captpierre

I can only imagine what those carp would do to our inland, shallow, weedy lakes like the Kawarthas. Changes everything. Fishing -devastated. Boating -will need a helmet/goggles. Will have to take up the pitiful sport of golf

Should be some more Kings off Toronto this June with an early spring. Hopefully most of them won't head south end of August like in the past.

They are considered an oily fish and in lakes that have them, the muskies get huge. I don't think they are found in the Kawarthas. Would give those Skis the weight I miss. The Simcoe muskie fishery should yield some monsters eventually.

That is where the free market should correct the problem...if there is one. Unless there is extensive collusion. If there is price gouging and lots of money to be made, somebody else comes in and competes with a similar product for less price, if there is no patent. Cliff, I have thought the same. Plastics seems expensive for what you get- especially since there are so many different brands out there. And hence competition.

I bought a small entry level electric unit. Only smokes for less than 30 min -then have to reload sawdust. A joke. if you are serious, get a good one that self loads.

Memories like that are priceless. Get the camcorder out for sure. But be careful as they get a bit older. I think I over did it with my 3 boys. They need action. If you target bigger fish like muskie, salmon and the fishing is slow, they can get turned off to fishing. My guys weren't keen anymore after 16 yrs old. They're interested again now that they are older.

Cool. Busted rods?

Thanks Guys. Likely will be going with 2 units. Polaris 400 $5500 plus winch/ bumbers/tax new. Likely the best way to go. Or gently used ones with independent rear suspension. The search continues on Kijiji.

Sounds good to me Surprised you have 16 inches.......of ice that is

You can launch into the bay from the sandy spit near the end of the road from the west side.. You may need 4X4 if you have a larger boat. May be ice at the launch now. There is a marina on the east side of the bay but not sure the launch would be open now. There is a great public launch in Whitby Harbour on the west side. it's a 15-20 run west to the Nuke Plant. Minnows work best by far. Treat Lake O with great respect. Especially this time of year. Deadly cold water and likely nobody out there if you get into trouble. Pick a calm day or stay home. Wear a floatation suit.

Thanks Lew. I'll give it a try. With this catch and release fishery, pressured fish learn from previous hookups. The more variety the better. Although I think if there is an active fish nearby, they would likely grab anything.

Thanks Cliff. I've been struggling with the decision on machines. We have a new cottage since last summer on Pigeon and lots of neighbours have ATVs. I have a wife, 4 grown kids and their spouses/girlfriends that want to ride. Thought it would be nice to ATV the surrounding trails and country roads on those days when boating/fishing conditions suck. Maybe drive into Buckhorn for breakfast or a coffee. (10Km ride). There are lots of small backcountry lakes north of here that I'ld like to explore. After talking to lots of folks on this forum, at shows and buddies, I find that things are more complicated. Can't drive a side by side on the roads or most trails. Can't even drive a proper 2 UP on the roads with a passenger (likely OK with just the driver although by law that isn't actually allowed). I've been told that putting a seat on the back of a single ATV is ill advised. Did a lot of research and concluded the best 2 UP for me would be the Can Am 500 or 650 Max XT, or the Polaris 550 Touring. They say you need power steering with 2 people. I'm looking at $12K plus including tax for a new one. Plus insurance. Then can't even run on the roads with my wife on the back. I'm thinking now it's best to get 2 smaller machines. Then we can both bomb around legally and so can the kids and the inevitable guests that come on weekends. That means storing and maintaining 2 machines. And insurance X 2. There are a lot more single used machines out there. Looking at 300-400 cc as likely big enough. Should have independent rear suspension. Not sure how many Kms are too much in a used machine. I'm thinking 2000. Thanks for reading. Any advice would be appreciated. ATV virgin peter

Thanks Guys. So cast out onto a weed flat or along a weed edge. Rip it hard and let it pause? Twitch it as well? Is it supposed to mimic and injured fish?

Anybody have an idea what ATV insurance costs? I guess it depends on engine size and value of the machine. Looking at a used 650cc 2 UP or 2 smaller used singles around 350-400cc. Multiple drivers in the family. All over 20 yrs thanks peter

few years back I spoke with a guy at the show that guided for muskie in Quinte. Was news to me that there were that many fish.

Thanks Lew. Mine is out of the box. I think you weight yours. How and why?

Have a Suick but have never really given them a real shot. Exactly how and when do you use them?

I use a spinning real for topwater and with PowerPro in my hands, the line goes on the spool too loose and then on subsequent casts a bunch of line in a knot flies off the spool. Maybe it's the rod - too stiff?

I like my PowerPro for everything but topwater and jerking. Any slack pulling in with a braid will cause problems on the reel. Also because the line goes slack for a split second when that smallie jumps and her head leans towards you, I find braid for topwater results in more spit hooks. Talked to some Bass Pros and they seemed to agree Mono for topwater and jerking. I still like Trilene. Little memory and acceptable stretch Would be open for another mono with less stretch but low memory if anybody knows of one.

Don't forget a leader, 12-24 inches. wire or heavy fluorocarbon leader material. the best swivel you can buy. Would piss you off if you finally get on a fish of a lifetime and lose it due to poor terminal tackle. I find muskies to not be too fussy. most are caught fishing for other species. they'll take anything including a minnow or worm. hook size is important. basically the bigger the better. think about going barbless. I haven't had the balls but lots of guys are going barbless.

I would consider trolling off the Pickering Nuclear Plant. Browns and Bows. Maybe a salmon. Or go right into the east outflow to catch browns for sure that time of year. Best to use a floater suit in water that cold. peter

Thinking about fishing during sex. Makes sense. Landing a 50"+ muskie. Better than sex.

If you have a breakdown, pretty much the only place that can look after you is a dealer. That can make for a long weekend.

Used to fish the harbour and Islands. The fish are there. Likely sluggish with the cold water. Try a suspending body bait like a Husky Jerk and twitch it real slow. makes for monotonous fishing but should work

Hilarious....but sad too. I'm sure those things have wrecked that waterway for gamefish. Did you see the fence around the boat!