solopaddler

I also had a trip booked for the last week of May way north of Nakina, north of the Albany River. And had a back up plan in place to a lake in the White River area. We made the call two weeks ago to cancel the further north trip and go with our back up lake. If I were you and was flying north of Nakina on the opener I'd be worried too LOL! Where are you going and what's your back up lake?

Most times a bag, but on the many fly in's i do I use a front loading tackle box. 4 trays slide in the front, the top of the box has a huge compartment for accessories and camera. It's 100% waterproof and I prefer to leave my gear in the boat at night. The plastic shell empty of trays and accessories weighs virtually nothing as well.

Yeah sure she might have a case. So what? I don't need a lawyer to tell me what's morally right.

Cool shot although they look more lost than happy.

They're accompanying me on several of them, the rest are all business trips. Thankfully my wife is not only my best friend, she's my biggest supporter.

Big year on tap for me: 1.Dayohessarah Lake with White River Air in Late May for lake trout. http://www.northtoadventure.com/lake_detail.php?lid=13 2.North Caribou Lake Camp in late June for giant pike and walleye. http://www.northcaribou.com/ 3.Asheweig River for trophy brookies in mid July. http://asheweigriver.com/index.php?pid=29 4.Medhurst Lake outpost in the Chapleau region in early August. http://www.ontariowilderness.com/lake.php?id=Medhurst 5.Sutton River for giant brook trout in late August. http://hearstair.wordpress.com/sutton-river-specs/ 6.Cree Lake in northern Saskatchewan mid September for giant lakers and pike. http://www.borealcamps.com/creehp.htm 7.Anjigaming Lake outpost in Chapleau in late September (with the winners of the fly in trip contest) http://www.outpostcamps.com/destinations/ Trying to fit in another trip with Mattice Lake Outfitters in Armstrong and another to Chaudiere Lodge on the upper French.

Very nice! I need to get my son out soon for some panfish.

Damn you Shirley, you're killing me.

Nice bunch of fish bud!

I'll post some details on my site within a day or two, but I'm currently working with Steve and have some fantastic off season rates for Chaudierre if anyone's interested.

Way to go Dave, perseverence pays off!

I can. Their team matches up perfectly against Tampa. It's no surprise to me how well they're doing. Enjoy it while it lasts Habs fans.

That's exactly what I thought when we bought our Smokercraft. FWIW a 90 is max hp for the boat I bought, but the 4 stroke Merc was too heavy. The gas tank is right at the back which didn't help. I moved all the batteries right into the bow and that did virtually nothing. As I said we exhausted every single option before giving up. I mulled over a smaller 4 stroke but ultimately went with a 90 etec as it's considerably lighter and still max hp. It's like a different boat now. Night and day. Good luck, I've been down this road already and I feel your pain.

I can remember them doing this once many years ago, so there has been a precedent. Too late now though,

We bought a a 16' Smokercraft with a 90 horse 4 stroke Merc two springs ago and had the same exact problem. In my case we tried every possible fix, adjusting the height of the motor, different prop, etc, etc. Ultimately a hydrofoil on the skeg made it at least usable but I wasn't happy with the situation as it was a bandaid fix. The issue was pretty simple in my case, the motor was simply too heavy for the boat. Last spring we sold the Merc and put a 90 e-tec on the boat and it runs like a dream now. The lighter motor made all the difference in the world. My guess is you may have a similar issue with the 115 simply being too heavy. By far the best bandaid fix would be a set of trim tabs, if you're looking for a quick fix that's the route I would go.

For those that like braid try the moss green Power Pro in 4 or 5lb test for lighter applications. It's so thin it's amazing. I use it primarily jigging for walleye as well as casting for trout in small streams and inland lakes. Most often I don't even bother with a fluoro leader, just tie direct.

Pretty positive it's a shad.

Thanks Fidel, I saw that many years ago, hadn't realized it was on youtube. What a life that guy led!

Looks prime.

I'm not implying anything, but most times when a scenario like this is encountered it's an angler looking for a loophole in the reg's.

Rivers that are closed from Jan-May in Ontario are generally closed to protect spawning rainbow trout. I've never heard of any scenario where smaller trib's of bigger rivers were open to angling. I'd be curious to know what species of fish you plan on targetting in these smaller rivers.

For all those concerned there's some great news! Federal Transport Minister Raitt announced this morning that funding will be extended for one year for the ACR Passenger Rail Service from Sault Ste. Marie to Hearst. Now is the time for local stakeholders to get a long term solution -- the rail line is very important to this region! https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152142737998224

No experience with Bears Den, but I love that part of the river. Very scenic with good fishing. FWIW if anyone's interested in a trip to the upper French, specifically to Chaudiere Lodge, drop me a line. I can help with the booking and can pretty much guarantee you a good rate. Been talking with the owner Steve Niedzwiecki recently and he's been great to deal with. Absolute first class operation as well.

Chris is right. From the GTA I can get almost to White River in 11 hours. Wakami is 8 hours tops whether you use the shortcut or not. I'll second both of Chris's suggestions. Regardless of a little bit more driving, if you're going for a full week then why not travel to a destination that'll offer a 10X better experience? I can tell you right now If it was me and I had a week I'd be driving a LOT further than that! If I was camping for a week and pulling my own boat this is where I'd be going. Damn near fly in quality fishing on an amazing body of water. Campsites are very nice as well: http://www.osullivansrainbow.com/index.html

Unreal! Were they all caught on shiners?