Equipment » Bear Bangers or Spray » 6/22/2016 12:50 pm |
Neither. We make enough noise when traveling through portages to alert the local fauna of our presence. Of the twenty or so black bears I've seen in the wild while hunting, fishing, camping, etc. I have never had one do anything but run like a deer when I was winded, seen or heard. I assume there have been many more that scurried away unseen, unheard and un-smelled due to their awareness of my presence before I was aware of theirs.
If I run into a deadly bear, it will be my time. I sleep like a baby knowing that the likelihood of me being killed by a falling tree is far greater so I listen more for the crack of a tree trunk than for the snap of a branch under a bruin's foot.
Fishing » Trout depth in late June? » 6/16/2016 12:18 pm |
I'd fish in the 15-20' depth range, maybe a touch shallower. More importantly, focus on underwater structure that is next to deep water...such as a point protruding into the lake with deep water alongside of it. The fish will hang in the deep water and move up to find food around the "elevated" but still submerged structures.
If you have Stephen Molson's depth maps it makes finding these structures much easier!
Campsite Cooking » Cheese » 6/16/2016 7:48 am |
Aged cheeses do best. I prefer an aged gouda for flavor but aged cheddars also work very well even in summertime temperatures. You can't beat some sliced gouda, a few crackers or a hard roll and a glass of port wine while you wait for your dinner to re-hydrate. In a similar vein, parmesan works well but is not exactly a good cheese for crackers/bread - more for seasoning dishes with its salty flavor. A good rule of thumb is that the harder the cheese is, the longer it will last so cream cheese, brie, blue, etc. don't have the warm-weather shelf life that harder cheeses do. I personally am not a big fan of the baybels...too much like a processed cheese in their texture and flavor.
There are many resources on the internet for storing cheese but you don't have to go through multiple steps such as soaking in vinegar, sealing in wax, etc. Just wrap the cheese in a paper (not newspaper, more like butcher's paper) and you should be good to go for many days. Store the cheese in the center of your food bag and keep it in a cool location out of direct sunlight whenever possible.
Skills » Mosquito Repellent - Natural Remedies » 5/24/2016 10:16 am |
Perhaps I'm a bit late to the show, but historic and recent research/articles support only a handful of products that are safe and effective. In general, products made with natural plant oils are not recommended for prevention of mosquito bites due to their extremely short duration of action (less than one hour, sometimes almost immediately ineffective).
Of the top six products with effectiveness scores at or above 5 (on a scale of 1-10), five of those were DEET or Picaridin. DEET is the single most tested and utilized product in the world and has been deemed safe by the CDC for use in adults, pediatrics (older than 2 months old) and even pregnant females (a rare accomplishment as many, many drugs are listed as "consider risk/benefit" instead of "go ahead and use it" in pregnancy). DEET is used safely in over 400 million uses annually in the U.S. alone and with more than billions of applications globally without substantial adverse side effects (when used according to manufacturer's instructions). In a very small number of patients a mild skin rash can develop - I expect that is often from over-use or over-application of highly concentrated (>25%) formulations. An article from the New England Journal of Medicine states:
"DEET is far less toxic than many people believe. Adverse effects, though documented, are infrequent and are generally associated with gross overuse of the product. The risk of DEET-related adverse effects pales in comparison with the risk of acquiring vector-borne infection in places where such diseases are endemic. Users should avoid the temptation to apply the most concentrated formulation available and, when using a more dilute product, should reapply it as protection wanes. Alternative “natural” products generally fail to live up to their reputations for greater safety and effectiveness and offer their users a false sense of security."
Here is a [url=
Catch-all Discussions » Are predictions for ice-out starting yet? » 4/05/2016 3:15 pm |
I always get a good chuckle out of the long range forecast. I'd say it's about 80% accurate at 24-36 hours and then drops to about 50% accurate from 36-72 hours and after that is a complete crap shoot. I used to screen shot the forecast in advance of a trip and then compare that to the forecast from three days later and the differences were substantial.
The strongest indicator to me is the satellite imagery and the relative boundary of where the open water is and where the frozen lakes are...that tells a much more accurate story of how long it will be until that border migrates north to the lakes we all have our eyes upon. Although small variation can occur with that rate based on local weather conditions, it is sort of like stopping or starting a train so those variations will be minor.
Trip Planning » Spring Trout fishing route? » 4/05/2016 6:37 am |
I'd recommend getting a copy of Stephen Molson's depth maps here:
Many of the lakes you plan to travel through are included...as well as his nearly expert guidance on how to fish for char.
I think the string between Head and Bonnechere will likely be the most productive although some of them are lake trout only and no specks. Four days of pretty intensive fishing should get you on some trout - I'd work the deeper shorelines or submerged points - the fish should be quite shallow at that time of year so between 5' and 10' deep would probably be the most productive...but you never know. Zig-zag as you troll to cover more water and use a relatively slow troll - we've found that just having the stern man paddle and allow the bow man to cast towards shore or in front of the canoe with a spoon or rapala can produce results.
Most importantly, fish the first couple hours of light and the last couple hours of light. We've accomplished this by base-camping and doing day trips but you can do it in traveling mode by fishing early, come back and break camp and then troll/spot fish your way to the next camp. Set up in the afternoon when fishing is slow, eat an early dinner and then get out on the water an hour or two before sunset. Don't pass up any creeks that empty into the lakes as well...these are often areas where food sources are more varied and plentiful.
