Jonny

There's that other thread about getting hooked in various parts of the anatomy. Make sure you don't hook your boat... or keep the chewing gum handy!

I never really thought about it, but I never "lip" any kind of fish to unhook it. Too much experience with pickerel and pike I guess, and too little with bass. I always take a firm grip around the body before unhooking the critters. Lipping bass always looked kinda cool to me, but I don't do it.

Have you tried changing the angle of the motor? Is it possible you're porpoising? Seems to me the first thing I'd try is moving the motor one notch in toward the transom to bring the nose of the boat down a bit. But that's just a guess.

Put a platter of pickerel and pike in front of me and I'll take as much pike as I do pickerel. Mix some bass in there and I'll have to pay close attention to tell the difference. Whitefish I've never been able to cotton on to. Any fried whitefish I've tasted has always been too strongly fishy, and I've tried it quite a number of times, done different ways. When I smoked whitefish or canned it in my pressure canner, it was fine --- good eating. Its close look-alike, lake herring, on the other hand, is good from Nipissing. We catch quite a few of them when jigging thru the ice. But some have worms and end up as fertilizer. I wonder where all the guys are from that other thread who were down on eating bass? Maybe they were just bustin' our chops!

Not to be argumentative but it seems to me that you can't compare a 24' pontoon boat to an average 24' mono hull. When you're comparing what is essentially a catamaran to a mono hull, I think that changes things like top displacement speed. But I'm no marine engineer. I've gone a lot faster than 7 mph on a friend's pontoon boat and I don't think it was planing. Planing depends on the horsepower and hull configuration lifting much of the boat out of the water. Most pontoon boats I've seen seem to be plowing rather than planing, even at moderate speed. Not that a pontoon boat with a few "tweaks" couldn't plane, but they might be the exception rather than the norm?

Uh-oh, but he would know what his guests are catching and what they're catching them on, you would think. Anyway, I don't know the lake myself, but I hope you can get some good starting points on tackle and fishing areas before you get there. Good luck!

Some people love reality shows, others don't. There's sometimes something to be said for unscripted entertainment. In "professional" fishing shows (no knock on Lunkerville, I just mean serious fishing) you know 3/4 of the time what is going to be said. I suppose you could say that could get boring too. Personally, I seldom watch fishing shows or read fishing magazines. I used to, but not any more. I guess I'd rather be out there doing. I even thought that getting into this OFC site would be ho-hum. Well I was wrong about that.

I don't know if they make a mono hull like that. Pontoon boats have a wide beam for their length. But you're right about some pontoons being pretty quick. I've always had the impression that a pontoon needed a LOT more horsepower to get it up to mono hull speeds. As far as I know, they don't really plane. The other impression I have is that you would want to be on pretty calm water at higher speeds. But all round, on some lakes, speed/wave height etc. likely aren't really a factor. I suppose it would be best if a pontoon had removable upholstery to keep it out of the sun and weather. It would be a bit of a hassle but worth it in the long run. You can buy them completely "zipped in" but I'm thinking that would be as much of a hassle to open up.

Williams Whitefish has been a very dependable lake trout lure for me over the years. If you're staying at this lodge, could you maybe give them a call and see what they recommend for their lake? Some lodge owners are very forthcoming with information, although over the years I've found a few who were pretty tight-lipped.

Remember when it used to be called "Dominion Day"? That had such a distinctive ring to it. Happy Canada Day to all! It might be sacreligious to some, but I find it's a pity the day can't "float" to be attached to the nearest weekend. In Canada, a summer holiday weekend is a treasure for many working people. I don't think it would subtract from the significance of the day.

I don't own a pontoon boat, but I've fished from friends' pontoons. It's a very comfortable way to fish. The drawback is the speed (moderate to slow) and the fact that you probably won't range too far. If those things aren't important, I don't see why a pontoon can't be both a good fishing platform and a classy way to take out your "date" (your mom?). Make sure you have a long-handled net.

I think we were cleaning our lake trout properly. We always left a thin layer of meat on the fillet skins and we did not take belly meat. Still they had a strong taste. We never kept a whole fish - we always filleted them.

Wow, I just spent two minutes watching light-sensitive slime. The high point of my day!

