CrowMan

Just a heads up on a good deal. TRU Off Grid has AOLithium 12v 100amp LiFeP04 batteries for sale at $249. These are full featured batteries with BMS, cold weather cut off protection, and Bluetooth so you can monitor from your phone. 8 year over the counter warranty where you deal directly with the retailer above. First 5 years 100%, balance pro-rated.

I already have 2 of this brand for the past 2 years and they've performed flawlessly. Just picked up another one today for my smaller boat. Nice to deal with an independant Ontario small business, rather than Amazon. Contact Jack at 905-299-7841. Pick up in Milton.

48 minutes ago, Fisherman said:

You forgot Canadian Sportfishing with Italo, 6am on global CHEX.  I guess they must have dumped Mariko Izumi, man that was worse than watching runny paint dry on a humid day. There's also Angler & Hunter on CHEX at 7am.

I didn't mind watching Mariko at all...not necessarily for the fishing.. lol. Not many other TV anglers could fill a bikini like she did..

Please do...thanks.

Looks like Humminbird may have leap frogged Garmin in the FFS arms race. From what I've heard so far, the technology seems pretty impressive.  I hear Lowrance has a game changer in the works too..

56 minutes ago, Spiel said:

Smoke you say.....

I recall very well the first time I heard Psycho Killer CM. Myself and three friends were heading to Keswick for my first ever Simcoe ice fishing adventure, an over night Smelt fishing adventure actually. It was 1977, I was 17 and my friend Rob who was driving slammed the 77 cassette into the tape player, I was immediately hooked on The Talking Heads and have been a fan ever since. 


FYI....the Smelt fishing was insane, buckets of some of the biggest Smelt I've ever seen and those days I believe sadly, are long gone. 
 

I saw David Byrne at the Sony Centre in 2018. Great show, and somewhat political given what was going on south of the border then....similar to now.

My wife and I went to a concert this Saturday at the exact same venue...now called Meridian Hall. We saw the "Life is a Carnival/Last Waltz" tour... a tribute to Robbie Robertson by a "super group" of musicians, including a couple of the Heart Breakers. Fantastic show !

However, when we booked the tickets, we didn't realize it was the same night that Tay Tay was doing her thing at Rogers Centre. The GO train ride in and out of Union from Oakville was entertaining in itself...quite the mix...Swifties decked out in their glittery regalia, Leafs and Oilers fans in Matthews and McDavid jerseys, and graying hippies still trying to squeeze into their old black t-shirts with "The Band" across the front..

Yep, Simcoe Smelt are now just a fond memory. Fortunately out in eastern Ontario come April you can still fill buckets up by Eganville 😉

Great track !

I can still remember hearing "Talking Heads: 77" for the first time as an 18 year old...listened to it 3 times in a row in my buddy's Steve smoke filled basement..

Not sure about the French, but there's definitely a Smelt run nearby in Chikanshing Creek at Killarney to the north, and at Britt on the Magnetawan to the south.

I was rummaging around in the depths of the freezer yesterday, looking for something to use for tonight's meal. I found a chunk of Bison rump that I had from last winter...it was the last piece of a care package of Bison meat that I got from a buddy in the restaurant supply business.

Scrounged around the fridge, freezer and pantry, and came up with..

..leeks, celery and parsley in the crisper drawer leftover from a previous meal

..last of the carrots from the garden

..some wild Bolete (Porcini) mushrooms that I had foraged and dried earlier in the autumn 

..frozen peas and green beans from this summer's garden 

..a half bag of pearl barley

..beef stock, olive oil and red wine

Chop, saute, braise and simmer the above and came up with Bison, Mushroom, Vegetable and Barley soup (actually more like a stew). Definitely a free form recipe...but it turned out darn delicious !

