Way north bass guy

Same here. If there’s anyone on or near a dock, I’ll make an exaggerated swing out in deeper water and go around, just to let them know that I don’t need to fish right there at the moment. There’s always plenty more docks to hit anyway.

They’ve done that for quite a while during spawning events. It’s usually dish soap, that they spray onto the surface to dissipate the pollen ( also happens to be everywhere during spawning season), so they can see through the water to see where their bait is sitting. Doesn’t seem like something that’s all that great for the water ( pouring dish soap everywhere), and not something I’d ever do, but I guess it’s better than a lot of other things that get poured in the lakes all the time.

Sounds like the battery is toast, and the charger when plugged in boosts it just enough to trim up. Also, if it’s showing green and charged, maybe the charger itself isn’t working correctly?

Yeah, I should’ve mentioned that’s usually my first attempt. Most of the time if a fish misses a frog around a dock, it hasn’t felt any hooks, so it’ll hammer it a second time. If after a few extra casts back in there it won’t hit it, I’ll then toss a tube or wacky rig back in, which often seals the deal.

Well, with the rain we’ve had the last couple days it has officially kicked off “mud furniture season”. The dog towels have come out, and will stay my the back doors until probably mid May at least. I’m not complaining though, I’ll take it over 2’ of snow??.

Well that’s a bugger, but glad you came out on the right side of things. My dad had what sounds like a similar experience to you about 10 years ago. Threw away the cigarettes the next day and started eating better. He’s still going strong today, and I’m sure you’ll be as well.

Don’t forget a hollow frog. I’ve caught a ton of nice bass on a frog that’s skipped under or even just along side a dock. That’s one of my go to dock baits nowadays, with a tube or Berkley General for a follow up bait if a fish blows up and misses the frog.

Had a pair of swans stop by in the river behind the house last weekend. Our neighbour said they were here last year at the exact same time. They don’t hang around too long though, guess it’s just a stopping off/rest spot on the way further north. They’re so large, they make a goose look about the size of a small chicken.

I’ve noticed for the last couple days when I’m on here on my iPhone, that whenever I’m scrolling through a thread, there isn’t as much info as there used to be beside the names of everyone. I used to be able to see how many posts someone had, who it was that left a “like” or laughing face etc. on a post, and also where everyone was posting from. I liked the last one the most, as it showed me where everyone is posting from, which kind of helped me to see perhaps how their particular info related to a post came about. Example- someone like myself from central Ontario will likely have a different take on a certain presentation compared to someone from south Louisiana. Was this a change with the site, or is it just something that’s changed on my phone? ( I did just get a new phone a couple days ago so perhaps there’s a setting I need to change?)

I should be fishing too, but the 16” of ice on the lake is holding me back from launching the boat just a touch. With this warm weather we’re now starting to get though, it won’t be too much longer.

I am not a night owl, never have been. Most weeknights we’re in bed by 9:45, 10:00 at the latest and up around 6:20 or so. Weekends I might stay up till the wee hours of 11:00 ?, and “sleep in” until 7:30 or so, at least in the winter. In the spring/summer I’m usually up and raring to go by 6:00 at the latest on weekends. About 99% of the time I’m sound asleep within about 5 min of hitting the pillow, and barely move till morning, except for a trip to the washroom of course.

My first baitcaster was a Quantum, can’t remember the model ( early 90s sometime), but I had several of them and they were tough as nails for the way I abused them. I don’t really have much brand loyalty nowadays, pretty much have stuff from every company out there, but one company that’s always been in the mix for me over all the years has been Berkley. I was a huge fan of Powerbait products when they first came out, and can say that nowadays probably 95% off all my soft plastics are some sort of Berkley product. For me, they just work.

Not to mention that it looks like it takes a heck of a lot more time to actually launch the boat. I can pretty much launch mine the same speed as he did, and that video was sped up. I’m sure the other guys in line behind me would just love to wait while I took 20 min to put the boat in the water ?

