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You'll NEVER get a hook through a boilie . . . . first of all, you'd require about a #2 hook, and a boilie drill, and even THAT would not likely leave enough barb to nail 'im! The next best thing . . . . roll up some bread into a ball . . . put that on a hook . . . . that's one of the things I used to use, and did well on it! The great advantage of boilies . . . . the little fish (gobies, rock bass, perch, sunfish etc.,) won't bother a boilie . . . once in a while you might pick up a bullhead, or even a channel cat, but 99% of the time, it'll be a carp!

Gee . . . . are the Senators ALL lawyers?

Terry . . . . . I don't think I would refer to somebody with over 5000 posts a lurker . . . . . ? And I highly doubt you've been chasing ambulances much lately either! As far as rumours go . . . . the carpicide one has about as much credibility as the one I heard about the Ministry 'secretly' releasing a disease that only infect pike, in the Kawarthas, starting at Canal Lake, because they were decimating the muskie population. Strangely enough, this guy actually believed this, and he's been fishing for years . . . . next thing we know they'll be poisoning the entire Pefferlaw River to keep the gobies out . . . . . . naw w w w w . . . . . they would NEVER be THAT stupid! But . . . . I happen to value the carp as a good, big, strong fighting fish, and even if I see others (legally) pursuing OTHER also introduced species that I don't like too much, if I can't say something constructive about it, I say NOODNIK? Then I don't pi$$ other anglers off . . . . to each their own.

Don't worry CCMT, there are a few people who mostly lurk on this board who occasionally feel they're not gettin' enough attention (they should try actually contributing something useful ) and they come up with a pile of horsefeathers like this. One of 'em just lurks and tries to stir it up, first thing he's posted in months . . . . but . . . . since he has no life, and his buds are pretty boring over where he usually hangs out, and ambulance chasing ain't w'at she used to be, I think he's trying to make a stab at some humour! I'm gettin' bored with carp anyway, gonna try muskies . . . . since they also serve no useful purpose, I suppose we should toss 'em in the bushes, like carp, eh?

Yeah h h h h . . . . . . I KNOW the feeling . . . . a couple years ago I lost 5 in a row . . . . they just managed to dislodge the hook . . . . finally a fellow carper said I should closely examine my hook . . . YUP! It was a new hook, I'd only tied it on that morning, but when I squeezed the barb to break it off, somehow the very tip broke too . . . . damn thing wouldn't pierce MY hide! This was an Eagle Claw . . . which is fairly difficult to snap a barb off . . . . with the Nash hooks (4X more expensive) they seem to be designed to come off cleanly, so I use them most of the time. Actual barbless hooks that are conducive to catching carp are almost non-existent . . . . and when you can find barbless, they are way y y y y too pricey! I'm also quite perturbed about the carp die-off up on Scugog . . . . DEFINITELY not water quality . . . . if this was the case, EVERYTHING would be dead, and the carp would STILL be swimming around? The virus that was causing mass die-offs in Eastern Lake Ontario appeared to affect ALL fish, from what I recall? ANY info ANYBODY picks up on this . . . . it would be very appreciated if you could post updates . . . . for many of us now, who are relegated to fish the shore, this is the ONLY B I I I I G fighting fish we have . . . . so it is cause for concern among us. And who knows when it MIGHT pread to other species?