You can use the Ontario Crown Land Atlas to locate lakes that are adjacent to Crown Land:

https://search.app?link=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ontario.ca%2Fpage%2Fcrown-land-use-policy-atlas&utm_campaign=aga&utm_source=agsadl1%2Cagsadl4%2Csh%2Fx%2Fgs%2Fm2%2F4

You can then use Fish ON-Line to find out what species are present in those lakes, along with stocking info and the regulations:

https://search.app?link=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.lioapplications.lrc.gov.on.ca%2Ffishonline%2FIndex.html%3Fviewer%3DFishONLine.FishONLine%26locale%3Den-CA&utm_campaign=aga&utm_source=agsadl1%2Cagsadl4%2Csh%2Fx%2Fgs%2Fm2%2F4

My Grandfather at Arnhem, and my Uncle at Monte Cassino both lost their lives so we could live in freedom. I'll be at the Cenotaph here in town this morning to honour them and all the others that made the ultimate sacrifice.

Those look awesome...would make a great Christmas/hostess gift !

However, in my house when we open a bottle of wine, there's rarely anything left to put a stopper in it for later..🤪

7 hours ago, Barry Willis said:

About 3 or 4 years ago I started receiving emails from a so called company in Africa trying to get me to buy their so called high quality trout flies at a very reasonable price. They sent me very long letters why I should buy from them, but no pictures of course. Eventually I asked how they got my email etc. and they said from a fly shop here in Calgary, so right away I suspected a scam as I do frequent the fly shops but with the exception of one for guiding services they don't have my personal information. Of course they wanted my banking information. Man, what next. 

So, good on you Brian. Bad news travels fast and good news obviously get's around as well. 

 

Not sure if someone was attempting to scam you or not....but some of the largest fly tying factories in the world are in Kenya. Their products are found in fly fishing shops across North America.

Best time of year is yet to come...water's still warm. The big girls start coming in from Lake O at  the end of this month. Book now, everyone's usually filled up right through to mid December.

40 minutes ago, akaShag said:

I also use a Luhr Jensen Big Chief.  For canned smoked fish, I brine the fish, lay them out for the pellicle to form, then put them into the smoker for two (sometimes three, for thicker fillets) pans of smoke.  They come out of the smoker about half cooked and mushy.  Then I put the chunks into 250 ml jars with a quarter teaspoon of Hy's Seasoning salt without MSG, wipe off the rims, put on the (HOT) lids and rings, and process for 90 minutes at 10 pounds pressure.  Smoked canned salmon keeps for at least three years, and the canning drives the smoke flavour through every molecule of the fish.  I mostly serve it, entire jar contents including liquid, mixed with a couple tablespoons of mayo and/or cream cheese, mixed well, and served on crackers like Triscuits.

Many folks have said to me that it is the best smoked salmon they ever ate.  (and it works well for farmed steelhead, char, whitefish, pike, etc)

Doug

I can personally attest to Doug's canned Salmon. His Pacific Chinook was absolutely delicious !! 

I have to say Pacific Chinook is my favourite fish to smoke...there's more than one reason it's called "King Salmon".

My son regularly goes up to Iqualuit on business (he's a mining engineer) and brings back Arctic Char. It's awesome smoked or on the grill, but I still have to put Pacific Chinook at the top of my list. Has to be wild Pacific though...the Chinook from the Great Lakes is like a completely different species when it comes taste and texture.

1 minute ago, akaShag said:

That's awesome!  Going to order some, since all of my BC salmon is long gone......

Doug

Hopefully, we'll be restocking in June !

2 hours ago, smitty55 said:

It's that time again to give my Big Chief smoker a good work out. A couple of weeks back both Atlantic Salmon and Steelhead trout were on sale at half price for $10/lb and it's been a too long time since I did fish so I couldn't resist, best birthday gift I could give myself. Around 7-8 lbs. Put them in the freezer as frozen fish smokes better and took them out a couple days back. Made a gallon of brine yesterday and they spent the night in the spare fridge in two pots. Took them out at noon, patted them dry and the 29 pieces completely filled the five racks. After running a fan on them for an hour they developed a nice shiny, sticky pellicle and then it's that time to go outside for a 6 hour smoke I figure, maybe a bit less for the thinner pieces. Wood chips of choice is Cherry. This is where the fixed 160 degree temp comes in perfect for smoking fish at low temps over a longer period. The last couple of hours I will be brushing them with maple syrup for an extra sweet treat. This is going to be oh so good.

