I've started checking the weather forecast about 24 hours ahead of my trip and up to 5 min before leaving the house at 3am: Here is who said what at that time. Sorry I can not copy/paste and post their predictions at the time: www.sailflow.com said 4-5 knots North wind in the morning going to 7-8 knots in the afternoon www.theweathernetwork.com said 15km North wind but changed it to 20km North wind all day www.accuweather.com said 4-5km North wind early in the day going to 17km North in the afternoon www.windguru.cz said 4 knots in the morning to 7-8 knots in the afternoon from the North Again all sites I've checked said wind will be way less than 20 Knots. First time I've heard "20 knots" was after we got to the spot, 15 miles from shore and turned on the VHF. If I knew of winds of 20 knots before leaving I would have neve been anywhere close to the water that day. Cheers, Ice Fisherman Cheers, Ice Fisherman'

Joe, instead of another lengthy reply I'd just say we obviously don't agree with you on people/services being responsible for their actions. On the stock market people make predictions every day...rarely they are wrong by 400%...and when they are wrong even by few % someone ALWAYS is responsible and pays dearly. So your Hwy example is out of place here. Again I make judgement call all the time, but want to make them based on true initial data not a wrong one. As far as my son ....I can assure you he'll be coming with me every time I think is safe. And if things change I (and noone else quarterbacking me) will make the decision of what is the safest for him and me. Enough said...I guess I am a bit diasppointed that you didn't (or didn't want to) understand my initial point, but hey life goes on;-) I've got my conclusion of the whole situation and will NOT rely on weather forecast ever! If you, I or anyone else makes such darastic mistakes ALL THE TIME in their job I guarantee you, we will not last in your job more then 5 min. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

That must have been him Nemo. It was small boat and yes there was dog in it too. We spoke briefly and he told me he has found the fish same place I was fishing them in the water column. I released the fish but kept the tag in my wallet and will be reporting it later today. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Hi Joe, this is what is so good about this forum. It stimulates discussion by all and I love it. I am afraid you may have misunderstood my original point.... I would fully agree with you IF the weather man called for bad weather/high winds/waves and I took my passengers out. Then it would have been fully my fault. BUT...and it is a HUGE BUT Joe, They(all of them and I always check them all before leaving many times) called for winds 4-5 TIMES LESS then what we encountered shortly AFTER we got to the spot (20+ km from shore). NOW....it was my responsibility to make the call....should we stay there in 20 knots winds and hope they will decrease (as per forecast) or should we start heading back immediately in those same winds... My logic was this: We were already that far from shore...winds likely will not get worse then 20 knots based on the sky and what we kept hearing on the radio...so I've decided instead of heading back right away and battling those waves to stay tight and fish until waves decrease....they did decrease somewhat in few hours...still way more than original forecast but somewhat less than 6-7 feet we started with. So it was a judgment call and this is how I made it...I thought and still think under the actual condition, distance from shore, my experience and boat quality (mind you much better than my old boat last year) it is better to stay and wait for better winds before heading back on such long ride. BUT.......this is just to answer your comments about my judgment...this is NOT the original point I tried to make. The original point was how SUPER WRONG TIME AFTER TIME AFTER TIME are the weathermen ALL THE TIME!!! They MUST be held responsible somehow as millions of people make decisions and rely on their forecast just to find out themselves in situations MUCH worse than originally called for. Maybe we should start a new post...but this is what I was trying to do - to provoke people’s opinions ON THE WEATHERMEN AND THEIR PERMANENTLY WRONG FORECASTS. People (all people not just me) put their lives on line all the time by trusting forecast that are WRONG 80+% of the time...and I know if from experience. It is NOT my fault that I've been checking forecast for 24 hours before leaving and up to 2 min before leaving my house and forecast was always calling for NICE CALM day...based on that forecast I took my passengers on what was predicted to be NICE CALM DAY... I didn't take them few days earlier when weathermen called for BAD WINDY DAY...I took them when conditions for Erie were predicted to be NEAR PERFECT for taking inexperienced passangers. So to conclude Joe, No I refuse accepting any blame for basing my decision on the officially published forecast on so many web sites. I though their sole purpose is to help people make right decisions based on the TRUE information ahead of time. And sorry but we all work...and while working NOONE is allowed to make CONTINUOSLY ALL THE TIME...such HUGE mistakes by 400-500% ALL THE TIME and get away wwith it ALL THE TIME while ENDANGARING THE LIVES OF OTHERS. Sorry but this is how I read the purpose of the weather service. To provide me with the tools so I can make the right decision. When they provide me with the WRONG tools ALL THE TIME it is my right to ask them to take full responsibility. And mind you........some of those guys are sponsored/paid for by tax dollars. As EVERYONE else is responsible for their work performance weathermen are NOT IMUNE from responsibility themselves!!! Anyhow...just wanted to make the differentiation between the intent of my original post and what you thought was my responsibility. Again appreciate all comments on the subject as it is one I am very interested in and one that affects me all the time. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

