Way north bass guy

Took the kid to the spring fishing/boat show today. Got a bit of a warm up for when the boat comes back out, or if we ever get enough ambition to get out on the ice. Stopped at Bass Pro today to grab a new front pedestal for the boat, and came across this coffee display. We had the exact same cook stove in our farmhouse growing up. Same colour and everything. Cats used to love sleeping under it when it was running. Only difference was we actually used it to heat the kitchen and downstairs, and only stored stuff on it in the summer months.

A 1/2 -3/4oz Strike King spinnerbait with double willow blades in mostly white has been my #1 big smallmouth bait for years. I throw a lot of other stuff all season, but I always have a spinnerbait tied on and ready to go, especially when a bit of a chop comes up and I’m covering water for big brown cruisers, but I’ve also got my share of green ones on them too.

I did well today, was at the Toronto spring fishing and boat show with my 10 yr old. Only bought one Duo spin bait and a t-shirt for the kid. Although I did spend $250 at Bass Pro on the way there on a new front pedestal seat for the boat, but it was mostly with Christmas gift cards so I guess technically the bait monkey got my mother in law ?.

There is actually! https://youtu.be/4TuEWtXBT_0

-31C here this morning, and with the wind chills they’ve cancelled the busses today. I’m taking the kid to the spring fishing and boat show in Toronto today, at least we can walk around a warm building and look at fishing stuff and pretend like it’s not the end of the world outside ?

Haha, that’s great, thanks. “Go Leafs Go!”

Pretty sure it’s the iPhone 11s. I’ve noticed on a few different sites that it now looks more like when I am on my iPad. It’s like because the screen is just big enough that it is more of a “full site” view instead of the mobile version, if that makes any sense. But I’m just a dumb stonemason that likes to fish a lot, technology isn’t really my forte ?

Yeah, it didn’t do that with my last iPhone but when I got an 11 a little while back I noticed it did that. Maybe you have to have one with a big enough screen?

The way I read that first sentence, it sounds like that’s tonight’s dinner ?. Not that I’m judging, I’ve eaten some things before that were not considered “normal” eating.

Wasn’t really embarrassing for me as much as just a funny moment. When I used to guide on Georgian Bay for lake trout and salmon mainly, I had the privilege of being used in the filming of a fishing show once. Show was called “Full Contact Fishing”, hosted by Chris King, a former NHLer. He mostly took out other hockey players, and sports figures, and for my day we it was me, him, the cameraman and #88, Eric Lindros. It was a fantastic morning, we filmed the entire 1/2 hour show in only 2 hours, the fishing was so good, with multiple double headers. At one point, a fish hooked up, so I handed the rod to Chris at the stern to fight it, and hustled to the bow to get out of the way of the cameraman, as well as get the net. Eric was lounging on the front deck in the sun, and in my way by I tripped on the camera case and laid a full on body check right into Eric. Of course, me being 165lbs soaking wet and he being a 200+lb NHL superstar, there wasn’t much damage done ?. But the whole thing was caught on camera and the guys even put it in the show. You can even look it up on YouTube, my one and only check on a real hockey player! I do play hockey all year, but it’s mostly old guys with no contact.

Ours likes the outside as well, but when it’s this cold out, even he enjoys the inside too. Although to be fair, he is only “part” husky. We call him a huskelunge ?.

Jeez, I wonder if that was his first nice car or maybe dad’s ride that he got to take out for the “last time ever” ?

Oh man, that makes for a bad afternoon right there ?

Ha, I wish I could have such a “slow” start to the year so far ?. One of these days the ice will go away and maybe I can get started then.

Yeah that makes sense, guess I need to read a bit closer sometimes. Or maybe not reply to things when I’m dead tired ?.

Not sure why I keep hearing this everywhere, but I can assure you that side imagery works great on a trolling motor. If you set your scroll speed to match the boat speed, and adjust sensitivity/contrast etc correctly, you can get exceptional images down to 0.5mph. Yes, it’s true you’d see more area while moving at 3-8mph, but while moving down the bank or across a flat with my trolling motor, I still often find a ton of structure and fish off to the side that I’d never see without the si. I often use it to look under floating docks and into laydowns to see fish. I’ve often found schools of smallmouth off to the side a cast or so away and fired a tube or drop shot over to catch a bunch of fish I’d of never seen without the si. Unless I’m fishing offshore for deep smallmouth, I almost always have si on up front. I also have it at the console so it gets used a lot for me.

Yeah, it’d be ok in a kayak. Pretty close to your face in that position.

I started out with a Helix 5 on my boat when I first bought it, and it did work, but the screen is so small that it’s harder to read much detail compared to the larger ones. I now have a 9 on the trolling motor and a 10 mega at the console, and both of them show a great amount of detail. If I was starting out with a si unit, I wouldn’t go any smaller than a 7”, especially if it’s mounted at the bow and your standing up trying to look at it ( and especially if your eyesight isn’t the best).

That’s way too tidy. How are you supposed to reach down for another rod and bring up three at the same time that are all tangled together ?. It’s almost like he wants to save time or something ?

I’ve had a 12’ talon for about 3 years now, and it’s been great. Never any issues with it ever, and it’s helped me catch extra fish that I know I wouldn’t have caught if I’d had to rely on my trolling motor only. It’s great to just quietly sit in one spot and thoroughly fish a small weedbed, dock or other small area without the tm constantly running, especially in super shallow water. Also works great for solo launching when there isn’t a dock at the ramp. Even if your just stopping to retie or have a snack, it’s great for that as well.

That’s just because you Americans don’t have real beer like we do ?. I’m kidding, I’m sure there’s one or two out there that are more than 3% ???

Nice, geez that’s hardly broke in for that age. Should be a bit more “sporty” than the pelican ?

I find that pike often look up more than down in the winter, and most people set their baits way too close to bottom. Often I’ll set the baits in the top third of the water column, the minnow silhouettes against the ice fairly well, something to try maybe?

I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, I’ll take muddy dogs over snowy dogs any day, at least that means the boat is parked in the yard instead of the winter storage shed.

I know that game well, especially when you have two dogs that love to run around the yard and wrestle with each other, and your back yard is mostly clay based. Some times it’s a 5 minute job in the screen porch wiping down feet and bellies before anyone goes inside, and you still have to mop the floor almost every day.