I pulled up to Greg's house this morning about 03:45 . . . . he wasn't exactly all bright-eyed & bushy tailed . . . as most young lads, he'd been out quite late Saturday night, and needed about 2 days sleep! But . . . I managed to get him into the van, and off to beautiful Lake 'X,' in the Kawarthas we headed. Got there about 05:45 . . . ba a a a d omen . . . NOBODY there yet! When fish are being caught, ya wanna be there BEFORE daylight! About 3 hours later, Gregs line slowly peels out . . . he sets the hook . . . and hauled in a dead weight . . . a dead body maybe? Then we could call Peterborough CSI and watch as the did their magic! No such luck . . . Greg hauls in this icky looking batch of rust coloured sea weed . . . this was the most exciting thing we had happen there. So, we took a ride toward Port Hope, with a little jaunt through Bewdley, where you could see the carp splashing and chasing each other through the weeds along the shore of Rice Lake . . . . spawning . . . no use even thinking about trying here! We got to the Ganny, and set up just south of the footbridge, spent about an hour there, Greg was tightening up his line, all of a sudden it takes off!! Here's Greg, hangin' on as the carp peels line at an amazing rate . . . tryin' to 'spool' him. After about 10 minutes the fish was subdued . . . and weighed in at 23 pounds! And here's a happy camper . . . . nice way to start you 2007 carping season! But . . . . . t'ain't over yet . . . . half hour later his buzzer starts screamin' again, again the fish heads for the lake, took lotsa line before Greg got 'im halted. 'Nudder 20+ one . . . . actually weighed in at 22 pounds . . . . Greg managed to get a better grip on this one for his pic!! A girl fishing next to us caught what were believed to be a gobie, but it was jet black? Another angler thought it MIGHT be a sculpin . . . anybody can tell me which it is? All in all, it was a great day . . . Greg allowed me to bait his hook, even trusted me enough to allow me to net his fish, and even take pictures. Yup, bein' a spectator ain't ALL bad . . . . he said he's gonna quizz me on what I learned today, and if I'm really good at remembering how he catches carp, he might even let me share my pod & buzzers with him! Now how much better can it get. Oh . . . . I got skunked again . . . . who'da thunk it, eh?

I KNEW it was not gonna be a good day, when arriving to an empty spot on Hammie Harbour just before sun-up . . . . and I had it all to myself!! A couple hours later when Vic arrived, I was still waitng for my FIRST line bump . . . but not even a twitch!! By about 09:00 there were 5 of us . . . with one carp landed, and Vic & I each had a bit of a 'drive-by,' SOMETHING hesitatingly peeled a few inches of line out, then quit . . . . a goby on steroids perhaps? Since this spot has an early morning bite (when there is a bite) I decided I'd head over to Etobicke Creek just after 10:00 . . . . again . . . only 2 fishing . . . both regulars . . . . who had seen no signs of (carp) life since daylight! By 2:30ish, I'd had enough . . . . and skulked off home for some much needed sleep. I'm now off to the Kawarthas with Mr. Carper himself, (A K A Gregarious) who will likely give me some fishing tips!! After hitting the books for the last 8 months, I think he's ready to SWIM after any fish that even comes close!!

Just a little unsolicited advice . . . . when in the Niagara Gorge, and Mother Nature calls, DO NOT, I repeat . . . DO NOT use the nice 3 leafed toilet paper provided, that grows everywhere. It's VERY embarassing to have to got to the Emergency ward of the nearest hospital at 03:00 and explain how this happened. I'll say one thing for the people there though, they tried REALLY hard not to grin while applying an anti-histimene lotion to the SEVERELY affected area!

Yeah h h h . . . . Momma Robins DO tend to get quite hypher when you disturb them when nesting. I had one set up housekeeping about 4' away from a mailbox I delivered to in some creeping vines a couple years ago . . . fortunately these people didn't get much mail. As I delivered the mail on a Tuesday, (first day I discovered her, musta worked AW W W F U L fast over the weekend) she flew right in my face . . . . scared the bejeebers outta me! I found if I didn't make eye contact, and was VERY careful placing the mail in the box, she'd stay put, and hunker right down . . . nearly invisible! I was on holidays the next week . . . my replacement got the same surprise as I had . . . . she then refused delivery the rest of the week, fearing this poor bird was gonna 'attack her, and peck her eyes out!!' All 4 babies made it to maturity . . . . the nest is still there, but wasn't used last year of this year . . . yet? Your 'guests' should be fun to record, right from the eggs to maturity . . . you'll have to get Momma feedin' 'em!

