setomonkey

Thanks again for your advice, got the carrier a little while ago and finally found some time to assemble it and try it on the roof rack. Used it to move some stuff to a friend's house and worked well. Mike

I'm slow on the uptake, had a small tackle box for a few years, then bought a bigger one as I accumulated more tackle, then bought what my wife affectionately (I think) refers to as my tackle suitcase, which was huge but contained four trays, a good-sized rack for spinnerbaits, and a general storage space too. But I found the suitcase too big and unwieldy, esp. on a smaller boat, and pretty much useless in a canoe. So I switched to a tackle bag this winter, bought on sale at BPS. Can't wait to use it this season! Mike

I had a good conversation with a tackle store employee about bearings when deciding on a new reel. His point was that the quality of the parts and manufacturing mattered more than how many bearings a reel has. Made sense to me. (And I bought a Shimano reel that didn't have lots of bearings) Mike

I bet this lure would kill on Lake X...

Been to Europe a few times over the past few years. Never had a problem using my bank card at an ATM to withdraw euros. You'll get your bank's exchange rate, which is definitely better than money exchange places. You'll probably get a service charge though, so I'd do larger and fewer withdrawals. And you get a good exchange rate from the credit card companies, I used my credit card for all the bigger purchases (hotel, restaurants, etc.) and used cash only for water, snacks, etc. Mike

Check out this site, lots of used and out-of-print books. See if they have your title, as that will tell you what the going price is. Alibris Otherwise, I'd suggest taking them to a few different used/antique booksellers and see what they will offer you. Mike

Great pics guys, lots of wonderful dogs... Here's Grover in a tinny, looking for signs of fish. Mike

Lots of good suggestions. I've done the same thing on some camping trips (e.g., Algonquin). Keep it simple, mix of different sized jigs, mix of twister tail plastics, few inline spinners like Mepps, a few small spoons and a few crankbaits will fit in one of those trays. Don't forget a spare spool of line. Also, I have a cheap telescopic rod that I will bring on camping trips in case my main rod breaks or is lost. Very small and you can keep it with your clothes in a backpack. It would suck to be at the start of a camping trip and not have any fishing rod at all. Mike

That's a very lucky dog to find such a great home. Our dog is a rescue, we've had with us now for almost 3 years and can't imagine life without him. Mike

Thanks guys, I will keep your contact info and get in touch with you closer to the date. Nemo, I actually don't know which part of the lake it is. We are going up with another couple and a friend of ours and one of them took care of the booking. I will find out where the cottage is. Took a look at the Angler's Atlas map on the weekend and see what you mean about the chain of lakes, looks like lots of different spots to choose from. So much water, so little time... Mike

Great info, and very helpful. Maybe this could be moved to the Extra Resources section, under Fishing 101? Knowledgeable OFNCers who were interested in doing something like Raf could post there for new or less experienced members. Other 101s off the top of my head (that have been posted before) include: - how to launch and trailer your boat efficiently - setting up downriggers - modifying your boat (adding deck, installing sonars or trolling motors) - motor maintenance and winterizing - fishing topwater lures Mike

Not worth it to me. I'd get more satisfaction from having the photos and being able to tell the story than killing a trophy fish like that. Not just muskies, I'd feel the same way about any species. But that's my feeling about it, it's up to the guy who catches that world record. Long as it's legal within the regs, I've got no business telling someone else what to do. Mike

Nice trout, sounds like a really fun day. Don't know the lure you had the most success on but gotta love the Toronto Wablers. I've got one in copper and another one in copper & silver... Mike

Sorry to hear about your sad news. Hope for the best for you and your family... Mike

Hi guys, I posted a little while ago about wanting to rent a cottage with some friends this summer, we finally booked and looks like we are going to be on Kashagawigamog in late July. Never fished this lake, any general suggestions on where to try and what lures to start with? Also, anybody on that lake who might be interested in meeting up for a morning or afternoon? The cottage rental only comes with a canoe and paddle boat, I might rent a boat from the local marina for a day or two during our stay but I want to fish as much as I can while we're up there. Happy to pay for gas and provide lunch & snacks. Mike

I remember your post when you customized your ride, very sweet to get out on it and do some early season openwater fishing... Mike

Unpack, rather leave the garbage at home than on the boat, and saves room in the tackle bag. Now, whether I actually use those new lures is another story... Mike

Now that's commitment to landing a fish no matter what happens! LOL Mike

Cool pics, glad you decided not to get hit by lightning... Mike

Congrats, that's great news! Mike

Thanks again guys, really helpful advice. (Who needs Google with all the great members here?) According to the car manual the roof rack is good up to 100 lbs, and that is the max load for the cartop carrier anyway. Buster, sent you a PM. Mike

I think this has come up before... The way I remember it is that it is legal to have sport fish in your aquarium at home, but they count towards your possession limit. So that limits the number of a species you can have, depending on which license you have, and it limits what you can keep when out on the water, should you choose to keep fish for a meal. Mike

Thanks guys, good pt about the waterproofness. Cliff, a lot more reasonable price for what we have in mind. Any problems with cracking or wear & tear of the plastic? And I'm not sure what you mean about the tarp, how does having one on the bottom help you with leaks through the seal along the sides? Thanks again, Mike

I'm hoping to get up to the family cottage more this summer. But now that we have a baby, we need to carry A LOT more gear with us, and we can't put down one of the rear seats anymore because of the infant seat and new passenger. I drive a Subaru Impreza wagon with a factory-installed roof rack. I have been looking online at cargo carriers and can't believe what they want for a Thule or similar hard carrier. Way more than I want to spend for a few cottage trips a year. I was also looking at the bag carriers, and wondered if any of you have used these. What's your opinion? Thanks, Mike

With a light spinning rod, I'd keep it simple at first, a bunch of spinners (I prefer Mepps), some small jigs and hooks, plastic trout worms, nightcrawlers where allowed by the regs. Those will work on tribs as well as small lakes. I've also caught trout casting or trolling small Rapalas or small spoons. Good luck, Mike