Moosebunk

Ahhh both girls moved on from YIG a couple years back now. They actually have a terrible reputation for how they treat their young staff. Both are happier in new jobs now. And, that kinda deet sounds like it could be face melting, clothes disintegrating kinda stuff. lol. I'll know where to look if I need some of your nuclear power stuff Smitty! lol.. Happy holidays bud!

I'll begin vaccinating those who choose to receive Moderna next month. It should be interesting, there may just be the opportunity to vaccinate Canada's entire most northern community, myself. Being that individuals can accept or decline, I'll respect anyone's choice when I offer it. Hopefully, people are beyond Facebook educated by then and best able to control their opinions and just respectfully take the shot in the arm, or not.

There is no question that the year has been difficult. Everyday we wake up and face life a little differently than we did before, and that is surely a stress for many... No matter where each person stands in their beliefs to Covid, also be aware of another contagion which seemingly troubles more and more people. It is called intolerance. It is an illness born in moments of stress, anxiety, fear, helplessness or hopelessness, and is often one's self-defence in their attempts to ward off personal despair or misunderstanding. We can honestly say that many days this past year have bothered us all, considering this moving forward, we just might find a better acceptance and some easier answers if we remain empathetic for each other. Best wishes for a happy and hopeful, healthy holiday season. Worry less in the moment about how much to give or how many to give to, and take on the Christmas spirit of simply giving and sharing the best of what you can and who you are.

What Lew said. And what Laz says, is that "nothing is more valuable than time spent on the water." Clive can show ya the ropes, he's got talents, but you're off and running now so good job! First fall season, 2009, seven outings, 38 hours, Ottawa River only, one small fish. 2010, ten outings, 6 fish and first 40 incher. 2011, four outings, Ottawa River, no fish. 2012 went to St. Clair first time, easiest muskie fishing anywhere, 3 days and 15 muskies with 8 more missed. Some things I've learned... well, it's coming in a BIG report soon but stick with Clair to build confidence and no, you don't need a tonne of lures, just a few of the right things for the few styles you'll likely fish in the places you fish them

You must have dug into one of the other fall reports to get the eels in mind. Those are creatures I'd be happy to forget. lol. 2020 was OK for fishing. About the usual average number of days spent on the water but certainly less char, laker and gar days, bit more speck, muskie and pike. Favorite fish of the year was a PB splake. Your reward one day on GBay will likely be so incredible it'll have everyone fishing Clair and Larry stretching their arms out even further in their pics. Thanks gentlemen!

Bud, I'd never seen it so bad either. My mechanic tells me the diagnostic had no concerns, the motor ran like a top until surprising me one afternoon. Just left wondering how long that seal had to leak to pollute the oil to that state? Thank you sir Lew. You come out of retirement, lemme know! Thanks bud!

Finished the 2020 fishing season at home mostly isolating and sick with "muskie fever!" September & October generally make up my year for big ski opportunities and I certainly look forward to each fall for any and every chance at chasing them. Building on past experiences, researching, experimenting, persistence and keeping up your confidence are many of the things one needs to do in order to improve with any species, but muskies certainly take that up a level. Anyways, this morning found time to put together a quick photo recap on my site. If interested... Click on title "Mooskie Lockdown" below. MOOSKIE LOCKDOWN Thanks for reading.. Bunk.

NOBODY uses Mercs or prefers them in the remote parts of Northern Ontario and Arctic where I've worked and lived. Wait... I take that back, I've seen two or three I think in 20 years. It's all Yamaha and Honda with the odd Rude where reliability is needed most, if it was Merc, then I'd surely think that many people in the northern communities with less money to go around would choose them.

Still rising... It was inevitable.

Well... that's embarrassing for Woo I'd say.

Agreed! Every town's homes should be like that, or like the ones in the Edward Scissorhands movie. No ice fishing man. I'm on the clock 24/7 and unable to go too far. Char are biting on Soper lake behind me, now that there's just enough ice in places to go jig 'em. Sucks I can't because it's a huge lake that sees a great run of smaller to average char. The char taste like a milder salmon, less oils. It's super nutritious fish. Those are tundra skitters that buzz more than they bite. Covid is here in Nunavut now. Arviat in the Hudson Bay is a town of about 3000 and in the past week they've accumulated over 100 positives. Most are mildly symptomatic, as far as I know none are critical. Whale Cove has positives as well. It's a town of about 500 people. Rankin Inlet is a hub community (meaning gateway to all others) and it has positives and lastly Saniqilluaq has positives but, being completely separated from anywhere it may have stopped it's spread by quarantine. All these communities are in the Kivalliq (Hudson Bay area) and I'm currently far away on Baffin Island in one of the smallest communities. I'll be very interested to see how Arviat cases unfold. Do not believe at 100 positives that this community will stop the spread now. On a micro-scale of what's going on in the world, Arviat's higher than average rate of respiratory infections (including TB), it's very young population (highest birth rate in Canada) and, it's often understaffed health center and generally ill population, what happens there will be a good indicator to how Covid may affect elsewhere and, give insight to how serious "or not" the bug really is.

Lotta sweet toothies in this buffet of awesome dood! 2020 done right!

Nakina from Ottawa is a picnic at 15 hours one-way. lol Actually, it's the limit. Enough a tour for one sitting.