EDIT: I was way off on my time guess. Between a windy cool day and water in my drip tray which I don't normally do at six hours the fish was still mushy so I did the syrup brush, removed the drip tray and it took eleven hours total before the fish was nice and firm but still plenty moist. It was worth the wait, I had family over the next day and a everyone was raving about how good it was. Now the hardest part is having enough control to not pig out on it too much and freeze some for later. Cheers

Look awesome !

Just a heads up... Wild Fork sells frozen wild Pacific Sockeye fillets for $13.98 a pound.  A little more money (sometimes cheaper) than the farmed Atlantic Salmon and "Steelhead Trout" that you usually see in the supermarket, but a huge difference in taste. I personally find the farmed stuff flabby in texture, and not as rich in those delicious natural oils, compared to wild Salmon...especially Sockeye.

The nearest Wild Fork retail store to you would be Whitby (if you're ever down that way), also stores in Oakville and Ancaster, but with a minimum $35 order they will ship free to your door.

14 hours ago, Brent T said:

I want to dipnet for minnows and other small fish, photograph them (in a temporary container filled with water) and release them...

Does this activity require a fishing license?  It seems silly to purchase a conservation fishing license and not keep fish ever. 

Sounds very interesting and educational !

Even though you are releasing the fish, you still require a fishing license to capture fish using angling or non-angling methods. I know a number of anglers that never keep anything...they are strictly catch and release. That doesn't exclude them from having to purchase a license.

In the regulations, there is a specific list of the species of minnows that can be legally retained to use as bait. I also do believe that once you catch a fish and put it in some type of "container" (even temporarily) that it is considered "retention" under the regulations. You certainly wouldn't legally be able to temporarily retain and photograph a species that was out of season, or out of the slot size.

My advice would be to contact the OMNR and speak to an Enforcement Officer for clarification on the legalities of the activity you wish to pursue.

On 10/31/2024 at 4:43 PM, Spiel said:

I have a few sharp puppy teeth scars from intentional aggressive play but they're the price happily paid for Barry in the process to ensure that my pups know and understand the term "gentle!"

My last few dogs (Brook and now Gordie) would allow crawling babies to take their food right out of their mouths, or their treats and toys and they would do nothing aggressive. However, on my command they can turn when necessary. 

My Pointer, Zoe, and my granddaughter, Charlotte, grew up together. They were born 9 days apart. They're the best of buddies...and sometimes I worry more about Charlotte nipping Zoe than the other way around...lol..

21 hours ago, AKRISONER said:

thats the major difference we experience here in the balmy south. Growing up daytime highs in Southern Ontario were never much below the freezing mark and more specifically when the big weather systems moved in from the south, our snowfalls were always hovering around the freezing mark. Usually a big storm came with some mixing of freezing rain etc. and now with this warming climate a couple of degrees to the warmer side, suddenly most of our big weather events in the winter just fall as cold heavy rain. 

Up in your neck of the woods, it might not be -20 for weeks on end anymore, its more like -10 or even into the single digits below freezing, but its still winter. I couldnt believe it, i drove to kapuskasing through cochrane for work in early march last year and it was already spring...the snow was basically on its last legs.

heck I was boating in parry sound in march! not a skim of ice in sight.

I swear any person that "loves" the winters weve been having these past few years is absolutely sick in the head. give me -15 and sunny over +2 and pouring rain/dreary...honestly there may be no colder weather than when it pours rain and its hovering around freezing. Last year didnt we break a record for the most consecutive cloudy days? If i recall we had some kind of stretch of 40 days straight from november to january where it was cloudy +5 and grey...and people are celebrating it?

Agree. The ice fishing season on my lake was 2 weeks long last winter.

