Muskoka Outdoors

The Ontario Conservation Officers Association has recently published the second edition of their $20 wild fish and game cookbook.

If you are looking for some unique tastes for your next wild game meal-consider supporting the OCOA’s fundraising initiative. The non-profit organization will use portions of the proceeds to benefit youth outdoor programs and college bursaries.

For more details read the post from Outdoor Canada’s Editor, Patrick Walsh.

In case you are a last minute Christmas gift shopper, like myself, here is a list of fishing Christmas gifts ideas that could keep you focused in the fishing product aisle.

1. Koppers Live Target Frog – $10 to $15

Koppers Frog

This newly released soft-bodied, top-water lure should be shattering a glassy, calm lake near you this summer. This frog bait made some headlines at this year’s 2010 iCast Event and won their soft-bodied award. Koppers try very had to create ‘the world’s most anatomically accurate line of fishing lures‘ and this frog SHOULD catch some bass for you. Feel free to put one under my tree Santa! Visit your local tackle store to purchase or buy online from Bass Pro Shops.

2. A new tackle bag - $30 to $80

Plano Soft Sider Guide Bag

This year I ‘purged’ the junk from my old tackle box and exported them to smaller, fabric-shelled guide bag. It has 4 plastic trays that pull-out with multiple slot size configurations.  I was able to find a place for everything my older tackle box contained.  My gear stays better organized in a more streamlined container.  The molded-hard bottom lining is a must have feature. You can place it in the bottom of a wet boat or dock without water being ‘sponged’ into your tackle.

You don’t need to get the exact one I as I did. I bought a Plano Soft-Sider Guide Bag.  The point is, any new tackle box will cause any angler to re-organize their old one and feel better about themselves…

3. A new handcrafted fishing rod – $150 to $300

This my take a creative note in a stocking (or gift wrap), but consider getting your special fishing jedi a custom rod from from Fetha Styx. They fish the rods they build and the production versions of their rods all come from the DNA of a custom, hand-crafted version. I have been able to interact with some of the crew behind the ‘Styx’ and they are the real deal.

Afraid to get the wrong fishing rod? It may be obvious, but visit the Fetha Styx website with your favorite angler and get some guidance from them. You could also note the printed details, of an old rod, located close to where the reel is attached to the rod handle. Still not sure? Send me an email and I would be happy to help you determine a good fit.

Fetha Styx Fishing Rods

4. A new fishing float tube – $100 to $300+

Fishing Float Tube

Experience your favourite fishing lake from the view of float fishing tube. They are stealthy and easy on fuel. You will be able to access areas that boats can not spook less fish. So far, I have not hooked into a fish my flippers could handle. Prove me wrong.

Higher priced tubes are more stable, easier to enter and support the angler higher out of the water. Cabela’s has some nice examples here.

5. An Ultimate Fishing Trip to Queen Charlotte Lodge – $3800 to $5900

Every time I watched an episode from WFN’s reality fishing show called, The Lodge, I am reminded why this fishing resort is at the top of my own ‘bucket’ list. Catch big fish and relax in style. Meet the stars of the show. Book early through the QCL website – they fill up fast!

Catch The Fish of a Lifetime at QCL!

* for those interested – I make NO money from the links I have direct you to in this post.

It’s funny how you come across fishing tips. Quite often fishing tips can double as life lessons.

I was sitting with my friend, Darrell, in my dad’s living room when he shared this personal story of one of his fishing trips from years ago…

The story goes that, Darrell, and a friend had been fishing Tim Lake in Algonquin Park. They had been fishing hard without any success and were constantly weighing anchor, from spot to spot, around the lake. Finally, they decided to quit and return to the river mouth that would lead them to their vehicle.

As fate would have it, the winds picked up and they began to struggle against the wind and waves. They quickly became frustrated from the amount of work they were doing while fighting the wind. An hour and half into their epic and blustery battle, Darrell, noticed that they had canoed past the river mouth they were attempting to find.

He told the man in the bow who was paddling ferociously against the wind. Darrell did not get a reply.

Fatigue and desperation began to ‘set-in’ for the two paddlers. Despite the wind, they should have reached the river mouth sooner than they had.

At that moment, Darrell noticed something.

He debated whether or not to tell his friend in the bow. He yelled one more time over the wind,

“We forgot to bring the anchor up!”

“What?!”, his friend yelled.

“WE FORGOT TO BRING THE ANCHOR UP!”, Darrell repeated.

