mepps

A quick clip with for the first voyage on Lake O with the family, including new pup! (my oldest son wasn't able to join us, but he will next time!)

I kept things slow and steady as the wife was a bit overwhelmed being on big water, luckily it was nice and calm! I had to speed up the footage to give the illusion of going fast!

https://streamable.com/klrh8m

Someone once told me the happiest you'll be as a boat owner, is the day you buy the boat and the day you sell the boat! I'm expecting to put more money into this boat in the near future, but hopefully the cost of ownership isnt crazy!

11 hours ago, glen said:

How much do you want for it? 
beauty congrats 

lol, I'm confident I could sell it for 3-4 grand more than I paid, but there is no chance I'm parting with it any time soon!

1 hour ago, Fisherman said:

Besides all the fishing gear, now you have to go find one of those pooper scooper things.

I can use the bailer from the boat, no?

Thanks everyone! Feels like a lottery win for sure. I had been looking for a few months and there aren't a lot of great options unless I wanted to pay over $7500 which wasn't going to happen (unlesss I wanted 20HP and less). The seller said he had 40 people contact them within the first few hours, and even though I offered to buy it unseen (they had posted lots of photos), they said I had to go in person. I got there as another guy was viewing the boat and I started chatting with the owner about fishing and found out he has a place on Lake Nipissing (which I visited years ago at Lakeair during an OFC trip, so we had a great chat). The other guy, who didn't look away from his phone (Facetime) and didn't even say hello when he arrived made a low ball offer, and the owner looked at me and said "You want to buy a boat?" of course I said "Absolutely, I would like nothing more than to own this boat!" and he told the other guy "Sorry, it's sold."

One of the happiest moment in my life, I felt a connection to this boat the moment I laid eyes on it, and the Yammy is exactly what I wanted!

After years of pounding the pavement, paddling kayaks and canoes, renting boats and hitching ride with friends I've finally taken the plunge! With our cars and credit cards all paid off, we are completely out of debt (besides our mortgage!) and I was able to negotiate some spending with the wife. As I'm sure most of you are aware, finding a used boat in this current market is crazy, but I got "lucky" and found a family selling their second boat at a price. It's a 1993 Sylvan Sea Monster side console with a 2000 40HP Yamaha outboard, and ready to fish! I'm the 3rd owner of the 15.5 footer, and the previous owners always kept in the the garage and provided all of the maintenance and purchase records since 1994. Looking forward to getting the whole family out on the water (which was a problem in a canoe).

For anyone wondering how the negotiations went with the Mrs, she is getting a dog...a fair trade to bring my dream to a reality!

I just got my hitch installed and will be bringing her home as soon as possible! She is neatly tucked away in @JonnyButts driveway and we are already counting down the days to musky season. 

Let the adventures begin!

I've spent 20 years shore fishing the GTA and pretty much everywhere you can legally access Lake Ontario in the GTA will hold fish. Pike are around all year, especially in cooler seasons. You have hundreds of KM to explore in and around the GTA. Personally, I like to start near Marinas. These spots often provide some deeper water and less snags. Be sure to have a net, as many areas will be tough to land fish otherwise. I also recommend using rods over 8 feet to get the most out of your casts! For lures, spoons, spinnerbaits, swimbaits...

Another great read, glad I got to be part of this ongoing journey! Here's top all the big fish yet you  come!

Figured I'd share the lure that was most productive for me and Johnny this season. Hooking 8-10 musky on the Niagara and LSC. It isn't a lure I've seen in other muskie boxes. It's not a bait that I would have purchased personally, but Johnny had one, and I tried it out and landed a muskie on the second cast! I went on to get another muskie on the first cast a couple of weeks later, and then another on the second cast at night fishing LSC. We each bought 5 more!

Live Target Golden Shiner - 8 inches, 5oz - Comes in gold and silver blue (the blue worked at LSC) and costs around $20 CAD

It has a cool magnetic hook system, with super strong hooks despite their smaller size. We ended up replacing the back hook with bigger hooks on a few baits. The action is a slight wobble, with quick tail vibrations (very little body roll compared to other soft baits like Shadzilla and Restless Riders. It casts very well and can be fished at speed in shallow water, or nice and slow in deep. The hook system is pretty good in the weeds too! The only down side is the tail get ripped off on several baits, more so than other soft baits I've used.

I have given black/orange a try in many shapes, size and depths and its never produced for me! That said, Black/yellow has been solid! Most fish caught last season were on natural gold colours baits, but I never had success with gold in previous years. I always stick with the 2-3 colours that worked best in the past, and if they arent working that day, I change it up.

17 hours ago, grilw said:

So much nostalgia from one post! 