Fawkers eh Clive! Few seasons back my "Chev" over in Degen country took two fists sized dents while out muskie fishing too. Fishing In"fury"ating.

First Muskie Capital Cup. 35 Anglers. 13 teams. 9 day tournament. Some solid guys fishing, a number of guides and one fella in the tourney even hired a guide. We did GREAT! Two guys I fished with are bigger muskie nuts than I am with many more years and skis under their belts but, I think I was brought on board because the tourney is in the fall and that's only when I muskie fish, and do well at nettin' tanks during that time. Luckily my choices and rod while casting and trolling brought our three biggest fish in the boat, and 3 of the 5 biggest in the tourney. So yeah, we won the tournament and will have to do it again next year.

Dropped the lawn tractor off at the local Farm Supply and Polaris dealership few weeks back. They took it in for repairs but "just before" hunting season and couldn't promise a quick turnaround. Talking with staff he tells me in the past 6 days he'd sold 36 ATV's / side-by-sides. It had been a record setting fall. People can't travel, families can't travel, people aren't traveling. Pretty much everything available in our immediate surroundings, is selling.

It's not even muskie fishing in the sense of muskie fishing, its glorified pike fishing. lol. Fun nonetheless.

8 years, 3400hrs on the past 60 Yammy tiller on a 16.5' Rebel. Trailered from Ottawa to Windsor to Montreal, New York State to Thunder Bay repeatedly, all over the map, plenty big water time during the right conditions. Sold without a leaky rivet, sold for 65% what I paid for it new. So in other words, Lund is the recommendation here.

Thank ya man! Back in Nunavut now, snowy today, Covid shutdown begins tomorrow, ER services only in the communities. A little less patient flow might mean a little more time to get some stories that have been on the back burner, complete!

Few years back we had a full week during the third week of November when temps hit highs as high of 21C for several of those days. it was calm, SW breeze if anything and mostly bluebird. For 6 days straight I took a skunking running late season patterns on the St. Lawrence. On the 7th day Brenda joined me and she caught a small fish from the weeds. About a week later, guide John Anderson on the Ottawa posts that he'd putting clients on plenty of fish... all casting... all in real shallow, like less than 3-4fow if I recall. So you've got two choices... grind the fall pattern or, think like "spring." And when you think like spring you think muskies (baitfish and other fish too) are drawn to the warming, shoreline waters. In fall I'd think it takes some substantial warmth, such as really high heat and sun or, long periods of it like a heatwave pattern, but after the first initial days of it, the skis may just settle in and begin feeding shallow. Fall is the toughest time to fish, but the rewards are great not just with the catch, but in trying to figure it out too.

The long track Bravo climbs trees and stays above the top slush.

This past summer's arctic char and lake trout fishing report from nearby the northernmost community on mainland Canada. Link here... A NUNAVUT NOMAD VI. BY WAY OF NETSILIK Cheers, Bunk!

Wrote a rather extensive piece last fall outlining the advantages of a tiller. Not to say there aren't days I wouldn't mind the comforts of a full consoled boat and eventually I'll go there, but for many reasons explained in the article I feel the ultimate multispecies option providing best boat control, space and yes in some ways comfort too, is a tiller. Click the link below to read more about those thoughts if you like. THE TILLER ADVANTAGE

Thanks Lew! Hope all is well with ya. And... yeah, there is all these great points. Gotta love the ProV for all fishability. Both options are awesome RN! Still believe that 18 for around here, on inland and big lakes is more than enough boat. Unless it's the fish being caught, bigger is not always better IMO. The 1875 ProVM has 4 more inches beam than my 1875 ProGuide's 92", which anyone who gets in the big tiller with the wide open dance floor (like the ProMusky does have) will often comment how much space there is. If that's what you're looking for, I think you've found it in that boat and without there being need to haul around even more space and weight with the 20.

85% casting... surely that is a great boat layout either way 18 or 20... Ask yourself what scenario you'd need that 2 feet of extra boat if you're casting? 2vs3 guys maybe? The digital RPM sounds interesting. The best muskie guide in the biz, Lazarus, is said to never, ever have his hand off the throttle, constantly adjusting to keep the desired speed trolling. You considering a trolling motor tells me you're more interested in doing that more than 15% of your time because otherwise on the 18 foot boat with RPM limiters you can achieve quite slow speeds or run all day at muskie troll speeds effortlessly. I'd say, forget that trolling motor, go with a big Terrova, and beef up your electronics even more. But I can't put myself in your shoes and am actually not sure what your thought process is behind your choices. Fishing muskie alot myself nowadays predominantly trolling but moving more into casting each season, 2 to 5 days on the water a week while home fishing multispecies each season, plus having kids of my own come along, doing camping trips that loads gear big time, fishing big and small waters, having friends aboard... if looking to a new boat for muskie with friends and family but alot of solo too, to mainly cast and do some trolling from, fishing big or small waters, then this rig in 18 feet would be mint, no trolling motor needed, big electronics with sonar, sidescan and chartplotter included, panoptix (if affordable for the added bonus with casting in any depths) If not panoptic then a Bird or Garmin for autocharting (a bonus more for trollers) a solid Terrova or the like upfront.