troutologist

Congrats again buddy! Great ceremony. Wished I could have stayed for saturday night, Im sure it was a good one. See you for some splakin' in a couple of months

Thanks for the info Cudz. Its always a learning curve moving to a new area. I've got a great place to fish a 5 min bike ride from my place (st marys and perimeter) but the mosquitoes have been so bad in the evenings its tough to put in any time. Hopefully we'll get some cool weather that will kill some off. Im also impatiently waiting for a boat to be delivered so I can go further afield. Can't wait to track down some of those big greenbacks in the red this fall either.

Ya we were out in a boat just a couple bends down from the damn. Got out early before the crowds came. Those pelicans keeps on running into my line when I was fishing at the damn at night. Keeped my awake anyways. Mike, Im here for a while now. At least a couple years. the job I got is exactly what I want to be doing. Im going to miss steelheading, but hope to chase some muskies this fall on LOTW. Keep me updated on those trips, I get alot of OT banked and will travel for fish!

After a temperature of 36 on saturday I was looking forward to a bit of a breeze to cool things off. I guess I should have been careful what was wished for. Got out in the morning yesterday on the Red for some catfish action. Got anchored in a likely spot. Baited up with some shrimp and played the waiting game. Soon enough there was some action. Lots of little bites from small fish of unknown identity. We got 2 cats around the same size. 32"...babies im told but they sure pull hard. While holding onto my fish for a picture it gave me a good vise grip on the thumb, as seen in my whoa that kinda hurts face. Well after this the wind decided that 40km wasnt enough and was gusting 70km+. This made anchoring very tough and loading the boat on the trailer at a ramp perpendicular to the wind also fun. I was unsure if I would like fishing for these brutes, but its a pretty relaxing way to fish and they sure fight. Actually, this type of fishing is tailormade for the hangover. Whats a trout?

Good fishing! What a difference in weather from here. it was something like 36 yesterday. wheres fall already

They should have to lip all the males that they snag into.

Quite a day you had good work on the report...lots of variety and some nice sizes. Interesting on the sonar for sure...the ones Ive been looking at fall into the fish spooking category you mention, which I don't appreciate. I can spook fish quite adeptly on my own without the extra help of electronics.

Though my computer's card reader won't read an SDHC, I can still hook up a USB cable from the camera to the computer and transfer that way. Not sure if that is an option for your setup?

Make sure shes got decent gear. Both tackle and clothes. You have to adjust your goals on trips to begin with. No sledding 20km to a lake that you've never been to that might only be 5 ft deep and mud.... Im in the same process here. Found out quick that if shes cold/wet that the trip is a quick one.

Its weird. Ive caught fish on them in L Ontario tribs and a few other places. Never had a hit on them in Superior tribs. I've given them a good go too in multiple types of conditions. Then again jigs dont produce for me up north like they have other places. Heres a question for you guys. Do you rig them with a small tube jig head or just a small hook? Ive caught them both ways with neither really better than the other.

I believe this phenomena is referred to as condarrhea. ...hear you on the ketchup though, after reading this thread I too have eliminated the restrictor plate

What a bonus to be able to share a trip like that with your dad. I look forward to our annual grouse and walleye trip to White River each year. might have to see about a flyin as well. cheers, thanks for the photos

this should be the link you need. Matrix Schematic

What a trip! You guys got into some nice fish. Seeing wildlife is always such a bonus...makes my trip. Great write up Mike. Very cool looking spot.

standard rig seems to be 36" + behind a bouncer. During the pwt last fall on the st marys river they outfished regular spinners in the channel but regular spinners seemed to do better on the shallower flats. Next Bite filmed a show on the SMR fishing slow death, good overview on rigging and tactics

They are extremely close. Not sure of the exact number but over 80% (most likely over 90%) homology between their genotypes. There seemed to be a case of a "pizzly" shot by a hunter a few years ago. Had one parent of each species. Polar bears diverged from grizzly and brown bears around 10 000 yrs ago. Evolutionarily speaking this is very recent.

