Jonny

Not quite the same but I remember as a kid, when we'd rent a cottage or cabin, how much of a thrill it was to do some shallow diving (my kids used to call it "goggling") and find lures hung up on underwater logs and snags. My dad used to give me a dime or a quarter for every serviceable one I found --- big money in those days! I'm not sure if he didn't hang up one or two cheap ones himself just to let me find 'em.

I have Google set to send me notifications if the words "north bay" or "nipissing" come up in news or blogs. Sometimes our forum shows up... see the third entry down...

It doesn't get more exciting than waterfowling when the action gets going - ducks circling, ducks cupping their wings to land in your pattern, calling, gauging distances and letting 'er rip when the moment is right. I don't think you get that concentrated amount of shooting for anything else. I think it'd ruined my hearing somewhat though! No testament to my wing-shooting but I could sometimes go through better than a box of 25 in a morning. The ducks were skittish and stayed a maximum range, yeah, that's it. Waterfowling is also one of the most dangerous types of hunting if you're with a partner. You and he have to be VERY aware of zones of fire and always err on the side of caution when swinging the gun.

They've succeeded in making hunting a very difficult thing to get into. The firearms safety course duplicates most of what the hunter safety course teaches, and you need both.

Should be fun trying to catch a fish on something you made yourself. Good Luck! My suggestion for a name: The Little Woody.

OK enough of that! I refuse to turn my laptop upside down any more!

Well we screwed it up with liters - four liters is almost exactly one US gallon (1.05). Good luck finding a pump that pumps in gallons nowadays! I wonder how many Americans come across the border and say, "Hey, Canadian gas is really cheap!!!"

Now how on God's green earth did you do that!? I don't go to them either.

Like they said... AVG. I had Norton at one time... probably effective, but expensive and it slowed down my computer in a major way. I've been using AVG for at least 5 years now.

Nope... not so lucky here. Used to be that a friend and I shore-fished the tail-race of the Horwood Dam, an hour west of Timmins. We got a good catch of pickerel and when we packed up to leave, I somehow (don't ask me how) left without my tackle box, which was sitting on some machinery on top of the dam. I guess between the stringers of fish, landing nets, packsacks and lunches, rods and reels I just plain forgot. I didn't realize what had happened until we got home. So, another hour's drive back out there, and the tackle box was gone. In the intervening two hours, somebody had taken it. Even though I had my name and number on it, I never got that box back. Some guy must have thought he really lucked out. It cost me a lot to replace that box and its contents. I've been very careful never to let anything like that happen again.

More than I ever knew about a jet-outboard setup, thanks! Your buddy wouldn't be your buddy any more!

Yeah, I tend to skim by that stuff and automatically substitute the right word --- as a former teacher I've seen my fill, but I don't have to correct it any more.

Awesome! I was thinking I could sure use something like that in a large "foul ground" near me, but at high speed I'd still hit rock shoals that are just at the surface or a couple of inches below. Still, if it were used to move slowly into the area, it would greatly reduce the chance of running aground. The shiny rod-and-linkage that goes to the rear of the jet --- is that like a trim adjustment? And when you turn at high speeds - does the boat skid, or does it turn normally?

You got a picture of that thing, Art?

Thanks for the info. Sounds interesting even though you're not fishing yourself. Maybe a good way to get introduced to this kind of thing and see if you like it. Two lines?

Heck, I'd take that! This is what our whole summer has been like... and it's raining now and has been, off and on, all day... and it seems like almost every day for the past 3 weeks...

What is a "spotter" exactly? Maybe I lead a sheltered life (I don't do tournaments, anyway) but the term isn't familar to me. Is he keeping an eye on other boats to see if they're catching?

I listen to the Environment Canada marine forecasts for Nipissing, especially for wind speed and direction, and they've proven to be wrong often enough to be unreliable. "UP NORTH" in Barrie??? It's practically a suburb of Toronto from where we sit! Yeah, Summer 2009 sucks bigtime so far.

I'm sure you mean "we", since your Dad will be the one paying.

Of course what I meant in the earlier response was the rods only, not the reels! Your rods are exposed to the elements for days on end when fishing. A few hours on a roof rack isn't going to hurt them. But sure, by all means, pipe is a good idea. White 4" sewer pipe (new! ) is good. It comes in 10' lengths, it's lighter than the black stuff and easier to cut, and you can buy end caps for it. If you want tie-down holes you can buy the kind that already has holes in it (for tile beds).

There's lots of Crown Land here around North Bay. The link earlier in the thread is a good one for familarizing yourself, and if you're interested in a couple of topo maps to go with that, PM me. On Crown Land, there's no such thing as encroaching on someone else, unless they're set up on a deer or moose watch, or they've set up a camping spot. The bush and the trails are open to everyone. I've seen up Abitibi way where a few hunters think they can set up a campsite to block off an old logging road and then think the road belongs to them, but that's the exception to the rule. I've driven around or through a few of those when the road is a long one which I have hunted before. You get some dirty looks but they know they're in the wrong.

Rod case is not a bad idea, but why not just shock-cord them to the roof rack, butt-end forward. Nothing much will hurt them up there for the few hours you will be driving. KISS method.

Here's an interesting article which bears out what you're saying about the differences being accentuated once the fish are in rivers and shows a good comparison of the tails... http://www.tahoe.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article...0104&Ref=AR Note that according to the info I got from the FFC book, the differences in the lower jaw gum line are NOT a reliable indicator in fresh water salmon. Can you still see the difference in the tail spots even when the fish colour goes dark?

SO right! Good pickin's from the fridge!

Way to go girl! Is that grandpa I see reaching for his rig to try to beat her to the next one?