Fisherpete

Congratulations to the both of you! And I love the "Just Married" hanging off the Lund...!

Pretty sure that beauty makes 50. Gorgeous - love the markings on the St. Clair fish.

Give Steve at JB's fishing depot a call @ 416-614-7222... I think he has some NEW Quantum Energy PTI's (size 3 I think) on sale for $100!!!

Not much time tonight to write a novel, but here is a quick rundown of yesterday's outing... Conditions for most of the day - glass calm and sunny. Yech. Led to Al's spaghetti ski. She was 42.5", and probably 7 pounds. Rounding up. LOL! She was a hurtin' unit, but at least she was trying to eat something! #102 Guess what happened at the end up the day when just a LITTLE bit of chop came to the water? The meatballs. They are definitely starting to pack on some pounds... #103 #104 Thanks Al for not leaving when you wanted to... that last hour saved the day for me!

Thanks guys, I am heading out with Al in his boat instead tomorrow, so the rush is off. I will be stopping by Honda first thing tomorrow morning to get the proper filter. Fisherman - on the side of my motor (2005 model), it actually specifies 5W30 (I knew I remembered that from somewhere) - but the last time I got oil from Honda they suggested running it with 10W30 for the summer months and then go with the 5W30 for the fall.

Hmmm... ok, using this years boat data (101 fish), here are my statistics... they seem to correspond with your numbers. 50"+ = 0/101 = 0% (but that will change after tomorrow ) 45-49" = 3/101 = 3% 40-45" = 15/101 = 15% <39" = 83/101 = 82% I personally consider 45+ to be trophy status for the Kawarthas, even more so if they have some girth to them. But that being said, I don't fish G-bay, the Ottawa River, St. Clair etc... yet. But the MAGIC number is still 50... gotta have something to strive for. Once I get a Kawarthas 50, I will likely have to move on to one of those bodies of water above to reach the next milestone... I'm looking forward to that day!

Anyone know where I can pick one up in the next few hours? I started my oil change, only to find that the oil filter on my garage shelf was an empty box! I called several Honda Powerhouse locations, all are closed today... I am heading to BPS soon to pick up a few other things, anyone know a location around there? Also, for you Honda owners out there, do you stick to the Honda brand oil or use other brands? I think it is 5W30 if I can remember correctly... In the 3 years that I have owned the motor, I have always used the Honda stuff, but if I can't get it, what are your suggestions? One last (probably really dumb) question... how bad of an idea would it be to re-use the oil filter that I just took off? The oil will obviously be changed again in a few months when the season ends. I have tomorrow off and will be on the water, as long as I can get the oil done today!!! Also if any one of you Honda owners in the GTA has an extra one to spare, I would gladly swing by and buy it from you... Thanks guys! Pete

I had my first big muskie (45") done by Advanced in 2005... and am very happy with it. Their shop truly is a sight to see, some AMAZING fish in there, and you can watch your fish progress through the stages as they make it... it does take quite a while though, mine took 9 months. Their paint jobs are the best that I have seen.

Just placed my order online with the Ring Lord. $97.20 all said and done. I paid an extra $6.61 to rush ship. Should be here Monday or Tuesday... if they are as good as everyone says, they will be worth every penny and should last a while.

Yeah, don't buy them from Acklands Grainger... stopped by there today and they can get them, but for $118!!!!! I'm placing my order with the RingLord tonight...

Thanks guys and gals for all the support! I love the whole process - the preparation, the fishing and then writing my reports. And I have to thank my wife for being so understanding of my passion for fishing, she is an absolute sweetheart and has allowed me to have a dream fishing season this year - from Simcoe ice with perch, lakers and whitefish, to Dunnville cats, followed by spring time crappie and then muskiefest from June till now. She wants me to get that 50 just as bad as I do (maybe so I will stop obsessing about it!!!) Our baby boy is due November 6th, I had better hurry up and get my trophy in September or October... because hunting esox will soon be replaced by diapers and 3am feedings!!!

