diggyj

Rapala makes a fine product and they have been in business for over 70 years. I think they can tell when a lure has been "damaged in use" and "not defective". I see guys on the water smack their lures against the water surface when they have weeds on them. Doing stuff like that may weaken a lure. I'm not saying you did that, but lures do get weakened from hitting rocks, etc. Stuff happens so quickly on the water, you may have done something to it and not realised it. They are expensive but mailing them a lure back doesn't entitle you to a new one. If everyone sent them back lures that broke during use, they might be bankrupt. Dirk

Here is my fishing buddy BEAR the 2 year old German Shepherd. Dirk.

16 ft LEGEND Prosport SC. Dirk

Time for a brand new trolling motor for the boat. What would boardies recommend? Motor Guide, Minn Kota, BPS Brand? After seeing some of the reviews on BPS website I am having doubts about Motor Guide. Any suggestions greatly appreiciated. Thanks. Dirk

Going after strictly bass! Land small ones occasionally. Dirk

For the first weekend in July, I must say that the weather is still yet to be where everyone expects it to be. After getting up to the cottage on Friday afternoon, the wind was pretty strong and the waves were whipping up. I knew that this was going to be a busy weekend on Rice as the CSFL was having there 2 day tournament running. Normally the start from Bewdley but this year they started from Hastings. I thought that was cool as I never ventured to Bewdley to catch any tournament action. Friday nights sunset was nice as usual. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 Saturday morning was pretty cool and the wind was very strong and the waves where once again whipping up wth some small whitecaps. Just after 7am the first wave of boats came thundering through my area and then again 15 and 30 minutes later. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 I can recall seeing one boat in particular get airborn and I thought it was going to flip. I didn't venture out to fish on Saturday as fishing was tough due to the high winds and waves. This is what some of the anglers said when I talked to them from my dock. The ones I talked to said action was slow and some caught nothing to that point in time. I went for a drive to Hastings and saw all the boats in a line come in around 3 pm. Pretty cool sight but I forgot my camera. Saturday nights sunset was nice but still didn't venture out. Casted my Clackin' Rap off my dock for a bit and managed to land a Rock Bass. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 Finally made it out on Sunday morning for a couple of hours and the wind was still there but conditions were much better than on Saturday. Here are a few shots from some of the action. Asked a boat about day 1's leading weight and they said it was 19 lbs, WOW. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 After being on the water for about an hour and a half, I decided to change over to a 5" Berkley Hollow Belly Split Tail Swimbait in the Arkansas Shiner Colour. I was casting in about 9 FOW and all of a sudden I get a hit but I miss it. I see the flash swim away slightly so I quickly pitch underhand to the same spot and as soon as it hits the water I see it just engulf the swimbait. Turns out to be a nice 17" Smallmouth that weighed in at 2.12 lbs. What made it more gratifying was the fact that there were 2 tournament boats right beside my and I was proud to catch something in front of them. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 Capped the pre-lunch hours off with a couple of cold ones. Happy 4th of July. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-05 Dirk.....

Well I finally made it out for a crack at some Bass. Headed out from Ajax at 6AM and was on the water just after 7AM. I hooked up with a buddy who actually outfished me with numbers today. He caught a total of 6 fish, 3 Sunfish, 1 Rock Bass, and 2 Smallies that were in the 6-7 inch range. He was targetting panfish with his light gear so that is why he was landing the small ones. I only managed one fish all day and it came at 2:30pm. Only took me 7 hours to land one. I had numerous bites all day and actually lost a couple of small ones. It was well worth the wait as it was a nice 18 incher that weighed in at 3 lbs 4 oz. After I landed it, I thought it would weigh a bit more so I was disappointed with the weight. I really thought it would be in the 4+ lb range. Put up a nice fight and peeled some line off, tightened the drag and brought him in from the weedy depths. 9FOW to be exact. Caught on a CAROLINA RIG. The day started out very cloudy and overcast, had a bit of rain for less then 5 minutes but then it cleared up and was a really great day. Action wa slow. Not many fish landed by other boats. OPP cruised by near Margaret Island but did not stop anyone. They rolled up and some boats out of the way that may or may not have been drinking. If you are heading out, stay safe and don't drink and boat because the POLICE are out there. All in all a nice day, well worth it after landed an 18" monster. Gonna make a nice dinner. Dirk........... By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-01 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-01 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-01 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-07-01 By diggyj at 2009-07-01

Oduya has already resigned with the Devils, so he is out. I don't see the Leafs doing much aside from possibly trading Kaberle for some draft choices or positional players. They won't do much until 2010 when they have a tonne of room under the cap to spend money. Payroll last year was 52 million, it will be 42 million this year and will go down to 15 million next year. I think Burke will wait one more year then drive the BRINKS truck to any talented, avalaible players that he wants to sign. That means one more year of missing the playoffs. But watch out in 2010. Dirk.....