Wow. I have seen the place since all the work on it. Shes looking sharp. I can't say the same for winger. Man that kid is unpleasant to look at. Was that first lake you went to the old 2lb trout first point lake? I miss the Sewer already....we had some trips there. Did wing tell you about our arrival at the tree planting camp last year on the way to GB Lake?

Let me pull on the reins there for you. True scientists can have benevolent agendas and there are certain groups that offer self-serving studies (picking the furthest end of the spectrum, worst case scenario). Truth be told you can do a lot with statistics depending on the methods you use and how you interpret the findings. Here are some things I think about. When else in the history or earth, (the 6000 or 4.5 billion years take your pick) has there been an input of the cocktail of emissions like now? The dinosaurs weren't an industrial bunch by all accounts. Now whether this is causing warming, cooling or what, don't sit there and tell me it is doing nothing to the biosphere as a whole and subsequently causing a trickle down effect to ecosystems and individual species. There literally are infinite ways to observe and study effects of this change. Im a biologist and did my thesis on causes and measures of long term stress in animals exposed to environmental change. This included polar bears. As I stated earlier in this thread there are real, tangible observations of a change in condition of these animals in 20yrs. This can be directly correlated to rapid environmental change. Currently I work on a project studying the presence of killer whales in the Canadian Arctic. There are very good records from whaling for over a century regarding killer whales in this area. In many communities there was no verbal history of killer whales. In the last few decades this is a very novel thing to many Inuit. Killer whales cannot persist in the fast ice or solid pack ice as the traditional arctic whales can...they need open water. My take home message: Something is happening, it can be attributed to human action. Can it really hurt to turn off a light or walk to the corner store? Maybe in your opinion small actions are worth while. I still drive a truck and plan on using oil until something better is offered. Why chance it? Can doing your best (or anything) to reduce your impact hurt? Really I couldn't give a damn if anyone believes in global warming, HOWEVER, the attitude of not being willing to try to lessen your personal impact is ignorant.

When should we start to tackle religion? Great place, great people, great resources. Thanks to those that have helped to answer some of my questions. Dont see how you can get too bent out of shape over someone you've never met not playing nice on the computer. Offer help where you feel you can. Post some pics. Here like this... First Decent Manitoba Walleye A couple of pics from arecent work trip. Ellesmere Island Walrus in Jones Sound

Thats luxury. Get some beer. Hide your keys. Drink the beer. Sleep wherever you get comfy. Crack a few windows though, condensation from your breath will fill up the vehicle quick if cool. Honestly you're laughing if you take the seats out. That sleep in the drivers seat isnt the best when you're 6'5.

You're right polar bears can swim great distances, they are so adept in the water they are classed as a marine mammal. The issue of reduced ice cover is huge for polar bears. Some more reading on polar bear biology will lead you to their fasting regieme during the open water season. Since there is not platform from which they may hunt seals. The bulk of their feeding occurs in spring during the time the seal pups are venerable in dens. The lack of ice has a 2 edged sword for bears. No ice= 1) no way to access seals to eat 2) no ice=no suitable habitat for seals to give brith and raise pups. Thus bad news for bears. Gough et al. 2004 published a paper on the ice cover trends in Hudson's Bay. To summarize their findings there is approximately 30 less ice in western and southern Hudson's Bay vs. the 1970. This pattern is mirrored across the arctic. What this means is bears need to fast 1 month longer than before. What does this mean to bears? Less fat reserves, as measured by body condition. A state of chronic stress as their body lacks resources for day to day activity. Noteably, thermoregulation, a major issue for a polar bear in summer. First this effect is observed as individual animals in poorer condition, once these effects are wider spread it becomes a population effect. Observable through reduced reproductive success, thus less bears. If a female polar bear is not in excellent physiological health, the pregnancy does not take effect (Delayed implantation). This is actual science I have been apart of. The issue at hand is the rate of change of these environmental attributes affecting various species. To persist animals need time (generations) to adapt. If change occurs too rapidly, this is lost. Certain animals are at greater risk due to their niche in the global ecosystem. For example arctic animals have adapted to live in a very particular and narrow set of criteria. Small change has the potential to effect this. The venerable coyote seems to be able to be much more plastic in its adaptability and may learn/change to meet new challenges to survial quicker.

