Jigger

I wasn't implying Kemper uses the 50lb on a musky rod, but on his bass rod. Even still, and I'm sure some will disagree, 65lb is fine for Kawartha fish and the Haliburton 'skis that I fish for. The rod I use with oversized jigs is rigged with 65lb test. Its more limp and works better than my other rod thats rigged with 80lb. Set the drag properly and you can fight any fish. My pb fish is only 46in, but I horsed it in with that same 65lb thinking I was using my other rod. I'd think twice about using it on GBay, Ottawa river or any other trophy waters. But judging by the amount of fish landed on bass gear every year on the Kawarthas and Haliburton, I'd say heavy bass gear is suitable for most casting applications on non-trophy lakes.

That was your problem, Kemper. You shouldn't have been using the 30lb. I bought some 30lb PP once and snapped off a bunch of times before smartening up and moving up to 50lb. Do the same and you won't regret it. You can set the hook into a tree and not break the line. The rod might snap, but you'll still have your lure...

I've come across this situation with a fish that was in the same spot for over a month. The only thing that stuck it was a jig'n pig. Muskie candy. has the illusion of a bulky bait but without any substance between the bait and hook. Musky innovations has a big one that I've been using for a few years now. At first I didn't have confidence in it, but it now has a designated rod. Very few negative ques and very good hook-up rate.

Happy birthday Cliff!

Love the different look of each fish, definately gives them a personality of their own.

For what its worth, now that you've made your decision, make sure that you know what it is you want to do in the end. Meaning after school is done. It could be the most important(insert # of yrs here) years of your life as far as direction goes. At the same time, don't make it the biggest waste of time possible. In high school, there were alot of guys laughing at my buddies and I just because we'd do enough to get through class and look toward the time afterward to get messed up and do crazy...stuff. These guys went on to college and university while we worked and carried on. These same guys now spent X amount of time in school, but didn't know what they wanted to do. They now live with their parents under a mountain of debt, or have jobs in totally un-related fields. Direction is the key. When I first read your thread, the first thing that came to my mind was a line from a Red Hot Chili Peppers song. "It's better to regret something you did than something you didn't do." I don't hunt, but if the option was mine and it was a fishing lodge instead...No brainer.

Like Lookingforwalleye, I pinch the barbs down on all my muskie baits. Also have to agree with RambleOn as far as treble to single hooks goes. I've never understood the reasoning behind three sets. My jerkbaits have one treble at the head of the lure and one at the back. This also gives you spares to use on lures with inferior hooks.

I've been following this remotely for the last year or two and now its time to fire up. This project could take the world in a great direction never before imagined. Or....we could all be space dust in the blink of an eye. Although even the experts against this project say its a very,very,very small chance of that happening. I know its wikipedia, but it summarizes everything pretty well... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Hadron_Collider http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safety_of_the...Hadron_Collider Eat, drink and be merry!

The reason for using a shorter rod has more to do with casting accuracy. I saw a show on WFN, I think it was called Classic concepts, with Kevin Van Dam. He was explaining his reasoning for two spinnerbait set-ups. The longer rod was used for casting further and the shorter rod was for short accurate casts around structure.

Every picture and moment described blew me away. You should be knighted for a post like this. That was the Muhammed Ali of reports. Thank you. WOW!!!

just offhand I'd say its around 48-49in. My pb is less than that so I can only guess. Beauty catch, though. Congrats on the PB!

I wonder if the low water temps this year have anything to do with all these big 'skis showing up? You know, feeding a little more regularily on prime spots? Thats one heck of a fish, for sure!

That fish is huge! Congrats, That must have been a rush!

Good job out there Steve! Those are some beauties for sure! My in-laws also have a cottage up there and we've been up pretty steady since opener. What were you reading for water temp? I could swear my finder has a glitch. I woke up to 68deg on the water this morning. Lots of tagged fish in there, sometimes its the only thing you can see when you drop a worm in 15fow is the tag going toward your bait. Caught a few today, two with tags, this one was pic worthy. Came on a wackyrigged watermelon worm from 12fow. Great report man, if you're up that way again, drop me a line! Were you in a red or blue bass boat?

I can't count how many smallies have broken spinnerbaits on me. After that, topwaters, jerkbaits, tubes, senkos, and grubs. Barring any of those,I'll rig a 7" Power worm with about 2" taken off the top on a 1/4oz jighead. Alot of the fish take this on the fall, also works great drifting this set-up for deeper fish that won't take a tube being dragged but like to see it close to bottom.

Congrats on the win Steve, those are some nice fish you got there! WTG!

PM sent.

Alright then... For the last time, I don't want your spots and don't own a GPS so you won't find me asking for either. In fact, I have never asked for an exact spot to go fishing. Yeah Mark, I do go under the name Jimmynorth on another board. It was also my handle here until the last re-format took place. I would have conitnued to use it here, but couldn't. This thing has seen alot of negativity coming my way and I did have a chance to think about what I wrote yesterday. I had a bit of a rough day yesterday and something set me off. It happens. I get out on the water plenty, Sometimes I catch fish, somtetimes not. I'm usually a pretty laid back guy and my post yesterday was a little uncharactaristic of me. Sorry to have caused such a fuss over what was meant as a comment on internet fishing forums, not an idictment of this or any other board it may be posted on.

I think the guys who think I'm panhandling for spots are severely mistaken. I don't want your spots. If I happen to find one of "your" spots along the way, I'll fish it and that will be that. Think of it like Real Fishing vs In-Fisherman. Bobby likes to catch his fish and have a great laugh, but its mostly entertainment with little relevant info. IN-Fisherman aims to inform. Thats the difference. I find alot of posts entertaining, but few are truly informative. Yeah, I've asked specific questions to posts and have been answered in some, not in others. I don't take it too seriously. I fish for fun and to connect. I've also had tons of help through the PM route and have given out my fair share as well. Its a great tool. Again, if you think I want your spots, you're quite mistaken. I won't tell you where my spots are either, but I will tell you how they're constructed and how I fished them on a given day. Take it however you want, just make sure you're answering the post, not something you've read into it.

