Garry2Rs

Some trolling motors are twelve or twenty-four volt. These can be run on either set-up

What are you trying to catch? The size of the target will give you an idea of what size the bait should be... What are the target species eating? The size and species of the food will give you an idea what the size and pattern of the bait should be... What will the bottom colour be? Bait fish camouflage themselves to blend-in with their background... Do you know how to fish this bait? It is not a toss and crank-it-back lure. You cast and give it sharp jerk... There might be other ways, but I start and end each jerk with a slack line. This lets the bait turn to the side at the end of each jerk. The next jerk snaps it around in a new direction, it glides and then turns again on the slack line... Good Luck

I have owned a Curado, seven Calcutta's aand three Chronarch's. They are all good reels that you can have repaired, if neccessary, in Peterborough. That's worth a lot!

I was on Stoney on Tuesday. The Crappie were on, or near the bottom. They weren't coming up for the jigs, so we took off the float and hopped the jig along to catch a few. It's still quite cool in the Kawarthas, I think a few warm nights would help the bite.

I used to think Ugly Sticks might be good for children...until I found out that your not allowed to hit them!

Shimano Compre CPCC in 6'6" or 7 foot. The longer rod throws a little farther, the shorter one is a little more accurate. Medium or medium heavy depending on the size of baits you throw. Good rods, nice hardware and a lifetime warranty and it should fall within your budget.

Here's the address. http://www.insideline.net/weeklynews/main-archive.html

Here's the address. http://www.insideline.net/weeklynews/main-archive.html

Since different baits react/behave differently, you might want to try a short cast in shallow water where you can watch what is happening...A swimming pool would be great, but I guess it's too early for that...HAHAHA

I also had a tougher time today. The morning was brutal! After it warmed up we got two dozen by fishing sheltered areas where we could see tall weeds in shallow water.

A lot of people struck-out opening weekend. I think that the high water was holding back the weed growth. My hot-spots were all empty too. It got better everyday last week and Saturday we got 40, by casting to any old cabbage or other tall weeds we could see. Most of them were good size fish, not the Dinks that were biting at the beginning of the week. My nieghbour also found a good spot and boated forty, but lost one when a 40inch Musky took his bait and the Crappie that had eaten it...HAHAHA. I am headed to the Hammer mid-week, what are you paying for gas?

Make sure you have squeezed the prime bulb to bring fuel to the motor first. Pull out the choke and advance the throttle to the start mark. Pull the rope/turn the key etc. Normally you keep the choke out until it starts. It should fire right up.

I got out several times this past week and found a few more Crappie each trip Today was sort of a break-through day! The average size increased and some favourite spots that had been barren suddenly have fish. If you have been holding back waiting for the fish to really start biting...wait no more...grin.

Brian: Those are ear-buds for guys who don't like anything in their ears...I was getting down with some tunes, man! I have the worlds largest collection of 50's Rock and Do-op by people who are dead...HAHAHA

Now that the humorists have finished with you, you might want to try this... Salt water guy change leaders using a loop-to-loop system. Using a Spider hitch or other non-slip loop knot on the ends of the main line and the leader will allow you to interlock the two loops but still be able to undo the link to change leaders. This might be useful when Carolina rigging etc. If you're not familiar with a good loop knot Google "Spider Hitch" and you will find links to How-To diagrams

Saturday I struck out on my favourite Kawartha spots...Plenty of Sunfish, but no Crappie. Monday I went to Stoney Lake and struck-out again. Wednesday I went back to re-check my regular spots... My best places were still barren, but I found about 10 Crappie around the boat launch. This afternoon, at 3:30 when the neighbour's 9 year old got off the School Bus, Daddy and I were waiting for her with the boat and tackle. We only had two hours, before supper time, but we managed to get another 15 from the same spot. The water was 62F degrees or 16C in that little pocket and there was some new weed growth. My guess is that the other spots will start to pay off in a couple more days.

