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Posted (edited)

I started off wanting to do a winter recap of our family fishing adventures, which eventually turned into winter/spring and has now become a winter/spring/early summer recap! Time is limited to say the least but I have made many good friends here on OFC over the years and though I'm unable to post as often as I'd like, I still consider this place be my fishing home on the web.

 

This past fall we moved from a little hamlet out in the country to the thriving metropolis of Port Rowan, ON... ok well I suppose with a year around population of give or take 1000 permanent residents and zero stop lights, it can't really be considered a metropolis BUT we now have HIGH SPEED internet, and all the amenities that one would expect with living in town.

 

The kids can walk to school, the wife can walk to the grocery store and most importantly, I can walk to the boat launch!!! lol

 

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Seeing as our front door is 750m to the marina I had visions of grandeur going through my mind all winter of the nightly fishing adventures we'd go on. Well, then life struck and I realized that we'd be equally as busy as we had been before, only I'd have to look at the lake EVERY day without having the opportunity to actually fish most days... That being said, we have managed to put in some time on Longpoing as well as inland. Here's a photo journey of our fishing trips over the past 6 months!

 

We were quite busy chasing the kids around the arena's all winter, however the ice held on long enough for us to enjoy some ice fishing in March! It was little Claira's first time out fishing on the ice and she had a great time. We borrowed a hut from my wife's cousin and I have to say, I don't think I'll be ice fishing longpoint any other way moving forward! A nice warm wood stove heated hut is the only way to perch fish on the bay! Even though the bite was tough it was arguably one of the best days we've spent together fishing as a family.

 

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The kids had so much fun they bugged me to take them out the very next day - this time on an inland body of water. We fished hard, moving all over drilling probably 30 holes but could only manage a handful of OOS largemouth and Averie's nice little brown...

 

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Next up was a quick inland trip for spring panfish with my girls...

 

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Doesn't every 3 year old girl fish with a Stella / Cumulous combo?

 

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Averie put on quite the clinic...

 

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And Claira caught a few as well...

 

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We even managed a decent snack out of our trip...

 

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We've done a bunch of short trips walking down to fish from the docks at the marina... Usually the payoff is an assortment of panfish but occasionally we get into some bigger bites. One evening, after the two big kids were sleeping Claira, Grandpa and I snuck down for the evening dock bite. Claira pounded on the panfish AND managed a surprise largemouth which absolutely made her night!

 

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This largemouth had her wrapped around the dock and her 2lb ice line actually held on for us to land her big catch.

 

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We haven't gotten out on the bay as much as we'd like - partially because gramps is building a house and just because we have a ton on the go... The few time we've gotten out have been a ton of fun - with the kids catching an assortment of bass and sheepies..

 

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Luke Doesn't do so well on the big lake... lol we're working on his sea sickness issues...

 

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Sometimes all it takes is a good nap, then he's all set for some fishing...

 

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When the fishing slows down we head out to Pottahawk for a swim...

 

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And Claira has a tendency to pass out on the ride back in...

 

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The Fish-a-Thon For a Cure has grown over the years, thanks greatly in part to OFC and all of our volunteers. It has however grown to the point where we don't often get to fish very much ourselves over the course of the weekend. We did slip out a couple of times for a short fish this year though and managed a few decent fish!

 

Claira showing off our catch the night before - when launching the boat we fished for about 10 minutes and managed a few small largies for our efforts...

 

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The next morning Dan and I set out for our annual pre Fish-a-Thon largemouth smashfest.. we caught quite a few fish in about 45 minutes, but only took pictures of the one that counted... the one that Dan will argue should have been his... lol Next weekend I'll fish at the back of the boat buddy!

 

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The Sunday after we wrapped up the Fish-a-Thon I promised the kids I'd take them out for a bit of fishing. Unfortunately Claira and Luke didn't make it past swimming..

 

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So Averie and I picked up Grandpa and we hit the lake for a couple of hours..

 

I managed this decent crappie on a Jackall Spinnerbait ( wicked spinnerbaits by the way )

 

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And we caught a mixed bag of panfish and little largemouth.

 

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Lastly, this past weekend my longtime childhood friend Jamie, who's only fished a hand full of times and hasn't caught a fish over 2 or 3 pounds before came down to visit... One of his goals on this trip was to catch a big fish.. So, we decided to hit my trophy carp spot. It usually only gives up one or two bites per morning but the bites are typically good fish. After catching up Friday night over several... ok WAY to many drinks it was a slow start Saturday morning. Not so much for Jamie, but he had to wait a few minutes for his guide to pound some water and wait for the Advil to kick in.

 

Two hours late we chummed the water, had 2 rods out and waited... and waited for 1.5 hours. I spotted a decent bass swimming the bank so I had Jamie pick up our waky rig rod.... Then out of the corner of my eye I spotted a line bump. Was he ever confused when I told him to put the dang bass rod down seconds after I told him to pick it up and cast... Before he was able to grab the carp rod from the holder it was peeling line and the fight was on. By the time we got the anchor in and our second rod clear Jamie was just about spooled - so we chased after his catch with the electric motor.

 

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His fish had us going in circles, it ran to depths of 30+ feet and buried itself in thick week...

 

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Eventually Jamie got the hang of it and did a great job of batting his beast of a fish to the boat...

