Spiel

....For me it would depend on how big they are. If they are pan fryers by all means skin on, golden brown an delicious. But once they start to get over a couple of pounds I prefer them fileted and skinned, same for any trout actually.

....Love the auto rig, been thinking about the possible effectivness of something like that for a long time. Your rig looks sweet not to mention that sink full of yummy perch.

.... I believe there is/was to be a license requirement to be put in effect for parts of the Nottawasaga River in Essa township, it's bunk. I fish the Notty in that area and though this license requirement may have been in effect for a few years now, I'm not sure cause I refuse to acknowledge it! I have my Ontario license and that's all I should require!

....I have indeed fished Kipawa (good memory Lew), it has been a number of years though (to many!). I spent many years going with a group of 12 from work Mike through the 80's. We always went the first full week of June and typically enjoyed good fishing for lakers and walleyes. Trolling and casting slim crankbaits and spoons worked well for trout and casting deep cranks and jigs generally worked well for the walleye. The trout usually averaged out around a few pounds with the occassional big'n and the walleye often ran into the 6 plus range with plenty of them being vividly blue. As mentioned it's a big lake and easy to get lost. If you're interested Mike I have topo maps of the entire sysytem and would be happy to lend them to you. If you're not aware there is a Lake Kipawa message forum located here. PM me about the maps.

....Absolutely beautiful work Pam. I'm looking forward to seeing your next project.

....I'll spend exactly $0.00. Not worth my time or money. I'd rather take the expense of going and visit my local tackle shop where every penny gets spent on tackle. But hey that's just me.

....Well that is good news Rob and I'm glad you took a moment to let us know. I know many of us here have been quietly wondering.

....I'd absolutely be up for a day out Don if you happen to have week days available. PM me if you want to discuss options.

Ice is right for fishing championship Date: 2007-02-15 mykawartha.com / John Slykhuis Happy days are here again for the area’s fish hut operators and the guy with the biggest smile around is Canadian Ice Fishing Championship organizer Rocky Madsen. As frigid arctic blasts continue to thicken the ice from shore to shore on Lake Simcoe, Mr. Madsen is getting set for the two-day event based at the Lionshead Lakefront Resort in Jackson’s Point on Feb. 24 and 25. Two-person teams will fish for six hours in a designated area on the lake each day. “Registration is going really well now that we’ve got good ice,” Mr. Madsen said. Up to $50,000 in cash and prizes is up for grabs, in addition to various trophies, including the Georgina Cup —handed out to the tourney champions and the Jean Power Memorial Trophy for the top female angler. Jean was the wife of Beaverton resident John Power, a well-known outdoor writer and CIFC supporter. Last year’s champs were Leon Maloney of Hillsdale and Cam Moore of Aurora who collected the cup and $10,000. They’ll face some stiff competition from Simcoe ice angling masters including past champs John Benyik, Mike McNabb, Brian Joyce, Rick Rogers, Norm Joyce and top female threat Susie Pike. The trophies and prizes will be handed out after Sunday’s scoring at the resort. The cost to register is $260 per two-person team. The event features a major change this year with the first day dedicated strictly to perch. “I’ve had a lot of really positive feedback about that. People like it,” Mr. Madsen said, adding that will also make the scoring go more quickly and smoothly. The limit that can be caught is 15 perch, so the challenge will be to keep the biggest for the weigh-in at the end of the day. Day two is set for deeper water and bigger fish like lake trout, ling, pike, whitefish, walleye and bowfin. They will be scored 25 points for catching and 25 points for live release, plus one point per inch. Mr. Madsen said he is hoping the good ice will stick around for his big “Trap Attack” perch derby Sunday, Mar. 11 with a potential $24,000 payout. The 2007 Canadian Ice Fishing Championships will help to raise funds in support of the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Foundation, a non-profit organization working to help save the lake. The CIFC donated $1,400 to this cause last year. To register and for more information, visit www.cifc.org

....I didn't have to go to work this morning, I had to get home from it. Four weeks ago I installed four brand new snow tires on the van and was beginning to think, for what? Well I was glad this morning I had! Arrived at home to discover my driveway under a five foot drift. Best park on the road I thought, that was fifteen minutes back and forth through bumper deep snow to get it over to the curb! I sure hope it , melts soon or I may have to shovel it!

....For those attending, drive carefully. It's not very nice out there!

....Just a reminder it's this weekend for those interested.

