ccmtcanada

Well, as stated in a thread earlier in the week, bly booked a hut on Scugog for an early Valentine's day treat! Well, we got there at 4:30pm...a half an hour early, but Kerry and Cyndi (operators of Lake Scugog Ice Hut Rentals) got our stuff loaded up right away and took us to our hut. They were great hosts and made every effort to make our stay as comfortable as possible. I've never been ice fishing before, so it was kinda cool for me standing out in the middle of a lake that I usually fish in the summer. Here's a pic of bly outside our hut and a pic when the sun was going down. Once inside, we got everything ready. The hut was propane heated and nice and warm for us. There was a minnow bucket inside already filled with bait. There were 4 holes inside so we set up our 2 tipups and 2 rods/holders and then waited for some action. The ice was nice and solid...around 10" think from what I could tell. Bly then made us some fresh coffee on the propane stove and we were all set! Kerry came around to check up on us to see if we needed any minnows and noticed that our hut was dark, so he dropped off a lantern for us to use. At around 6:30pm, one of our tipups was set off!! Carole was closest, so she set the hook and began to bring in the fish. Unfortunately, the fish ended up with a free minnow!!! Oh well, we'll wait for the next hit. Suddenly, the rod in front of me went crazy, but I was too slow....by the time I picked up the rod to set the hook, it was gone. Things were kinda slow after that, so we had our romantic valentine's dinner. We then decided to break out the cards! I noticed that ice fishing tackle is downsized....so we used downsized cards as well....lol. And you guessed it...we played Go Fish...she beat me 3 games to 2. We had the option to stay out there all night long...Kerry offered to pick us up at around 5am, but we decided to leave at 11pm instead. With Carole fighting off bronchitis and the bite being really slow, we thought we'd head on home. Kerry and Cyndi run a great operation. They were out checking on us to see if we needed anything. He even shovelled some snow around the hut to cut on drafts coming from underneath. Kerry was going to drop by to fish with us for a bit as well, but we ended up leaving early. They take you right out to your hut on a snowmobile. He has a heated bathroom on the ice as well, so that's really convenient. Our hut came equipped with 4 holes, 2 nice folding lawn chairs and a great comfy futon! So, I must say, that even though we were skunked, I had a great time out there. I can see us doing this again soon...I'm not much of a cold weather person, but hey, this was like fishing in luxury....LOL. Thanks bly! It was the best valentine's gift I've ever had.

Here's a nice Walleye...30" and 11 pounds. A close up of the lure... My wife and I didn't catch anything on live bait this past year...all our fish were on artificials.

Watchin it now even though I cant understand it...LOL. Great job all around....you must be proud

Never get tired of seeing those clips...they are too funny!

Snag...I would think that if you are able to cast a line in there in open water, there should be no problem drilling a few holes in the ice. Go figure...I'd try again...maybe even call the marina to check.

Thanks everyone for your tips! Have made a note of them all. One other question. We bought a few inexpensive tipups. They came with black line on it...almost feels like string and not fishing line. My question is, do you tie a leader on it or strip it off and put fishing line on it? Hmmm....who knew this would be so confusing...LOL. Thanks.

Well, bly and I are heading out on our ice fishing adventure tomorrow evening on Lake Scugog. We have a heated hut and will be there from about 5pm until 5am....we may leave around 11pm or midnight depending on how the night is going. I have never ice fished and bly hasn't been since she was a child, so we are pretty excited. We've received some advice from great members on this board thru chat and talking with fishindevil on the phone as well! Here's what we have so far...oh yeah...we are probably going after perch and small walleye...secretly hoping for a stray muskie...haha. - 2 tipups - 2 ice rods with holders - some spoons and small jigs - depth finder - 4 bait spreaders - Ice scoop The hut operator will be drilling holes outside the hut for us and supplying the minnows. We are also getting a ride out to the hut. The hut comes equipped with heater, lighting and stove. I also have that castable fish finder...will use it to mark depth and fish. Will also use a GPS that fishindevil gave me to mark where the car is on shore in case we have to pick up and leave in the middle of the night and walk back in. Could easily lose your bearings I'm assuming...especially if it's snowing hard. (thanks again for that fishindevil!!!). Will be dressed in layers, and we have neoporene gloves as well. Any tips for what we are targeting? We will likely head out tonight to pick up a few last supplies...although depending on the responses, it may cost a small fortune...LOL. Thanks everyone. Cliff

Good luck!!! Be careful on the drive ok? Want you in one piece for the report and pics when you get back.