I had a similar learning curve regarding fall bass. Living in S. Ont for school I had the Grand and a great spot literally 5min from my door. Fishing peaked for my for size and numbers in Oct through early Nov. I was catching big fish not casting to the middle of the river but parallel to shore. 2fow. Then the big fish moved, like you said. Seemed like some threshold, water temp I suspect. Still could catch a few smaller. Lots of walking to find those holes that hit 10 or 12 feet. The fish (not sure if they were the same ones) seemed to move quite a distance. As for fishing at depth, with current. you should be able to match a jig head and get a tube or grub down there. Minnow style plastics will get down quicker. Drop shot, may have to use a larger weight (doesn't have to be sold as a dropshot weight any bell sinker will get the job done) Try fishing from noon (give the water time to warm up) til early evening on sunny, warmer days. They seemed to produce best for me. Also, bigger, scented baits worked painfully slow when the bite was off. Force yourself to count to 10 on pauses a few times during the retrieve.

Interesting note on the subject. I was flying surveys over Ellesmere Island in August, we stopped and picked up and observer from the Grise Fiord hunter and trappers association, an older gentlemen who seemed very well versed in the environment surrounding his home. Numerous times he stated "its all melting" Could be part of a natural fluctuation, but it seems there has been a large change in this man's lifetime in the arctic.

Just moved from SSM to Winnipeg. Thanks again for the input. Im really liking the looks of those tiller rigs!

Chris, I will agree with you there has not been an in-depth peer reviewed study on this issue. Since this topic has risen here on OFC I have looked into it online and in various journals. There is very little on the topic save a number of allusions and addendums in other C & R studies. Now you seem to be somewhat informed on the process of science and understand various routes of seeking information. Don't take this as a personal dig, just maybe some explanation as to the lack of rigor in this area of study. Catch and release effects have been studied extensively to various ends. It has, is and will be a "hot topic" in biology since there are a multitude of interests at play. Attempts to conserve resources under varying uses. Political lobbying of anti groups and pro sportfishing groups etc. This has/will ensure C & R studies will receive sufficient funding. So there is funding for this type of research, it’s a known issue, why no studies? One major factor is the need for standardized testing and control of certain variables. As you stated there is a difference between good and poor science. Peer review works to catch this. I spoke to one of Canada's top biologists on C & R physiology regarding this issue. It is difficult to develop a standard protocol and set of circumstances to test the hypothesis of a vertical hold harming the fish. As discussed earlier, this phenomenon is perceived to be have greater deleterious effect on larger/longer fish. Where does one find and house a sufficient number of large fish (e.g. Esox) to have a sample size which permits statistical significance. If angling for these fish, how does one accurately compare the characteristics of the fight, landing, unhooking etc? There are so many variables out of the researcher’s control it makes for a difficult study design. When this occurs there is a lot of qualitative data, estimation and conjecture; flags which will be raised during peer review. Going back to your points, you elude to a single instance of a large muskie being caught and held vertically. This is precisely the point you are arguing against. It certainly debunks nothing. There are exceptions to every rule and theory. To debunk anything you must have sufficient numbers, drawing a standard curve with one point is challenging. To finish up, a scientific theory or study the best information available at the time. New information arises, new technology for study, new insights. The perception of today may be different tomorrow. Now, at present there may not be a peer reviewed study expounding the merits of a horizontal hold on fish. There seems to be a lot of agreement that this may be the way to hold a fish to minimize stress. With the information presented to me, I have made a choice to make every effort to 1. Unhook fish in the water with you handling or, 2. hold a fish horizontally with a hand to support its weight. You or others should not feel obligated to do so, nor should I feel the need to denounce your catch and release techniques. Any attempt to preserve the fishery is admirable. Perhaps as technological capacity increases, a computer simulation will prove all fish should be supported in a net with a mesh size of 75mm at an angle of 11 degrees….I like science.