Senko ~ The Seven Weightless Ways Story by Russ Bassdozer April 23, 2009 The Texas-rigged Yamamoto Senko is renowned as the best bass bait in history. Yes, there are many ways to fish a Senko with a weight, to wacky rig it or whatever, but Texas-rigged weightless, casting in shallow water is unequalled in fun and effectiveness. A weightless Senko is highly snag-resistant and excels in thick grass, brush or other cover. There is no weight, so there's nothing to embed itself into the cover and snag. It also excels in the clearest, most open water as well, since it is so non-threatening and subtle, fish are rarely alarmed by one. The seven modules below are discrete building blocks. On any given day or season, I'll string together any one or all of these building blocks to create a successful weightless Senko presentation. You can too. Way One: The Splash Make no mistake, an attractive, life-like splash can be as important as anything else you do with a Senko. The initial splash can be an essential part of the presentation. I have often had fish swim away and leave my bait as I tried to entice them to hit it, because my partner cast and splashed his bait 15 feet away, behind the fish. Apparently, an enticing splash is often of more interest to a bass than a bait right in front of its face! Understand this, a bass will come over to investigate a splash, sight unseen. Also understand there is nothing more the bass would like to do when he gets there than to bite your bait as soon as he sees it. I call this phenomena "love at first sight" and it is purely instinctive. Upon getting near enough to eyeball the bait closely however, many bass will turn away from it, and slink back down to the bottom. This is an indication that something was rejected by the bass. If bass come up but turn away, change color or size of your Senko. Change hook weight or line weight. What you want is to get them to come up on the splash and quickly engulf it or at least keep from turning away and losing interest in the bait as it falls. Way Two: The Drop Ever drop a live earthworm in the water? A worm rolls in slow motion and both tips squiggle as it half-swims, half-glides down to the bottom. The worm tries to maintain a semi-controlled fall and keep some sort of horizontal equilibrium. A weightless Senko does just that. It swims and glides to bottom with the body rocking and both tips twitching. It controls its fall like an earthworm maintaining a horizontal equilibrium. The Senko maintains this control over itself whether it is nose-rigged, Texas-rigged or wacky-rigged. Crayfish do this too. They free-fall to bottom by spreading their legs out like a parachute to slow their fall and maintain equilibrium. Injured baitfish also try to maintain some degree of controlled fall and horizontal equilibrium as they drift haplessly to bottom. A weightless Senko imitates all this, the parachute-like glide, the horizontal controlled fall, and many fish hit it on the drop. They rush up and smack it before the bait reaches protection of the bottom. To most people, this is the heart and soul of Senko fishing - the drop. If you don't use any of the other building blocks (the splash, the tip, the twitch, etc.), concentrate on the drop. No weight is used, so your hook and your line are the only variables that affect how much action the Senko has as it swims and glides on the drop. Experiment with different hooks (sizes, weights and models), different lines and line weights. This story is about Texas-rigged Senkos, but don't neglect to try them nose-hooked (through the nose like a live minnow) or wacky-rigged exactly in the middle. How much slack or tension you keep in your line affects the action on the drop. Learn what makes a Senko tick. Take time out to do this in a pool. You cannot easily learn this while out trying to catch fish at the same time. So take the time off to learn all the ins and outs of the bait's movements in a pool. You will have far more confidence and much better Senko presentation skills. You will know how to work it and how the bait reacts even when you cannot see it in dingy water. You will catch more fish because you took time out from fishing! Way Three: The Twitch Many anglers say you should NOT twitch your Senkos. I think the mistake many anglers make is in the definition of what's a "twitch". It's not a Herculean jerk you know! Think of what we mean by a "twitchy trigger finger" or when we say somebody twitches their nose. In either of those examples, a "twitch" is a small, hardly noticeable movement. Twitching Senkos does not need to be much more than that either. Make no mistake, a flinching, flickering Senko is OFTEN highly-desirable to fish. I've often had bass lose interest in an unadulterated drop with the Senko. This happens more in hot water than cold. At times, fish would watch it and follow it down for a few seconds as it dropped, then lose interest and swim away. But twitch it a bit, and those disinterested departing fish make a beeline straight back to the Senko! If they start swimming away again, twitch