OutdoorDan

I winterized my boat second week of November when the first cold hit. So no, I am not enjoying this weather because not only am I kicking myself for that, it looks like I won't be able to hit the ice for a while. Yes I'm jealous.

The stuff on ice thickness that gets published in OOD and the like it always extremely conservative. The amount of good, black, solid ice needed to hold up heavy things is much less than most people think. The only problem is that ice thickness is uneven, there are pressure cracks, problem areas, current and so on that make is better to be extremely conservative. So while that post is good and theoretically sound, I'm really hoping it won't lead to people taking out their SUVs onto lakes just because there is 8" of ice near shore.

If the Edge was an AWD 3.7L then it would be much more suitable for towing than a van though.

OP, remember that it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.

I don't think it hurts to bring up hobbies in the workplace, if you share some with your boss/co-workers it creates a nice environment.

Getting the boat out of the water with front wheel drive is going to be the bigger issue than highway towing.

How much internet in terms of data are you using a month? You are not so far north that there shouldn't be any options, but if it comes down to it and you don't use the internet for much and speed is really not a concern then you can always get a 6gig plan for a smartphone and tether it. But there should be other options, even besides satellite.

"Spending days staring at an empty fishfinder screen have granted me excellent patience with computers."

Pete, I was in exactly the same shoes as you this spring. I knew exactly what I wanted in a boat - big and capable of handling the Great Lakes, but the family vehicle was a Dodge Grand caravan, not capable of towing a boat that size. I ended up getting a 20 foot Fishmaster and just had it docked at one Marina for the year. If you are just starting out this isn't a bad option as at least you are always forced to be in the same place and can learn the area. There is also the convenience of not hauling a boat up the 400, launching it, etc. You just bring your fishing gear, jump in and off you go. If you get bored of the same Marina you can have it docked somewhere else next year. That way you can put off getting a car to tow it with until you are ready. I would not settle for a smaller boat if you know you want a bigger one. If you get a small boat now and want to replace it in a couple of years, you will have the headache of selling it and again need to search for a new one, which can take a while depending on how picky you are. Also you are overestimating how much a car capable of towing the boat would cost. Cars depreciate pretty quickly and you can get a used truck down the road to tow it with for well under 20k. I think the comfort of the boat and having it suit your exact needs is much more important than having a car that does the same. You are using the boar for pleasure, whereas the car is more of a tool for transportation (although I'm sure some car lovers would disagree). I would gladly put up with a slightly less than comfortable ride if I knew it meant spending the day in the perfect boat. On the other hand I wouldn't want a situation where I get a sweet ride to the boat but then I have to spend the day trying to enjoy myself in a boat I settled for.

"If I keep coming to work my wife will divorce me."

Tell him that you are as prepared for work as you are for fishing - always a cooler full of beer handy.

How's the battery life on those things? Seems like it would eat battery at 2-3x the rate of a flasher, anyone have trouble having one last a whole day?

130$ split between a few friends is pretty good for some backyard hockey rink fun.

I would have made a call to the police in your shoes, confronting them is just going to make them back off until the next opportunity... I don't think the OPP would take calls of being followed very lightly especially if you described the situation to them. Glad everything is okay though.

That is super lame. As disgusting as it is I can at least somewhat understand/be unsurprised by things like this happening closer to Toronto, but stuff like this moving farther and farther up North is really unsettling.

No. It sucks when these things happen but they are usually a result of bad ownership, not the dog's fault.

Is it available if you missed it? I'd be really interested.

Stay away from my dinner.

Illegal to posses regardless of context, yes.

The rule on this is that it has to be appropriate to the situation. So it's always going to be a judgement call -- you can be fine with a big fillet knife shore fishing in Toronto and not so fine in other cases even if you have a small knife inappropriate to the context.

All the MODIS pics from the last little while are so cloudy!

Thanks for the heads-up. I think a lot more people would make it out if it was on a weekend...

As if the reason they are doing it for matters, lol.

I've had the Canon d10 for a while now and like it a lot. It's waterproof to 30 feet and works well even in sub-zero temperatures. Huge LCD screen for its size too, although it may be a little more bulky than what you are looking for. It also *almost* floats - all I do is attach a little foamy (like on a boat key chain) onto the round clip in and floats. Not being worried about dropping it over the side of the boat is awesome.

Dana, If you're not sure and just want to try out ice fishing for a bit, why don't you just head over to Cook's Bay for some perch? Pick a nice sunny day that's not windy, and you won't even need an auger because there are going to be a bunch of holes pre drilled for you . This way you don't have to buy any speciality gear at all. While fishing in a crowd in someone else's previously used holes isn't many people's cup of tea (or mine), it's good to just try something new out for a bit.