doubleheader

Same with me. I'd love to figure out how to be successful with Gulp on walleyes on Nipissing just to get away from constantly rebaiting from the perch but it hasn't happened for me and I've tried multiple times. Other lakes I've had success but not on Nipissing, possibly because we fish more of the rocky ledges than the weedbeds. I suspect drifting weedbeds the eyes would commit more quickly, I mean they see it and they are programmed to strike before the minnow hides while on ledges they usually want a taste. I've had great success in Quebec with Gulp, but the only thing I've caught on Nipissing is northerns and bass.

I have way too many rods, partle because I tournament fish with my wife and partly because I have been in search of the perfect bottom bouncing rod; I should say "was" in search. The Cabelas brand Ugly Stik, made by Shakespeare, 7' med action for my $.02 is the perfect bottom bouncing rod. Soft enough so as the soift biters will hang on to the bait and enough backbone for big fish. Otrher than that application I doubt I'd own any.

Lew, possibly a bear, although it would have to be a pretty constipated one. Most of the bear scat around our neck of the woods looks like a pie filling with berries and such. As for black bears not eating fawns, a rather exhaustive study in PA showed the #1 predator of fawns was black bears not coyotes, and while black bears generally eat berries, nuts and the like, they are very opportunistic and definitely will prey on fawns.

You may have seen this link before or it may be more than you wish to take on, but I was so impressed with this guy's effort that I saved it. http://correllconcepts.com/boat_conversion.htm

A lot was said here about native fishing, but as was mentioned natives have been taking fish for years, and I suspect that when the walleye populations are down so is the native enthusiasm for netting them. After all, they do it to make a living and when they can't they won't fish, or at minimum fewer will fish. I suspect, that if indeed the population is down, it's either a result of a natural cycle or what has been reported the explosion of ice fishing huts. There are a number of variables going on, any one or combination of which may be the culpret, but typically when something like this happens a problem solver might ask "what has changed?". Ice fishing sounds like a it could be a factor. As a tourist what I'd like to see is a cooperative effort to insure a sustained and healthy number of walleye; but that said we usually do quite well targeting walleyes on the west arm and I think the fishery is much better than where it was 30-40 years ago. Truth is, and just being honest here, what I typically see every year during our 2 week vacation are fishermen that aren't very educated in walleye behavior or persistent in their attempt to catch them. Yes, there are better waters for walleye, but one of the things I enjoy is the process of figuring them out. Sometimes it happens quickly, sometimes it takes a few days, and sometimes you never quite do figure them out and it's back to the drawing board.

I've been running a 4 stroke since 1998. They were good then they are really really good now. The only possible real world disadvantage I can think of, and that may have even been overcome at this point, is if you plan to take the motor off the transom from time to time you'll want to store it and transport it in an upright position.

My wife has a 2006 Civic. She puts about 27,000 mile/year on her car, mostly highway. It is as tight today as the day she bought it. I'm sure she'll get 200,000 miles on this engine. She gets 35-40 mpg. Those are the pluses. On the negatives, I don't like sitting down so low to the ground and I hate just getting in and out. Once I'm in there is plenty of room for a 6' 200lb+ guy. It is not the most quiet cabin, especially running winter tires. Finally, while nothing of consequence has ever failed, she has had 4 or 5 minor warranty things, 2 switches, a module, a recall, and the like. Bottom line is she really likes her car even after nearly 5 years, and plans to keep it another 2 years minimum. If you put 70K/year on a car why not buy a late model used vehicle and let someone else take the depreciation hit for the first 2 years? ps. With snow tires it handles amazingly well on plowed roads. Not enough weight to excel on unplowed roads.

Randy, one can only hope when it's our turn we have someone at our side with the compassion that you showed your firend. I'm sorry for your loss but thank you for your post. It was a comforting reminder to me that in the midst of this crazy world there are still a lot of wonderful caring people. Take care.

Our coyote population in PA, which has now been proven to contain wolf genes, has exploded over the last 20 years. I read an interesting article in Pennsylvania Sportman just this week entitled the "Disnification of Wolves and Coyotes". According to this author the conservation people in Yellowstone are the ones that got this propaganda started, convincing the tourists the wolves are like the Disney animals we see on tv. Again according to this author there is danger in misinforming people that these creatures are nearly harmless creatures in that they begin to lose their fear of man. He went on to site and classify the reported coyote attacks and showed that while the number over the last 20 years remains low it doubled over the previous period, and that the nature of these attacks were such that one could draw a reasonable conclusion that the animals were hunting the humans (a significant number were children playing in their yards), they were not the result of surprising the animals . It was an interesting take, not sure myself if the cause of the increase isn't simply a result of the increased population. I would think the bigger danger is the fallout from this misinformation, the anti- hunting mentality that results from folks that think these predators either have some higher form intelligence or that they are just furry balls of cuddley love. Neither is true. Personally I believe legal hunting of both coyotes and wolves is acceptable. It is designed to maintain a healthy population of the animals while maintaining needed population control. Additionally hunting brings in much needed revenue to many remote areas around the world. I have never killed a coyote, they're wiley buggers, but I've seen quite a few while either scouting or hunting. That said there are now a great number of coyote hunts organized across the state. I'm thankful for these sportsmen and women for keeping the population of these predators in some semblance of control.