it...they're back again! In clear water, twitching is easier to pattern than in dingy or dark water. In clear water, you can observe what the fish do, how they respond, and adjust the twitch accordingly. You need to uncover whatever kind of twitching action works according to what the fish want to hit on any given day. The visual feedback you get in clear water WORKS WONDERS for unlocking a twitching pattern. You can also figure out the twitch pattern in dingy or dirty water, but it is best to study the nuances of what the fish want in clear water. Then replicate that when you fish a dingy section of the lake. This works because there's usually a seasonal aspect to twitching, rather than a clear vs. dingy distinction. Personally, I would practice learning all the ins and outs of the bait's twitch movements in that pool again (which seems to be a common theme running through this story). Then you will know how to twitch it, and how the bait reacts to a twitch, even when you cannot see it. Way Four: The Tip Most people tip waiters or waitresses (if the service is good). I've heard that country boys tip cows, and they may have heard that city slickers tip taxi drivers. I also tip Senkos. The reason I tip them is that sometimes for some unknown reason (line drag or it just starts to fall wrong), the wriggly double tip-swimming action of a Senko does not get started on the drop. In clear water, I can see the action's not started. In dingy water, I'll just tip them when the rod and line are in a good position to do it. How I tip them is to sort of roll the rod under and up in an effort to toss a loop down the line above the surface. This does not move the Senko forward at all, but causes it to merely raise its head where the line is tied to it, effectively standing on its tail. When the tip is done, the Senko will then shoot backwards like an arrow tail-first, swing forward and backward like a pendulum a few times, then regain its equilibrium and exhibit strong tip-swimming action. Yes, you can maneuver the Senko in under submerged tree branches, into a rock cut or weed edge like this. So, the tip can get the Senko a bit back into a hidey-hole, rock it, then exhibit strong tip-swimming action (just what the bass doctor ordered). Once you learn how to do it properly (in the pool again), you'll find situations to tip your Senkos all the time. Way Five: The Bottom You may have attracted a fish with the splash. A fish may have eyeballed the Senko greedily, rushed it and turned away on the drop, its heart may have jumped when you twitched it or tipped it to stimulate better swimming action. You would have hoped a fish would rush up and smack it before it hits bottom, and often that's true. Many fish do hit Senkos on the drop, and there's even a theory that fish should prefer to do that before a descending bait reaches protection of little nooks or crannies of safety on the bottom. Of course, as with many theories in fishing, there's the opposite truism too- that bass may bide their time to wait until a falling bait reaches bottom since it no longer has 360 degrees to escape a mid-water strike, but can be easily trapped or pinned against the bottom. Regardless, the bottom itself is often the place where everything comes together! If a fish had been eyeballing the Senko as it dropped, just let your Senko settle on bottom and don't move it. Unlike weighted rigs or jigs, the weightless Senko's horizontal posture and long body keep it from delving deeply into weeds or snags. It perches atop whatever it falls on. There's no such thing as leaving it lay motionless too long. The fish knows the Senko is there and will come over and inhale it...sooner or later. A bass cannot stand this temptation. However, if the fish eventually turns away from the Senko, guess what? Twitch it! The fish will be right back. Can't see the fish because it's hidden in cover or the water's dingy? Doesn't matter. Let it lay there for the longest, then shake the rod tip sideways to make the bait quiver without moving forward...just shake a loop of slack into your line and then let it lay there for the longest again. Often fish will just sit motionless and watch the Senko in front of them on the bottom for a long time before inhaling it. Way Six: The Lift Next, you may want to work the Senko out over the bottom. Simply raise your rod tip slowly, pause and lower it slowly. The Senko will tip up towards you and rise off bottom as you raise the rod. This is like raising a flag so the bass can see it. Then lower your rod slowly with a little slack to help the Senko regain horizontal equilibrium and it will tip-swim and swagger back down to bottom as you follow it down with the rod tip. On the drop is when they'll eat it - not on the lift. A semi-slack line is always required whenever the Senko drops. Pause for a pick-up (no such thing as too long) when you make bottom contact again, and repeat raising and lowering the rod until you're ready to reel in to make your next cast. Way Seven: The Retrieve Now, those were the slow parts of the presentation - the splash, the drop, the bottom, etc. If there have been no takers, next reel in the Senko at a pace that draws fish up to follow it. This could be slow or moderate pace in cold water, but more often it's semi-fast reeling with sporadic twitches in hot water, and always provide a few long pauses to let the bait glide or drop back down deeper along the way! Fish will usually come up to follow the bait as it's reeled in, then break off the chase and sink deeper when you pause it. There are two reliable ways to trigger bites (both require twitching). First, either twitch it when the fish is behind it during the reeling phase. Second, let it fall to a depth somewhat deeper, and twitch it a few times before it fades into the murkiness. A following fish will often lurk below, stalking it on the fall, and the twitching triggers the reaction bite. Keep in mind, twitching Senkos does not need to be much more than that of a rabbit's nose. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Which Senkos Work Best Weightless? At last count, there were eleven Yamamoto Senko models (9, 9B, 9C, 9F, 9J, 9L, 9LF, 9M, 9P, 9S, 9X). These three, however, have the heft and are the ideal sizes for weightless use in the seven ways described in this story: The 5" (9-series) fished weightless in shallow water is often considered to be 'the' most effective bass bait in existence. It may be used on either baitcasting or spinning gear. The 6" (9L) is the 'go to' size for bigger 'kicker' bass and works best with baitcasting tackle. The 4" (9S) model is devastating in clear water, pressured fishing situations and excels on spinning gear. Top down: 6" (9L-series) color 927. 5" (9-series) color 913. 4" (9S-series) color 326. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Which Hooks to Use? There are many hooks that work well with Senkos, but let's pick one to illustrate the point (pun intended) - the Gamakatsu Extra Wide Gap. Actually, these are two hook models, both the same, except for strength and therefore application: The standard Gamkatsu EWG (63-series) is very strong but made of wire diameter best-suited for spinning tackle or for light baitcasting applications. The Super Line Gamakatsu EWG (64-series) is the same except super-strong for baitcasting tackle and big bass in heavy cover. Use sizes 2/0 or 3/0 with the 4" Senko. Sizes 3/0 (spinning) to 5/0 (baitcasting) with the 5" Senko, and 5/0 with the 6" Senko. Standard EWG hooks (left) and Super Line EWG hooks are the same except for strength and applications. One's strong. The other's super strong. Another hook that deserves special mention is Mustad's #91768BLN wide gap. This hook's been around since 1994, but few anglers have ever used this style of hook with a clip-on wire corkscrew and a weightless Senko. With it, you'll be able to add a whole new dimension to your weightless Senko repertoire - you'll be able to impart aggressive action to a Senko by working it hard and fast like a soft plastic jerkbait. There are times bass want this hard, fast ripping action, even splashing and skipping frantically as fast as you can reel it across the surface with the rod tip up in a topwater presentation. Due to the softness of a Senko, it's impossible as a Senko will tear and ball up without the wire corkscrew keeper device to hold the Senko in place. But even on your typical slow Senko presentations (using the seven weightless ways described above), the 91768BLN with corkscrew will hold your Senko in place much better, your Senko will come through rougher cover, will last longer, and you'll catch more fish on each Senko. Give it a try. Mustad 91768BLN with clip-on corkscrew isn't ordinarily used - but should be - with a weightless Senko. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What Rods, Reels and Lines Work Best? In terms of rods and reels to use with weightless 4" to 6" Texas-rigged Senkos: With baitcasting gear, use 14 to 16 lb clear Yamamoto Sugoi fluorocarbon line on no more than a medium/heavy rod such as Yamamoto rod model #23-60-MHF. With spinning tackle, use a medium strength rod such as Yamamoto rod model #21-SPT-3 with a 2500 size reel spooled with 15-20 lb PowerPro braid and 12 to 16 lb test clear Yamamoto Sugoi fluorocarbon leader. The leader may be quite long - about 15 feet, if that's where your preference and confidence lies. The reason for a long leader is it puts the knot onto the reel spool where it's not under pressure during the final moments of landing fish. But even a leader as short as 5-6 feet is fine. Many great anglers (or should I say great knot-tyers) rarely use more than 5-6 feet of leader material with braid. Rods to Use: Medium/heavy baitcasting such as Yamamoto 23-60-MHF. Medium spinning rod like Yamamoto 21-SPT-3. Lines to Use: 14-16 lb clear Sugoi with baitcasting. 15-20 lb PowerPro braid with 12-16 Sugoi fluoro leader on spinning tackle. That's all there is to it. Print this story out and take it down to a pool or dock and practice till perfect. That's how you'll master the seven ways to weightless Senko success!