Ah h h h h h . . . . . DAMN! It's just after 03:00 . . . . not a good time to phone ya . . . . I WAS contemplating Hammie Harbour . . . . still not certain . . . . . IF there is ANY possibility you are up EARLY, to check for rides . . . . get back to me . . . . QUICK . . . . . I'm outta here by 04:00. And Vic . . . . what time might you be gonna show if you hit the spot I mentioned? The spawn SHOULD be over by NOW?? I'll check back at 04:00, just as I'm going out the door. Oh well . . . . the train just left . . . . the earlyfish gets the corn . . .. and the hook!

This has gotta be a first for MY books . . . closed season in Ontario for perch?? PRE-SEASON PERCH FISHING CORNWALL - Eight Cornwall residents were fined a total of $2,464 for catching yellow perch during the closed season and angling without a licence. Robert Murrell, 34, was convicted of possession of yellow perch during the closed season and fined $182. He was also convicted of angling without a licence and received a suspended sentence. Gerald Thurston, 41, was convicted of possession of yellow perch during the closed season and fined $182. Michael Gaucher, 36, and Carole Boucher, 36, were convicted of possession of eight yellow perch during the closed season and fined $50 each. Roger Snider, 43, was convicted of possession of seven yellow perch during the closed season and fined $350. Charles Lacombe, 56, was convicted of possession of 12 yellow perch during the closed season and fined $400. Robert Fourney, 40, was convicted of possession of 17 yellow perch during the closed season and fined $500. Chris Lascelle, 22, was convicted of possession of 11 yellow perch during the closed season and angling without a licence, and was fined $750 for both offences. Lascelle is prohibited from fishing for two years and forfeited all his fishing gear to the Crown. He was previously convicted on July 17, 2006 in Alexandria Provincial Court for angling without a licence. Anyone else aware of this law . . . I don't have my old 2005/2006/2007 regs book any more?

Bedtime . . . . 8:00 P. M., huh? What's the big deal . . .. I often stay up that late too . . . IF I've had my afternoon nap! You seem to catch under ANY conditions . . . daylight or dark . . . ALWAYS get SOMETHING! The nice thing about travelling light, doesn't take long to set up! With a bucket of groundbait, a bucket of maize, carp pod, 2 rods, lawn chair, fishing vest, tackle box fulla various bits & pieces of carp junk, water bucket, sling shot . . . wel l l l . . . . you get the idea . . . . you need a couple porters to carry the stuff! By the time I get all my garbage carried in, you're into your 4th fish! With yet another cold front moving through, even with the low barometer, it MIGHT give the Ganny carp lockjaw . . . I think that's where I'll hit in the morning . . . just south of the footbridge, west side parking lot! Can I hire you as a guide?

First question that comes to mind . . . . . how old is the line you're using? It would be near impossible to have a fish break 14 pound braid, in a straight pull with the drag set so line will pull off the spool . . . if the fish can pull line out, he can't break it! Even zebra mussels have a tough time with braid . . . I've felt my Power Pro (30 pound) being dragged across rocks as a carp tires out, and upon checking, after landing the fish, found frayed areas where it was dragged over mussel-encrusted rocks! I would first suspect old line (did you buy it from a shop with a high volume of this typa line sold . . . coulda been sitting on a shelf in some shops for a long time?) then the drag being too tight . . . . or a combination of both. I doubt there are many zebra mussels, a distance from the lake, in the trib you fish, but they SHOULDN'T cut braid? I've had up to 20 pound mono instantly cut on the first mussel-encrusted rock it touched, just like I used a razor on it! I'm using 50 pound Power Pro on one rod, and 15 pound P-Line on another, and 14 pound Seaguar fluorocarbon leaders on both . . . . I 'snell' my hair rigs . . . which should be carefully checked once you've fought 3 or 4 fish on them . . . . not often, but occasionally they pull out, and run your fingers along the leader . . . see if it's been 'nicked' at all.

