Andy

When my son was a young lad, a gull picked up and got hooked on a floating crankbait. He reeled it in and I pried the hooks out of its mouth. I was surprised how small and light the actual body of the gull was under all the fluff and feathers. It flew off just slightly the worse for wear. Still have the odd one check out lures like top waters.

Congratulations! Sounds like a blast. I have yet to get a musky on top as well, despite trying all kinds of lures. Your report reminds me of my second musky trip ever that took place about 5 yrs ago now. I caught 5 fish in 45 minutes, the largest 44", I couldn't do anything wrong that day and I couldn't figure out why people were saying that muskies were so hard to catch. Well, reality caught up with me and I haven't had a day like that since. I got to get out again soon. Thx for the report.

Re; taking down licence plate numbers of speeders on the road and the boat registration numbers of careless boaters on the water. The issue becomes one of identity. How do you prove who was driving the car or boat at the time?

I have called in what I though were impaired drivers in the past, but unless they get stopped before they get home or to their destination, they walk because although I can give a statement about what I saw, I can't say who was driving.

That being said, there are a couple of offences where the owner can be charged regardless of who is driving. An example is passing a stopped school bus with it's lights and flashers activated. If the police cannot figure out, or prove, who was driving at the time, the registered owner can be ticketed. Ouch. Be careful who borrows your car.

The answer is yes. The police can rely on the statements of witnesses and this will likely be some of the evidence used to support the charge if the police did not witness the event themselves. If you are charged with a provincial offence (usually a ticket of some kind) or a criminal offence, you can request disclosure from the Court office, and you or your lawyer/paralegal/traffic ticket specialist will receive a package of the evidence that is being used to support the charge. If it's a ticket you have, send it or take it to the provincial offences office listed on the back and check on the back that you wish to fight the ticket and then request disclosure. Once you get disclosure, you can review the evidence and decide if it's worth taking to trial, pleading guilty, or seeking some sort of resolution with the Crown. I hope this info is useful.

I use the Crawford Knot on heavy flouro. Perfection loop on heavy wire. Just Google both, lots of links.

Double Uni.

Trying it isn't gonna hurt anything. Even a spray on lube like WD40, Fluid Film, Jig a Loo etc. would help loosen it up, if that's the problem.

Nice. I am firing up my smoker later today as well. Some ribs and a roast. I have tried brisket once, it was great. I did some salmon last weekend. It was amazing and I'll certainly be doing that again.

Yeah, I've watched the videos and read the limited reviews. But nothing beats talking to someone that's used one. I think I'm gonna hold off and either go for a Shimano, or maybe the Okuma Komodo. I'm in no rush. Thx.

I talked to someone there just last week. I'll send you some info. Andy

Anyone here have any experience with this reel? I am considering getting a new jerkbait reel for musky and pike. I am looking for a 6.3:1 ratio. I have a Shimano Curado 300 for small to med bucktails and spinnerbaits and two of the 5.4: 1 Toros for plastics and cranks. All great reels. But I wouldn't mind if I saved a few bucks on this reel. I was intrigued with the Okuma Komodo, but the Citrix seems to be built on the same frame with less bearings. I can get it for almost the same money as a Abu 6601 C4, which I haven't ruled out either because of parts availability of ease of repair.

Any input appreciated.

Andy

Wow, that was just an awful game by the Leafs. My wife is a Leafs fan and I'm a Habs fan. I actually felt sorry for her. My son is 22 yrs. old now. He was a Leafs fan from the age of three until he was 14 yrs of age. He gave up on the Leafs because at 14 yrs of age all he knew was that the Leafs always lost. Eight years later nothing has changed. Brutal.

Cabela's. Lots of purchases, never a problem. Excellent service. Small brokerage fee, never hit with duty fees.

Bass Pro. A few purchases. Average service. I didn't like it at first, I was getting hammered with duty fees on everything. But the last two times I've ordered when they were offering free shipping and I paid no duty fees. (for whatever reason)

Rollie and Helens Musky Shop. Good service, not all items always in stock, which I understand for a smaller retailer. Used to pay duty fees and taxes but I didn't mind because they carry stuff that's hard to find in Canada. No duty fees or taxes the last couple of times.

Musky Tackle Online. Excellent service. No duty fees yet.

Joe's Sporting Goods in Minnesota. Good service. Only bought a reel there once. I may have had it shipped to my sister in the USA.

St. Clair Hound Bucktails. A Canadian lure. Excellent service.

Lil' Hustler Lure Tackle Company. Excellent service, but only ships to US address.

Drifter Tackle. Only one purchase. Excellent service.

Good luck, have fun. I make no promise re; duty or taxes. Andy

I keep one of those stainless steel things shaped like a bar of soap in my boat. Just rub it all over your damp hands. It makes a difference. I have one in the kitchen too and it works great on odours like onion. I wouldn't say it's 100%, but it's worth a try.

I have a 2006 90 hp Optimax. It's been a great engine for me. I'll give a rundown of repairs I've had to make over the years.

1. I forget what it was called (cars have them too, or used to, each cylinder has one), but it I had a resistor/solenoid or something similar replaced a couple years ago, it was an electrical problem. I think there was a recall for it. I've only had one replaced, the rest were tested and still good. It was not an expensive fix.

