discophish

It's like shopping for designer clothes in Toronto's Yorkville. Every price tag has been inflated just because it can be. The fees has been raised because people will eventually pay for them. There is a place around there that wanted $55 for 1/2 day parking and a boat launch. I can almost go to a leaf game for that price! The Windermere house says they have rentals. They are right on the water. Perhaps you can paddle around in a canoe and keep to the smaller bays if that's what it will take to get you out fishing. There are public launches, but I doubt many rental places will send you off towing a boat and trailer to the lake. That would likely be a cheaper alternative. Perhaps you can check around if that's an option? Good luck with Rosseau!

Darn right that was a big surprise! When there are perch, there are bigger fish around! Now you know what to use the next time you head out musky fishing! <kidding>. You have the seat that I have been looking for. I will PM you.

What a great experience, and even better with all four generations fishing together! You are a lucky person to be able to report something like this. I'm sure that most of us here would love to have had a picture taken of their first pickerel! Thanks for the great report and fantastic pictures. Hope you guys enjoy many more trips of the same in the future.

Thanks Simon for posting the video. Always fun to watch your videos. Pretty soon you will have the sponsors wanting to advertise themselves in your segments! I'm surprised Rapala hasn't come after you for all of the success with the jiggin rap!

Umm, I don't think you understood what I wrote. But I will forgive you because I'm a nice guy and finished 18 holes of golf today without getting rained on! And i am here for all the right reasons, don't you worry about that.

Yes, that's a little weird. If I were to mention "Come on down to the 'Taste Of Italy' fest this weekend for some great food, I hope that I wouldn't be stirring the pot ... unless you are a New Zealander! hehe. BTW, come on down ... but of course, after you go and check out the fishing sale

It's bleeding from the gills pretty bad. <Sigh> You're going to have to hit it on the head a few times to knock it out and stop the suffering. Nice catch though. What were you using?

That looks a little too perfect. Are you sure those aren't implants? Can I decide for myself if you let me touch it?

Unfortunately, pike have taken over the musky population. Bring the charm and ask the locals where the pickerel are. Some will scratch their head, and some will give you an honest answer. It's a typical holding area, so keep an eye out for the deepest part of the lake. I have personally never caught a pickerel in there, and I have spent a lot of time fishing that lake. I know for a fact it's not just me ... even though it's sadly just me 99% of the time! Concentrate on the mid lake gardens for the "bigger" fish. You will have to zig zag around to find them. Good luck!

It's amazing how his marriage still breathes beyond the moments that have existed only as memories. Memories have becomes something very tangible for him, and his relationship with his wife has been carried to a sense of current existence. He has a strong hold on what he has, and not only on what he once had. Great story, and thanks for sharing.

There are many great methods, but if you want to break the silence with a quick and easy catch, scan the bottom carefully ... in and around 80 fow or deeper. If the basin depth is 105, work the edges of the bowl from 80 downwards. They will be there, somewhere. On a calm day, float on top of them and jig a 4"-6" tube tipped with a minnow. That's a deadly combination. If an aggressive action does not entice them, slow it down, barely lifting the skirt off the floor, almost falling from side to side without leaving the bottom. Also drag it in a criss-cross pattern while making sure to cover your approach angles. Use quality braided line as well, with a good rod tip. Additionally, if the clarity of the water is relatively clear, then don't be shy to revisit the same grounds at night. I've had my best experiences fishing at night for lakers. Just keep in mind the biological tolerances when fishing this deep for lakers. Good luck!

Ahh, so this explains why he started flying into the lake at the cottage to recruit sightseers for an overhead tour from the marina. I was scratching my head over that one for a long time. That will explain it. Esnagami was an amazing experience for myself and 3 others. Eric and his wife are the type of people you would want to host your fly in trip. Tasty food, handy shore lunch preps, great accommodations, cool wooden boats, and best of all ... amazing fishing. At times it was pickerel every cast, and lots of them. The guides shunned us for this. Why waste time when there are 50" pike to be caught. That's up to you. You can trust the words of everyone here that has offered a suggestion or two. Good luck with the selection and the planning.

What? You mean bass season isn't opened?!!

It's a shot in the dark, but the backroadmapbooks are pretty good. They are pretty accurate with the portages around the cottage. They will only map the common, more frequented routes. Wouldn't hurt to give it a shot if you haven't already. But like solo has mentioned, it's fun to blaze your own trail and make a map of your own. Good luck!

Great report Will. Good to see that everyone had a blast and that you caught some fish! Excellent pictures to show how great your experience was.

Great, now that I quit smoking, I no longer carry my bear repellent with me. Can you imagine the irony here?

You gotta posterize that picture and glue it to your bedroom ceiling! What an amazing experience!

Aren't you supposed to be playing hockey? Hehe. Great report and awesome pictures to capture the traditional long weekend experience. Try offering the moose a granola bar. If you're lucky, it will come right up to your window for a better photo op. Try it next time. Just watch out, it may start licking your face

My advice here will be more valuable to you then catching a fish. I spent 4 days fishing that lake 3 years ago, and has some really interesting structure. It was my first and only experience on the lake, so I bought a map aboard to navigate around. I won't mention the publisher, but there are rocks in so many places that wasn't printed. The lake is a mine field of rocks, and they aren't marked out there. They are only marked if you see them above the surface. We trolled after dark for pickerel. That wasn't fun. Just be careful. The locals on the lake say the very east side of the lake produces the most pickerel. We couldn't get the lakers to bite at all, but there are some, not many. Good luck!

Yeah, I get this all of the time. But when I wake up, I turn the vibration mode off on the Lazyboy which causes the jitters, switch off WFN, and stumble to bed. It really sucks when you realize that you have to work the next morning, and got all worked up for nothing.

Sounds sounds all too familiar. This past winter we hovered over deep water as well, straying away from our typical shallower grounds. Like you said, it worked. I also caught my biggest pickerel over 65 fow. There are parts of the lake that exceed depths of 140 feet. You would be surprised of the concentration in those locations. Of course, it depends on the time of year. You are definitely right about the quality of fish. They tend to impress more frequently in these modes. It is really challenging to intercept the fish on their feeding cycles over the common areas, flats, piles, beds, etc. I find that the window of opportunity is very thin, in and out, and it's likely to be absent from the toll booth when the pickerel cash in their food stamps. At the same time, why would a fox steal a chicken when the farmer has a gun pointed in its direction.

Why that would make you the bestest teacher in the whole wide world! I'm bringing you an apple a day just for that, but don't expect me to stick around for class.

We're practically neighbours! I can probably reach your place with my 3 iron ... if I hit the ball after a few cans of Red Bull and a generous serving of spinach!

You must understand the dynamics of the problem. If I am ever in that situation, I just throw my girlfriend overboard. Less weight in the boat. Hope this helps.

I know! I played for my high school hockey team for 3 years. How many times during those 7am practices did you wish that you were out fishing rather than skating to the bench and puking over the boards? All the time, right?!! I sure wish my high school had a fishing club. It would have exempted me from the practices, I'm sure of it. "coach, screw your crucifying practices ... I'm taking off to wet a line. Catch you later if I feel like making your calculus class this afternoon" MJL, are you serving these kids beers on the piers or something??? That's awesome that a fishing club has attracted so many high school students. In my own opinion, fishing at their age isn't the most popular activity. I'm sure glad to see that changing! Awesome job!