I remember reading and admiring every post and every photograph that you (+ your co-conspirator) shared from your Toronto Islands fishing adventures back in the mid 2000's.

I was about 16 at the time, so the fanaticism was at an all time high. I remember the impressive Canon G5 shots (try to impress someone with a 5MP camera today!), the fishing hook necklace, the tats, the big hoop earrings, the ahead-of-its-time website design, the dozens of impressive catches, and of course the dedication to the Mepps #3 in black/yellow!  

If I remember correctly, the last post I read from you was from a fly-in pike/walleye fishing trip you took to Little Vermilion Bay also quite a few years ago. I just can't believe this many years have gone by!

Back when I first started posting on OFŇ I couldn't even grow a beard, and just as with the pike, you have again 1-upped me. 🥳 

Glad to see you too have made it this far and continue to pound the waters. Cheers!

Great memory! June 2007, Little Vermillion Lake pike and walleye!

That Canon G5 is one of my all time favorite cameras, even considered buying the new G cameras because of it!

39 minutes ago, PUMP KNOWS said:

Nice to see old posts like this again.

All the best 👍

Thanks Pump!! I still cant believe we have never crossed paths with the amount of fishing we do around the GTA.

On 1/12/2021 at 9:50 AM, AKRISONER said:

muskies from shore with consistency? are you some kind of wizard?

Thank you for the report...did the sturgeon wreck freshwater fishing for you forever more? lol

Lol, it was an arm busting good time! Incredible power for sure and loved it, but I'll take casting for muskie if given the choice...well maybe 8 out of 10 times I'll take muskies!

We got lucky to find a relatively low pressure area and timed it right for a month of solid fishing until October, then no sign of any fish near shore! Only saw 2 other muskie guys fish the area. Hope to hit the same area earlier in the season this year!

On 1/12/2021 at 10:26 AM, mamona said:

I cannot believe I missed this report, thank you mepps for sharing, I truly enjoyed it.

Glad to hear, thank you!

Heck of a year, bro! I cant believe both of you had 2 fish on one bait, thats insane!

On 1/1/2021 at 6:58 PM, TennesseeGuy said:

Clive, that's the way to put your time to good use.   Thanks for the report.

I expected to see one of your personal lures hanging from the jaw of one of those big swimmers.

I'm still catching pike with one that you made for me.   My fishing partner borrowed the other one

and forgot to return it.

2020 was my first miss from fishing NW Ontario since 1982.   An open border in 2021will have me

starting another streak.

 

Thanks Connie! All of my May pike were caught on my spinner baits (silver/orange), but these days I take out the hooks before taking a photo (saw a buddy get hooked in the hand!). Next batch of baits I make I'll be sure to put aside a couple for you. I'll be in touch with you soon, may be able to do an LV trip this spring of restrictions don't prevent it!

On 1/2/2021 at 10:17 PM, Moosebunk said:

Your beard can never seem to make up it's mind just how long it really wants to be, or if it wants to even be at all. lol

Great stuff buddy!

I had shaved at the end of August, then I saw you sporting a beard and I've been trying to catch up! Just made a deal with Jonny, no shave til one of us gets a 50 inch muskie!

Thanks guys! I never left Lew, just been keeping an eye on things!

I guess it’s been a while since I put together a proper fishing report. It’s not for lack of fishing, however! I’ve been out fishing regularly, mostly from canoe or shore fishing locally in the GTA, often solo, occasionally with the kids in tow. Living my best dad life raising two boys certainly limited my time to write and share my adventures, but I hope to share more in 2021.

Since moving back to Ontario about 8 years ago, I’ve struggled to find as many pike and musky as I used to. I generally dedicate at least 75 hours into muskies, and likely the same or more time looking for urban pike. I’ve spent far less time returning to old muskie spots, opting to try new locations looking for larger fish. It's been a challenge, putting in hours hours of fishing in poor conditions (limited time off to when my wife - who works retail hours - was  home or could arrange childcare) I had a couple of seasons with just one or two fish in the net, despite seeing fish and generating follows. Things changed after finally meeting up with Captain Bunker for a big river mission in 2018. We had talked about fishing together for years, but the stars never aligned until one fateful fall day in October, and then a week or two later - my two biggest muskies!

16 years after my first muskie, two 50+ inchers hit the net! Big water equals big fish. My biggest freshwater fish, until I got out again the next year to fish for dinosaurs with Bunk...

One of many that day! More at bunksoutdoorangle.com!

2020 Fishing

I don’t think anyone will forget 2020, it’s been a hell of a year for everyone! My plan was to fish pike hard early season, but the local lockdowns made access to my favourite spots a challenge, and the rest of my spots were loaded with new fishermen that found themselves with free time and nothing else to do. I was lucky to get in a trip to Florida before things really got bad, even caught a Jays game and did a little bit of fishing!

