CrowMan

I like either StarTron or SeaFoam.

I ended up buying the AOLithium 12v 100a. It's mainly for a MK 55lb Endura transom mount on a small jon boat. Got it for $589 cdn delivered. There are obviously less expensive, and more expensive options out there. For me, this choice seemed to be the best value proposition...8 year warranty, Bluetooth monitoring built-in, BMS with overcharging and cold weather protection, reputable company, and lots of solid reviews. Really haven't used it much as of yet. Ran it for about an hour and it was barely depleted according to the Bluetooth app. I will say the light weight is incredible compared to my old lead-acid and AGM's...for my main purpose of packing it into back lakes, my shoulder and back are already thanking me. On top of that, considering I was lucky to get 4 to 5 years out of a LA or AGM, I think it was money well spent. Probably will replace with the same for the Terranova on my Lund when the time comes. Speaking of which...spot lock on my TerraNova kept us on top of some fish this morning. Got a few slot size fish (FMZ18) for a fish fry tonight, and released a few bigger ones..

Looks like a "triploid" fish...in other words its neither male or female. Its sterile and can't reproduce, and therefore doesn't waste any energy in making eggs or milt, or engaging in spawning behavior...it just packs on the pounds. Just don't put the image on a can of Bud Light or Kid Rock will shoot it up....LOL

From the horse's mouth: Enquiry: Ethanol content in V-Power gasoline Response: Good morning, Starting in 2022, all gasoline grades sold in Canada will be blended with ethanol, including premium gasoline (V-Power 91 and 93) according to proposed regulations (10% ethanol Federal Clean Fuel Regulation for 2022, Low Carbon Fuel Requirements and need to reduce the carbon intensity of fossil fuels, which ethanol is one mechanism to reduce carbon intensity). All the provinces are switching slowly, and If you see the label at the pump, “Gasoline may contain up to 10% Ethanol” is already happening. Regards, Sylvie Martin Shell Canada, Technical Support Email: [email protected]

The premium at the Tyendinaga First Nation's stations is ethanol free. At least that was stated on the sign at the pump 2 days ago. Not sure about other FN locations around the Province, but I believe they all get it from the same refinery.

You don't even have to leave TO...inside of the Leslie St spit has plenty of Pike with a shot at a 40 Other than that...within an hour of downtown ? A lot of the Conservation Areas have lakes with decent populations of hammer-handles.

Try soaking the liver and heart in milk (even better buttermilk) for at least an hour or so before cooking. Then rinse and pat dry before seasoning and cooking. This will draw out the excess blood (which can cause the spattering) and also remove the bitter taste you can get from organ meats. Personally, although not everyone's cup of tea, I love organ meats. One my favourite things to do with turkey livers is to make a mousse. Served as an app with toasted slices of garlic rubbed baguette ...guaranteed to dissappear in minutes... https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/turkey-liver-mousse-toasts-pickled-shallots

When my son was attending U of G, I would often stop in to chat with Ray and pick up a thing or two.. Seems to be a trend...either less people fishing, or more folks shopping on-line, or a combination of both.. https://www.guelphtoday.com/local-news/guelph-angling-shop-closing-as-owner-ofishally-retires-6974462

Reminds me of a little Sea Flea with a 20hp that we had at the cottage...sure was a blast !

There's definitely Crappie in the French River Delta on Georgian Bay...that's probably the closest place to Sudbury that I know about. I'm guessing they're in Lake Nipissing too...not sure if in fishable numbers. I've personally never caught one there, but I've heard reports of their existence.

I wonder if it's some kind of pre-spawn mating ritual....they all get together in one spot to mix it up and keep the genetics strong by selecting the best partners. Just like a high school dance...all the boys on one side of the room, the girls on the other...figuring out who's gonna hook up with who...quarterbacks and cheerleaders get first pick. ..or I guess these days it might be the equivalent of swipe right, swipe left...lol

Good to hear there's a scientific rationale behind this behavior, we couldn't figure it out...never saw anything like that before. No dinks to be found at all...everything was 18" and up. Interestingly, the males and females seemed to stay in seperate packs. These fish were at least 4 to 6 weeks away from spawning.

In FMZ 7 the lakes are still probably frozen. We were much further south than that...FMZ 10 has exceptions. Up north, the locals consider Bass an invasive "trash" fish not worthy of protection...LOL All waters north of Highway 17 and all waters west of where the east bank of the Serpent River crosses Highway 17 are open year-round for largemouth and smallmouth bass.

