Spiel

Well there you have it, I guess "we" are to blame. "We" provided modern day boats and motors, monofilament netting, GPS and sonar and all the other technology and means now available to deplete the wild fish stocks of any body of water we choose, the oceans included. So yes "we" are ultimately responsible.

Video shows ice anglers how to preserve bait MADISON – Ice fishermen and women, particularly those who target pike, will want to watch a new video online to learn how to properly preserve dead bait to meet state rules to prevent the spread of VHS fish disease. Video - "Preserving Your Bait" "Preserving Your Bait" shows Ted Treska, a Department of Natural Resources fisheries biologist and VHS rules specialist, demonstrating two different bait preservation techniques. VHS, or viral hemorrhagic septicemia, was detected in fish from the Lake Winnebago and Lake Michigan systems in 2007, and in Lake Michigan in 2008, but DNR monitoring has not found it elsewhere. While state fisheries officials are encouraged by those results, they say that VHS remains a serious health threat for Wisconsin fish that can be spread at any time of the year and is most active when water temperatures are below 60 degrees. VHS, or viral hemorrhagic septicemia, does not affect humans but it can infect dozens of species of game fish, panfish and bait fish, instead of a single species or related species, which is more typical of most fish diseases. VHS can spread rapidly, fish-to-fish and through the water, and it caused large fish kills in 2005 and 2006 in the lower Great Lakes.

The new look of Outdoor life magazine Unveils new PRINT AND ONLINE Design February 23, 2009 / www.outdoorlife.com New York, NY—Outdoor Life, The Source for Hunting and Fishing Adventure, debuted a bold new design, both online and in print this month. Outdoor Life’s new print look will hit newsstands this week with the February issue. This print design follows closely on the heels of the announcement earlier this week of the launch of the brand’s redesigned website, www.OutdoorLife.com. “Outdoor Life has thrived for more than a century because we’ve remained dedicated to delivering the best content in the most innovative and entertaining format,” says Todd Smith, Editor-in-Chief of Outdoor Life. “Our readers invest their time and trust in us, and we wanted to repay that by investing in and improving the products they love.” The new print design, spearheaded by Smith and his staff, took more than a year to implement from inception to completion. The process involved a complete reimagining of magazine’s layout that resulted in the introduction of four new front-of-the-book sections: Hunting, Fishing, Shooting and Gear. The new look offers a cleaner, sharper design as well as a new graphics package that showcases more of the eye-catching outdoor images the magazine is famous for. According to Smith, the new sections will give the magazine greater flexibility in the types of stories they run. “Readers will still find all the gear, survival, and hunting and fishing adventure stories they love in Outdoor Life,” says Smith, “but now we’ll be covering even more of the great outdoor world they love. In the February issue we cover hunting dogs, wild-game recipes, the best Hollywood shootouts, interviews with outdoor heroes and more. And with each issue and according to the season, the topics we include in these four sections will change.” Titled “The Predator Issue” the February issue of Outdoor Life includes three feature stories highlighting coyotes, cougars and Alaskan grizzlies, continuing the magazine’s tradition of delivering original photography coupled with in-depth and entertaining coverage. “Cat Men” profiles a tight-knit group of young mountain-lion hunters who embody the spirit of the 21st-century mountain man; “Grizzly Country” chronicles the adventures of a Virginia country-boy who travels to Alaska in search of the world’s greatest game; and “The Howling” offers a glimpse into the world of coyotes. Earlier this week Outdoor Life announced the official relaunch of its online home, www.OutdoorLife.com. The newly designed website offers online users a daily updated dose of outdoor entertainment, news, advice and tips. In addition to new hunting and fishing video galleries, the site also offers users the ability to create unique online profiles and participate in and lead outdoor discussions. “We’ve had great feedback from our online community,’ says Smith. “In fact the only complaint we’ve gotten is that the site is too good. Apparently it’s a bit harder for some people to tear themselves away now.” Outdoor Life (www.OutdoorLife.com) is the source for hunting and fishing adventure. Outdoor Life provides technical information and insight to the more experienced outdoorsman, including field reports and gear guides to supply hands-on hunters and anglers with the most current knowledge about their passion, supplemented with the latest techniques, tactics and tips. Outdoor Life achieves this by featuring how-to articles written by the experts in the field, the best and most captivating adventure stories from the woods or on the water, comprehensive regional coverage of the best hunting and fishing opportunities in specific areas and annual gear tests conducted by the Outdoor Life editors. Outdoor Life is published 10 times a year by the Bonnier Corporation.