Taste in Fish … meaning how they taste, not what species are preferred for catching. Can where they are caught noticeably affect the flavour? I haven’t noticed much difference but I’ve very seldom fished south of the French River. Nipissing/French up to north of Cochrane, and Quebec border to west of Sudbury have been my “stomping grounds” for all my life. I've made forays elsewhere but only once in a while. Pickerel seem to be consistently good no matter where they’re caught. Some people may detect subtle differences, but I never have. Perch are great. I’ve eaten a few (very few) pike that seemed to be “off”. Some people say pike is OK as long as you catch it out of cold water. In Northern Ontario I don’t think there’s ever much chance to prove otherwise. I’ve always considered it to be more a mental thing, but I could be wrong. Bass is actually what got me wondering about this whole thing. There seem to be some people dead set against eating bass. Are bass out of some lakes poor eating? I’ve never run across it but I’m prepared to be enlightened. The salmonids – various trout and salmon and char – have more of a “fish” taste than fish with light-coloured flesh. Specks are wonderful, at least the size I usually catch out of creeks (8 – 12”). Salmon are great. Lake trout I find generally taste too strong to be as enjoyable as other fish. Catfish and ling, I've eaten some very tasty ones. Drum recently too. Anyway, just a few thoughts.

Actually average depth doesn't help you much. Temagami is deeper than Nipissing and has some good lake trout in it, but you probably won't catch those this time of year unless you're wire-lining or downrigging. Both lakes contain pike, pickerel and bass. Lake Nipissing is MUCH more open than Temagami and consequently there's more chance that it will be rough, unless you're fishing the western end (West Arm, etc.) If you decide to fish Temagami, stop in at Dad's Outdoor Store (can't miss it - look for the yellow sign across from the Shell station). I think he has maps, and he'll certainly be able to tell you more about the lake. Both lakes are huge, so fishing depends on where you access them.

They had to screw around with Youtube... now you have to sign in thru Google! I added Youtube to my Google account and it says that this is a "private video".

Hey bud, nice drum! You might want to check out these threads from a while ago... http://www.ofncommunity.com/forums/index.p...c=32995&hl= http://www.ofncommunity.com/forums/index.p...c=33003&hl=

I can bread and pan fry several species of fish from Nipissing and you won't hardly be able to tell what you're eating --- every piece will taste good.

Suppose we turn that around... Muskie fishing and riding an exercise bike have a lot in common. A lot of effort expended but it doesn't get you anywhere. I'd rather fish and get frequent action from fish I can actually eat.

Thanks, Mike, that one does it for me! I'll be tuning in. The admin on this board could probably set you up with contacts on Nipissing (North Bay/Sturgeon Falls - about 4 hrs drive N of Toronto). Another place I would suggest is Kincardine (at the base of the Bruce Peninsula on Lake Huron). Fishing near the big nuclear plant would probably be a hoot, and you'd love the town, especially if you're there on a summer Saturday for the weekly Scottish pipe band parade. I could probably set you up with a contact - one of the guys who works at the plant. Just a couple of thoughts in case some shows in Canada intrigue you.

If Lunkerville is on satellite, can someone point me to the right channel? I'd rather try watching a few episodes on TV than on the computer. Sounds like an interesting show with lots of local colour, kind of like some of the travel shows where the host (usually a young guy) goes to places he knows very little about and is clued in by meeting and establishing a rapport with the local people.

The elusive megamouth bass.

I've spent more time in my life fishing for pickerel than any other kind of fish. So yeah, they're awesome. HOWEVER, I love catching bass, pike, specks, lakers, salmon (chinooks and pinks), rainbows, splake, cutthroat, perch, saugers, catfish, lake herring, even drum too (I've only ever caught ONE crappie and ONE muskie!). They're all worthy fish, and all good eating, except that I'd put lakers down at the bottom of the list for that. I just don't get the idea of dissing bass. Aren't we all hoping for "dumb" fish to keep the action hot and heavy? And aren't all fish "dumb" when the conditions and/or the presentation are right? And why pass up a fish that can give a spectacular fight and tastes good on your plate? Seems like a total win to me. But then again, I don't subscribe to any "best" fish, or any "best" way of fishing.

So what makes the pickerel so much better? Less aggressive, anemic fight compared to a smallmouth, tastes just about the same. How can being picky make a sport fish a better sport fish? I dunno, maybe it's that flash of white tail-tip while you're hauling them up that makes them so exciting. But for pure fighting fun, give me a bass or a pike any day.

You are a master of understatement, sir! What a beaut!