John Bacon

The muskies that co-habitate with pike are deep water spawners. The Kawartha strain of muskie are shallow water spawners. The shallow water spawning muskie spawn in the same area as pike, but spawn later in the year. When the muskie hatch they become dinner for the pike who hatched a few weeks earlier. The Kawartha strain of muskie will most likely been wiped out as pike populate the Kawartha lakes. It is possible that a deep water spawning population of mukies could be established in the Kawarthas. However, the Kawartha lakes tend to be shallow so there may not be suitable spawning area for them in many lakes. As far as why there were no pike there to begin with... I cannot answer that with certainty. However, most of the Kawartha lakes were either created or enlarged by the building of dams for the Trent/Servern waterway. It is possible that the water was not suitable for pike prior to the dams being built.

We could achieve a different funding balance by adjusting the percentage of the MNR budget that is funded through hunting and fishing licenses. I believe that the majority of the MNR budget is funded through hunting and fishing licenses. If the funding from general revenues were increased to reduce the percentage funded by licenses revenue down to say 1/3 then the other users would be funding the resourses via their tax dollars without creating and administrative nightmare.

Thanks for the quick responses. I guess I will keep the plate for the new trailer. I feel a lot more comfortable that way anyway.

I am trying to sell my boat trailer privately. I have a question about the proper way to handle the plate. 1) Should I keep the plate and just give the buyer the ownership paper? 2) Do I sell the trailer with the plate on it? I would feel a lot more comfortable with the first option as I really don't want someone driving around with a plate registered in my name. I don't really have time to go the ministry to cancel the plate; and I really don't want to trust someone to transfer the plate or get their own plate before deciding to start racking up 407 bills or what ever else I could be held responsible for. What is the normal procedure for a private trailer sale?

That's not necessarily true. It is against the law if the fish is suitable for human consumption. One could argue that a large fish from a poluted body of water was not suitable for human consumption.

Maybe, maybe not. My credit card would already be cancelled before they found out about it. They could take me to court and if they won they could try and collect.

I cannot understand why you would think that way. They knew the cowling was loose when the they rented the boat out. Should they not be able to figure out what happened when they see him coming back sans cowling... before he even gives them his story? Your saying that a marina can knowingly rent out a boat with a loose cowling and not take any responsibility when if falls off??? ...and then expect the customer to pay for a brand new part to replace the defective part that they had??? They knew the cowling was loose and they rented it out anyway. Let them deal with the consequences.

I read that eating an apple works better than a cup of coffee for keeping you awake while driving. I tried it an it seams to be true. I am not sure how they compare to energy drinks, I have never tried them. I bet they are healthier.

This situation would be more akin to the car door falling off while you were driving down the highway. I wouldn't expect to pay for that if I rented a car and I wouldn't pay for for cowling the flew off the motor when I rented the boat. Likewise if you return the boat with a big dent that wasn't there, you would be responsible. When you rent a car you sign that the car does not have visable damage. I.e. scratches, dents, etc. You don't sign that it doesn't have mechanical problems... only a mechanic who gave thorough examination of the vehicle could attest to that. I don't see why a boat would be any different.

Do you have the digital cable box? If so you should be able to get it either as an individual channel or as part of a package.

1.) I am not sure what they taste like at this stage; they sure do not look too appetizing. I don' think many people bother to find out hw they taste. 2.) It is Metro East Anglers (MEA) that collect eggs from the Credit River salmon. They are raised at Ringwood hatchery operated by MEA and OFAH. Ringwood Hatchery provides all of the Chinook (540,000 per year) for stocking on the Canadian side of Lake Ontario. 3.) I am sure of the spawning success for Chinooks. I have hear estimates of anywhere from 10% to 90% "natural" versus stocked fish. For the last two years all Chinook stocked have had their adipose fins clipped. I have not seen official stats on clipped verses unclipped shakers from this year. The people I have talked to say that they have caught far more clipped than unclipped salmon. So it would appear that, at least for this year class, most fish were stocked. The fall of 2007 was a very bad year so future years may have more non-hatchery fish.

