solopaddler

Hey that's great Joey, congrat's!

Nice report bud, I'm sure you'll get 'em next time!

What a great report, thanks!

Top shelf bud, those're some impressive fish!

That was amazing, thanks for posting! Some of those pictures are incredible.

Fantastic stuff guys, love it!

Hey, personally I can't believe he's actually wearing a sweater, and a great big thick one too! (Nice fish btw!)

I clean everything after every outing, well at least the rods and reels. Trust me the jacket is covered in goop. The Snipe is alright, nice solid very very smooth reel. It's got by far the strongest clicker I've ever seen on a pin. No need for a rubber band with this one. It seems a bit light to me after fishing with 5" reels for quite a while now. It would go nicely on a nice light 13' rod IMO. I was running it on a 15 and it didn't feel quite right.

You too buddy!

Hey man the feeling is decidedly mutual whenever I read your posts! When you do finally move back down south I'm sure we'll be able to get out once or twice.

HAHAHA! It's obvious there's another board you read. As a matter of fact I didn't ditch the spawnee. I tied up enough for both days before I left WITH the spawnee. In RECORD time I might add! Louis is sloth-like he's so slow tying that way, LOL!

The conditions looked prime for some great steelheading this week. The heavy snowfall last weekend combined with the recent mild temps meant one thing: run off and perfect river conditions. Both my buddy and myself were off for a few days, all the chores were done along with most of the Christmas shopping, so the stage was set for a Fri/Sat steelheading jaunt. I booked a small cabin right on the banks of the river. Stayed here last spring, it's great little pad to crash in and perfectly located for the fishing. Here's our home for Friday night and the view from our cabin. Friday started out with a bit of a surprise though. Most of the snow had already long melted and the river had dropped to low and clear conditions. Not a huge problem though, just have to adapt. The estuary is always a good bet 'cause it's a bit deeper and wider and the fish generally aren't as skittish, so we humped it down there first thing. In short order I managed to get into a few.. With the clear water I was forced to run a somewhat unorthodox rig. A small, slender pencil float with a clump of shot bunched up directly underneath it, tight to the floats stem. Just enough weight for the float to right itself and run straight. Then a tiny black 2-way swivel and roughly 5' of straight 4lb fluorocarbon to a tiny #14 hook and either a micro roe bag or single egg. It's very much a finesse presentation that only really works in very slow estuary water.. Needless to say it was effective! After a while it started to get a bit stale so we moved upstream a bit, adjusted our presentation and got into 'em again. I thought this one was a particularly nice pic. It's kind of hard to tell, but the fish is being held almost entirely underwater. Things started to get stale again so we hopped in the car to check out some water way upstream. This pool had a gorgeous little waterfall bursting into the head of the pool from a little feeder creek.. Things were a little slow up top although my buddy Louis managed one solid fish right at the end of the day. After that it was a quick pit stop for some take out pizza and wings and a hungry ride back to the cabin where we wolfed it down in record time . I settled back with a cold one and watched Louis blearily eyed tying roe for Saturday's fishing . Couple of drinks and it was off to bed... Today was about as perfect a day as you'll ever get this late in the year. Overcast skies and very comfortable temps, didn't even need gloves. Things started off a bit slow, but we got into 'em eventually. It was just a matter of tweaking the rig a bit 'till we figured things out. This time of year it's amazing to be able to fish in such perfect conditions. It's usually bitter cold and iced over by now, so the last couple of days were a true gift ! Thoroughly enjoyed it as well the company of my buddy Louis, great trip! Cheers, Mike

The new director of the NHLPA Paul Kelly needs to send a statement. Do not under any circumstances appeal this suspension. He needs to publicly agree with the leagues decision and send a memo to every single union member saying this type of conduct will not be tolerated. I highly doubt we'll see Mr. Simon back in the league again, which is too bad 'cause for a while there he was a pretty effective player. In my opinion the instigator rule has to go! It might not be the root of the problem, but it's darn close. Up until the early 90's when the rule was put in place, if you yapped and sniped at other players on the ice, you had to back it up with your fists. If you didn't back it up your own teammates would tell you to shut up 'cause they'd have to do the job for you! Back then someone like Sean Avery would have been pulverised. Now he's an effective pest because of that stupid rule. As the 90's progressed a strange thing started happening. Players started getting high fives and pats on their backs from teammates for turtling, LOL! The game has made a lot of strides forward in recent years, but the level of thuggery, stickwork and chippiness has escalated and it has to end.

Gotta love it Nice bass!