Can anyone confirm what the rules are regarding taking pictures of OOS Fish? Is it legal or not? I have seen it done in many reports and all of them say released immediately. Any clarification would be great as this is a topic I do not know the correct answer to. I am aware that storing them in a livewell for pictures is 100% illegal and should never be done but can you take a quick pic and release it thereafter? Thanks, Dirk..........

Wow, those are some big cats. WAnt to make it down to Dunnville soon. Dirk....

Yes it was caught off the dock in about 10-15 FOW. Never put in livewell as the 2 guys can attest to. A quick net job and pic, then relesed immediately. Can anyone clarify if you can in fact take a pic of an OOS fish? Not 100% sure so I just want to make sure that I have done nothing illegal. I have seen other reports of guys taking pics of OOS fish, so a definate answer would be helpful. I am aware as you mentioned that putting it in the live well would be illegal. Thanks, Dirk.....

Once again mother nature just wouldn't cooperate this weekend. Headed up to the cottage on Friday afternoon. Left a little later then I wanted to, but when I left it was warm and sunny. As I got closer, the clouds started rolling in so by the time I got up and settled(unloading the car), it started getting really cloudy and then some very low dark clouds rolled in. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 The thunder and lightning was in the air and sure enough it was a severe storm that passed very quickly. After it passed the sun came out for a while and then more dark clouds rolled in and once again it poured as the skies opened yet again. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 So fishing for Crappie on Friday night was out of then question. Then rain continued all night so I sat infront of the BOOB TUBE and watched some hockey and other various sporting activities. Early Saturday morning there was a nice full moon so I thought that Saturday morning would be nice. By now I was heading out onto the water to get an early start and to get to the Walleye spot where they always seem to be. That was in fact the case as the morning gave way to a sensational early season sunrise. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 When I got the spot in question there were 2 other boats there and by the time I left a few hours later, I counted about 15 boats in that one spot with well over 20 in the general area. In the early season and since it was WALLEYE opener I thought it would be best to throw crankbaits as you could cover lots of water and get it down to the correct depth. I started out by deciding to go with a Rapala Husky Jerk bait and I put on a #10 in the Firetiger color. At around 7 am I hook into something and after bringing it up from the depths, I see that it is in fact a walleye. A small one but one nonetheless. Unfortunately it got off just prior to me landing it. Hard when you have to reel in and man a net all by yourself. A short time later, once again I hook up with something, This time it is somehting bigger since it feels bigger and puts up a bit more fight, still sluggish so I assumed it was a walleye. I was correct. It measured 23" and weighed in at 3 lbs 12 oz's. Again caught on the HJ-10 Firetiger. Both fish caught in 8 FOW, water temp was 60 degrees F. Action was generally slow. Only saw 2 boats land fish, they landed 2 each, so that is 4 into total, for all those boats. Needless to say, I am happier then a Pig in Dung with my efforts. Talked with a few boats and they were not having much luck. The one boat caught his on HJ's also, where as the other boat was jigging the bottom with black bucktail jigs. Heard of one Muskie being caught. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 Pulled up to my neighbours dock and he took these pics for me. Thanks MIKE. I kept this fish and I now have some nice walleye filets in the freezer for a future fish fry. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 This is the point in time where I post and edit because I'm sure it has happened to all of you, you work on a report then you screw something up and all your efforts are wasted and you start over. PART II After heading in just after 8 am for breakfast, the skies opened up again slowly then it was an absolute downpour. After it eased up again I chatted with a couple of guys who weren't having much luck, some small bass and a catfish for them. They asked what I caught mine on so I showed them because they weren't sure what a Husky Jerk looked like. I made a cast and whammo, I hook into a monster bass. They couldn't believe it. I had to take a quick pic and weigh it. It was 4 lbs 8 oz's. Was that illegal, probaly, but it was thrown back right away. Couldn't resist as my buddies wouldn't belive me. Pic is blurry because it was done as fast as possible to not harm the fish in any way. They mentioned wanting to try out worm harnesses' but they didn't have worms so as my beer fridge is always stocked with worms I decided to give them 2 dozen worms. Hope they brought them some success. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 Just as fast as I caught it, the skies opened up yet again. It was on and off all weekend. As it become heavier most of the boats disappeared. The thunder and lightning did not deter the 2 guys I chatted with. I give them credit because they were troppers, not having much luck and to become completely drenched, well 2 thumbs up to you. By diggyj, shot with DSC-W5 at 2009-05-09 Here is what I was looking at from my boathouse as they stuck it out in miserable conditions. The weather has been so unpredictable lately it makes for some tough fishing. I did however enjoy getting up to the shack and get some fishing in finally. I was very happy to get out onto the water and have some success. In summary I caught 2 walleye, landed 1, caught 3 bass, one monster. Looking forward to getting out again this week and next weekend. Shawn you better show up this time. I wanted to stay up there tonight and fish and also fish tomorrow but since this is my Wifes first Mothers Day, I just had to come home so I would be here in the morning otherwise I would have been in the doghouse for life if I missed the first one. Hope everyone had a successful weekend of fishing no matter what you were going for. Happy Fishing.....DIRK.................