NICE . . . . . a 34" is a good carp, my best so far this year was a 33", about 23 - 25 pounds! Most of the rest, 25" to 30", in the 12 to 15 pound range. But . . . . I got mine in daylight, in open water, with few obstacles for 'em to tie me around!! Fighting one in the dark, and netting it alone is a feat I highly doubt I could duplicate . . . . I like my 'easy chair' approach, sissy stuff by comparison!

. . . . and just to think . . . . I spent the day watching my rod tip jiggle, and listened to the buzzer give an occasional 'chirp,' . . . BONK . . . BONK . . . BONK!!! (Sound of head hitting office wall!!) Gotta hand it to ya . . . . shoulda taken up sports writing . . . you not only do a bang-up job of catchin' 'em, you write a GREAT story too!!

Just when I thought I heard it all, you go out & catch carp, during an extreme cold front, and land 'im in the pitch dark . . . . . single-handedly?? To make it more fair (for the carp) you should start tying one hand behind your back, and use a bent safety pin for a hook!! Oh yeah, and a Frabil ultra-light ice rod! My bet is this wouldn't even slow ya down!! The way you have successfully gone after carp makes me figure you might be ready to ship out to Loch Ness and go after the biggest carp of 'em all!! (I've always thought 'Nessie' was just a big ol' leather carp anyway! )

Ah h h h h . .. . it's all those excellent carp reports that's doin' it, I'll bet!!

Day or night . . . ya STILL get 'em!! A bit easier in daylight I'd think, ya can see where they're going . . . . I can't even imagine bringing one in when it's pitch dark! I'm hoping to squeeze in a trip between medical appointments (hopefully this Saturday,) to hit either Port Hope or Hammietown. I MIGHT even go back to basics . . . a few kernels of corn on a hair rig . . . no feeder or groundbait, and get REAL stingy with the 'chum!' Might even just boil it plain . . . . what worked well last year has produced lousy results THIS year!

The best thing about the carp spawn, is that they do this in different waters at different times, in shallow lakes, ponds & streams, the water might be warm enough by mid to late May, but in areas in & along Lake Ontario, it could be as much as a month later, so once you get your fishin' spots organized, you should be able to find feeding carp in some of them most of the time!! But . . . . not to confuse the carp that splash around in the shallows or continuously are jumping & rolling in July, August & September . . . . from what I understand, this is called 'porpoising,' they're just playing or rooting around the bottom, feeding. Lotsa splashing & jumping = no catching!

Ever since Bonnie Boats made their docks off limits to shore anglers, I could see this coming. I suspect that what spurred such drastic action may have been the small minority of people who crowded the docks, urinated from them, hammered rod holders into them, left cigarette butts burning on them or squashed their burning butts out on the wood, leaving burn marks everywhere, left garbage all over the place, and damaged boats that were moored there! Plus the small parking area over at the pier was littered with garbage & often broken glass, people arrived to fish on Saturday & Sunday morning, before daylight, slamming down tailgates, and doors, shouting, and blaring loud music. I suspect the local councillors have been getting an earful from their constituents for several years, which brought about the first move of banning fishing from the docks. When this didn't work, then they likely did what their constituents demanded, and took even more harsh action. Lets face it, WE, the outsiders do not vote these guys in, or out, the local people do, so, if they piss ALL of us outsiders off, they don't care . . . . they'll surely get voted back in by those who DEMANDED they 'DO SOMETHING!' That is, unless the local businesses start to feel the pinch, and bring their own delegations to council meetings! Like somebody said . . . . . pretty soon Lakes Simcoe & Couchiching will be, for all intents & purposes, PRIVATE . . . . . or at least not affordible to those of us who cannot afford to pay $30.00 to park LEGALLY, or up to $60.00 to park illegally!