I beleive that you will need a permit to remove any trees with more than a 12" diameter trunk. I think the fines can be up to $10,000 per tree. There may be rules about what to do with the wood as well. I am not sure if you would be allowed to just leave it there. You may not be able to remove it from the area because of quarantine issues (emeral ash borers, etc.). The wood may have to destroyed at location. These things aren't simple any more.

A cold summer may have contributed to this.

1) I believe the MNR has 2 co's for the GTA area, they have an additional 2 co's that cover the lake Ontario tribs. Clearly they cannot respond to every single call with that level of manpower. (I numbers and territories may not be exact, the point is that there are very few co's to cover a large area.) They will do some enforcement during the season; your call may influence where this enforcement takes place. I suggest that you do make the call, just don't expect to see them there 10 minutes after you hang up the phone. Your call will provide information about where the most offences are takling place, so it does provide information of value to the MNR. 2) Yes, it is illegal to keep a snagged fish and it is illegal to deliberately attempt to snag fish. 3) They won't admit it to a co or a judge. 4) The laws are there, it's the enforcement that is the issue. 5) I wouldn't describe it as "no big deal at all". I do think it is a serious issue. However, I don't think it is as criticle as poaching a self sustaining population of native fish.

Why would you want to protect their name? Even if the cowling is worth $800; I would still say it is their responsibility. The only way it could be even partly your responsibility is if you had removed the cowling at some point. Then they could say that you may not have re-installed it properly and that is why if fell off. If you never removed the cowling at any point that it is absolutly 100% their fault... and it would be 100% their fault even if they hadn't admited, or even known about the cowling being loose. Since they knew the cowling was loose, it is bordering on fraud to expect you to take even partial responsibility for it. As for signing that everything is okay when you rented it. That would apply to visiable damage such as a large dent in the boat. You cannot possibly assess the mechanical condition of every part of the engine with it being thoroughly examined by an impartial mechanic; so I don't think that would hold up in court. I would say they are deliberatly ripping you off and they know it. I cannot even begin to understand why you would want to protect their name. p.s. Why are you expected to pay for a brand part to replace a defective one?

I would call Visa and have them reverse the payment. Let them take you to small claims court. Also, if the price is significantly less than $800 for a cowling, you may want to cinsider fraud charges.

Usually means Original Equipment Manufacturer.

I didn't say not to winterize it. I only said that they didn't need to be stored in a heated facility. It just seems to be a waste to pay for all that heat all winter long.

Why would anyone want heated storage for a boat? There is nothing on a boat that will be harmed by freezing.

Does anybody know the Misty River website, or a dealer in the GTA area? I am interested in their boats but cannot seem to find much on the web about them.

Yes, if I ge the 151 it will be with a 50 hp. Thanks for your input.

I assume that you mean how do they justify the difference between the cash settlement and the amount they will pay towards a new boat. The cash settlement is based on the market value of the used boat; the payment towards a new boat is based on the amount that the boat was insurred for. Maybe someone from the insurance industry can justify why they only pay the market value if you take cash and the original cost of you replace the boat. Does anybody have any opinions on the various brands available? I am leaning towards Legend at this point but I am considering Princecraft, Tracker, Lund, and Misty River as well. Are there any other brands I should consider? Does anybody know if there is a Misty River dealer in the eastern GTA or if there is a Misty River web site? I didn't find one on Google.

Have you considered just painting or staining it? Home Depot sells a product that you can mix with paint or stain to create a non-slip surface. It is a powder that costs about $3 or $4 per package; each package is designed to be mixed with a full size can of paint. This is what I did for an extension that I had build for my old boat. It was much easier than carpeting (which I had done previously). I had actaully planned on ripping up the carpeting in the rest of the boat and just painting the floor. Unfortunately my boat sank in August so I won't bother now.

Not really. I am trying to minimize the amount of my own money that I spend. The cottage is going up for sale in the spring. I won't be getting too much use out of the boat after that.

I am not sure if that would qualify for insurance purposes. They offered me $3,650 cash or $10k towards a new boat. I think it has to be a brand new boat to qualify for the full $10k.