Betcha she already does . Really amazing pictures btw. For those who havn't travelled the world or experienced different cultures, it's easy to take for granted how good we have it here in Canada...

Hey cool, I just noticed you're from Dundas too! As far as steelheading goes the weather and conditions will be prime later this week. Most likely headed back for a 2 day chrome-a-thon this Fri/Sat

Shepherds study was based on cities located in an arid environment. Needless to say southern Ontario is not an arid environment . Regardless, I doubt local forecasters in Phoenix are factoring in "heat island effect" when they make their predictions. His study is based on more long term analysis.

I've seen the one nelly posted before, pretty funny! Havn't seen the one you posted though Bill, that's hillarious, love it!!

Being a weather guy, without getting into technical details, Toronto's weather or lack thereof, is generally determined by lake effect weather and prevailing winds. Pollution and warmer air around the city is not a viable factor .

I've made this countless times, it's quick, easy and good. In a large bowl mix together: 1 bag of frozen hash browns 2 cans cream of mushroom soup 500ml of sour cream 1C grated cheddar 1/4C melted butter 1C crumbled up bacon 1C chopped onion Scoop the mixture into a suitable covered casserole dish and bake at 375 for 1 hour. With 15 mins left to go, take off the lid and sprinkle another cup of grated cheddar on top. When the cheddar is bubbling on top it's good to go. This can be made the night before and refrigerated with no problems. Cheers

This question came up recently on another board and was answered directly by an MNR official: November 06, 2007. Let me answer a few of the basic questions we often get about fishing and limits then I’ll expand on the idea of “catch and retain”: Question 1. Can I practice catch and release for fish during the closed season? Answer 1. No, during the closed season for a species of fish a person cannot “fish for” that species regardless of whether they intend to release the fish. Question 2. If I hold a Conservation Fishing Licence can I fish for species such as muskellunge that have a zero (0) limit? Answer 2. Yes, as long as any zero limit species caught are immediately released into the water from which they were caught. Question 3. If I have caught and kept a limit of fish can I continue to fish for that species of fish? Answer 3. Yes, as long as you do not retain any of the additional fish of the species that you already have a limit of you may continue to fish. The question of fishing after a limit of fish has been caught and retained (on a stringer, or in a cooler or bucket) is a common one. The answer to the question comes from section 24 of the Ontario Fishery Regulations, 1989 which can be viewed at the following web-site: http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/F-14/SOR-89-9...t.html?noCookie When we talk about fishing limits we must read the words “catch and retain” together - to retain a fish in this context is to hold the fish for any longer than it takes release it; placing a fish on a stringer or in a cooler or pail would be examples of retaining a fish. Fish caught in the morning then eaten as a “shore lunch” have been retained and affect the number of fish the person can catch and retain in the afternoon. Once a person retains a fish it cannot be “un-retained” that day. If the fish is of a species where a size limit applies it would then be reasonable to hold the fish long enough to determine whether or not the fish is in or out of the restricted size. Due diligence in this case would require the person to have a measuring device with them; it wouldn’t be reasonable to have to carry the fish back to a car, or back to camp, to measure the fish. Possession of fish is another issue that comes up often. Possession applies whether a person has a fish in the boat, at the cottage or in the freezer at home. All fish, wherever they are possessed, must be considered together when a person thinks about his/her possession limit. Possession is not affected by the calendar either; a fish caught in January and placed in the freezer is still in possession during the open water season in May if it’s still down in the freezer. Inserted as an addition: If you have 5 rainbow in the freezer and the local possession limit is five rainbow, you may fish provided that all fish (rainbow) are immediately returned to the water. One thing to keep in mind is that the new Ontario Fishery Regulation, 2007 are scheduled to come into effect in January of 2008. Please be sure to check these regulations, and the Recreation Fishing Regulations Summary, for new changes. If you have any other general questions about fishing you may find the answers on the MNR Enforcement web-site, if your question is not answered contact us through the link on the "Ask a Conservation Officer" page: http://www.mnr.gov.on.ca/mnr/enforcement/ As always we encourage everyone to help Ontario’s Conservation Officers protect your natural resources; to report a natural resources violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll-free any time or contact your local ministry office during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Mark Robbins Provincial Enforcement Advisor Enforcement Branch Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources Thanks for your interest, Mark _________________ Go Big Or Get Off The Water

Doesn't have the typical char vermiculations, so I'll take a wild stab and say male cutt-bow in full spawning dress.

Bunch of nice fish for sure! Your spot up north looks like a beauty.

Looks awesome! I can feel my arteries hardening just looking at the pic's .

WTG Steve, nice mess of perch!