Amazing Story Behind the Global Warming Scam February 23, 2009 / John Coleman The key players are now all in place in Washington and in state governments across America to officially label carbon dioxide as a pollutant and enact laws that tax we citizens for our carbon footprints. Only two details stand in the way, the faltering economic times and a dramatic turn toward a colder climate. The last two bitter winters have led to a rise in public awareness that there is no runaway global warming. The public is now becoming skeptical of the claim that our carbon footprints from the use of fossil fuels is going to lead to climatic calamities. How did we ever get to this point where bad science is driving big government to punish the citizens for living the good life that fossil fuels provide for us? The story begins with an Oceanographer named Roger Revelle. He served with the Navy in World War II. After the war he became the Director of the Scripps Oceanographic Institute in La Jolla in San Diego, California. Revelle saw the opportunity to obtain major funding from the Navy for doing measurements and research on the ocean around the Pacific Atolls where the US military was conducting atomic bomb tests. He greatly expanded the Institute's areas of interest and among others hired Hans Suess, a noted Chemist from the University of Chicago, who was very interested in the traces of carbon in the environment from the burning of fossil fuels. Revelle tagged on to Suess studies and co-authored a paper with him in 1957. The paper raises the possibility that the carbon dioxide might be creating a greenhouse effect and causing atmospheric warming. It seems to be a plea for funding for more studies. Funding, frankly, is where Revelle's mind was most of the time. Next Revelle hired a Geochemist named David Keeling to devise a way to measure the atmospheric content of Carbon dioxide. In 1960 Keeling published his first paper showing the increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and linking the increase to the burning of fossil fuels. These two research papers became the bedrock of the science of global warming, even though they offered no proof that carbon dioxide was in fact a greenhouse gas. In addition they failed to explain how this trace gas, only a tiny fraction of the atmosphere, could have any significant impact on temperatures. Now let me take you back to the 1950s when this was going on. Our cities were entrapped in a pall of pollution from the crude internal combustion engines that powered cars and trucks back then and from the uncontrolled emissions from power plants and factories. Cars and factories and power plants were filling the air with all sorts of pollutants. There was a valid and serious concern about the health consequences of this pollution and a strong environmental movement was developing to demand action. Government accepted this challenge and new environmental standards were set. Scientists and engineers came to the rescue. New reformulated fuels were developed for cars, as were new high tech, computer controlled engines and catalytic converters. By the mid seventies cars were no longer big time polluters, emitting only some carbon dioxide and water vapor from their tail pipes. Likewise, new fuel processing and smoke stack scrubbers were added to industrial and power plants and their emissions were greatly reduced, as well. But an environmental movement had been established and its funding and very existence depended on having a continuing crisis issue. So the research papers from Scripps came at just the right moment. And, with them came the birth of an issue; man-made global warming from the carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels. Revelle and Keeling used this new alarmism to keep their funding growing. Other researchers with environmental motivations and a hunger for funding saw this developing and climbed aboard as well. The research grants began to flow and alarming hypothesis began to show up everywhere. The Keeling curve showed a steady rise in CO2 in atmosphere during the period since oil and coal were discovered and used by man. As of today, carbon dioxide has increased from 215 to 385 parts per million. But, despite the increases, it is still only a trace gas in the atmosphere. While the increase is real, the percentage of the atmosphere that is CO2 remains tiny, about 41 hundredths of one percent. Several hypotheses emerged in the 70s and 80s about how this tiny atmospheric component of CO2 might cause a significant warming. But they remained unproven. Years have passed and the scientists kept reaching out for evidence of the warming and proof of their theories. And, the money and environmental claims kept on building up. Back in the 1960s, this global warming research came to the attention of a Canadian born United Nation's bureaucrat named Maurice Strong. He was looking for issues he could use to fulfill his dream of one-world government. Strong organized a World Earth Day event in Stockholm, Sweden in 1970. From this he developed a committee of scientists, environmentalists and political operatives from the UN to continue a series of meeting. Strong developed the concept that the UN could demand payments from the advanced nations for the climatic damage from their burning of fossil fuels to benefit the underdeveloped nations, a sort of CO2 tax that would be the funding for his one-world government. But, he needed more scientific evidence to support his primary thesis. So Strong championed the establishment of the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This was not a pure climate study scientific organization, as we have been led to believe. It was an organization of one-world government UN bureaucrats, environmental activists and environmentalist scientists who craved the UN funding so they could produce the science they needed to stop the burning of fossil fuels. Over the last 25 years they have been very effective. Hundreds of scientific papers, four major international meetings and reams of news stories about climatic Armageddon later, the UN IPCC has made its points to the satisfaction of most and even shared a Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore. At