2. A compressor belt blew up. I didn't even know it existed until it went. It was not an expensive fix.

3. Impellor changed out once. It was working fine, I just felt it was time to change it out.

4. The seal in front of prop needed replaced. I hit a rock one summer with the prop and that fall I noticed the lower end oil looked a little milky. Is the prop in good shape?

I'm obviously no mechanic, but if I were buying your engine, I would consider having a mechanic look over these possible issues before the season starts.

Good luck, Andy.

I am the opposite. I definitely prefer willow leaf spinner baits for everything from 1/4 oz to 1 1/2 oz sizes. In my mind they shed weeds easier, pull easier, maybe run a little deeper. I like that they are more subtle and don't thump as hard. And I like them better for trolling. Does blade type really make a difference ? Maybe a little from day to day, but probably not as much as we think. You just use what feels right. Andy

Wow, what's next??? I hate to say it, but this country is slowly going to pot!! What a bunch of whiners people have become! Don't they have anything better to do??

We are becoming a nation of chronic victims. Everyone feeling they need to a victim of one thing or another, and everything bad that happens to us is someone else's fault. "My coffee is was too hot so I deserve compensation", "I'm not yet a citizen of this country but I don't want to pledge allegiance to the Queen so I'll take the government to court", "I'm offended by Christmas trees and the Lord's prayer." "The government spent a small fortune saving me from the war torn country I was stranded in, but they had the nerve to give me crappy (not crappie because they would be delicious) sandwiches for free". It goes on and on and on. Gets me all worked up.

I think it must have been the wet start to the summer year. I've also seen a lot more of those prickly wild cucumber vines on trees everywhere I go. And a friend up north says that he's seen more snakes than in the past years as well.

That is the one problem(?) with the cruise thing. You have one day to develop an impression of a stop and if your tour or day trip isn't all you hoped for, you have that impression for the whole island. My wife and I didn't think much of Belize either, but my daughter went there and loved it. So hopefully quickme has a good trip. But I still wouldn't go back to Samana myself.

My wife and I had a one day stop there a couple of years ago with a cruise. I don't mean to rain on your parade, but I couldn't wait to get out of there. I would never go back based on that one experience. It was filthy and I never felt safe. It was the only stop, in all of our stops over three different cruises in the Caribbean, that the captain gave a formal warning to passengers going ashore to be careful re; drugs and the local police shaking you down. Not very reassuring. Loads of locals begging for money, including small children. That being said, we stuck with a tour company and we didn't have any real problems. I don't want to dampen your enthusiasm and I hope that you have a good trip. Just be smart and think about when, where and how you go when you leave the resort. Andy

After looking into it last year and checking out a lot of US musky sites, I picked up a pair of the regular orange Church walleye boards. I tested one out on Nipissing briefly, with the adjustable weight all the way forward, and I do think they will prove to be undersized for hard pulling baits. I plan to put them out with lighter, higher running baits like smaller cranks and easier pulling bucktails (not Cowgirls) when I take them to St. Clair. I troll with 80 lb. braid and I wrapped it around the release that comes on the board. It held well, but I will have to remove the line from the release and board when it gets to the boat. I think the boards I purchased will struggle in rougher water as well. Church makes a larger board , T- something or other , which would definitely handle the bigger baits better, but I bet they would feel like you are pulling a truck on your rod.

If I don't like the boards, I'll still keep them should I try for walleye on Erie sometime.

I only fish St. Clair once or twice a year on a smaller boat when the weather is nice, so I plan to give the small boards a decent shot. But if I was fishing it regularly, I would likely have gone to big boards and a mast like the locals and charters do.

This probably didn't help you that much, I just thought I'd share what I know, which isn't much on a good day. Good luck. Andy

I would consider contacting the supervisor of the investigating officer and ask why the other operator wasn't charged criminally with dangerous operation. Lives were put at risk and, at least in my mind, running into and sinking another boat that is out of the channel at a high rate of speed may cross into operation "in a manner that is dangerous to the public" and "constitutes a significant departure from the standard of a reasonably prudent person." Quotes from a Criminal Code. The supervisor may have a reasonable explanation why a Careless was laid. I know the standard for Dangerous Operation of a Motor Vehicle is quite high, but it wouldn't hurt to ask. Glad you are ok. Andy

I have a pair of Folbe rod holders that I really like, but I wanted a couple of the Berts holders too. So I bought a pair of 12" tracks and mounted them about 1/2 way back. I then realized that I should have gone bigger, so I moved the small ones to the back and put a pair of 17" on the middle. Much better. I now wish that I had bought a much longer piece (4' to 5') for both sides and mounted the Folbe holders to the track. Oh well. I use the Berts and really like them. Haven't used them for trolling for musky yet, but I think they will be rock solid. Just my experience.

Oh, I've "donated" a few that way too. The most recent one was a brand new musky bucktail. A backlash on the second cast ever with the new lure and it flew far into the distance and sank into the depths of the lake, never to be seen again.

I spoke to Mike at the Binbrook Conservation area and that is where the lot of lures will be sent. Thank you for the suggestions.

http://www.npca.ca/conservation-areas/binbrook/