WOW!! It seemed half the carpers on the OFC board showed up yesterday. I arrived about 04:45, got all my junk out, and set up in my fave spot . . . by the time I'd liberally spread corn around the area I like to fish, I noticed a 5 liter container I'd thought was fulla corn, WASN'T! Uh . . oh h h h! The carp around here like to be fed . . . no food, they move to where there is some!! I'd landed 2 when Mike arrived, then MJL, his Dad, Victor & his Dad, Rodpody, and a couple other regulars. But, since I could only fling out a sling-shot pouch of corn every half hour or so, to keep 'em around, I watched as EVERYBODY else, who'd prepared themselves well, haul in fish after fish, many in the 20+ range! NEXT time, I'm takin' a whole 40 kilo bag of the stuff with me. But, even though I didn't catch many, I DID have plenty of chances . . . . but just wasn't paying enough attention, (too busy standin' around yappin') and did enjoy myself, just bein' there, among a VERY friendly group, with many different methods of catchin' these fish. You NEVER come away from one of these excursions without learning something. Hopefully I'll make it back a few more times this summer.

As usual, a well put together report . . . AND good fish shots. it takes a lot more skill to handle a carp in close quarters, in the dark, than in open water!! I'm back to 'normal' again . . . nearly 4 hours at Etobicoke Creek this mornin', not a bump . . . . scooted down to Hamilton . . . . sat for another 3 hours, and watched countless carp going through their spawning rituals . . . no use even going there for at least another week! I'm goin' back up to the Kawarthas tomorrow, for one last hurrah . . . hope to hit the lake at about 04:30 for some (almost) night fishin.' Then it looks like I'll be embarking on a health related sabatical for a couple months. I don't know how much this will affect my mobility yet, I MIGHT feel like the occasional weekend shot at the carp . . . but this has been a great week . . . already went through a third of a (40 kilo) bag of corn & 2 pails (20 pounds each) of 'chum,' so these carp should be puttin' on some weight!

WH A A A A A T?? No carp? (SUPER shots though!) Although I've heard of that spot and its abundance of carp, I've never been there . . . . is there lotsa parking? How far to carry about 60 pounds of gear? I'm toyin' with the idea of hitting the spot you visited Saturday, today? Ah h h h . . . so many places . . . so little time!

OH NO!! Where am I gonna keep up on the best viagara prices now? It makes you wonder just how many guys like him are out there? Some days I get no 'SPAM,' others as many as 20 messages wanting my banking info, so 'an error can be corrected,' or 'a new account has been set up for me,' even some concerning 'more info needed to keep my E-Bay, or 'PayPal' account current? I've never had accounts with either. Then of course there's the Viagara & Cialis 'deals,' too. Half of these come-ons have glaring spelling errors (didn't Nigerian schools teach spelling?) . . . . it would be nice to make all this crap illegal. With our 'junk mail' at the Post office, all you have to do is place a sign with minimum 1" lettering that you don't wish to have 'unsolicited mail' (third class unaddressed) delivered, and you get no more. Most of the 3rd class addressed ("YOU HAVE JUST WON . . . .") can be stopped by going to the Canadian Direct Marketing Association, and filling out a simple form . . . that will cut out 90% of the other solicitations. too bad Internet crap isn't that easy to get rid of!

I watched with interest, while fishing yesterday a mallard hen fly up to the top of a huge broken-off willow stub, where she perched for a while, then plopped herself down in the hollow centre, with barely the top of her head showing?? I always thought these ducks nested on the ground, in the bush, sometimes far from water? Anybody ever see one nest in the top of a hollow tree? It's gotta be 40' straight down . . . . I wonder how the ducklings will get down when they hatch? From THAT height . . . zin n n n n n g . . . . SPLAT!! If you look on the left just under the overhanging piece, you can just make her out . . . Here she is, just getting out of the nest . . . . watta weird duck? P. S. "Nudder GR R R R R E A T day fishin,' and catchin,' . . . 7 for 10 . . . . ALL 'baby' ones . . . biggest . . . maybe 17 pounds . . . . down to about 12 pounds. Can't BUY a 35+ incher for the team . . . . maybe tomorrow. Anybody fishin' THEEEEEE spot in Hamilton? Still spawnin'?