the same time, that Maurice Strong was busy at the UN, things were getting a bit out of hand for the man who is now called the grandfather of global warming, Roger Revelle. He had been very politically active in the late 1950's as he worked to have the University of California locate a San Diego campus adjacent to Scripps Institute in La Jolla. He won that major war, but lost an all important battle afterward when he was passed over in the selection of the first Chancellor of the new campus. He left Scripps finally in 1963 and moved to Harvard University to establish a Center for Population Studies. It was there that Revelle inspired one of his students to become a major global warming activist. This student would say later, "It felt like such a privilege to be able to hear about the readouts from some of those measurements in a group of no more than a dozen undergraduates. Here was this teacher presenting something not years old but fresh out of the lab, with profound implications for our future!" The student described him as "a wonderful, visionary professor" who was "one of the first people in the academic community to sound the alarm on global warming," That student was Al Gore. He thought of Dr. Revelle as his mentor and referred to him frequently, relaying his experiences as a student in his book Earth in the Balance, published in 1992. So there it is, Roger Revelle was indeed the grandfather of global warming. His work had laid the foundation for the UN IPCC, provided the anti-fossil fuel ammunition to the environmental movement and sent Al Gore on his road to his books, his move, his Nobel Peace Prize and a hundred million dollars from the carbon credits business. What happened next is amazing. The global warming frenzy was becoming the cause celeb of the media. After all the media is mostly liberal, loves Al Gore, loves to warn us of impending disasters and tell us "the sky is falling, the sky is falling". The politicians and the environmentalist loved it, too. But the tide was turning with Roger Revelle. He was forced out at Harvard at 65 and returned to California and a semi retirement position at UCSD. There he had time to rethink Carbon Dioxide and the greenhouse effect. The man who had inspired Al Gore and given the UN the basic research it needed to launch its Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was having second thoughts. In 1988 he wrote two cautionary letters to members of Congress. He wrote, "My own personal belief is that we should wait another 10 or 20 years to really be convinced that the greenhouse effect is going to be important for human beings, in both positive and negative ways." He added, "…we should be careful not to arouse too much alarm until the rate and amount of warming becomes clearer." And in 1991 Revelle teamed up with Chauncey Starr, founding director of the Electric Power Research Institute and Fred Singer, the first director of the U.S. Weather Satellite Service, to write an article for Cosmos magazine. They urged more research and begged scientists and governments not to move too fast to curb greenhouse CO2 emissions because the true impact of carbon dioxide was not at all certain and curbing the use of fossil fuels could have a huge negative impact on the economy and jobs and our standard of living. I have discussed this collaboration with Dr. Singer. He assures me that Revelle was considerably more certain than he was at the time that carbon dioxide was not a problem. Did Roger Revelle attend the Summer enclave at the Bohemian Grove in Northern California in the Summer of 1990 while working on that article? Did he deliver a lakeside speech there to the assembled movers and shakers from Washington and Wall Street in which he apologized for sending the UN IPCC and Al Gore onto this wild goose chase about global warming? Did he say that the key scientific conjecture of his lifetime had turned out wrong? The answer to those questions is, "I think so, but I do not know it for certain". I have not managed to get it confirmed as of this moment. It’s a little like Las Vegas; what is said at the Bohemian Grove stays at the Bohemian Grove. There are no transcripts or recordings and people who attend are encouraged not to talk. Yet, the topic is so important, that some people have shared with me on an informal basis. Roger Revelle died of a heart attack three months after the Cosmos story was printed. Oh, how I wish he were still alive today. He might be able to stop this scientific silliness and end the global warming scam. Al Gore has dismissed Roger Revelle’s Mea culpa as the actions of senile old man. And, the next year, while running for Vice President, he said the science behind global warming is settled and there will be no more debate, From 1992 until today, he and his cohorts have refused to debate global warming and when ask about we skeptics they simply insult us and call us names. So today we have the acceptance of carbon dioxide as the culprit of global warming. It is concluded that when we burn fossil fuels we are leaving a dastardly carbon footprint which we must pay Al Gore or the environmentalists to offset. Our governments on all levels are considering taxing the use of fossil fuels. The Federal Environmental Protection Agency is on the verge of naming CO2 as a pollutant and strictly regulating its use to protect our climate. The new President and the US congress are on board. Many state governments are moving on the same course. We are already suffering from this CO2 silliness in many ways. Our energy policy has been strictly hobbled by no drilling and no new refineries for decades. We pay for the shortage this has created every time we buy gas. On top of that the whole thing about corn based ethanol costs us millions of tax dollars in subsidies. That also has driven up food prices. And, all of this is a long way from over. And, I am totally convinced there is no scientific basis for any of it. Global Warming; It is the hoax; It is bad science; It is a highjacking of public policy. It is no joke. It is the greatest scam in history. email John Coleman / [email protected] For more info on the global warming scam, check out Coleman's Corner.