I have a good buddy of almost 40 years who lives in Philadelphia. We now have the winters he used to have. They used to have a brief ice fishing season down there, now none at all.

The only bright side is...I don't put away the boat until almost Christmas, and Steelhead season is now much longer. 

Even as a skier, the season is now so short, and the conditions often terrible, that I don't get out much the last few years.

We have a couple of trips planned down south this winter. It used to feel like I was missing something when we went away...not anymore.

10 hours ago, limeyangler said:

You just described England year round, there’s more than one reason I moved over here…. Lol

Born there, done that..

Perfect ! Just missing the eye patch..lol

My wife and I have tickets to see Bruce next Sunday....courtesy of a birthday gift from my kids (wow...ticket prices are getting ridiculous).

I first saw the Boss in 1977 at MLG (half bowl)...he put on a 3 and 1/2 hour non stop show with nobody ever sitting down from beginning to end. Those shows early in his career were electric with energy..I have seen him 11 times since, and he never disappoints. Him still doing it at 75 years old, gives me hope..

This is a great performance of one of my favourite tracks..Bruce and Clarence at their best. Miss you Big Man...

16 minutes ago, Barry Willis said:

They may seem and be harmless there but as you can see by the picks, not the case here. This is just one of many incidents out here. 

I had another video also on the local news from a door bell camera across the street where a coyote followed a lady out for a walk right up the steps to the front door. The coyote was obviously at a distance behind her as she managed to get her door unlocked and inside.

The media always overblows the actual risk. I personally don't consider a Coyote following you at a distance very newsworthy. But creating "fear" keeps the eyeballs tuned to the channel. Jeez...I'd be on the news a dozen times already.

Like all Canines, from my experience they seem naturally curious...and often they're being fed by misguided "animal lovers", so they start associating humans with a free handout. However, actual attacks on humans are extremely rare.

The most dangerous animal in Canada is the Moose...kills more people than any other critter.

.

51 minutes ago, BillM said:

That poor guy has some serious mange.

Definitely mange going around in a lot of them I see in town. Might be nature's way of keeping the population density under control.

I agree with you about "rural" Coyotes. Up here at my cottage in Frontenac, they're like ghosts. We hear them howling at night, but if you do see one it's always at a distance...usually further than the lethal range of a .223. Perhaps that's why...

1 hour ago, Spiel said:

Not here in Hamilton, they're highly visible, even in mid day in many high traffic areas. I myself have been followed by them when walking my dog.
Where my daughter works (west Hamilton) they're often seen following dog walkers in broad daylight, in fact she was just telling me of a close encounter yesterday morning where the dog owner said she's often followed by Coyotes when walking her (large) dog.

Same in Oakville. A pair come strutting down the sidewalk in front of my house every day at 7 am like clockwork, for over a year now. Must be making/marking the rounds of their territory. 

They have occasionly followed me at a distance (50 to 100ft) when I'm walking my dog. I don't think they want to eat my Pointer, it just seems like they're curious about a fellow canine. If my dog gives them a little growl or I turn around and say "boo" they bolt away with their tail tucked between their legs.

My understanding is when there have been interactions with domestic (pet) dogs, it's more of an aggressive/dominance behavior...like two alpha dogs fighting...rather than the Coyote looking for a meal.

Just part of the local urban wildlife scene now. They apparently do a good job of keeping the local rodent population controlled. My buddy that owns a restaurant up the street, says he no longer sees many rats in the dumpsters behind his strip mall. 

They're just like Raccoons without the mask...they've also taken over the cleaning up the curbside garbage role.

There's little old ladies with their Yorkies and Chihuahuas in the neighborhood who get freaked out when they see them...but in my opinion, they're harmless.

There was only one instance of a person being bit by a Coyote last year in Ontario...someone was regularly feeding it, so it lost its fear of humans. Meanwhile, there were over 5000 dog bites that required a visit to Emergency last year in the Province. I assess my risk accordingly.