Congrats!!! That's the kind of boat that I'll get a few years from now. To me it looks awesome....lots of great memories will come from your outings I'm sure. Cant wait to see the first report!!!!

That's really cool! Congrats to her and your family for her TV apprearance. Sounded like an awesome experience all around...to be capped off with the premiere showing tonight. Got lots of friends coming over? Got the popcorn ready?? hehe.

Yes...good luck! I just know that somehow a steelie will come out of the ice up there....LOL. Stay safe...the roads may be bad.

I won a colouring contest hosted by a real estate company when I was 8 years old....hmmm....and I won a new digital camera about 3 months before my youngest was born. That camera has really come in handy over the years!

Looking great! The improvement is impressive. Thanks for sharing on this forum and keeping us updated on your progress. Great work.

Nah..it's still a funny joke!!! I'd just remove the true story part....LOL.

Terry...it's hard to believe cause it's not true...hehe....the following link debunks it. Pretty funny anyways... http://www.snopes.com/quotes/mrgorsky.htm

Not sure if this is what you need, but check out this link... http://canadiantire.ca/browse/product_deta...D=1170947878140 Good luck! I'm sure others will chime in too. Cliff

Gerritt.... Wow....you seem to have ALL the luck! With the temps this way, I'm sure you'll be able to organize a little ice road hockey! I drive from the burbs to Toronto every day, and can I tell you how much I love those watermain breaks along Bayview and Yonge? Jeez.... So...when's the ice road hockey game? Looking foward to your pics. Cliff

Great pics and report! I'm trying ice fishing for the first time this weekend...after seeing the success of many on this board, I cant wait to go!

After we couldn't book a hut there, we made alternate plans for ice fishing on Scugog. Hopefully we can attend another mini get together in the future! Thanks for organizing this one Gerritt...much appreciated...even if we cant make it. Cliff

At least we're not these guys....

Sure...he said there are 2 holes in the hut and a few outside...you are more than welcome to the ones outside. Seriously though...if you do want to stop by, we think that would be cool! Let us know ok?

Wait a minute...at first I thought this was a good comment...but then I thought...maybe she does like fishing more than she likes me....LOL

I feel sorry for all those guys out there who have to endure a nice romantic dinner....a chick flick...flowers....chocolates etc.... We were out shopping the on the weekend and she says "So...what are we doing on Valentine's Day?". I have my stunned look...."Is that coming up soon? Ohh...and why is it that the GUY has to plan it?" She said "Cause the women plan everything else the rest of the year". So my mind started churning....you know....dinner, chick flick, flowers....LOL. Turns out her original question was all a set up. Sooooo.....she had already planned our Valentine's day. Get this.....She booked us for a heated ice hut on Lake Scugog this Saturday evening. We can fish til around 11pm...or stay all night! Babysitting has already been arranged....all we have to do is drive up there! She was trying to surprise me with it, but I found a bag of stuff in the house....you know...the regular valentines day stuff....ice fishing rods, tip ups, swedish pimples etc....LOL. So...I am a very lucky guy to have a wife who not only plans Valentine's day...but chooses a fishing adventure to boot! Cliff PS....this will be my first time ever ice fishing too....cool huh? Stay tuned for the report on Sunday...hopefully we can catch some eyes thru the ice.

We've been talking about reducing our cable services as well b/c of the cost. So today, bly chopped a bunch of channels from our digital lineup. We kept WFN of course though...LOL

Wow!! Nice work Scott! I gotta get myself back there and catch some more. Time is hard to find right now though. Wish I had the winter off as well...if I did, then you'd have a regular fishing partner!! lol