There have been a few threads over time on this matter and a couple of incidents of theft but it is generally the small, expensive stuff that is lifted (like a nice fishing rod but not a tent).  Personally, we tidy up the camp and most of the portable, valuable stuff is in our possession when day-tripping with very little concern for the majority of the gear left.

The problem with packing everything up is when you get back, someone else might be camping there!  Usually, the further into the interior you go, the safer your things will be.  I still wouldn't leave a nice little GPS laying on bench around the fire...common sense on that sort of thing.

When it comes to portages, similar common sense - if you leave something valuable and portable, maybe stash it in the brush instead of right next to the water in the open.

Portage landing on Lake la Muir from Red Pine Bay?

It's safe to assume they are heading downward in the lake to stay in the cooler water but I would expect they are feeding in 10-20' deep water presently and lingering a bit deeper.

I still do it but it never stops me from going...just helps me to be in the right frame of mind.  "Prepare for the worst, hope for the best and deal with what you get" is my mantra.

We have about a 9 hour drive so cancelling and re-scheduling is not an option.  Folks that are 3 or 4 hours away will often cancel or delay a trip because it's easy to do so but that's not an option for us.  I have generally come to expect that the weather forecast is good for up to about 72 hours or 3 days, after that, it's a crap shoot.  I've actually printed the two-week forecast and then re-printed it four or five days later and they don't look very similar so take it with a grain of salt.

As far as wind causing waves and whitecaps, the term for the distance that wind blows over open area is called the "fetch".  Longer fetch over open water leads to larger waves.  Usually a wind of 10 km/hr even over a long fetch will gradually build waves and maybe even the occasional whitecap but you typically need sustained winds of 15 or 20 km/hr or higher over a long fetch to get "good" whitecaps and rollers.

The advice above of "pay attention" is the very best you can do...build a sense of wind speeds just like you do with driving a car, walking or biking; it takes time and effort to consciously be aware of the pace/speed of these activities.  The process of building that knowledge can be broken down as such:

unconsciously incompetent - you aren't aware of what you don't know 
consciously incompetent - you are aware that you don't know (the stage you are in now)
consciously competent - you have to think about being aware or knowing or doing something
unconsciously competent - you are so good at something that it appears to come naturally and you don't even have to think about it any more.

Actually, some of the best eating (in my opinion) are the easiest to catch - panfish and perch.  A worm on a hook with a bobber near a downed tree or ledge by the shoreline will often get you one.  You'll need to catch a half-dozen or so to make a meal but their meat is white and flaky with a very mild flavor...similar to flounder but just much smaller.  I wouldn't keep any smaller than four or five inches - not much meat on those dainty little ones.

Nipissing River at the terminus of the 1930m portage to/from Remona Lake.

Mark's download link does not work for me.

Opalescent and Cork are good guesses - they are in the neighborhood of this lake, I believe, but I don't think this image is one of those.  A touch west of them, I think.

On Big Trout, the site on the end of the peninsula to the right of the last "T" in "White Trout" in the above photo is a nice site.  Thunderbox is way up on top but the site has great access for shore fishing and many means of egress should the wind be blowing.  Nice layout in that it is interesting - nestled on the side of a hill.  We use hammocks but I recall some tent options on top that were cool too.