xeon

Lack of experiance? Bah, you've never seen my "left hook".

Totally not.

Forgot the most important thing! A nice digital, weatherproof camera with lots of memory for taking videos and pictures. Because we all know, you're just spewing a bunch of Bull without the pictures.

Man, you bought the cheapest crap at bass pro. Take them back man. Buy a few large spinners, a suick and a believer. AND you didn't buy a gaff.

Get a couple nice nets. Nice tape or measuring stick. Lure wise, just go and buy a few things to match your style of fishing. Or do some reading tonight about the latest techniques and pick up some different things.

New line every season. During the season if it gets half way I join the two lines and top er up.

You've opened Pandora's box with that one. Make sure even before you start looking make a list of things you need in a fish finder, then make a list of wants. Then, compare both units. And yes, they are almost the same. Personally I've used the Hbird 1100SI series, 900SI series, 700 series, and 500 series in action on the water. I've played with a demo HDS, but haven't seen the HDS on the water... YET. I've used a bunch of the "older" lowrance LMS 520c, 110c, ect. on the water for most of last years season. Now that lowrance is releasing its new down+side imaging its pretty much the same as the hbirds as they too now have down imaging standard on their SI units. The sonar capabilities of the units will be roughly the same. The down and side imaging should also NOT be purchased for a 5'' unit as you wont be able to see enough detail. At the end of the day, these units are so similar it pretty much comes down to price. Also don't let the "HD" thing fool you, its pretty much just a marketing gimmick, theres higher resolution on the birds. Heres one on the HDS 5 and 700 http://www.walleyecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=160441 Heres an ok discussion between the HDS8 and 900 series humminbird. http://www.walleyecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=162672 What am I buying for this season? I have absolutely no idea yet and I've been researching the units for about 3 months straight.

Were they in a spot where people could have hit them with the net handles or paddles? Did you have inline fuses of the right amperage (3 I think)? What has lowrance said about your units? I mean, you easily spent $10-14000 equipping your boats.

Most likely not. Kind of sounds like you're getting tons of spam everyday?

1 point/package. If you refer 5000 people and they each take the 4 course package, they'll buy you a new boat. Problem is you have to buy the course first yourself...

$100 for hours of straight information isn't bad at all. I actually really like the idea, and can definitely see this being pretty handy for people who are just starting out.

I've had problems with the GPS creating a short somewhere with the unit. Other than that there hasn't been any sonar issues.

Time for an ol' fashion ass kicking.

Just set up a treestand in the neighbors view and hide a couple trail cams that are chained to a tree. If he takes one step on the property he's trespassing and can be charged. If he is caught damaging anything he can also be charged and it will look terrible on him as mayor. Just have your friend say this to your neighbor "Now I'm not sure if it is you that is going on my property, but I'm setting up 10 of my new wireless BuckEye trail cams up sometime next week that have the ability to send pictures directly to my computer. So if you do trespass illegally on my property your picture is going to be sent directly to my pc before you can even destroy the camera. And there WILL be charges laid." I doubt you'll have a problem after that talk, even if it is just a big bluff.

I personally don't worry about what the governments definition of immediately is, its very easily arguable in court and to a peace officer. So long as you show due diligence in releasing the fish (even after a quick photo) you're not likely to get charged, or have charges stick. And plus if the fish swims off fine, no harm no foul. Floating out of season fish are likely to draw that charge.

Your best bet is to head to Wawa-Chapleau area where you have a decent chance at consistent numbers and size. I know allot of lakes north of the Soo down Whitman Dam/Domtar that do have nice walleye but winter fishing is a bit more hit or miss for them, and the closest one is an hour sled ride. If I were you I'd stick with trout or pike till the tribs warm up.

The new lake trout regs are a touchy subject to allot of locals. Give it 5-10 years and they should be back up *WITH* bigger and better populations than ever!

Those are some pretty nice shots they got of the fish grabbing the "flies". But ya budget wise, I'm sure not many people have the money to fly over a waterfall and film it with a HD camera.

I do remember a Weird Science article years ago about chimps actually having far superior simple math skills than humans. So thank you sir, and I appreciate your subtle compliments. BTW, how did you know I was great at math?

The SSM sale sucks too.

I've read of Americans actually doing that, so I wouldn't put it past someone who fishes Simcoe.

Don't listen to him! How do you seriously expect to get a muskie into a BECKMAN NET (make sure to ask the lodge if they have GOOD nets, you'd be surprised) if you cant manipulate its body in there yourself? Most of the fish swim away anyways, its just a little poke. But NEVER gaff around the gills, that's just plain unsporting. I bought my gaff through Cabelas, just look in the saltwater section. I opted for the 4'' hook, with a 4' handle, but if I had to do it again, I would go for the one with the 5' handle to get even the most cautious figure 8'ers who know to stay back a bit (haha got those gals once or twice before). I usually get my figure 8'ers on the larger believers in Jailbird colour, although if the water is still going to be cold, go for the smaller size and possibly a more neutral colour. Also, you cant go wrong with Mepps 5's in natural for those cold front days, and even a Mepps 3 if you're feeling enough confidence to throw such a small lure. And yes, combined I've probably caught and seen well over 45-60 36-48'' muskies caught on #3's alone in a season. Also another thing you can try doing is calling your lodge and asking them for detailed lure names, sizes, and colours. Or if they cant give you good info, try a couple of the lodges around there and telling them that you are considering them and have it about 95% talked over with the wife, and now you just need a lure shopping list for the meanwhile. That way they'll give out last years top producers unknowingly and honestly, and you might also be trying out new things on the water you're going to, its a win-win.

I didn't say they were garbage. I said they were both low cost and of the same build quality.

It isn't the other guys fault that he entered into a high speed pursuit and couldn't handle his vehicle. That's what police who are trained in high speed maneuvers are for.