Contest-winning fish smuggled in sweatshirt 2/25/2009 Theresa Schneider / Leader-Telegram Something smelled fishy at Saturday's Somerset Youth Athletic Association Ice Fishing Contest at Bass Lake: the former winner's sweatshirt. Lee Shehow of New Richmond, crowned the winner of the contest Saturday, may face criminal charges after admitting to smuggling in the fish to win the contest, keeping it alive in his sweatshirt during the tournament. Shehow, 38, won Saturday's contest with a 2.42-pound northern pike. Suspicions were raised about Shehow's fish, leading to an investigation, said SYAA spokesman John Montpetit. Shehow later disqualified himself and gave up the keys to the contest's grand prize, a $27,000 Dodge Dakota pickup truck. The contest began at noon Saturday. At about 2:30 p.m. Shehow went to the weigh station with his pike. Undercover investigators at the tournament questioned Shehow's actions. Montpetit said a primary concern was that Shehow bought water at a pace that was inconsistent with what a normal person would drink on a 14-degree day. Shehow's sweatshirt also was soaked when he turned in his fish to the weigh station. During the investigation Shehow admitted he hid the pike in his sweatshirt, keeping it alive and later registering it at the weigh station. Montpetit said he could not discuss where the fish came from, but said Shehow admitted to having aquariums in his house. While no criminal charges have been filed, the case still is under investigation, Montpetit said. The truck was given Tuesday afternoon to the second-place winner, 26-year-old Monica Slimmen of La Crosse, who caught a 1.72-pound northern pike. Efforts to contact Shehow on Tuesday night were unsuccessful.