To avoid crowds I started fishing at night for early season walleye, and despite seeing them caught by other night anglers, I couldn’t dial one in. I made up for it in the fall with a couple of accidental walters while fishing for muskie. Late spring went well, catching pike consistently in Gloucester Pool (in-laws cottage), nothing big, but I always enjoy catching pike on spinnerbaits. I got out for a couple of early season muskie trips, but again couldn’t turn follows into bites! This is where Covid got serious and my fishing trips mostly ended as temperatures were also on the rise.

January GTA pike

Backyard creek trout in Port Credit

Solo canoe fishing

Tiny planet

May pike

Once September rolled around I really had the itch to get out for muskie, but I didn't want to travel far from home with Covid cases still on the rise. I knew the chances of getting out on the water with Bunk again was slim to none, but as luck would have it my old friend Johnny had been in touch and while he was having luck with salmon, was interested in going for muskie as well. With the Niagara River practically in his backyard, and just over an hour drive for me, it was the perfect place to meet. I had seen a couple of musky there before while aiming for walleye and bass but I didn’t have high expectations. Boy was a wrong!

We dialed in fish almost immediately using swimbaits and started meeting regularly to target muskies from shore. We figured out weather/wind patterns and major/minor phases that resulted in catching muskies on most of our trips, often hooking/catching multiple fish within a couple of hour. Johnny was diagnosed with a severe muskie fever in early September 2020 and went into spending mode, amassing an impressive amount of muskie gear in a few short weeks. As fate would have it, the muskie God’s were not satisfied. Despite each of us logging 80-100 of casting (and visiting the Muskie Factory in Windsor), he didn't connect with another muskie before season closed. While I managed a few solid fish, the highlight was sharing my love of muskie (I guess it's contagious) with Johnny. Having a good buddy to share in the highs and lows (not to mention having a net man with long reach!) was priceless and certainly the highlight of a crazy year.

Pretty little muskie

Night muskie

December muskie

Wishing you all good health and big fish in 2021!

While I'm happy with the number of fish I got this season, the highlight of 2020 was reconnecting with you, bro! Looking forward to getting back out there with you!

Didn't see a fish on LSC yesterday. It was fairly cold with temperatures below zero when we started fishing after dark. It definitely wasn't fun dealing with iced guides in the darkness, but we continue to fish hard sunrise to sunset. Plenty of guys out on the water and from shore, but I didnt see anyone connect! I've already heard that this morning was great...I guess were were a day early!

A fun day overall, but ended up with a local deciding to put a big dent in the side of my car with their foot...not sure if he didn't like outsiders in "his spot" or they didn't like my little Mazda parking in GM territory! 😠 Pretty unfortunate as my past experiences there meeting other muskie nuts on shore has been so positive and there has always been a great sense of comradery.

Good luck Bill! I'm heading out tonight after work and doing the shore musky nightshift on LSC!

I had a similar experience with November musky a few years ago in November. Beautiful sunny day with t-shirt weather by noon. I had a couple of follows and one muskie caught on top water - all in 3-5 feet of water. I trolled deeper water for several hours with no sign of life!

I got one last week just after that really hot day (+24 here in Mississauga), fishing LCS with a warm wind and +12 for most of the day. I didn't see any other people get a fish from shore that day (at least not in the area I fished) and they only difference there was that they were letting their baits drop to the bottom after the cast, and I was reeling right away, keeping my bait up higher.

thanks BBW, I've been on the lookout, but haven't seen the bigger baits on shelves/bins in a long time. I've found them on eBay/Amazon but they are overcharging + high shipping costs to Canada. Will likely wait til in down in Florida in the spring.

Hello folks! Hoping to replace a lost lure but its hard to find locally. If any of you have one you are willing to sale or trade that would be amazing! I'm specifically looking for the Blue Althea pattern in the pics, but also interested in perch or firetiger if all else fails.

Thanks!

It was great to finally connect in person and get some fish! I'l never forget those big muskies - thanks for making a dream come true, brother!

I'll start growing the beard soon for next fall!

@moosebunk, you have pretty much the same list as me!

Maybe add Amazon (for arapaima), India (for mahseer), Australia (for GT from shore)

I made it out yesterday and put in about 4 hours. Used almost every lure in the box including a bunch of different bucktails in all colours and saw no action.

Switched to a glide bait (Magic Maker - Holoform Darter) and I missed a big one boatside within minutes as she hit right beside the canoe. I was in the right position for a figure eight sadly. Made a few more casts (same lure) at the boat launch before I left and hooked a small one, probably 32 inches but it came unbuttoned after a couple of headshakes.

Don't forget to sharpen those hooks!