Oh boy, that’s exactly the kind of chimney workmanship that pays for my boat every year ? ( along with all my other bills). All it takes is a pinhole for the water to get in and do a lot of damage. In the case of a brick chimney similar to yours, it usually boils down to one of ( or possibly both of ) two things. Firstly, like everyone else mentioned, double and triple check all around the flashing. Any opening or crack can be an entrance for water, especially if the wind forces it in. That flashing doesn’t look too terrible, but like everyone else said, silicone the bejesus out of it wherever there’s a joint that looks like rain can get in, use clear silicone and it won’t be noticeable from the ground. The main thing I see wrong here though, is the horrible “cap” on the top of the bricks. I’ve lost count years ago of the number of masonry chimneys I’ve fixed that looked exactly like yours, the bricklayers just finish the top row off and pile a bit of mortar on there to “shed” the water. Problem is that if there’s any freezing at all, it soon opens up a few cracks, that then only speeds up the progress of decay. Also, there is no overhang at all on your chimney to stop all the water from running down the sides of the chimney and ruining the brick faces. Keep the water out of the top, and the rest of the chimney will be around for decades, even up here in the North where it’s very, very well below freezing for months at a time. About the only way to fix this properly is to pour a reinforced concrete cap on top of the chimney. In your case, from the pics I see it looks like the main brickwork is still in decent shape, so you shouldn’t need to remove anything. Easiest way to do it is to build a custom form out of plywood for the bottom edges and 2x4s for the sides. You want to make it so the inside of the form just barely sits on the top row, and the outside of the form is approx 5” wider all around than the chimney, that way when you remove it, the concrete cap should have about a 3-3.5” overhang. Mix up your concrete fairly wet, fill up the form and slope it towards the flue, and don’t forget to run a few rows of 1/2” rebar throughout the concrete for extra strength. Leave it for a couple days, then remove the forms, and take a grinder with a masonry blade and grind a drip edge all around the bottom of the overhang. This will create a spot for the water to catch and drip off the cap, rather than run down the side of the bricks. A masonry waterproofing brushed on the concrete will also help, but don’t seal the bricks. You want them to “breathe”, if they can’t then any water trapped inside will make the bricks faces blow out if it freezes. If it’s warm enough that you aren’t using the chimney right now, but don’t want to tackle this job right away, the best way to stop leaking temporarily is to wrap the whole thing with a tarp. Also, check the roof in the area around the chimney, even an exposed roofing nail or broken shingle 10’ away can be a spot for the water to enter, then travel along the roof underside till it hits the chimney and runs down to your ceiling. Here’s a couple pics from online just to give you an idea of what it should look like.

Is there much on the lake for docks? If so, I’d be trying around them first thing, especially in the shallower areas where it’s warmer. Failing that, I’d look for any wood ( laydowns, stumps etc. ), again, closer to the major spawning areas.

Yup, caught some good ones right along there, probably right off your dock ?

Welcome aboard. I used to fish tournaments all over the Kawarthas when I was younger, spent many a day on “the bog” at your home town. Caught some dandy largemouth flipping jigs around all those cattails and their undercut banks.

I’m still young enough that I can hop in the truck fairly easy, and up here in snow/salt country, they are just one more thing to catch and hold slush, dirt and road salt that never does a truck any good. Bad enough having to sweep a foot or two of snow off the hood and windshield in the morning, don’t need another thing to have to constantly clean off.

I drive 3-1/2 hours one way to my parents place with the boat once a year, but that’s usually for a week or so worth of fantastic fishing. Otherwise, there’s so many lakes around me that I never have to drive more than 1/2 hour, and I could hit a different lake every day all summer doing that if I wanted to. I’m very lucky here.

For me it’s usually 15-20lb Berkley 100% Fluorocarbon depending on where I’m fishing and what for ( I catch a ton of big pike in the spring on a spinnerbait and the 20lb is my go to for them).

I was pretty much always clean shaven for many years ( couldn’t grow much of a beard really anyway if I wanted until almost 30). A few years after I was married, I grew one out for a bit. I decided to shave it off again and my wife didn’t like that. She’s a high school librarian and said “ grow that thing back out, you look like a bloody teenager with no beard and it kinda creeps me out”. No problem for me, I wasn’t a fan of shaving all the time anyway. I pretty much just keep it about 1/2” long or so though, not a fan of a longer one.

Maybe you have a vegetarian ghost in the neighbourhood ?

Took a ride on the snowmobiles today, and down in the river behind the house we saw some geese in the open water. Still a long ways away from launching a boat, but it’s a sure sign of warmer times when we start seeing them around again.

Buzzbaits for me. I’ve used them in the past and had fantastic days, especially in the fall for largemouth in pad filled bays. Just haven’t thrown one in a while now. Maybe this year I’ll dedicate a rod to a buzzer, and try to toss it more when the conditions look decent for one.

It’s happening to me some as well. Every now and again I’ll go to open a thread and it’ll say I’m logged out. If I go back, it’ll be fine. ?‍♂️