Sturgeon spearing science despite spectacle WED., FEB 18, 2009 PATRICK DURKIN / Wisconsin State Journal STOCKBRIDGE -- The waiting line behind the Harbor Bar in Stockbridge on Valentine's Day resembled curbside check-in at airports, but these were successful sturgeon spearers, not frazzled travelers, so they waited contentedly with cold beer in hand and prized fish at foot. Success tends to inspire tolerance and brotherhood. It even offers a taste of celebrity on opening weekend of sturgeon season on the Winnebago System in east-central Wisconsin. That's because spearers often become centers of attention, surrounded as they are by curious onlookers. They talk and joke with well-wishers, pausing only to pull or nudge their fish toward the state's check-in station. Their success even inspires respect and appreciation for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, whose biologists scan each sturgeon for coded microchip tags, and then weigh the fish, determine its sex and remove caviar from females. This agency might overestimate deer and underestimate wolves, but somehow it's all-knowing in managing lake sturgeon. Imagine that. And imagine hundreds, perhaps thousands, of spectators showing up at 12 taverns around lakes Winnebago, Butte des Morts, Winneconne and Poygan just to see big, bloody fish registered and gutted. Like it or not, most folks have no problem with fishing and hunting as long as the creatures killed end up as food. For me, there's no greater proof of this acceptance than sturgeon-registration stations. People stop on their way home from shopping on Saturdays or church on Sundays to ogle freshly killed fish. Perhaps they stop because this process is a part of life. They certainly don't come for staged entertainment. Unlike bass or walleye tournaments, there's no grand prize, stage, bleachers, side shows, strobe lights or famous emcees. Nope. Sturgeon are the sole, powerful attraction, however homely they might appear. Many spectators park a half-mile from the Stockbridge bar and then dodge bottlenecked traffic to reach its parking lot and impromptu tailgate party. Everyone gathers to see these prehistoric fish, hear how they were speared from inside darkened shacks, and check the purple spear holes in their backs and sides. Young mothers hold babies and pose for family photos with leviathans speared by strangers. Pre-schoolers squat to pet and inspect each fish, flick the barbels under their snouts and prod the firehose-like mouth inches behind. The only suspense might be guessing the fish's weight before the DNR's digital scale renders a verdict. After that, DNR staffers lift the fish onto a measuring table, slice its white belly and inspect its innards to determine its sex. Whenever possible, biologists explain their work and its purpose to everyone within earshot. "Who wants a science lesson?" asks Kendall Kamke, a DNR fisheries biologist from Oshkosh. As Kamke slices open a female sturgeon atop a blood-stained snow bank, a student from the UW-Milwaukee's Great Lakes Water Institute opens a sturdy plastic bag to catch its eggs. Kamke then plunges both hands into the fish's belly, excavates a mass of caviar and dumps it into the bag. He repeats the process while explaining that they'll weigh the eggs and match the weight to the fish's size. They hope to analyze enough data to judge how many eggs a female carries simply by knowing her weight and length. Through all the blood, guts and slime, no man, woman or child winces or sets aside their drink or bratwurst. They're watching hardcore science — and they realize the more the biologists learn from these fish, the more the sturgeon and their own recreation benefits. The onlookers come to see sturgeon and maybe learn more about the fish. And themselves. It's not just morbid curiosity. In April, many folks also drive to New London and beyond to watch sturgeon spawn in the Wolf River. Some even spend nights along the water to protect the fish from poachers. Meanwhile, the Winnebago System's sturgeon population grows steadily stronger. These lakes and rivers hold about 60,000 adult sturgeon — and the DNR will allow about 1,600 to be speared before closing the scheduled 16-day season early, likely in the next few days. What these folks witness at both ends of the sturgeon's life cycle — from Shawano to Stockbridge — is the overwhelming success of Wisconsin's most unique natural resource. • Harvest caps on the Upriver Lakes were reached Tuesday, halting spearing there on Wednesday. The season on Lake Winnebago, meanwhile, will be halted once caps are reached. Keep up with daily totals at www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports/outdoors.