Don't fill the last 1/8 of an inch of the spool, but you want it as close to that as possible or you might have problems casting. Don't worry about the knot that joins the lines. You can find pictures of how to tie a Double Uni, Blood knot, Double Surgeon's or just use any other knot you know how to tie. If you have 150 yards of Power pro, and use it all, that's 450 feet...The knot will be buried under 449.5 feet of Power pro. The best casters around have a hard time throwing over 100 feet, you will never see the knot again. As far as backing is concerned I use cheap 20 pound mono from Walmart or CTC. The larger diameter line fills the spool faster, and if I ever did hit it I wouldn't be worried about being broken off. I only use 50 or 60 yards (about 150 - 180 feet ) of Braid on my reels. That way I get a couple of re-spools or can spool two reels out of one spool of Power Pro, Tuff-line, Fireline, Stealth or what have you. I told you that that 50 pound braid is too light for baits of over one ounce, but you do whatever you want. If you start with floating baits you will be able to recover most of them...HAHAHA!

I recommend 80 pound test braid in what ever brand you like best. When you throw a birds nest with a Musky size bait 50 and 65 will snap in the air, but 80 will hold.

The Abu "C" series is a 60 year old design. In the days when it was new...in the 1950's, casting rods often had an off set in front of the handle. What I mean is the reel seat was lower than a straight line drawn through the rod and the handle. The reel sat in a depression. This rod design pre-dates spool releases. So the Abu's spool release was placed on the top of the reel on the crank-side of the reel frame As time went by rod handle straightened out and we now have the rod blank through the handle design. Reels acquired thumb button spool releases and the reel mounting plate was recessed so that the reel sat lower on the rod. Abu's were designed in the age of off set handles, so they sit very high on a more modern rod. Because of this they feel quite large or tall in your hand. You will get used to this quickly, and it won't be an issue. As far as not standing up is concerned... Abu "C's" can be defined as good, cheap reels. It's pretty hard to find those two words in one sentence these days...wink! They are not bullet proof, and big Musky baits are hard on equipment, especially when you back-lash...grin. I wouldn't choose an Abu C series reel if I was going to spend the Summer on the Moon River throwing around a painted chunk of 2X4 with hooks on it, trying to get a 50+ inch Musky. On the other hand if you want a reel the will throw Bucktails, Spinnerbaits and Suick's around in the Kawarthas you won't wear it out. The level wind is always in gear on all Abu "C" series reels...It follows the line back and forth across the spool on the cast. The pawl and worm gear on the level wind will wear out very fast if you don't keep oil on them. The replacement parts are only about $25 and it's a job you can do yourself, but a shot 3-in-one oil after a day of fishing is cheaper. In the past, there was some trouble with the C4's related to the thumb button. Anyway, that's old news and the problem was probably solve years ago. If you're curious, you could call Rocky's in Orillia or Aickman's in Toronto and ask them if they are still getting C4's in for repairs to the thumb button. If I was buying one I would buy the 5600 because I find the 6500's too wide. They are okay on a true Musky rod, but I think they make even heavy action Bass rods feel top heavy. The rod your talking about might carry the 6500 okay...try it and see what you think. The only mechanical difference between 5000 and the 6000 series is the wider spool and a (very fragile) clicker.

Check in the Guide to Eating Fish in Ontario. It lists streams like Grindstone Creek etc that flow into Coote's Paradise. See what fish are listed for the streams that you know about.

Before you get to Nippissing you will pass through the Perry Sound area where there are several large lakes, like Lake Joseph, Lake Rosseau and Lake Muskoka as well as the whole Massasauga Park area around the islands of Georgian Bay. Closer to home, if you look around the Bancroft area, Baptiste Lake or Elephant Lake are big water with Pike, Musky, Walleye, Lakers and Bass. I figure they are about three hours from Toronto. An hour closer are the Kawarthas, where you will find more Musky than Pike but lots of Walleye and Bass. Still closer is Lake Simcoe, I will leave it to someone from Barrie to talk about the opportunities over there. Out-east there is The Bay of Quinte, world class Walleye and Bass fishing and I'm sure there's Pike and Musky too. To your south the Niagara River and Lake Erie have world class Musky, Bass and Walleye fishing as does Lake St.Clair to the south west. One other thing you might want to think about... It will be a lot warmer and there will be a lot less blood sucking bugs around Erie and St.Clair at the end of June than anywhere north of Toronto.

I had the doctor remove a hook from my left index finger last year. The day before I was out with a client. As I was laying out rods, first thing in the morning, a big Husky Jerk snagged on a rod sleeve. I impatiently grabbed the offending hook with the pliers, and holding the rod sleeve in the other hand, tugged...Setting the trailing hook securely into my left index finger. The position was such that I couldn't push it through, so I cut the hook off (with Knipex) and wrapped it with a band-aid , then a couple of turns of black tape to keep it from snagging on anything. We fished for the rest of the day. When I returned home I doused the wound with Iodine and re taped it. The next morning I had another client who was signed up for a half day lesson on bait-casting. That kept me busy until after lunch. Around one o'clock I showed up at the Apsley Medical Centre to have the hook removed. They froze the finger and had the hook out in a couple of seconds. The long pointed tip of a scalpel was inserted along the back of the hook, then rolled across the point...this released the skin from the barb and the hook popped right out. One important thing I learned was that you should leave as much shank on the hook as possible. The medical staff commented that too often people cut everything off down to the skin and it makes their job much harder.

Crappie from the boat.

Looking at your collection once again, something strikes me. You don't have any baits to fish at or near the bottom. Fished normally, the spinnerbaits and the spoons are essentially the same thing in different wrappers... Fast moving, shallow to mid-depth flash-attractor baits. The Jerks and Rap baits are shallow to mid-water slow moving baits...cast...give it a tug, wait, tug it again. They dive and glide, and dive again...never getting very deep. You might want to add some tubes and jigs, or even just jigs to use with your Gulp. In the Spring a large part of a Pike's diet consists of dead and dying Shad etc. that they pick off the bottom. If you don't have any jigs, you can let a spoon settle to the bottom, jerk it up and then let it flutter down again. This works for Bass too by the way. If the bottom is snaggy, jigs are cheaper to lose than spoons...GRIN.