If removing the hook is going to cause further damage to the fish, or risk injury to myself, I cut it. I have 3 pairs of the CTC bolt cutters, and use them often, (cut the hooks on today's 48) but my next purchase is going to be a pair of the spring loaded Knipex cutters. The CTC ones are not very durable at all, but what can you really expect for $5-10 (when on sale). If the day ever comes that I have a big muskie on one hook, and the other in me - I want the best damn equipment available!!!

Over the weekend, Albert and I made plans to head out for a muskie hunt on Wednesday. We chose a lake which has been good to us all summer, but on Tuesday night, I had a dream (seriously) about fishing a different lake... so when Al showed up at 5:30am, I let him know the change of plans due to the dream... he laughed at me a bit (ok, a lot) but agreed, and off we went. His truck, my boat... We made great time on the way up, and despite stopping for both breakfast and gas, we were on the water around 7:30am. The air was cool and brisk, and water temps have certainly cooled a bit over the past few nights and were now sitting at 61F. There was also a nice chop on the water... and soon the cloud cover rolled in, making for pretty ideal conditions to chase some tooth and tail... We spent the better part of the morning chasing some other species, and did quite well... I used the livewell in my boat for the first time, as Al had promised to deliver some fresh catch to one of his employees (they consider him a hero when he brings them fresh fish!!!). I caught one muskie during the morning - #98 was just a wee lassie though and never left the water during release. As noon approached, we set out to accomplish what we had come for - to break the 100 musky mark for the season, and to try and land a 40+ or two. We progressed quickly through the first two stages of my milk run, with nary a sniff. Next we headed to a small area where a few weeks before I had caught a 40 and a 38 on successive casts while out with fishgreg, and where Patrick and I caught several last week. Albert put on what has been my hottest lure this summer, and I put on something similar, but with a different colour scheme. Al made the better choice, because less than a minute later his rod was nearly ripped from his hands by a violent strike! He was using one of my lighter musky setups today (7' Compre Musky rod, Quantum Energy PTI spooled with 50lb PP), and this fish really gave him a run for his money. She did not want to come up from the bottom, and gave us fits at boatside... but Al eventually managed to coax her into the cradle and the battle was won. #99 measured in at a solid 42", with great girth. Al's PB is a 43" from earlier this year, but this fish was a much better overall specimen and I consider this to be his new best. He was shaking, and happy as hell after the battle... she took a moment to revive, but swam away just fine. We fished that area for another 15 minutes, then continued on with the milk run. We trolled over to the next spot which happens to be one of my favourite casting areas, dropped the Motorguide down and started firing long casts. Al had brought along a new bass outfit, and is in the process of learning how to use a baitcaster... his new setup has 30lb braid on it, which he thought was plenty to cast out some medium sized musky lures... backlash - PING! SPLOOOOSH! And Al makes a $20 offering to the fish gods! He laughed, retied, adjusted the reel a bit and resumed casting, yep with another 1oz+ lure... which lasted maybe 10 casts... PING! SPLOOOOSH! The fish gods must be pleased now, with a second $20 offering so soon! Thankfully, Al had no more leaders, and started using my Compre setup again!!! I don't know if it was the offerings that Al had made, or the karma delivery that I had asked for from the OFC gang this morning, but what happened next was just awesome. Tired from casting big stuff, I took a break and switched lures to a bit smaller of an offering. I sped up the trolling motor, and we quickly worked our way between two dense weedbeds that had a deep channel between them. As my lure approached the boat, a HUGE olive and gold rocket blasted up from the depths and smashed it right at boatside! Al happened to be watching my lure come in those last few feet as well, and yelled out when he saw her attack! I don't know how, but I somehow got the hooks into her pretty well, and she stayed hooked as she kicked my butt from left to right. I had to stick the rod deep into the water twice as she seemed determined to break my line diving under the boat... finally she tired enough that I was able to drag half of her into the cradle (right about now, I was wishing that I had brought the Stowmaster instead of the cradle!!!), and Al tailed her and scooped the whole thrashing mess into the boat! It was not until this moment that I realized just how big this fish was - could it be my long awaited 50? It took both Al and myself to subdue her enough to quickly cut out the hooks with the bolt cutter, and whip out the tape measure... which landed at 48. My new personal best, and a glorious specimen of a fish, with a head like I have only seen once before (my 45.5 from earlier this year). I slid her back into the water, and admired her as she revived. She slowly dove down soon after, into the same deep channel that she had ambushed me from. What a way to hit #100... Am I disappointed that this was not the 50 that I have been seeking? Absolutely not. It is the biggest muskie that I have ever caught, and on one of the most exciting strikes too. It only adds fuel to my fire... which shall burn this fall until the mission gets accomplished. Know what I forgot to do in the heat of the moment? Get out my OFC tournament sign and snap a pic with it... know what? I am glad I didn't. She needed to get back in the water where she belongs as quickly as possible, and just for the sake of a fun tourney, it is not worth it. With adrenalin still coursing through our veins, we decided to fish for another half-hour and then call it a day... and within minutes Al had another one on, once again on my hot lure, a decent fish in the mid 30's which was barely lip hooked, so out came the pliers - pop - water release. #101 in the books. A fitting end to a great day. We packed up our gear, motored down the lake and returned to the city... where dreams of that fifty will keep me going until the next hunt arrives.