As the old saying goes..."an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Just came back from a 2500km road (round) trip towing my tinny. Through a blizzard to t-shirt weather...all perfectly trouble free. I'm religious about maintaining my bearings...just seen too many roadside mishaps that leave me sayin' "glad I'm not that dude". One of the things, that I've got into a habit of doing over the years...at every gas, coffee, or pit stop, I'll put my hand on the trailer bearing hubs...if they're a little too warm, I know there'll be trouble down the road. On long remote trips like this, we always take spare bearings and grease. Another habit, is to let the bearings cool down before splashing the boat...warm bearing caps and cold water can add up to problems. This was our annual Steelhead trip up the east and north shore of Superior. For the first time in 23 years of doing this trip, we decided to tow a boat. We wanted to run up some of the bigger Trout Rivers (like the Michipicoten) and also access the mouths of some tribs that you can only get to by water...not many roads in this part of the world. We also planned to fish ice out Lakers on an inland lake on the way back. No shortage of fresh chrome fish up on Superior this time of year...although they're smaller than their Lake O and Huron/G Bay cousins...every year they do seem to get bigger...and maybe it's because of the environment they live in (high gradient rivers), but pound for pound they battle like nothing else. After getting our fill of chasing Steel, we spent a day or so at a lake in southern Algoma with the intent of hunting down some Lakers. Well, after reeling in a few Trout, we soon figured out that some of the bays had warmed up to 50f and the Smallies had the pre-spawn feedbag on...we quickly switched gears...not that we were planning on it, but we all had some soft plastics that we scrounged and shared from the bottom of our bags..This was a Smelt lake, so the Bass were particularly porcine ! It turned into one of those epic days...beautiful weather, still too early for bugs, and double headers of hungry 20" Bass...just crazy ! The number of Smallies jammed into relatively small staging areas was something none of us had experienced before...they looked liked wolf packs cruising in the clear shallow water. Although, they definitely preferred a smaller snack...Ned's ruled the day... Yep...it's been a great spring so far !

Tungsten is 1.7 times more dense than lead, and it's also harder. It's all about the feel in bottom contact presentations...with a good rod you can tell if the bottom is mud, sand, gravel or rock. Being smaller for the same weight it also gets less hang ups, and it gets to the bottom quicker. Its not only open water...in the ice fishing world, tungsten jigs are all you'll see some guys using. Can you fish without it, and just use lead or brass...yes...but you know what we're like..every bit of an advantage helps, or at least in your head it does..and fishing is 90% confidence.

I'm with ya Glen. I rarely measure or weigh fish, and frankly often don't take photos either. I have no interest in participating in tournaments. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy watching/reading about pro tourneys, mainly to see what presentations everyone's using. It's just for me, fishing is about relaxing and socializing, not competing. I do understand the thrill of competition...but I had enough of that in my business life. It's just that this Musky record thing is so murky...that has me curious. There seems to be so much controversy over something that should be fairly black and white. You Google "Musky World Record" and you get over a dozen different answers...just wacky..

I'd be interested, if you happen to put something together. Especially with a drop shot...if I use lead instead of tungsten, it's like I'm fishing blind. Nevermind that the price for tungsten has gone through the roof, a lot of popular sizes always seem out of stock. I'd particularly be interested in cylinder weights (1/8 through 1/2 oz)...I prefer a ring eye connection rather than the "pinch"...I like to tie a knot. It gets expensive quick when jumping Smallies shake them off..

For those who don't want to wade through all the Bull...here's the most pertinent statement... The FACTS speak for themselves sir. It matters not whose name is or is not attached to communicating that. The facts have not and cannot be refuted. I spoke personally with the taxidermist who made the mold of the O'Brien fish at the ROM and he told me that the O'Brien fish was no longer than 54", if that long, his words. The mold speaks volumes and should be all that is necessary to remove the fish from record book based on what was obviously a falsified application to the OFAH. Respectfully, Doug Petrousek DOUGLAS TAXIDERMY ELBURN, IL www.douglastaxidermy.com

Yes...I'm well aware. I only mentioned it as there always seems to be controversy in the Musky world. For example...apparently, the taxidermist that made the mount of the O'Brien fish for the ROM claims it was smaller than originally reported... Just sayin' that there seems to be larger C&R fish out there than this latest claim... Always something... https://muskie.outdoorsfirst.com/board/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=64983&start=181

I guess Cullen Veiders would have something to say too...at 59.5", I can't see how there could be more than 6" from the fork of the tail to the tip.. https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/worldclass-mega-muskie-from-lake-ontario/466685

Not sure how the IGFA considers this 53" fish a world record ? Yes, the measurement is to the fork of the tail, but there certainly have been larger fish...no ? I'm not up on the latest goings on in the Musky world. There always seems to be some controversy when it come to records around this species...like the dispute over the famous (or perhaps infamous) Ken O'Brien Moon River fish...so maybe someone could enlighten me.. https://www.outdoornews.com/2023/05/02/st-lawrence-river-muskie-caught-by-new-york-angler-is-new-cr-world-record/

Nice haul ! Yes, I got a few more...got a couple bags in the freezer. I parboil them in salted water first, cool in ice water, and then vacuum pack. My focus is now on Morels...I've been trying to train my dog to sniff them out...like a Truffle hound...LOL. Can't get enough of those delicious fungi. The wet weather over the next few days should really get them going. Cooked some pasta tonight with a Morel, Cream and Parmesan sauce...food of the Gods ! ‐----‐---------------------- Congrats Leafs ! Hopefully they'll see the Oilers in the final round..an all Canadian Stanley Cup final would be sweet !

We stay at Brennan Harbour (good people), but there's a couple of other places right at the mouth of the Spanish too. Loads of Smallmouth (and some Largemouth), consistent Walleye and plenty of Pike. There's Musky too, and in September we've even incidentally caught Chinook right in front of the cabins.

It's been a strange spring. I think the warm weather last week really accelerated things. We had almost 30c for 5 days straight. In some of my places for Fiddleheads they were already almost a foot high yesterday. I had to go looking in some of the shady north facing spots to find young ones.

Although just a liitle further afield, two places that have always been good to me are Lac Kipawa (in Quebec, 90 minutes east of North Bay), and the WhalesBack Channel on the north shore of Lake Huron (mouth of the Spanish River, about an hour west of Sudbury). As Headhunter stated, Nosbonsing is basically a suburb of North Bay...gets a lot of pressure.