Dutch

Back on topic - nice fish OP.

My nephew caught one in the Otonabee last year.

I have been out on the lake in some serious rain this year and my Wetskins Jacket and Pants don't cut it. Please let me know about some good rain suits with bib overalls/pants that will keep me relatively dry in 20 k.m. winds in the pouring rain. Would like to have them for duty in Spring, Summer and Fall if possible. Or is it better to get different suits?

Yes, I was there in University. All I can remember is that I'm glad I wrote the address of the place I was staying down on a piece of paper to hand the cab driver.

Thanks Mike! Your story was bed-time reading for me a few nights ago. Slept like a baby, until the bear nightmare I had....true story! Anyways, thanks for putting so much work into telling the tale.

Uni-to-uni is a pain in the arse to tie for using leaders. I use a triple surgeon's knot and haven't had too many issues at all. Very easy to tie. Also - the conventional view is to NOT use a palomar knot for flouro. I stopped using it after I was breaking off far too often. I'd always break off at the terminal knot, not at the surgeons, which is what should really break first. I started using a uni knot, but through the eye twice and my break off issue stopped soon after.

Fantstic report and great pics. Thanks for sharing as always.

Floods Landing? I fish out front there all the time, but not really near the park. Yeah - still getting the odd fish in the Rice, but few and far between. Cast weightless into the "alleys" in the rice. Best if the wind is blowing a little, the rice all lines up on the top of the water. No wind, and it just criss-crosses and is really hard to pick the pockets. You'll see the rice - it is everywhere. As far as catfish goes - never ever seen or heard of one being caught.

I bought a bunch of $1 superglue at Dolarama, three or four little dispensers in each Medicine Bottle, perfect size for hooks and the lids go on watertight. I use the medicine bottle to store hooks, and I use the super glue to fix plastics and glue knots. The plastic isn't going to dull the hook. I usually hone each hook before I tie it on anyway, unless I am using Trokars - they don't need to be sharpened...lol.

She's strong Wayner, things are going to be OK. Thoughts are with you, Jen and family.

Leaving bow strap attached to prevent boat from floating away when launching on your own is a good idea. Leaving bow strap attached for peace of mind thinking that will prevent it from sliding off the bunks backing down to the ramp is a bit of a stretch as that would never happen unless someone puts sliders on the bunks or lubricant, both of which are stupid. Different story with a roller trailer. If you can launch on your own faster than 2 people you are doing exceptional. When launching with a buddy - everything comes undone, buddy backs trailer down to water, boat comes off, trolling motor comes down to get the boat away from the ramp, buddy parks truck/trailer, I pick him up at the dock and away we go. Process takes maybe a minute in total. When launching solo - everything comes undone except bow strap, which is loosened off about 2 feet. I back in until the boat slides slowly back on the trailer about a foot. I step on the trailer climb into boat and start it. Go to the front and undo the loose bow strap. If the bow strap gets tight, it won't come off, so that's the reason for only letting the boat slide off a foot, but leaving at least 2 feet loose on the strap. I drive the boat off the trailer in reverse, park at dock, tie up, return to park the truck, return to boat and drive away. Elapsed time is about 5 minutes.

Just out of curiosity - why welded vs. rivets? Welds weaken the surrounding material and tend to cause cracking, rivets maintain almost 100% strength.

I'm finding this talk of bhut being "flavourful" quite funny. There's nothing flavourful about them - all they are is hot, really hot.

Oh the horror. Families fishing and introducing kids to our sport.

I visted the store in Oshawa a couple of times the last two weeks. I always frequent their bargain bins - picked up a couple of packages of salamander baits for $2 each. They have very competitive pricing on soft plastics - Yum products were $4.50/12 and genuine yamamoto senkos were $6-7/pack. That's lower than all of the other stores I have seen. The average for Yum is $6-7 and Senkos are usually $9+. Also had clearance prices on summer clothing for 50% off. Picked up a couple of nice shimano t's for $10. If paying more at an independant makes you feel good, go ahead, but unless a significant number of people are doing the same thing, it doesn't mean much. The only thing they can do to keep their doors open are lower the prices to be competitive. Same reason why so many of us are shooping on-line through the states, it is just cheaper to do so and the internet has made great products more avialable.

The only thing those peppers are good for is shock and awe. I would ripen and then sell the seeds on ebay.

IF you use them - use the elastic. If not, don't hook through the body that will kill them quick. Hook them through the tail a little off centre. Only use craw fish from the body of water you will be fishing. As mentioned above - tubes or imitation craw fish will catch the same fish and less likely to cause permanent damage or death to the fish.