Whoever sent the karma today... THANK YOU!!!! Post to follow later tonight!!! (no it is not the 50, but...)

weed beds - yes river / creek mouths - yep although this hasn't been productive for me saddles between islands or islands and shore - yes shorelines - yes One key thing I have found is to have some deeper water nearby... on many Kawartha lakes this often only means 15-20 ft. 4:30am Wednesday morning, I'm packing the boat right now... c'mon OFC peeps, send me some karma today while I am out there so I can get that GIANT!!!

No probs! One more observation from this summer... glass calm lake + sunny skies = yech. Need a bit of a chop on the water... some clouds, or even better, totally grey and overcast... throw in a light drizzle and now we're talking!!! As for the map thing - seriously, on the way up to Sturgeon I grabbed one of those maps that you find at every general store in the Kawarthas, looked at the general lake area where we were launching for MAYBE a total of 5 minutes and out we went. Nice when things go just as planned! Were we lucky that day? Absolutely. But even a bit of planning or research on the lake can improve your odds greatly.

Andy - lure size didn't seem to really matter - the second biggest one was caught on a 6" lure... and I have caught some baby muskies (20-25") this year on a 12" lure! They are not too smart... but aggressive. Put it near them, big or small, and they will often take a chomp at it. My not so secret strategy? Location, location, location... In mid-June, I fished a section of Sturgeon for a day, had never been there before... just looked at a map, guesstimated which locations would make sense to hold muskies and fished them hard... ended up with 8 that afternoon including a 44 within 5 minutes of getting there! It can be applied to any lake... and as you spend more time on the water, you will figure out those 'spots on a spot'. Lunkerhunter - what is your actual name by the way LOL! - for sure we should get out soon. Are you a weekend warrior or can you get out on weekdays too? Send me a pm... Oh, and guess what I went out and bought again? Yup, that same Frabill 60" cradle that I sold you! I missed it for dealing with small to medium fish, and prefer it when fishing with a partner. It often seems to hasten the release process. My Stowmaster will still be good for solo trips and for monster fish though... Dan - the season is just beginning... Just wait...

You absolutely see a lure in the last pic... but if you notice, it is one one of the rods not in use. I have had that Believer (8" fire perch) for 9 years, given it plenty of fishing time, and it has only caught one darn ski, a 33. I know they are supposed to be great muskie lures, but not for me! Clive - I have caught some skis and a bunch of pike on Rockstars this year, but none in my top 10. That will likely change in the fall as the water cools down... remember my PB 47" on a Rockstar from last October?

