Turfwrench

Great video and some good looking fish considering the weather conditions. Let's hope this spring the fishing will be just as good if not better.

Madhouse indeed! Was down there Saturday as well, was not bad when it opened but by 1 pm I had all I could take of the crowd. Reminded me of shopping on Xmas eve. I did end up getting one of the powder coat spray kits and some paints, yep works almost as easy as demonstrated at the show as I got to experiment a bit with it today. I guess what sold me on the unit was when he bent a spoon several times almost to the breaking point and the paint never peeled or cracked.

No matter how fast you are towing your boat seems everyone just has to pass you.

If you dont mind me asking...exactly what type of vintage Abu reel were you able to sell for $275?

Not questioning it...just curious

It was a vintage Abu Ambassadeur 5000 4 screw reel, complete with leather case, tool kit, and spare spool. The reel itself had a fat black spool which I understand is very rare. The reel appeared to have never been used with not a nick in the paint. The guy that bought it was a reel collector in Alabama.

Flintstone Chartreuse Clown std spoon was #1 ran clean off the riggers followed closely by the Lemon Ice.

I do the usual winter prep things like going through all my tackle and gear, restringing line, cleaning boxes and electronics. I sort through all the lures that I don't use and put them up for sale. I spend a lot of time on online auctions and attend local auctions looking for good deals on new/used tackle and equipment. I like to purchase large lots of lures, pick out the ones I want and resell the rest thus getting the stuff I want for free and making some extra cash for more gear/tackle. Some of the items I did real well on:

Scientific Anglers Fly reel for $35.....sold it for $110

Vintage Abu Garcia reel for $35 ....sold it for >$275

Never used Big Jon Cap Pac Elec Rigger with rod holders for $90....sold it for $375

17' Century boat for $235 .....sold it for $700

4 Big Jon Cap riggers with 9 rod holders for $135.....put them on my boat

So with a little time and effort I am able to get a lot of stuff to try out for the next season.

Does anyone here utilize an AIS receiver? If so, could you share a little info on it. As I fish mainly southern Lk. Huron I encounter a lot of freighter traffic. A vast majority of the time in the summer is spent fishing in and around the up bound and down bound shipping lanes. On clear days we can see them coming and adjust our troll but on those foggy days.....well you get the picture. I have done some research on them and think this is an item I would like to use as my GPS unit supports it.

One lure that I have ran of the riggers with success is the Matzuo swimbaits. Seems the lake trout love that thumping tail.

Makes one wonder why there is a limit on the big ponds. You would think with the vast expanse of water and the depths there would really be no reason not to allow as many as one could handle.

A big undertaking for sure. Will be looking forward to the progress reports.

Party after the hunting -- fine. Party hunting - - not so fine.

Although I guess legal in some states, I personally have no desire to have anyone else shoot a deer for me and we all have heard of parents shooting deer for their kids and making them tag it. This unfortunately I am sure would be enough to turn off a lot of young hunters. Deer drives, although effective to me cannot compare to outwitting a deer by picking out a location for a sit or putting on a good stalk or still hunting. Hunting is a personal one on one thing for me.

As far as the fishing and rods, well I can't say that I have ever pulled the extra rods and can't really say if it is required. There is catch and release fishing, and also tournament fishing where a limit of fish are in the livewell and they keep fishing. So with this in mind, if it is legal for the tourneys to keep fishing then it should also apply to non tourney fishing. Where I fish in Lk Huron not only are the big water fish available but also walleye inhabit the same areas that we fish the salmon and trout. So although we may limit on the salmon/trout side there are also walleye that we can continue to box. A vast majority of our trips consisted of mixed bags with walleye.

It would be interesting to see the "legal" ruling on the rod situation.

Very nice. Thanks for the share.

While fishing out of Pt. Sanilac this past weekend I had the pleasure again of playing chicken with the sailboats. Not just once, but twice. I was just over 1 1/2 miles out from the harbor, only boat in the area and twice had sailboats take dead aim from a distance and then veer directly across my bow. I don't understand their mentality. Although this is not the first time this has happened out of this port and many others have experienced the same situation elsewhere, it just makes me wonder what possesses these people to do it. Sure, I could almost understand if there are a pile of boats around but when you are the only one within a couple miles what gives. So I took a couple of pics and now they can be internet stars showing their prowess on the water taking on the poor small fishermen. Unfortunately they will probably never know as I am sure they don't read fishing forums. There is a lot of water out there, a little respect goes a long way.

I used to run my home made double boards up until last year when I switched to otters. The old ones that I made pulled good and hard but were a pain to pull in so had to aim the boat toward them to get them in easier. Now no problem with the otters as once you start to reel them in real fast they turn in and come in like a breeze. I also like the way they glide over the waves and not jump like my old boards did. Seems a lot of folks on Lk. O get the keel kit to add a second lighter keel to their boats and claim they will pull a lot harder. I haven't had the need to go that route yet.

It is a matter of personal preference but you may want to consider 2 separate units. I like to watch my fishfinder and also like a larger view on the plotter. I rely on both when fishing and as a bit of age has caught up with my eyes the bigger screen for each the better instead of trying to watch both on a smaller screen.

Deep Jr. Thundersticks and my favorite old Ping-A-T's at a slow troll still do the trick.

Well done! Great pictorial on the project as it progressed. It is certainly a project that you can take a lot of pride and enjoyment in. Good luck on the water.

Here it is:

Place your coho fillet on silver foil, sprinkle generously with your favorite cajun spice mix. Liberally pour creole marinade over the fish. Top the fillet with several pats of real butter, not the fake stuff. Seal fish in the foil and let set in fridge for about an hour or at least until you get the grill hot. Real wood or charcoal please, gas grills just don't cut it.

When fire is hot place fish near the coal but not on top. Cook for at least 10 minutes until foil pouch looks like it will explode. Slice open the top and fold down a bit and allow the smoke to infuse the meat for a few minutes. Take off and enjoy, and I sure did, the entire fillet for myself. MMMm MMmmmm..

Nice fish, great looking browns, and the atlantic, I wish I could get more of them.....they sure are excellent on the table.

Nice variety. I love getting mixed bags. Sure does add to the fun.

Beautiful, Manistique is one of my favorite places to fish.

I too use the rubber band method, simple, easy, and yet very effective.

Good job on the fish and the finish.

Heidi, the fish are out there. We caught 6 today before noon. 1 pink, 1 laker, 2 steelhead, 1 king, and 1 atlantic salmon. Full report in Lake Huron fishing reports section.

Daughter and I hit the water and were set up by 7:30. Fishing action although not on fire was fairly steady. We started in 50' and worked out to 100 and back in. All fish were caught on Flintstones spoons 35 - 60 down off the riggers except for the Atlantic Salmon, it came off a spoon on a 3 way rig being pulled by a Manns stretch 30. Sog 3.0 - 3.3 We had all fish before noon. Lake was quite flat and it sure was hot out there. Total 1 Pink, 1 Laker, 2 Steelhead, 1 King, and 1 Atlantic Salmon. Fishing is good all around the thumb.

The daughters King

The Atlantic Salmon

A little closer than I would have liked. You can see the otter boat pretty close to the ship. I guess you can say we were fishing in the shipping lanes.

The catch of the day.