Not sure if you saw this Stoty, might help.

Stop for a java or beat T.O. traffic, you made the right choice. Congrats on the success!

I'm sooooooo envious!

Uno, I'm knot interested in seeing how this unfolds....

Totally not cool, next time I'll be a little less kind.

Okay, I've read this through and decided to share this. A few years back I called my insurance company to see if I would have coverage driving out on the ice of Lake Simcoe. At the time I had a front wheel drive compact 4 cylinder vehicle (I won't take the conversion van out there). My agent says I'll look into it. Calls me back and says, "yes I'm covered", no rider and no extra premiums. Not sure who it was (Loyalist?) I've changed companies a few times since then. So to say you can't get coverage is incorrect and today perhaps you'd have to pay for coverage but non the less I'm sure if you shop around you'll find it.

http://www.ofncommunity.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=29010

Would it not be easier to just buy a bag full of smelt at the local grocery store on your way home from some local fishing trip.

Sorry I don't plan to be up that way till late summer. I'm hoping someone here can help you out.

A bit of line gives you the measure of your fish February 21, 2009 TERRY CURTIS / northumberlandtoday.com Picture this. You've just landed the fish of a lifetime and want to weigh it, then reached into your tackle bag or box to find your weigh scales, only to discover you've left them home. Or maybe you forgot to put a new battery in your digital scales and can't get a reading on them. I'll admit to doing that myself, and it's pretty frustrating! Then you think, "Well, I can at least measure my fish." You reach into your gear and start cussing because you also forgot to bring a tape measure. Some days go like that, don't they? I was reminded of this last weekend when I was talking to one of the guys who run Advanced Taxidermy, a business that makes beautiful fish mounts without having an actual fish body to work with. All their mounts are artificial, but you'd never know it to look at them. There is no need to kill a fish now to get a mount; all they need is the length and girth of the fish and a couple of good quality pictures of it and your masterpiece is created! So, where is all this preamble leading us? Let's go back to the beginning. You catch that big fish and want to know what it weighs, but you have no scales or even a tape measure with you. What are you going to do? Simple! Lay a length of your fish line from the tip of the fish's jaw to the tip of its tail and cut it off. Then wrap another piece of your line around the widest girth of the fish and cut it off. Put the two pieces of line in your pocket to take home and if you remembered your camera, snap a couple of photos before releasing the fish, if that's what you choose to do with it. Once you're home, you've got it made. Finding the weight of your fish will be no problem because I'm going to give you a chart that is very accurate for estimating five species of fish. All you need to find it is the length of the two pieces of line you cut off and that missing tape measure. Here are the formulas for these species: * Walleye: weight (in pounds) = length (in inches) X length X length divided by 2,700. * Bass: weight = length X length X girth divided by 1,200. * Pike: weight = length X length X length divided by 3,500. * Trout: weight = length X girth X girth divided by 800. * Sunfish: weight = length X length X length divided by 1200. I spent a few minutes last night testing these formulas out by measuring a couple of mounted fish I have, working out the formulas, then comparing the results to the actual weights of the mounts (which are already recorded on them because I had weighed them when I caught them) and the results are very close. In fact, on my 23-pound-four-ounce pike the formula was off by only two ounces! How's that for accuracy? Cut this chart out of the paper and put it somewhere you can easily find it; it's very handy for catch and release fishing or if you want a mount made. Best bet for ice fishing this week? I know some guys who were on Lake Simcoe Wednesday and the white fish were very active. I'm also hearing jumbo perch are being taken in about 26 feet of water off the shores of Georgina Island. Crappie and some bonus walleye are still being caught in Lake Scugog, but the action for the crappie has slowed down quite a bit. Bay of Quinte? Very sporadic, to say the least. Save your gas! Anyone for rainbow trout? They're starting to show up in the streams flowing into Lake Ontario and the numbers will only increase as we move closer to the month of March. There you have it. You can ice fish or fish open water, whichever tickles your fancy -- and there's nothing like getting your fancy tickled, is there?

Walleye won't take the bait There may be a lot of fish in the lake, but anglers are wondering why catching them is so difficult this winter February 21, 2009 GORD YOUNG / THE NUGGET Where are the walleye? That's the question many anglers and tourist operators have been asking themselves in the midst of a slow ice fishing season on Lake Nipissing. That's why they call it fishing and not catching," said Fern Montreuil, noting the fish -- unfortunately -- aren't always biting. Manager at Discount Bait Tackle and Variety on Trout Lake Road, Montreuil said even those anglers who were catching their limits early in the season are now having difficulty landing the unusually elusive walleye. A lot of guys are having to work harder for them," he said, noting customers have been coming into the bait shop all winter asking where on the lake they can find the fish. Jeff Chalkley, owner of Sandy Bay Cottages in Callander, agreed it hasn't been the best winter season. Walleye has been down and we've moved the huts a few times," he said, adding plenty of perch are being caught. Chalkley, who said he's seen the fishing success on Lake Nipissing improve year after year, suggested the sluggish season may be due to an abundance of baitfish that has left the walleye well fed. But Chris Anderson, owner of Chez Michaud in Sturgeon Falls, said he blames the poor season on depleted stocks due to native gill netting -- an ongoing issue of contention among some non-native anglers and businesses around the lake. There are too many nets," Anderson said, describing this winter's fishing as horrible. He said some frustrated anglers have given up on trying to catch walleye. And Anderson said others are also blaming the Nipissing First Nation commercial fishery for a poor season. But Perry McLeod-Shabogesic, a Nipissing First Nation councillor, said criticism of native gill netting is getting to be tired and old. That's a pretty weak argument," he said, suggesting a poor fishing season could be the result of any number of reasons. McLeod-Shabogesic said the native fishery hasn't exceeded its quota, which is based on science and is set in order to maintain a healthy lake. He said everyone who harvests fish from the lake has an impact on the fish population. McLeod-Shabogesic said it's unfair to point the figure at a single user. Billy Bob Richards, owner of Billy Bob's Bait and Tackle, said this winter has been one of the worst ice fishing seasons in memory. But he doesn't believe the poor fishing is an indication the lake or its walleye population is in trouble. There's lots of fish in the lake," he said, noting walleye fishing has been poor this winter throughout the province. It's been better, that's for sure." But Richards said the slow season hasn't had much negative effect on business, with anglers determined to keep trying. Scott Kaufman, large lakes biologist with the Ministry of Natural Resources in North Bay, said he's hearing the same sorts of reports from anglers about poor fishing this winter. But he said it would be difficult to substantiate the reports without data from a winter krill survey that's still underway. Kaufman, however, said the latest assessment data has shown weaker year classes in 2006 and 2007, compared to 2005. The 2005 fish are now entering the protected slot size, while the 2006s and 2007s are ready to be caught. But Kaufman said larger spawning fish help gauge the health of the fishery. And he said assessment data has shown the number of those fish is on the rise. He said the walleye fishery, however, has yet to make a full recovery and is still considered stressed. That's why sustainable harvest numbers have been conservatively set lower than they would under better conditions. Kaufman said the total sustainable harvest level for the lake has been set at 60,000 kilograms annually. He said a 40,000 kg limit has been set for the Nipissing First Nation commercial fishery, with 20,000 kg going to nonnative fishing, based on average annual harvest for those users since 2004. We work very closely with the Nipissing First Nation fisheries department," said Kaufman. He said the ministry no longer tracks the number of ice shacks on the lake as a means of measuring angling pressure. But he said there appears to be fewer ice huts, based on observation and anecdotal evidence. Some people have stopped putting huts out because of the inconvenience due to weather conditions," he said, referring to the hassle associated with jacking-up ice huts following mild weather. Kaufman said the ministry does track the number of commercial ice hut operations on the lake and their impact on the fishery. He said the ministry issued 250 more licences this year after studies indicated the lake could handle additional operations. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There may be few anglers catching walleye on Lake Nipissing this winter, but Redbridge resident Ken Peters landed himself a mighty pike Friday not far off the shores on North Bay's waterfront. Peters, who owns Silver Doctor Taxidermy Studio, pulled the fish in after 20 minutes on six-pound test line, using a rattling perch-pattern lure hooked with a small piece of Arctic char. Peters plans to eat and mount the 40-inch monster fish, which weighed 18 to 20 pounds.