I'm becoming increasingly frustrated over the years with some posters. It has to do with certain posts and fishing reports. Why do people just put up pictures and give no real relevant information to help others? Now I'm not talking about people posting pics of PB fish. Or new anglers catching their first fish or first fish of a species that has eluded them until now. I'm not talking about guys that go on trips to locations far and away. Because alot of what goes into those types of posts are more of an emotional one. People are really exited and details get lost in that situation. What I'm talking about is learned fisherfolk who put up pics and give maybe some fleeting info on what it is they got the fish on and thats it. They make no effort to really help other anglers on the board with details like structure, wind conditions, and ask what general location you were fishing in is like pulling a tooth for crying out loud. The generic information you want can be found using the search engine. To really help someone who wants to be better, it would do the community as a whole alot of good to know why you made the decisions you made and specific things you did to make your outing a successful one. Don't get me wrong, I've more than likely fallen into this trap as well. Its easy to just post some pics up and maybe your hands are tired frfom palming a reel and fighting fish all day. But for the most part, I think that I try and make a point out of squeezing every last ounce of info that I can to try and help someone who may be fishing some similar water. Maybe next time they'll have a different outlook and consequently turn a day around. You hear it all the time. Pay attention to the details when you're on the water and your partner is out-fishing you 3 to 1. Why should it be any different on the sites? No one is asking for your spots, especially on trophy waters, but a little help goes a long way for people that just need to be pointed in the right direction. I was recently talking to another member about fishing G.Bay for Musky, for example. He fished the deeper sections of the North, whereas I was to be fishing the relatively shallower portion around Honey Harbour. Regardless, after a few messages thrown back and forth, I had a new perspective on how to approach my trip. I didn't catch a musky, but I left with a completely different view of how to approach that waterbody in the future. One of my favourite sayings from way back is...Mans mind streched to a new idea never goes back to its original dimension. And thats what I'm talking about. Expanding our understanding and giving others the confidence they need to make their next outing as fruitful as it can be. Catching a fish and putting it back is great, but why are you doing it? So others can catch it? Or so that you can catch it again? Same with hoarding your information. Why do you keep it so tight to the vest when writing a report? Is it so that you can have your ego stroked and still have your little secrets? Think about it next time you post. Helping others and sharing info is easier now than ever. Why not put a little more effort into it? Sorry for the rant, but it's becoming a bit much these days and my participation level just isn't what I'd like it to be and I think this is a major reason. Thanks for reading and remember that helping someone is good Karma and will definately come back to you. Tightlines everyone.

They sure do make 'em thick over there. No wonder its on the board as one of the premier waters. Congrats to your buddy. The first one always sticks out.

Was at the cottage this past weekend looking for bronze. Saturday was pretty short as far as fishing time went. The pattern that emerged the previous weekend stayed the same...Lots of smaller fish but nothing over 16in for the hour I got in Saturday morning. In the evening I tried a few different locations. It occurred to me that the small fish were all in the locations that should hold bigger fish. Maybe the larger smallies were occupying areas that held smaller fish most of the time. Also, as I'm sure most of the waterways are, the water has been real high this year for alot longer than it has been in recent memory. So I checked areas that had become new cover. I ended up hooking and losing two big smallies just as the light failed under some low hanging trees . Sunday started out pretty slow. After getting some supplies, I got on the water about 9:30. On the way to my "new" spot, I decided to take a look on a big flat that empties into the main lake. The flat had been improved by the high water and there were plenty of overhanging trees that were now nearly in the water. First cast with a 4in grub got me a little 13in fish. . Kept on down the bank and saw a shadow blast out of a nook but turned away at the last minute. Immediately threw in a Senko and again, the fish rushed out as soon as it hit the water but turned its nose up as soon as it got close. Threw jerkbaits, tubes, topwaters, nothing... Sunday was a blazer and flat calm at this point, but I pulled out the old double willow spinnerbait anyways and wouldn't you know it. First cast and its too much for her. In she comes but D-OH!!! forgot the camera! In the livewell she goes for the 2min ride back to the cottage... First 20incher this year. Wish I had it turned a bit more for the pic, you can't really see how deep the fish is. Fished the other spot with camera in tow and found the place loaded with baitfish. Always a good sign. Right away with the spinnerbait. 18in taken with the camera on a tripod. Theres nothing wrong with my hand, I'm holding the tourney page. The tripod's a work in progress. Went out in the late afternoon for two hours and did very well catching another 6 fish. The good part is that only two of those measured under 19in! One of them a 19in Largemouth tying a pb! All fish coming out of shallow sandy areas with scattered rock and timber that bordered deeper water. Water was 72deg and climbing. Bad part of the story has my wife taking the camera in the afternoon and not even using the camera. Oh well, hope my memory doesn't fade too soon. Days like that are real nice, espcially considering the high heat and sun beaming down. Hope everyone else had a great weekend! Cheers!

Way to set the bar high! Congrats on your recent success. Thats very cool that you set out to try a new pattern and have it bring so many fish to boatside. Congratulations!

Just a friendly reminder that this weekend is Family fishing weekend in Ontario. Make a point of introducing someone to the sport. Anyone can fish, even without a licence and if you want to keep something, the lower Conservation limits apply. Have a great weekend everyone!

Way to stick to your gameplan, Meely! That last fish is awesome. Congrats on an exellent trip!