That sounds like a script to a hilarious movie. Great story.

Looks great Lew. Marvin can now focus on warding off critters rather than robbers eh?

Following my Mercury Verado manual recommendations I had my impeller changed this year- it was 3 years old. The mechanic said it was like new, but better safe than sorry.

Well, that was easier than I thought. I found the brother that killed the buck on Facebook (he lives down south) and he had a picture of his buck on-line that i downloaded so here it is. Mind you, he is all of 250 lbs and our PA bucks aren't nearly as large as Ontario bucks. In other words a 140 buck around here is big.

I don't have a picture right now but I'll try to get one and post it. Glad you enjoyed.

Here in western PA I hunt whitetails with about 15 guys. We pay a token amount to a fella that owns 1600 acres- it's a sweet deal. Last year one of our younger guys, Rob, suffered a heart attack and died. His brother was only 150 yds up a trail, waiting for him by his 4 wheeler, but not knowing he had been stricken. As a group after hunting season we had a memorial service at the place Rob died and mounted a small brass memorial at the location his body was found. I've always thought that his brother probably felt guilt for not walking up that path, not that he should have, but those are just the kind of tricks our conscious sometimes plays on us. Anyhow, this year that brother killed a monster buck that fell just yards from where his brother died the year before. Out of 1600 acres I just thought this to be an amazing coincidence, especially since he really wasn't just set-up on stand there; he just happened to be walking up to meet his other brother when this buck jumped up. It's almost like Rob trying to tell his brother, "Here you go bro, and don't worry bout me, everything is cool".

My wife catches more fish while reading than if she pays attention.

I've had a Samsung 46" 1080P for almost 3 years. No problems whatsoever. Combined with Dish network and a Bose speaker system- we love it. Much has changed in that time, including price. I chose lcd because of glare concerns as I have skylights in the family room. I get almost zero glare on the lcd. As an aside, based on the posts above it appears we can buy tv's here in the states cheaper than in Canada, not sure why that is.

The world has apparently gone mad. This has to be one of the most ridiculous abuses of power I've read about in some time.

Solopaddler, I agree 100%

Very sorry for your loss Joey.

The standard disclaimer you signed would normally cover damage that was incurred as a result of some action or failure on your behalf, such as damage to a prop, skeg, or lower unit as a result of hitting a rock. The cowling flying off was totally a result of a hidden defect and sould not liable you unless you removed the cowling and subsequently failed to secure it properly. You have no moral obligation to replace it, and whether you have a legal obligation is highly questionable. The person renting equipment had a legal responsibility to provide equipment in good working order. The hidden defect of a loose cowling should not liable you even if you signed their disclaimer. Stop the Visa payment, go to small claims court. If you have a witness that can colaborate your story, especially a witness that can verify that the dock boy was aware of the loose cowling and was not concerned, then you should win. After all, if the dock boy was not concerned why would you be concerned? Right is right and wrong is wrong. You did nothing wrong here, stand up for yourself.

The method Roy described is the better one. If you're running harnesses it's much easier to swith them out.

Did you check the kill switch? I'm not familiar with these machines, but I suspect it's something simple. Does it need to be in neutral to start? Is the fuel valve open? Have you checked the air cleaner? Is the gas fresh? Does the motor turn over when you attempt to start? If not it's possibly the battery or a connection or the starter. Does it have a manual choke? Can you smell gas?

I vote release just because that's me. On my last trip to the west arm I released 3 fish of around 5 lbs (25") and one beautifully built heavy 28+" fish around 8 lbs. I know they may be past their breeding prime, but my hope is some kid gets a chance to catch one of those and it makes his or her vacation. Purely personal choice and I certainly wouldn't criticize another person's decision to keep their catch.

Walleyes move more than most species depending on weather conditions, forage, and seasonal patterns. They feed all day, but feed more extensively on most bodies of water in low light as they can still see whereas their forage, like perch, cannot see well in low light. Generally, the farther light penetrates into the water the deeper the fish will be. Things like cloud cover, wave action, rain, weed cover, structure, shade, and water clarity affect light penetration. Walleyes can be as shallow as 6" and as deep as 80', although they will typically be where the forage fish are and stay within oxygenated areas of the lake. The primary thing to remember when fishing walleyes is you can't catch them if they aren't there. I know, sounds dumb, but the point is, all successful walleye fishermen have a common trait. If it isn't working they move or try another technique. Many fishermen, in fact most, aren't successful for any other reason than they are too lazy to re-rig and/move. If you do this you will eventually be successful, and you need to keep a log so you can begin to build a correlation between conditions,techinique, and result. Generally, jigging will work year round, spinners and cranks more after the water gets into the mid 50's F range. Slip bobbers is a great technigue as well, but has specialized applications. In other words cold water go slow, speed up as water warms. In general smaller presentations in the spring, bigger in the fall. In general, bright colors in stained water, more natural colors in clear water. Things walleye love: current, forage, cover, edges. Good luck.