The story ends there. I guess the look that, Darrell, received from his friend was priceless.

The lesson is simple

When fishing in high winds, don’t forget to bring the anchor up.

On a practical note – Is life, away from the fishing boat, sometimes like that? We all paddle furiously, at times, to get ahead and reach our goals. It can be so frustrating when the ‘over-worked’ ground we make is so minuscule.

Check for anchors.

Perhaps there is something that is holding you back. An anchor long forgotten. Something like a broken relationship, or a mis-management of priorities, or a wrong you need to make right.

Your hardest and best work may all be for nothing if you have not dealt with a forgotten anchor. It can also keep you from seeing what is important – like the river mouth that leads you to your car.

End of sermon.

*My reloaded blog posts are some of my favorite previous posts made current again.

Live the adventures you read about in Outdoor Canada Magazine on November 26 – 28, 2010. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to meet, and learn, from the magazine’s outdoor celebrities and exhibitors at the International Centre in Mississauga (6900 Airport Road).

The Outdoor Canada Show is one of four jaw-dropping outdoor shows that are colliding under one roof to bring a myriad of technologies, seminars, and multi-media presentations to all aspects of the outdoors. That means you do not have to hunt and fish to get excellent value for your admission dollars. The other 3 shows include the Fall Cottage Life Show, the Explore Adventure & Travel Show, and the Canadian Home Workshop Show.

Admission is currently set to be $15 at the door or $13 dollars online.

On the Saturday of the Outdoor Canada Show, be sure to check out the Fishin’ for Answers Quiz Show that will feature angling greats like Bob Izumi, Angelo Viola, Pete Bowman, Mike Miller, Leo Stakos, Dave Mercer, Ron James, and U.S. legends Roland Martin and Jimmy Houston.

The show’s hub will be the Outdoor Canada Lodge and will be providing filleting demos, sampling of wild game, shore-lunch tips, fly-tying lessons and antique decoy appraisals with expert Steven Lloyd.

Visit The Great Outdoors and DIY Weekend website for all the exciting details

SHOW DAYS
Friday, Nov. 26: 11 am–8 pm
Saturday, Nov. 27: 9 am–6 pm
Sunday, Nov. 28: 10 am–5 pm

November 26 - 28, 2010

An opportunity to take a group of kids fishing every day for a week came through my email this summer. Excitedly, I accepted the offer and suddenly found myself wondering where to start. Fortunately, with some time spent in some pre-fishing planning and following these suggestions, you could easily be the ‘first-time’ fishing ambassador to your own group of students.

The initial debate going through my mind was should I teach technical aspects like knots, fish biology and lure selection or allow the kids to fish with minimal discussion right from the docks? I chose to skip the technical and get the students fishing right away. It was the right choice because most of the students had never fished before.

Keep The Gear Simple
The camp provided closed-faced reels, bobbers, and several dozen worms. I added barbless hooks to the mix to ensure quick release of any fish caught and for safety when hooks are being pushed around by newcomers. To maximize fishing time with these students (I had a new group every hour until noon), I pre-tied swivels and hooks and checked drag setting on the fishing rods before the kids arrived.

Closed-faced reels may not look ‘very-cool’ to anybody who watches the pro’s, but new anglers do not usually know that there are different kinds of options available. The simplicity of the push button to release the bail will allow students to drop their bait over the dock or experiment with casting.

Teach Respect (for others, the fish, and the hook)
Space is going to be required to spread excited new anglers out. For safety and courtesy reasons, remind the anglers to stay in the space they are given. This will be tested when someone starts hooking into a school of panfish. When this happens, remind those encroaching in on the ‘lucky spot’ to wait patiently until the angler moves on or gives permission. As well, take a moment to tell the lucky angler that it is OK to move on and allow someone else to experience the joy of catching a fish. They might find they get more satisfaction from watching – at least, I do.

Show the students the difference between a barbless hook and a barbed one. Stress the importance of the presence of a barb and how it relates to increased difficulty when removing from a person’s body or a fish’s. Remind new anglers to check behind them when they cast and I asked our students to shout, “Casting”, to warn anglers walking by them. For a graphic short video on the importance of hook safety – Watch This

Enforce to the rookie anglers the importance of a quick release and to handle this fish as little as possible. Show anglers, as fish are caught, where to hold fish to reduce injuries from teeth and or fins. Initially, most of the students wanted me to release their fish, this was a perfect opportunity to point identifying marks for fish identification.

-End of Part 1-