flyman013

Atta Boy! Fresh venison is always the best!

I reuse the broadheads unless they appear damaged. I worry more about the arrow shaft, whether it is still straight or not.

Would the SeaFoam or Sta-bil neutralize the ethanol, or would you still be vulnerable to moisture absorbance??

I run Sta-Bil and leave the tank full as mentioned above. I don't run the engine completely dry. This way, the seals stay moist and don't tend to dry out in the off season.

Mine goes into a friend's barn for cold storage. I did some air conditioning work at his place, so we just traded up. Worked great for me last year, should work again this year.

I use Plano boxes too. I can normally fit the plug and hooks in the same compartment with no tangles.

Don't know how many of you run Evinrude Outboards, but I found this site for parts. This site is great. It gives exploded views of various parts and the Evinrude part numbers. You can order direct from Evinrude too. Just the exploded views have helped me greatly. Check it out. http://shop2.evinrude.com/ext/index.aspx?s1=f9265d795ccb55897dda603a35fbf312

WOW! That is a beautiful job! Makes me more itchin' to get out of an apartment. I don't even think you'll watch the T.V., just looking at the stove and mantle is entertaining enough. Great Job.

Now that would be some "Fly Fishing".

So I miss being out on the boat already, but gives me more time for my other passion, flying. Took my wife for a short ride to the Lakeshore and got a perspective of how big the lake really is. It looks different from the air. For those that go out of South Haven, you may recognize the places. Here is the pier going out. You can really get a feel of how massive the Great Lakes are. Here's the Black River west of the drawbridge. GLF, maybe you can pick your spot for next year. This must be why they call it the Black River. Looks like the snow fences are up.

When you grill, do you leave skin on or remove? I usually bake and leave skin on until it's time to serve.

Thanks for all the posts, guys! I have been doing most everything, but never thought about backing the drag off. It makes alot of sense. Thanks again!

I switched from Walkers to Blacks this year on advice from this site. I found them very simple and they actually released when the fish hit. I believe I have had more hookups because of the Blacks release. The Walkers were easy to setup as well, I just seemed to have a problem with them not releasing on a strike, even with the tension as low as I could get.

All great pictures guys! Ken, the pic of the osprey is awesome!

Not that we want to think about it yet, but winter is really beautiful here. Here are some of my favorite winter pictures! I love seagulls in winter.

Way to stick with it, Jay!

Keep on it Jay! I've chased deer literally for miles, but found them. I know the feeling, doubting whether you'll find him. But persistence and patience pays off. Good Luck!

Thanks for the replies everyone! We went out again yesterday and had some success! Caught two nice Cohos in the bay. Both on a north troll in 70 FOW, 50 feet down. The larger male coho came on a jigging spoon while the smaller female came on the same jointed Rapala. Sean, we were seeing the same thing on our finder. Most everything we saw was in the same range, just off the bottom. They were stacking up in front of the Ana river mouth by the paper mill. We picked all our fish up between the hotels and the hospital. We did see some fish caught from the pier near the Ana river. They were using spawn. Here's the results from yesterday!

Trolled a few hours tonight on Munising Bay. Went 0-1 all night. We had a hit in 95 FOW, 60 feet down on the downrigger. Hit a jointed J-13 silver Rapala as I was setting the line. My wife was able to reel it to the side of the boat where it proceeded to smile and wink at us as it spat the hook and swam off. It looked like about a 20 something inch rainbow. Oh well, still enjoying my trip!

My wife and I have re-painted our spoons before. I can't remember the type of paint we used, but we got it from the craft store (water based for picture painting). After the paint dried, a THIN coat of clear laquer was applied. It seems to hold up to the fish. It's a fun project in the off-season, and you can get creative with your patterns:)

Way to go Jay!

Nice Job Dan. How big was that smallie?

Thanks Eric and AB. Sorry for your loss too. Most people who don't have dogs don't understand the bond you can make and how they really are a part of the family.

My first hunt of the season is usually for pheasants. This year may not be the greatest since we had to retire Maddie the Wonder Dog because she just can't get around too well:( Two years ago, we took five birds in the season, our best season since hunting on the land we have permission on. Last year, we did not even see one bird, not even a hen. But like all things, pheasants are cyclical and they'll be back. Good Luck!

Went out of South Haven around 6pm Saturday. Was a slow and choppy day on the Lake. We were getting skunked and ready to pull lines, when LeAnna did the sure-fire thing to get a fish to strike... she had to "take care of some buisness". So while she was doing her thing, sure enough, we got a strike. 12 lb. King, our only fish of the night. We were on a south troll in 70 FOW with the downriggers at 52'. He took a copper color cicada jigging spoon. Probably our last Lake Michigan trip this year. Heading to Lake Superior next weekend for some relaxation time in the U.P.