Are conservation and our rights at stake? February 19th, 2009 Alf Beck / Pembroke Daily Observer How do federal and provincial economic stimulus packages seriously threaten aquatic life forms and our inherent Canadian birthright? Read on. The federal government has now introduced its proposed amendments to the Navigable Waters Protection Act (NWPA), camouflaged in a 551-page omnibus bill, Bill C-10, the “2009 Budget Implementation Act”. The gist of these amendments is: a) The current protection of the inherent Canadian birthright to free and unimpeded navigation on navigable waters would be literally abrogated and it would be up to the minister of transport exclusive prerogative to determine whether any proposed construction project at, in, under or over a water body “significantly interferes” with navigation. The definition of a “significant interference” is not identified. Would any construction on Canada’s hundreds of smaller rivers, used chiefly by hunters, anglers and whitewater enthusiasts, be deemed a “significant interference”? Unlikely. John Baird, Minister of Transport, is quoted already in a prominent newspaper, saying that the requirement for a “federal” environmental assessment prior to a proposed project would be lifted, following a “provincial” environmental assessment and “do away with too much red tape”. This would give just about every proponent wanting to dredge, fill-in, or install in-stream electrical generators in “navigable” waters the green light at Ontario’s already identified 500 sites, to alter and destroy fish spawning habitat and habitat of many other aquatic life forms. Why would that be, given that there are still “provincial’ environmental assessments? Read on. The Ontario government is almost ready to introduce its “Green Energy Act”. As George Smitherman already explained on CBC radio recently, he intends to introduce legislation which would preclude any delays caused by environmentalists and conservationists interventions or possible municipal authority denying required zoning changes in the approval process of “green energy’ proposals, which could include everything from wind turbines to “in-stream’ electrical generators. It appears obvious how the “federal” 2009 Budget Implementation Act with its camouflaged NWPA amendments and Mr. Smitherman’s proposed legislation would dovetail well enough to facilitate a streamlined approval process for proposals which place aquatic life forms in peril and, at the same time, abrogate our Canadian inherent birthright to free and unimpeded navigation on what still are “navigable waters”. It is feared, that Mr. Smitherman’s proposed legislation may stifle, if not override municipal authority to grant rezoning and issue building permits for “green energy” proposals. And all this could be included in Ontario’s “Green Energy Act” to satisfy Ontario’s obsession with “green energy”. The worst part of all this is that it can occur with little or no public consultation; more or less in secrecy until bulldozers arrive at a site. Do you really want to let things go that far without a chance for input? Let’s not be misunderstood. Most of us favour alternate “green” energy sources and most of us would agree to improve impractical laws, making them more user friendly. But not at any cost! Whatever the outcome, the public must be given the opportunity for input prior to approving environment-altering projects and abrogation of our inherent birthrights. In case you are satisfied with being unable to water access your favourite hunting and fishing area because of industrial obstructions to your water access, and if you don’t care about impacts on fish and other water creatures habitat through transforming them into cement-ditches, then things are fine for you. However, if you are not complacent and want your inherent navigation rights protected and fish spawning areas conserved … do something! Express your concerns to our MP Cheryl Gallant and MPP John Yakabuski. Their phone numbers and addresses are in your telephone directory. It’s “five minutes before midnight” my friends.