You've got it Nemo, the bass (and few other Bass) were caught on the riggers while trolling for lakers. I think I may have talked to your Buddy if he has a kid or two with him in a smaller boat? This year I got one more laker with tag by the MNR on it...the guy wasn;'t there when we were leaving on Saturday so I'll be emailing him the info. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Scuro, every year I find lakers in Opeongo (those that are hungry) in the top 20-25 feet despite what everyone else may want you to believe. Most people think lakers are desp right now, and they are..BUT...those that are deep are of no interest to you anyways as they are just sitting there relaxing enjoying the view on the bottom, what ever lasy fish do ;-) The ones you should be interested in are those that go up in the water column to actively search for food. Those I was catching day in and day out.... One other thing that I found works great for me and most locals will not believe it ;-)...all of them are using those long lines with many spoons one after another...not sure what they are called but CT sales them...I go different way...just go and buy couple meps of Vinbrax lures in chartuse #3 and #4 and you are set.....cheap...and very successful. Always works and locals can not understand how come I get lakers next to them and they do not Hope this helps, Cheers, Ice Fisherman

I wander - anyone ever sued the weather service? Now Seriously.... I've just about had enough of their total luck of any weather knowledge whatsoever...zip,zilch, nill... They called anywhere from for 4 to 7 kms in the morning to 7 knots late in the day...different sites about the same forecast for the wind...checked right before leaving home this morning at 3am...no change....so here we go...launched at Port Bruce after wandering where to park even though I was the first and only boat there at about 5:20...left the channel with flash light...no problems...30 mph heading 210 to 65fow...as soon as we got there....turn the VHF on and guess what...all stations calling for 20 KNOTS (!!!) North wind...and we can see it hauling at us as soon as we stop, white caps all over...from there on...from bad to worse to super worst as far as the weather was concerned...at times we've had to fight waves pounding at us that were higher than myself...was wandering which one will dump tons of water in the boat and is it going to be from the site or from the back...even at full throttle my High Thrust 9.9 Yamaha was having troubles turning the boat to the left to head into the waves (had to fire the main motor at times as well) and into the waves was the only direction we can get hits...and we did get number of hits...lost few and boated 5 eyes...one was real hog. Due to the terrible weather and not very experienced crew members I've lost my nice salmon net into the lake...was ready to cry at that point...Now I am in the market for another one if someone has good used one for sale...the one I had and want was rubberized large size with extension handle... by 9:30 bite died off and we were still trying to stay in the boat hitting arms, legs and into each other...what a nightmare...tried for another hour and a half and decided we've had enough punishment for the rest of the year and after getting 3 shippies and one perch called the day... On the way back heard of a guy who run out of gas 6.3 miles from Bruce, told him we'll tow him despite the weather as I still remember how no one answered my call for help last September when me and my son had to stay 27km from shore all night...anyhow what a day to run out of gas...took us a while to reach him as we were way out there...and by the time we got to him another much larger boat just hooked him and started towing him back to port... After making sure everything is OK with the tow we continued to port as well. SLOW...ride back...40 min in the morning turned into 2 hours and 20 min on the way back...waves were crushing into my boat no matter which direction I try and we were all wet...got to the launch finally to find out one of my rivets popped out. It was the highest one of the three vertical ones...good for us it was not a bottom one...may have taken much deeper bath then.... Spoke to some nice folks at the launch and they told me about Proctors and Ron Bankes Marine,....called Proctors but they didn't want to serve me right the way on my way home though it would have taken them just few minutes.. I insisted to get home with my great boat all fixed up....so called Ron Banks and he told me to stop by....it took them only 15 min and my boat is again like new, even the rivet’s head is painted the right color now. What great service on super short notice. Anyhow...I am sitting at home now...and thinking about today...a friend and my 3 year old son were in the boat........both very inexperienced and especially in such conditions...how can people rely and count on weather forecast that are so WRONG...not by couple km...but 400-500%!?!?!?!?!?!?!? This could have easily cost people's lives today... ALL weather guys MUST be fired right this minute...their so far off target forecasts are so absolutely appalling it's not even funny anymore! Anyhow...after all the beating my boat took today...I feel I can trust it even in worse conditions (not that I'll try to be in such again)...what a good purchase I've made last November... Here is what we've got for all our troubles...finally I've managed to catch some eyes on Erie even though it did cost me a lot and could have cost me even more.... At the end....my best advice to all you guys- NEVER trust the weather man ever!!! Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Those were the Moose track Leechman, right at our site on the beach. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Sorry guys, yes it is a BIG BASS on Opeongo. No sheapheads in Opengo Mike;-) My son had hard time holding it for me to take the shot with the right angle and it turned a bit dark...but it is Bass nevertheless. And that last picture and the rainbow one are my two favorites as well. Glad you liked them. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Well I am back from my annual camping/fishing trip up North. As usual tons of great time – this time we were three generations in the tent...great fishing both in Temagami and in Algonquin, the best weather so far this summer and memories for a life time... Here are few of those photo memories for your viewing pleasure: First some Temagami shots. It was nice seeing you again Wayne and Dan! Bit rainy the first couple days but that didn’t slow us down on the fishing front: Weather got better, fishing did so as well... What a beauty shot: Our home for the trip – great tent, the best I’ve seen...not a drop of water inside and very compy third year and counting... Here is the record for the trip laker. Not as big as last years 19Lbs 15 Onz but close as 11Lbs 7 Ozs And here is a nice visitor, not too camera shy: We were lucky enough this year to see: black bear (leaving Temagami on the Access road), muse, snakes, fox, deer with two baby deers, loonies, etc. After 6 days in Temagami onto the next leg – Algonquin park, Lake Opeongo: Our own private sandy beach with my fishing machine docked on it: Got visitor during the night: Few shots from our day trip to Proulx lake: Some great Opengo fishing shots. Lakers and bass were waiting for us as usual: Quality family time around the fire: And another beauty shot for finale: All in All great time was had by all! Trying to get back to speed on what is biting where but seems like couple Erie trips are in order as those eyes there have been hiding from me this summer and we ned to change that;-) Cheers and hope you liked the photo show! Ice Fisherman

Well here is the result of today adventure with my son and dad. 300+ fow, 30' -40' down, dark colors spoons, 2.8-3.0 mph I think when is was all done we were like 15 for 22 for about 3-4 hours of fishing. 5 Kings the rest Bows….from 5 to 18 Lbs. The ones on the picture were the selected few for the neighborhood BBQ party tonight. Keep hearing on the radio most guys complaining of not getting any or getting one or two....not the case for us today... Now that we did have good action today, it's time to start packing for the anual trip up North... Wayneeeeeeeeeee.......tell those Temagami and Algonquin lakers to get ready for us...we'll pay them a visit later this week Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Well Mike, nice report and great pictures...should have PM-ed me to tell you where the fish are But hey, how come Wayne got you this nice Lund hat and mine is nowhere to be seen?!? Must have got lost in the mail, right? ha ha ha Leaving the house rigtht now going to find those fish where I left them few days ago;-) report coming later today Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Just checked the batteries....it says on them (they are identical): Group 27M 575 CCA 180 RC 27524 Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Few great ideas...thank you all. I have just bought a small inverter (75W)...not sure if it can handle connecting my Canadian Tire battery charger to it??? It is an automatic charger with separate button for deep cycle/regular batteries and it has 2/12/75A positions. Stopping somewhere to charge them is not a bad idea but will eat 3-4 hours from my "transfer between locations" day. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Well, I'll be using my two electric downriggers and maybe the electric trolling motor (rarely and not for long). Downriggers and electric trolling motor are all connected to one battery that gets charged while trolling. Most everything else is connected to the main motor battery that gets charged when running the main motor. I've been using downriggers all the time (never used the electric trolling motor yet) and all the instruments, live wells etc. and have never had much discharge on either battery so far...normally fully charge my batteries once a month or so if that. Just don't know how much the trolling motor will change the situation but again I will not be using it too often if at all. Batteries are few years old, Sears Die Hard deep cycle. They seem to be in great shape. Not sure how m,any amp hours are they...have to check on that one. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