Nice meeting you too Joey! The lures are awesome, can't wait to fish them... I would love to head out with you and Paul and show you around my Kawartha stomping grounds! Just let me know the day!

*** Updated October 14th *** As we head into fall trophy time, here's a photo recap of what has been my best muskie season ever, by a country mile. 109 skis have found their way into the boat this summer, 22 being 40" or better. Here is my top 10 so far this year. Still have a few months of water time to get that elusive Kawarthas 50" in the boat... 43 43 43 43 43.5 44 44 45.5 45.5 48 and a new personal best (Sept. 15/10)

Buckster - that's 4 for you and 4 for me. My boat or yours, let's go!

Ever hoped that the weather was lousy on a holiday so that the lake would not be busy? Cool... rain... windy... perfect day for a muskie hunt. Patrick joined me at the last minute. We had a curfew of 6pm, so we discussed our game plan and headed out. We were on the water by 7am, and within 5 minutes, I had my first muskie! Just a baby ski, but hopefully a sign of things to come... As my grandfather used to say when he let a small fish go: "Send your daddy!". A few hours passed before I got the second of the day, another little fella around 25 inches... barely hooked, so a boatside release with no pics. Moved to another area of the lake and targeted a few other species for a bit, and got a few, but nothing picture worthy. Around noon, we headed to my honey holes, and it wasn't long before Patrick was into a fish. She was feisty and put up a great scrap... decent length at 37.5" but not very thick. Man-o-man was she an ugly muskie! I call ones that look like this "swamp skis", as they just look plain'ol nasty... must be some sort of bacteria in this area of the lake or something, as their fins, skin and eyes just don't look healthy. I have caught a few of these swampies myself, all from this same area. Patrick's was also blind in one eye... but it sure didn't stop her from feeding or fighting hard! Moments after, Patrick got another... which turned out to be the smallest muskie that I have ever seen landed! CUTE WIDDLE GUY!!! Need a hand reeling in that bad boy Pat? Pat got another hit at boatside moments later by a mid-30's fish, but she hit the blade instead of the hook! At this point, it had been quite a while since I caught a fish, and while I like to be an obliging host, I also like to catch fish... I put on one of the new lures from the muskie lot that I just bought from carponthefly, and moments later almost had the rod torn from my hand! WICKED hit! I soon escorted her into the cradle, and she measured in at a healthy 37". We had half an hour left at this point, and spent it at one of my more productive all-time areas... no takers. Oh well, it had been a pretty productive day, no complaints. With 5 minutes to go, we started trolling in the general direction of the launch, putting lures and gear away as we went... ZZZZZZZZIIIIINNNNNNNGGGGGGGGG!!!!!! The Tekota starts screaming off drag, and I keep that puppy locked down! I pried the rod out of the holder and voom-voom-voom the big side to side headshakes of a good fish shook my arms! She took to the air twice, and made a few drag-peeling runs, but I got her in pretty quick. 44 inches and heavy!!! Know what I am still doing 24 hours later? Yup, smiling!!! This is the fish I was after all day, and she shows up with 5 minutes left... gotta love it! She took a few minutes to revive, but swam off nice and strong at the end. Where-o-where could my 50 be... I will find her this fall!!!

That is a tank... congratulations, and great job on getting a decent pic by yourself - not an easy task by any means with a beast in the boat! I got a really nice one yesterday too (post will be up tonight) but I still am not a member of your club

I have a Humminbird portable unit that lost its tranducer (suction cup released + prop = chop). Could I splice this unit into my current Humminbird 525's transducer cable rather than having to buy another transducer? Can two units run off of one transducer? Somehow methinks not...

Thanks Rizzo... I had a Grandma stuck in my forearm earlier this year, ALL 3 TREBLES too... with around a 7-8 pound ski attached... luckily I grabbed her behind the head with my free hand (Can you say death grip???) while my bud pulled the hooks out of my arm for me... I was very lucky that the hooks didn't get very deep... and just came out with pliers... still hurt like a BEEYATCH though!!!