Capital offence February 19th, 2009 Ed Hand / Outdoor Canada Hot spot: despite great fishing, the Ottawa River faces problems. Photo courtesy Mark Krupa If we can’t protect the Ottawa, what does that mean for our other rivers? A dark secret has been swirling in the Ottawa River, implicating all levels of government and leaving more than just the stench of bad politics hanging over the city. Through a series of gaffes from federal, provincial and municipal politicians, one of the most diverse fisheries in Canada has been left suffering from neglect when it really should be basking in the sunshine of a Canadian Heritage Rivers System designation. In a story that would make Homer Simpson look like a Mensa giant, it all started back in August 2006, when 1.2 billion litres of raw sewage was dumped into the Ottawa. The flow ran for a week because of a jammed valve in the city’s storm water system, with one of the pipes draining right behind the Prime Minister’s residence, no less. What was the reaction from the three levels of government? Nothing. Certainly not right away, at least. Sure, the city employee who didn’t report the spill has since been fired, but he’s appealing the case. Two other managers were also let go after the city’s auditor general blamed “incompetence” and neglect of the system for the spill-this after the incident finally became public just last spring. That happened when city councillor Bob Monette was on a tour of the waste treatment facility and overheard an offhanded remark about a spill in 2006. Alarm bells immediately went off. Monette’s ward happens to contain Petrie Island Beach, a wonderful place to spend the day with the family-as long as you weren’t in the water back in 2006. The city had just spent $2 million upgrading the beach, only to have it open for 11 days that summer. Even more money then went into a study to find out why the pollution levels were so high. Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment, meanwhile, is supposed to obtain a report on any such spill, but it didn’t receive a thing until May 2007. And what did it do then? Nothing. Environment Minister John Gerretsen said he thought an investigation had been launched, but later remarked, “I stand to be corrected on that.” In the end, politicians stumbled over each other to initiate four separate investigations into the sewer discharge and its effect on the river. The City of Ottawa ended up facing two charges from the Ministry of the Environment and was ultimately fined more than $550,000, one of the largest penalties levied against a municipality for environmental wrongdoing. In an effort to save face, the city and the federal government have each pledged $20 million to clean up the river. The Ontario government is balking at chipping in, however, despite the waterway being an area of joint responsibility between the feds and the province. And there hasn’t been a peep from the Quebec government-even though the City of Gatineau reports it dumped raw sewage into the river 1,500 times in 2007 and another 500 last year. The Ottawa River is a majestic waterway, flowing from northern Quebec into the St. Lawrence River. It serves as the border between Ontario and Quebec, and it’s a source of drinking water for more than one million people. And it boasts a bevy of sportfish, from bass, walleye, pike and muskie to drum, sauger, gar, sturgeon and panfish. You’ll also find kayakers and rowers paddling in the shadow of Parliament Hill. The river’s contribution to the local quality of life simply can’t be measured. This incident serves as a wake-up call, not just for Ottawa, but for all communities across Canada that enjoy the benefits of a waterfront location. For residents, it’s up to you to use the resource responsibly-and to keep your elected officials accountable. And for politicians who claim the environment is their top concern, it’s time to walk the walk. Only then will the stench of neglect give way to the sweet scent of environmental stewardship. RIVER RESCUERS Set up in 1984 by the federal, provincial and territorial governments, the Canadian Heritage Rivers System is a national program designed to celebrate, manage and protect the country’s leading waterways. Starting with Ontario’s French River in 1986, the conservation program now includes 40 rivers across the country. Currently under consideration for joining the list? The Ottawa River, which was nominated last May. For more information, go to www.chrs.ca.

Actually in this case RR Solo has just copied and pasted my buddies ad from floatfishing.net. I also concur that stripping rods is a very time consuming tedious job, extremely labour intensive!

I spoke with my buddy this morning and he tells me he has a 15' Loomis GLX blank for sale, $700.00.

:D :D

Properly balanced and guideless it'd make an awesome spear.

Sage spey blank 10150-4 TCX 15'0" 4pc. 6 1/2 oz $463.00/American

I think John Collina in Caledonia is the guy you should get in touch with.