BillsTheBassMan

Rainbow Sports in waterloo. They have been a great retailer, and the owner is real solid and helpful.

I do still have the receipt. Is it the store that will replace my rod, or is it St. Croix themselves? I really dread being without a quality rod for the rest of this short fishing season.

Hey All, This is the first time I have had this happen to me and I could use a little help. I broke my 7' St. Croix Triumph Rod over the long-weekend. I was caught in a snag, had my rod pointing towards the snag, and kicked it sideways to try to unsnag. My rod broke right above where the two sections of the rod connect, 6 inches above where the base and top connect (about 4' up the rod). My friend thinks something was probably wrong with the graphite. The strange thing is that the rod broke despite the snag coming out. I was only using 8lb test (braid) with an 8lb leader - Seagur. I bought the rod about 3 months ago from a small local fishing store. Good people work there. My Rod came with a five year warranty, and I have the original receipts. what do I do now? what information do I include when I send the rod away? have any of you folks had any good or bad experiences with St. Croix in the past? when I do send this away, how long can I expect it to get a new rod back? If they send me a new rod, will it also be covered under warranty? I'm also interested in any personal experiences you folks have had with this type of situation . . . warranties, other companies and so forth? Thanks for all of your help in advance! Ryan

We had a visit from this fellow when we rented a Cottage at Sparrow Lake: The locals informed us that it was a rattle snake, and that if we were lucky enough to get bit, we'd have to travel to bracebridge. At which point they said "ahhhhh, he's just a little guy." I'm sure he was, as he was the furthest thing from aggressive. Yours does not seem to be venemous. I see snakes that look like that a lot up in the Wiarton area.

Welcome aboard Gary! Do you rent your cottage for the whole summer? I've been thinking about finding a crappy cottage on a nice lake and renting it for the entire summer and doing some fix ups to it for a lower rental rate.

A group of friend and myself had rented a cottage in Mid-July on the west side of Sparrow Lake. The fishing was rarely GREAT, but it was always consistent, despite a pretty nasty wind system that came through midweek. Quick Note (for the Carp Watchers) - We did notice (and smelled) quite a few dead Carp. On our first night on the water we were skunked I had been previously warned that this was a distinct possibility on Sparrow. Thankfully, that was the only skunking of the week (fishing wise - we had a run in with a few real skunks ) Our second day had us fishing the weedline in Duck Bay, located on SouthWest Sparrow. Action picked up and we landed 6-10 Fish - Pike and Bass - all Medium Range. About half were caught on live minnows, the others on bottom lures - I landed a few on a Gulp-Tipped Jig head. We came in from the lake at about 6pm, got some eats and debated what to do with the night. Member Timmeh and myself decided to fish a nearby dock (with permission of course). One of our other fishing buddies was bold in stating "I'll crap myself in front of everyone if you guys catch fish there." Let's just say we're still waiting for the performance. In fact, the dock was the best producer all week. It had great structure: Rocks, Cabbage, Wild Rice, and the boat channel within casting range (providing a huge ledge). Unfortunately, we somewhat listened to our pessimist friend and did not bring a net to the dock . . . leaving us asking a little girl to use hers as we brought in pike after pike: (one in picture caught near dusk on a Rapala X-Rap XR-8 in Glass Ghost) Naturally, the next afternoon we decided to ride the dock again for some midday fishing. Timmeh and I had to have landed 15 Bass - all reasonably sized, including this lunker (caught on a 5" Yamasenko - Green Watermelon - Sunny conditions): I did not have my scale any weight estimates you guys have I would love to hear! Before travelling to Sparrow, I did a fair amount of lake research, including quite a bit on OFC. I was told that catching Walleye in the summer was quite rare. In fact, we were staying near some fellas who said they had been lodging at Sparrow for 12 years and had yet to land a Walleye. We were probably lucky to land the two that we did. Seen here is the only fish we kept all week (Both Walleye caught on Crankbaits - Pale Green Wally Diver, Rapala X-Rap XR-8 Blue): Member Timmeh also caught this SMB with absolutely incredible colours. He was 2.5-3 lbs. Nice looking fish! (but he'll have to write what he caught it on, I forget): Throughout the week artificial lures outfished live bait. My two best producers were by far the 5" Green Watermelon Yamasenko, and a Rapala SR-5 Blue Silver Shad Rap. The Rapala caught most of the fish our group landed on the troll. It hit pike and bass. Lots of small bass, but a few decent ones. The rest of the group tied on blue lures and it really seemed to be the colour of the week. X-Raps were good producers throughout the week as well. BIG THANKS to OFC Members Musky or Specs, Memart and Misfit for their help giving me tips concerning Sparrow Lake before the trip. Your tips and advice proved to be helpful! I hope you like the fish porn from the week. I'll be happy to answer any questions you guys have concerning Sparrow!

Hello All! So it's the Civic and myself and a group of friends are heading to the Saugeen Bluffs. I've seen some fishing shows on the Saugeen River, but we've never experienced the fish they always seem to get. I'm wondering if anyone has had success in the Saugeen near Paisley. If so, what were you getting, and how were you getting them? For your services, I'll provide some fish porn at the end of the weekend! (Provided we can get some lunkers ) Thanks as Always, Ryan

Yeah, that is my logic on the whole thing as well . . . . but if it can actually hinder instead of help, I'd like to hear how! Other then the obvious break-off with a fish on of course . . . . that's why I've been working on those leader knots of mine.