 

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We only have 3 weeks until hockey kicks in again. With all three kids playing in different age groups this year... it's going to be a busy winter. Hopefully I'll be able to squeeze in a few more trips, and reports before then!

 

Have a great week!

 

Ryan

Edited by The Urban Fisherman
Posted

Awesome report Ryan! Im curious, what was the total for the Fish a Thon this year?

 

BTW, I'm not sure I can wait for September to get down there, seeing the length of that carp I may be there tomorrow!

 

Hey buddy - We did over $10,000 but Ginny is still trying to track down some folks who didn't show up and we're working on an online auction.. keep you posted for sure!

 

We're doing a "boys weekend" on the weekend of the 15th. Myself and my boy Luke along with Dan and his kids, my cousin and his son and a few others will be at the lake all weekend if you can manage a trip down!

Posted

Ryan

 

That was a recap that would take first place this year.

 

Great pics and great report.

 

That bass is yours, Dan, suck it up butter cup.

 

Enjoyed the read.

 

:clapping::canadian:

Posted

Nice recap. The pic of your daughter with the flipping stick cracked me up. I can just imagine "hey old man, watch me flip that log over there and pull out a 4 pounder... yep gott'em!"

 

I have a tip that might help with your sons sea sickness. Take a paper bag in the boat. Get him to tuck it into the waste band of his shorts so the bag is against his stomach. It will be a bit uncomfortable. But the discomfort of the paper bag is supposed to distract your mind from the motion sickness. Definitely worth a try.

Posted

Great pictures! Port Rowan is a nice little burg! One of the great pleasures in life is being minutes from your recreational pursuits! I too enjoy every second of it with my kids that I can.

Posted

Ryan

 

That was a recap that would take first place this year.

 

Great pics and great report.

 

That bass is yours, Dan, suck it up butter cup.

 

Enjoyed the read.

 

:clapping::canadian:

 

lol Thanks man - Very much appreciated...

 

Nice recap. The pic of your daughter with the flipping stick cracked me up. I can just imagine "hey old man, watch me flip that log over there and pull out a 4 pounder... yep gott'em!"

 

I have a tip that might help with your sons sea sickness. Take a paper bag in the boat. Get him to tuck it into the waste band of his shorts so the bag is against his stomach. It will be a bit uncomfortable. But the discomfort of the paper bag is supposed to distract your mind from the motion sickness. Definitely worth a try.

 

Thanks Sauce - She's just learning to use a baitcaster this year... she's pretty good with it but still has a long way to go when it comes to getting distance on her casts... Thanks for the sea sickness tip as well... I'm willing to try anything... Luke's puked all over the boat a couple of times now.. I'm surprised he still comes out with us.

Averie sure is sprouting like a weed. They grow up far too quickly. Love the family report.

 

Bigugli you've been around here since Averie was born... she sure has grown in the past 8 years... time flies man! Thanks and have a good one!

 

Great pictures! Port Rowan is a nice little burg! One of the great pleasures in life is being minutes from your recreational pursuits! I too enjoy every second of it with my kids that I can.

 

Thanks porkpie - We love it here... wouldn't move for anything... except maybe to a house on the lake.. that is if I ever win the lottery

Posted

Excellent report Ryan!! Happy to hear the Fish-A-Thon did well again this year! Looks like life is treating the family well...except for Luke perhaps and his motion sickness. Hopefully he gets over that. I know that I use to have that problem. Cars and boats were not good to me when I was little. Big boats and rough water continued for along time. Couldn't tell you the last time it was an issue though but it's not pleasant. Thanks for the report!

Posted

WOW !...What a terrific post Ryan...Great lookin' bunch of kids...

 

Thanks Beans - very much appreciated!

 

AWesome report Ryan. I love DCCA I just wish they had better campsites. Man Averie is such an old pro now.

 

Yeah I love the lake - and I don't mind the campsites... I mean they're far from private but it's hand down my favorite park out of the LPRCA parks. And yeah man - Averie is growing up far to fast.

 

I love the way you pose those carp! Congratz on all the fish Urban.

 

Thanks Mike Pike - My buddy is a complete amateur with catching and holding fish... we just fluked into that hold and I think I'll be using it again in the future... ( the ones with the tail forward ) Have a good one!

 

Great recap UF! Good luck on the rest of the season!

 

Thanks bud - Same to you!

 

Excellent report Ryan!! Happy to hear the Fish-A-Thon did well again this year! Looks like life is treating the family well...except for Luke perhaps and his motion sickness. Hopefully he gets over that. I know that I use to have that problem. Cars and boats were not good to me when I was little. Big boats and rough water continued for along time. Couldn't tell you the last time it was an issue though but it's not pleasant. Thanks for the report!

 

Thanks buddy - Family is good, just busy as can be. Luke's motion sickness is only in the boat, only when there's big rollers... never in the car or even with a mild chop on the lake.. just big rollers coming in off the main lake. He's thrown up all over the boat twice and once he cried to go home but fell asleep and was fine when he woke up. He still never hesitates to go out in the boat though which is good...

 

Enjoy the rest of your week and have a great weekend!

Posted

Great recap Ryan. You left off from where I remembered... that pink snowflake tuque, the iced brown trout and the kiddies all out fishing with ya. Turned up the family time even more notches through the spring we see.

 

Solid stuff!

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