Great report, that is one sweet looking walleye. Dirk

Thanks, you just proved my point and that is, that you come across like an immature little child. Dirk

First of all there is a difference, my Pike was not released, his were. Secondly if you like belittling people then continue to do so if you feel it makes you a better and stronger person. Thirdly, I won't even comment about your latest post. Cheers.

Don't take offense when people start bashing you for throwing them on the ground like that. BTW, great job. Well done in hooking into some early season TO Island Pike. Dirk....

New Standard Operating Procedures released today please learn. BBQ RULES We are about to enter the BBQ season. Therefore it is important to refresh your memory on the etiquette of this sublime outdoor cooking activity . When a man volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion: Routine... (1) The woman buys the food. (2) The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert . (3) The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill - beer in hand. (4) The woman remains outside the compulsory three meter exclusion zone where the exuberance of testosterone and other manly bonding activities can take place without the interference of the woman. Here comes the important part: (5) THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL. More routine... (6) The woman goes inside to organise the plates and cutlery. (7) The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is looking great. He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beer while he flips the meat Important again: (8) THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN. More routine... (9) The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and brings them to the table. (10) After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes. And most important of all: (11) Everyone PRAISES the MAN and THANKS HIM for his cooking efforts. (12) The man asks the woman how she enjoyed "her night off", and, upon seeing her annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women. Dirk.......

The key is to get a bigger tackle box! Then you have to get more tackle! Dirk

Sweet ride................... Dirk

Fishing from my boat on RICE LAKE. Dirk

TICK ISLAND

Twin Cedars on Rice Lake has permanent, concrete docks, so launching with any height of water level is possible. So does the launch at Hiawatha. Dirk... Twin Cedars Resort and Marina Road: 32 Sandy Bay Road, Hastings Co-ords: N44 15.591 W78 02.425 Ramp Conditions: Concrete Cost: $10 Shore Fishing Access: Yes, probably have to be staying at resort Other: Cottage rental place, launch is listed as public. Owner is Steve. Hiawatha Road: Hiawatha Line Co-ords: N44 10.811 W78 12.033 Ramp Conditions: Concrete Cost: Donation Shore Fishing Access: Yes Other: Dock access, store/gas bar/restaurant around the corner from the launch

What a crappy year for Canadian hockey. Not only are the LEAFS going to miss the post season(GIVEN), but so are the SENS and the OILERS. Has to be disappointing when lowly teams like Nashville(maybe) and Colombus are making it considering they don't even sell out their games. Dirk..

Congrats on the 100th issue. Great job. Love reading the articles. Keep up the good work..... Dirk....

That is one hell of a report and those sure are some monster PIKE. Great job and thanks again for one wicked report. Dirk....