Was in your situation myself a few years back, similar budget as well. What you will find is the following - used bass boats are hard to come by. Those that are in good shape sell very, very fast. You won't be able to find a used boat with everything you want on it - or it will be very difficult to. Budget at least another $500-$1,000 for after-purchase buys for electronics/other maintenance items. I got my boat in the states - if is a fairly straight forward process, a little more work, but not much. I won't get into the details, there's tons of reference material out there already that covers it off. Selection in the states was much better, as were the prices, especially with the dollar near par. Best thing is, you won't be competing with other people when it comes to buy - I missed out on 2-3 boats up here being the second caller. Thing is they weren't exactly what I wanted either, just in the general vicinity, that why I went to the states to buy. For that money, you should be able to get a fairly newer model 18' boat with a 150HP on it. 2 or 4 stroke is just personal preference, as are electronics. Jack plate is nice to have (I put mine on after), but not a necessity. Hot foot and blinker trim are a MUST in my opinion. So much safer and easier to manoeuver with. I picked up a 2007 Triton TR-186 in 2009 for similar money that your are looking to spend, a bit less actually and that was after a marine survey and gas to drive to Georgia and pick it up. Based on my research, when asking about brands - people reccomend what they have, that's human nature. Do some independant research to determine the pros and cons of each make and make up your own mind. After my research, the only boats I was looking at were Tritons and Rangers for a numbers of reasons. They are simply well made boats with few complaints. I didn't like the look of the Skeeters in the water. The hull design didn't do it for me, althought they are a good boat. I didn't like stratos much either. They have a very pronounced back-heavy sit in the water. Gettting to the front deck was like climbing a hill. Didn't even look at Nitro - you'll find out why once you start doing your research. The lower-end models in my price range were just not as well built as the makes mentioned above. Fit and finish was lacking, could go into it further, but won't. Higher-end models MAY be better, but my experience in buying in the US was when I asked why someone was selling a Nitro - they were switching to another brand. That's why they are cheaper and more abundant than the other makes. Plain and simple. KVD may drive one - but they pay him a TON of money to do it. As far as wear and tear - check the hull for obvious repairs. Condition on a used boat is subjective as far as asthetics goes. I didn't want any scrathces or gouges in the gel coat at all. The boat I bought had one. Depending on age, there may be a few scratches here and there, but if there are a lot, guy didn't care too much and I would stay away. Make sure you check everything and WATER TeST BEFORE YOU BUY!!!!! Far too many people don't and it is crazy not to. Check all the systems on the water - bilge, livewell pump in/out, float switch for auto bilge. Electronics, temp guages, lights (boat and trailer) if they don't work, start deducting money from the purchase price for everything that is not declared. You may want to consider a keel guard, mines come in handy. I have power steering - great feature, wouldn't go back to cable steer. OH - batteries, yeah, IMO it doesn't matter how old the seller says they are, they are usually older and not well maintained. Budget to replace the batteries in year of purchase or following season. As far as hours on the motor, lower is not always better and people lie outright about how many hours are on it. Get a print out. OK - pay for a marine survey or a mechanic to go over the motor. It's the most expensive of the items you are buying to replace. THey need to check the compression of a warm motor, do a leak down test and check the plugs. I also suggest checking each of the coils to ensure they are firing properly ESPECIALLY with Opti's. Two guys I know have has bad coils from day one and as a result, misfiring pistons. Won't do damage, but it is really annoying. The mechanics usually say it is the plugs (not covered under warranty) or the ever-popular "bad gas" which is a crock of Bull. Good luck with your purchase and keep us posted. Buy in the fall, selection is better and so are prices. One last thing - when you see a boat you like, have cash in hand, ready to buy. There's no time for delay or hymming and hawing, some one else is looking and will commit to buy it, leaving you wishing you hadn't drug your feet. Having said that, don't be in a hurry to buy either - makes SURE it is the one you want. KNow what you want, how much you want to pay and if things line up - be ready to act quickly, but DON'T sacrifice being comfortable with the boat/motor/trailer by getting the inspections done. Not doing them just to get the boat can end up costing you a lot of time, money and effort.

Reminds me of the numerous times Ive been fishing the many laydowns along the banks of the Otonabee when some guy in a big ALUMINUM boat with a 60 or 90 goes plowing by barely on plane cause he doesnt even know what plane is in a tinner. The huge unnessary wake always pushes my bassboat too close to the bank ruining my presentation. Being courteous goes both ways. It is NOT the type of boat that dictates the common sense or lack thereof of the captain. Just sayin.....

BC Fish - Fraser River if I recall correctly. Gorgeous fish. Pic has been floating around since the early 2000's. Cue the pic of the huge pike that's been caught on almost every lake that holds pike in the last 5 years.....

Hey Gerritt. Peterborough Bassmasters is always looking for new members. We are very laid back and also fish for more than just bass, at least outside of bass season.....lol. If you are interested, shoot me a PM and I can provide more details.

Typical muskie post that goes south real fast. I don't know why people even post reports about them....oh wait, most people aren't anymore. Or posting reports in general. To the OP - nice fish, thanks a lot for posting. I'd say don't be offended, but it's hard not to be.

Seems to me a moot point. MNR will probably never come knocking. Hope you didnt give specifics they may make it a make work project.

Sysco. They sometimes have minimums. Not sure how much volume you are talking about. Also not sure if they do cash & carry.

Wow - fantastic report. Thanks for sharing your adventures. Always a great read.