I'm getting ready for 21 days trip starting next week. I'll have both my deep cycle batteries fully charged when I leave home. Will do 6-7 days Temagami followed by 2 weeks Algonquin. Issue is how to charge my batteries in between. I am sure they'll last me for the first week in Temagami. Can I connect one by one both batteries to my SUV for charging while traveling between Temagami and Algonquin? I guess the other alternative is to stop by and charge them at Wayne's place on the way out of Temagami Or will they last the whole 3 weeks and I shouldn't worry too mych? Each battery is connected to its own motor and should be getting charged while using the main motor or while trolling with the kicker. Appreciate any and all opinions from the experts. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Well after reading few reports from the Blue Zone today and keep reading about if for few years I've decided to make a run to it this afternoon. It took me about 25 min to 320 fow, dropped rods down and trolled to 341 and then back to 280...lots of good hits...lost track at some point but must have been 8 for 14 or so. Mostly bows but 3-4 Kings as well. Anywhere from 3-4 Lbs to 14 Lbs. No time for pictures as rods kept me busy all the time for the three hours we were there...didn't get chance to sit much ;D Most hits on leadcore (6 colors) and riggers 35' down. Tried flies - nothing.....all hits on spoons...black/purple did the most damage...at one point I've lost the treble together with the ring but saved the lure itself...put new hook and got 4 more fish on it. Watermelon got some hits, blue/silver/white did as well...and black and silver did good too. Speed 2.7-2.8 mph Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Sorry, doble post..... Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Hey Marko, thanks for the company and great pictures, sory we didn't get more eyes in the boat but hey....weather was not with us today for sure. Any time you want to go out, we'll do it again Bud. Glad my boat had it's first real life 5-6 feet waves test and passed it with flying colors. Took us an hour or so to go back to port with 7-8 mph max speed...not to mention the free shower we all got ha ha ha. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

He sure does So, no one knows where the walleye are hiding on Temagami?!? C'mon guys I can tell you where the eyes are hiding on Erie or Salmon between Bronte and Port Credit ;-) Cheers, Ice Fisherman

And this was the summer the weatherman was calling to be the "driest/hottest summer on record", same weatherman was calling last fall for the "driest/coldest winter on record". and we all know the three meters of snow on both sides of my driveway last winter. This just tells you how the so called "global warming crowd" has NO IDEA about what the weather is going to be, and all their talk is full of political crap!!! All I am hoping is all this rain runs out before second week in August. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Well guys, it is almost that time of the year again. Couple more weeks and we'll be on our way to Temagami/Algonquin with three generation in the boat/car. Algonquin is clear, Temagami's Bass and lakers as well, BUT how to catch some Temagami eyes is what I'd like to know about. Could not get any last August but sure hope to get some now. We'll be there second week of August and then back to Algonquin for the rest of the month. I'll have the boat with all trolling gear in it. Plannin to camp around Racoon Point (strategic place with easy access to all three parts of the lake). Hope someone can share some of their secret eyes catching strategies;-) Feel free to PM me. Can also exchange for salmon catching info on Lake O. And Wayne, I know you may not read this right away but I'll call you right before we leave. I'll make sure we stop at your place on the way to our spot. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Brian, Bass Pro has the kit - about $70 or so. But I told you about the place in Milton, go there and I am sure they'll be cheaper and will have good quality compared to PA. Cheers, Ice Fisherman

Brian I am considering tomorrow morning even though the weather man predicts much worse weather than today....but hey who says the weather man knows anything about weather?!!? My neighbour has been buggin me for ever to take him out and he wants to go even if it rains....but we'll decide later today as it looks like it is getting cooler here already. Fish were biting good last few days was hoping for stable weather but doesn't look like we'll be getting it...So if you come this way, you know where to find me. Cheers, Ice Fisherman