Deadly fish virus found in Lake Huron by Jim Moodie / manitoulin.ca manitoulin.ca LAKE HURON-It's here. Late last month, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources found viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS) in several types of fish from the Alpena, Rogers City and Cheboygan areas of the state-waters situated a mere 100 miles from the Island. "It was found in Michigan by the Americans, because we're not looking for it," said Gord Miller, Ontario's environment commissioner, in an interview with the Expositor last week. While it is hoped that fish will build up a natural resistance to the highly contagious bug, and that new Ministry and Natural Resources (MNR) regulations on the harvest and transfer of bait fish may slow its proliferation, there seems little hope of actually halting its progress. "It will continue to spread through the Great Lakes," said Mr. Miller darkly, adding that it could also "spill into the inland lakes." Originally confined to salt water, VHS appeared in a new freshwater strain in 2005, as diagnosed by Guelph fish pathologist John Lumsden. At that time, it was identified as the culprit behind a massive die-off of freshwater drum in Lake Ontario. Since then, over a dozen species have been found to be susceptible to the disease, which, as the 'hemorrhagic' part of its name suggests, kills fish in a most unpleasant way. They bleed to death. While it remains unclear exactly how the virus arrived in our waters, the most likely explanation, said Mr. Miller, is bilge water from ocean-going freighters. Humans are not at risk of contracting VHS, but the list of fish that could incur high mortality rates is ever growing. The VHS-infected fish studied by the Michigan DNR included chinook salmon, walleye and whitefish. The latter, a staple of Island commercial fishermen, hailed from the Cheboygan area and were initially collected in 2005 as part of a survey for bacterial kidney disease. A more recent analysis revealed they had actually died of VHS. Apart from its proximity to Manitoulin and the North Channel, Cheboygan is also a scant 25 kilometres from the strait linking Huron to Lake Michigan, meaning another Great Lake will almost certainly find itself on the list of infected zones soon. Following these latest finds, Michigan has reclassified its Lake Huron waters as a VHS Positive Management Area, joining Lake St. Clair, the St. Clair River, the Detroit River and Lake Erie in this category. In conjunction with this, the state has issued a ban on the trap and transfer of live fish unless they have tested negative for VHS, and is urging anglers to disinfect their boats and cease transporting minnows from the Great Lakes to inland lakes. Ontario announced similar VHS control strategies in early January which involved dividing the province into three zones-the infected zone, the buffer zone, and the virus-free zone-and outlawing all commercial harvesting and export of bait fish in the former, while buffer areas would be permitted to collect and use bait fish but not move them elsewhere. At the time, only Lakes Ontario and Erie were considered infected zones, while Lake Huron fell into the buffer zone category. Although no announcement has yet come from the MNR regarding a reclassification, it is almost certain that, with the recent discovery of VHS along the Michigan shore of Lake Huron, our area will soon fall into the more strictly regulated category. George Purvis of Purvis Brothers Fishery said that, "now that they've found it (in Lake Huron), they'll move the boundary up to the Sault locks." The longtime commercial fisherman, and member of the Ontario Commercial Fish Producers Association, isn't thrilled about the appearance of VHS in local waters, but neither is he surprised or particularly alarmed. "We've known about this right from the start, and I'm not that concerned about it," he said. "The head of our association, who is a biologist, says we just have to let nature take its course. I think after a couple of years fish build up an immunity." Mr. Purvis noted that the virus has obviously been in Lake Huron for some time already, since the samples collected in Michigan date to 2005, but his boats are still hauling in decent amounts of fish. "The whitefish haven't died yet," he said. "In our main fishing areas, we took our quota last year, so I'm not too concerned at this point." That said, Mr. Purvis suspects that those who make their livelihoods from aquaculture and the bait business could incur significant losses. "The farmed fish could be in serious trouble compared to wild fish because if rainbows get it, it would go through the cages like wildfire," he said. The virus tends to impact fish that are stressed, he noted, and disease can travel very quickly among close-quartered farm stock. "If the aquaculture people have brood stock or fry that are infected with VHS, they'll kill it all, like cattle in England," said Mr. Purvis. Bait dealers, meanwhile, "are going to be put out of business," Mr. Purvis predicted, due to the crackdown on harvest and transfer of live bait. "It's gotten political, and they're jumping through the hoops now to keep (VHS) out of inland lakes." The commercial fisherman also anticipates that fish hatcheries will soon encounter strict new policies geared to stemming the spread of the virus. "The MNR might insist those fish are tested before they're put in the lake, because you don't want to dump the virus right on top of the existing fish."

....Awe shucks *blushes*, thanks everyone. Been doing it for a long time now and while it does eat up plenty of time finding articles it's all worth it as long as someone's reading them.

....As stated two is the norm throughout most of Ontario with exceptions. Personally I often tend to focus all my attention on one. It keeps me mobile (less work packing up and resetting) and often prevents the fish of the day from getting tangled in my second line, a real bummer if your angling alone.

....I totally agree with Cookslav the only thing I might add is some big fat dewies on a single hook with a little shot for those river browns.

....lol, I'm sure everyone willl be able tell tell us apart Wayne when you blow by me and leave me bobbing around in your wake.

....Just found this little notice in the Barrie Advance. Ice Fishing seminar Simcoe Bait and Tackle presents a special free in-store seminar on ice fishing on Tuesday, Feb. 13, at 7 p.m. Award-winning outdoor writer, and renowned ice angling instructor Wil Wegman will be presenting a program entitled, Ice Fishing Lake Simcoe: Adapting To A Changing Lake.’ Learn how the lake has changed over the years and what you can do to adapt to these changes. Also learn about four key Simcoe species – lake trout, whitefish, yellow perch and northern pike – and special techniques to catch them. Seating is limited. For more information, or to reserve a spot, call 737-4819.

....Great post Wayne with some great shots. Super looking boat as well but what's wrong with black.

....Also would help to know what kind of trout, brookies, lakers, rainbows?

....Been using my 4" Rapala on perch for over 20 years now, no plans on changing what works best!

....Wow, you done well. Hope you both have a great evening.

...Awe man, Rick beat me to it by a minute. Anyhow, you can find the thread here.

....It has been unpinned for the time being Gary. It'll likely get repinned when the warmer weather returns. It's still on the board somewhere, I'll see if I can locate it.

....Ah, ain't dat tweet. Congratulations, I know I haven't managed to do it.