I am still pretty new to fishing with braid. I have been using fluoro leaders since I started with braid this season. What were your problems with fluoro?

I have had my best luck with Gary Yamomoto 5" Senko in natural colours. I have tried thinner senkos, and do not get as much interest.

Hey, A few things about senkos . . . . A) Treat them like any other lure for fish location - you want to find structure. Rocks, weeds, and so forth. The other week I was casting them right on a channel ledge and had good success. Like any other lure, you have to figure out what the fish want. Sometimes they want something that is just sitting on the bottom. Other times, they will react more to an active popping-flutter movement on the bait. I start always with the popping. Let it drop, pop it a few times, reel in a bit, pop it, let it drop and repeat. If that isn't working, let it sit . . . have a sandwich, smoke, drink or whatever and give it a few minutes. The fish generally tell you what they want. C) IMPORTANT - BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR HOOK SETS. For Bass, Senkos can be real killers. If you are practicing live release, like most people do with bass, you need to set that hook properly. Bass really hammer senkos. You don't want to gut them, and you will, unless you are careful. They don't often let your senko go, and anyone "nibbling" on it generally is pretty small D) I use natural colours (this includes pink). Natural has worked the best for me. Period. E) If you find that pike are attacking your imitation worm, don't put a leader on, even if you lose a few baits. You will kill the action of your lure. I had a friend lose 3 straight senkos to pike attacks, he put a leader on, and the action died. When fishing the senko, you usually aren't targeting pike, but they like to attack a lot of things, and senkos are no different. F) I generally use a 5" bait whacky rigged. It doesn't scare away 1 pound fish if that is your game, and the lunkers love it. Hope that helps

Hello All, I've been thinking about buying and spooling up some Berkley Fireline Crystal. I'm posting to see what your thoughts are on this product. I've also heard that it is good at cutting/shaving weeds when you are finesse fishing, especially on thin diameters. Here is what the Berkley website says about it: The world's first translucent superline for near invisibility underwater Advanced technology FireLine is now 20 percent stronger than before. This thermal filament casts more easily, ties better knots, and stays more hassle-free than conventional braids. Along with exceptional strength, FireLine delivers ultimate sensitivity for instant feel, and the ultrathin diameter provides low visibility and incredible lure action. So . . . . . Do you like it? Do you need a f.c. leader with Fireline Crystal for optimum results? If you dislike it, what brands do you prefer, and would recommend over BFC? Thanks as always, Ryan

You'll have to excuse me guys, I'm a little new to the boards. I keep seeing this Lakair everywhere and have no idea what it is! Can someone please fill me in! Thanks Ryan

Rapala always produces a quality lure. What I have been impressed with recently though is the Berkley Frenzy Popper. It seems to be able to cover tons of water. Whereas I am still relatively unexperienced myself, I feel a great deal of confidence in this lure. I generally start with a faster retrieve and then slow it down and mix it up to see what pattern is working for the conditions. The fish always like something, it's just a matter of figuring out what that is!

Thanks for all the greetings fellas! As far as the tournament scene goes, I just want to join some smaller ones (preferably river tournaments as I do not yet have a boat). To BillM Thanks a lot for the link, it should prove to be very useful! To Reefrunner A lot of my friends in the same age bracket fish as well. I'm from a small-town outside Waterloo, and I guess you could call it "the sticks". This probably means that my friends were more likely to fish growing up. Regardless, my friends and myself are all responsible anglers as well. For the most part, we practice live release of our fish. All of us have our fishing licenses, and obey the fishing guidelines. I'm glad to hear that most people on here practice the same tactics. I really feel that we need to keep our fisheries healthy for future generations and for our future enjoyment. To Musky or Specks Wow man, thanks a lot for all that helpful stuff on Sparrow. I am greatly appreciative and my friends will be as well. I have absolutely no experience with Sparrow Lake, and my fellow cottagers don't either. We're basically going off of our research prior to the week away, and off of GPS. I wasn't in charge of actually renting the cottage but I can tell you that it is on Grandview Lodge Road. I should also add that we do have a good boat at our disposal. Thanks Again Guys!

Hello All! My Name is Ryan. This is just me introducing myself to you, the rest of the OFC community. I heard about these boards through a friend and decided to join up after reading some quality posts. I am 26 from the Kitchener-Waterloo area and I just started fishing regularly last year. I have been fishing for Channel Catfish, Trout, and Bass for the most part. A few more things about me and fishing . . . . My Current Setup: Rod - St. Croix Premier 7' Medium Action Reel - Shimano Stradic 2500 FI Line - Spiderwire 8lb test Best Catch: A 28.8 Pound Salmon in the Kincardine Fishing Derby (good for second place) when I was a kid. A few questions that I have (they aren't about your best fishing spots ) - Where can I find out information on local fishing tournaments and-or Provincial fishing Tournaments - Some friends and I have rented a cottage on Sparrow Lake from July 6-July 13. I am looking for Information or Topographic Maps on the lake so that I can do some quality research before the trip. If anyone knows anything about the lake, or can help in this department it would be GREATLY appreciated! I look forward to contributing to the forums, and getting to know you folks! Ryan