Raf

Never had an issue finding a site - sometimes even next to a all-girls female canoe group. The charge is 7 or 8 bucks/per person/per night & most of the lodges on the river sell the permit. There may be 230 'official sites' but many more suitable locations that are un-official. None of the sites I've come across have a tent pad - some have a thunderbox and all will have a fire pit made outta rock. Make sure you do get the map; the shoreline's all either Park Land or Native land. The latter of which, you cannot camp on.

you don't "book" sites as you would with the massassauga. sites are on a first come first serve basis you can pick up a map on your way up, french river trading post sells them. they are just north of the french r. bridge on hwy 69. or go to mec.

nice pics Brandon. I was in Atlantic City last fall hoping to get pics along a similar theme but AC is pretty much a poophole in comparison.

I have the 8'6" XH. It's a good rod for the price but I prefer my 8'6" XH St. Croix Premiere. Just a better rod albeit with a poorer warranty. Line counter is a nice to have but not neccessary. You can easily count "pulls" or "wraps" to achieve repeatability in terms of line out/depth.

how much money do you want to spend? dipsy rods work just fine for 99% of the baits as long as you're not pulling really hard pulling baits. do not use a rigger rod, they are waaay too floppy. one of the lines of thought re: glass is superior over graphite comes from the thinking that graphite can become brittle during late fall temps and break. i've used graphite rods trolling late in the late fall and had no issues. glass rods are also cheaper and since it's sitting in a rod holder all day, the extra weight/lack of sensitivity is a non-issue. my favourite muskie trolling rod is a st. croix 8'er that's more than $150. it is a glass composite rod specifically made for muskie trolling - it will handle the giant baits and the small ones. i have an okuma convector line counter on it. if money is no object and you want one good rod, this is it. i also use a 9'6" cabelas depthmaster dipsy rod that's probably $30-40 with another convector and the combo works well and a shorter 7' el cheapo muskie rod (probably glass) for trolling using wire line - it has a stiff backbone but a very soft tip. those are 3 "dedicated" trolling setups. I wont hesitate to use my casting 8' MH (bucktail rod) and an 8'6" XH (big daddy) as well (they are graphite)

nice shots pikeie!

are contacts not an option? that way you can use non-prescription polarized glasses.

i motion to replace bps with cabelas in vaughan.. i've been to several locations in the states for both retailers and cabelas is head & shoulders above bass pro.

Fine reel, like mentioned an upgrade over the standard C3s of which I've a few and they've lasted for me and they get a LOT of use. I'd recommend the 6500/6501 size. It's a good all-round reel that'll handle most baits with the exception of the obscenly hard pulling ones. Line capacity isn't the issue, stronger drag, internals and bigger spool/handle are and I don't think the 5500 size has a clicker.

trade it for a bench, squat rack, barbell and some weights and dont worry about flyes. i know that doesnt help but its my best advice.

Thanks Roy. It's still a little "ugly" but the info's there nevertheless. Hope some can make use of it.

those wont be dinky walleye Ben, they'll behave differently alright!!! soooo looking forward to it.

What superdad said. We do it the same way, set the releases so they don't release when a fish hits on our inlines - waaay to much work to turn around and get your board. Simply reel board in, have your buddy unclip it boatside and continue fighting fish. Think of teh inline board as a bobber.. it will behave differently if you have a fish on.

Em

try grimsby tackle just of the qew past hamilton. i think bps will be overpriced, clueless and likely out of stock

they are a lot of fun on light tackle. problem is the length of time it takes to bring 'em in and get your lure (1/64oz jighead) back down to 70'.. when you know there's more fish down there. your buddy who's using a spoon can get 3 fish in that time I do prefer red however, red doesn't go too well with spicy food. something about the tannins. sunofa... we might be picking up a "beater" late fall/winter boat this wknd. still ice where we are.

jbs on ronson dr in etobicoke as well as grimsby tackle probably have the salties nothing says you can't use single strand but i see seven strand is preferred by open water trollers.. it is more flexible and forgiving if kinked. there's probably other reasons too we use single strand on the bay because we're banging shoals & seven strand will not take the abuse of rocks kindly.

s'more pics this was about a 29" that nearly spooled me on a 4lb UL outfit love the colours jp's dad really showed us whos boss.. here's one of too many with the secret lure blurred out

cilantro = coriander. i do use it but in dried powder form. maybe i should try leaves i'm going to experiment with galangal which is similar to ginger but not. cumin - check feta - now there's an idea! i'm going to have to fish the kawarthas to give muskie meat a shot. i'm sure it would work well with pike too.

thanks.. but I will be the 1st to admit I am a hack - google is my friend. any other suggestions for the authentic asian flavour? i hear water chestnuts mentioned but what the heck do you do with them?

it's been a while since i looked at those charts but if i'm not mistaken, the two numbers are amount of line out with or without the snap-in "ring" which you can add or remove from the dipsy.

GGwG

No I haven't.. but this year I have my own backyard and a bbq.. sounds good, I'll have to try. I eyeball things. Exact would be too tedious haha. partial list of ingredients would be: shallots lemon grass fish sauce green curry paste kaffir lime leaves hot peppers coconut milk brown sugar meat & veggies of your choosing.. i pound some of the shallots, lemon grass, peppers with mortar & pestle to add to the curry paste rest of lemon grass, lime leaves i add whole for flavour then remove when done. tastes good to me.. but then again i am not picky. enjoy with a glass of gewürztraminer

thanks gang I haven't introduced him to the world of thai cooking yet but, I know he has a soft spot for all creatures right next to the potatoes (in this case, brown rice and grn curry). kaffir lime leaves.

aa