Final recommendation is to pinch the barbs on your hooks with needle-nosed pliers and practice catch and release whenever possible. Best of luck and be sure to post some pictures on your return!
Trip Planning » Tim River Questions/Trip suggestions » 3/18/2016 2:37 pm |
The various rivers of the interior typically offer the highest number of trout caught per rod-hour of time fished. You will generally find the smaller rivers hold smaller trout and as the river grows in size, the biomass will support larger trout. So as you get towards the geographic center of the park the Nipissing, Tim, Crow and Petawawa can hold a fair number of fish, some of them of good sized. The Tim might be the exception to this...I've not traveled it upstream of Shippagew but I expect that the fish in there are somewhat smaller since the "river" appears more to be a "stream".
To compensate for "small" fish, we normally fish with ultralight tackle - if you do luck into a lake trout it makes for a great battle and the small 10" trout put up a respectable fight with 4 lb. test and a spinner, small tube jig or tiny stick bait. The other benefit of ultralight...they are small, compact and lightweight to portage so every bit of your fishing tackle takes on a portage-friendly characteristic.
The lakes require patience, skill and luck to hit trout. Some days are good, others challenging. We've found our best luck around dusk and dawn...which often fits in well to tripping timing. Fish at first light, return to break camp, travel and troll (with occasional casts at "hot" looking spots), make camp, have dinner and head out to fish again. The warmer the water, the deeper you need to fish. April/May - usually within 3-10' of the surface, July/August - as deep as 15-40' may be required. Also, use your observation of above-water terrain that might indicate submerged terrain...so a peninsula that projects out into the lake likely continues further underwater and could be a good point to troll over or cast/jig around since trout will come to the structure that attracts bait fish.
We use all barbless (pinch the barbs down with needle-nosed pliers) and release at least 90% of the trout we catch; also, handle the fish with a wet hand and avoid removing th
Trip Planning » Lake Travers or other suggestions » 2/25/2016 7:23 am |
I'd suggest a new bunch of friends or a solo trip. I know it's not much help and is somewhat of a tongue-in-cheek response, but life is too short to be making concessions on what could be experiences of a lifetime and turn into a weekend of meh.
Equipment » Camping tools » 2/24/2016 7:09 am |
Multi-tool use? Primarily the smooth knife for foods; scalloped blade for cutting rope or small branches; pliers for a variety of uses including repairs (crimping metal), pulling out super tight knots, or like tweezers; scissors for trimming/cutting; saw blade for cutting wood up to about 5 cm in diameter, file for filing fingernails or removing a metal burr, screwdriver blade for prying or scraping. 95% of usage is blades, 4% is pliers, other elements when rarely needed make up the other 1%.
When living on our farm, it was a terrifically convenient and handy tool to have on my belt nearly all the time. Use while camping is somewhat limited but those pliers can grab and pinch almost anything - I usually have a small length of 14 gauge wire in my repair kit and the pliers are great at using the wire like an ultra heavy-duty twisty tie.
Trip Planning » Car Shuttle Between Access Points » 2/23/2016 2:10 pm |
If it were me, I'd probably hitchhike with a paddle in my hand so that anyone would know I'm trying to get back to my canoe and we have a pretty solid fraternity when it comes to paddlers looking out for one another. I know my dad used to do this when he and I would do float trips along the Susquehanna River as a kid...he'd walk up to the highway with a paddle in hand and leave me with the canoe and gear. Was usually back within a half hour. Of course, those were simpler times some thirty-five years ago and I wouldn't recommend a single female undertake such a venture. But I think you are in relatively safe territory on the highways and byways around Algonquin's perimeter. Maybe a good way to meet a tripping partner as well!
Equipment » Camping tools » 2/23/2016 7:08 am |
Wow! I take a multi-tool with a knife blade included in it and a folding saw. Something as heavy as a hatchet has never passed the scrutiny for its value vs. the weight. Even in damp, windy, cold, snow spring conditions I have never found dry firewood difficult to locate. I could see bringing a small, lightweight knife dedicated for kitchen duty but those others appear to be more than I would prefer to carry.
Campsite Cooking » Back Country Bread » 2/05/2016 7:54 am |
While we have done bannock in the past and it is a great treat and experience, we generally settle on hard rolls of the multi-grain or similar varieties available in the bakery of most grocery stores. These are typically football shaped or rounded and they really hold up well in the pack = they take a beating and are none the worse for wear. They can be sliced and toasted, torn and used as dipping tools or spread with peanut butter and drizzled with honey.
The real benefit is that they are plainly quite filling. One of these 10-15 cm rolls is easily enough for a filling lunch (assuming you throw some protein on it of sausage, peanut butter, cheese or something else) and is almost big enough to share with a tripping partner.
Experiment...figure out what you like. That's what we've done and landed on this conclusion but it might not fit all tastes or tripping styles.
Trip Planning » Barron Canyon TrIp - camp at achray or an interior lake? » 1/20/2016 3:38 pm |
It's a fairly level walk over to Cork from Opalescent and both sites there have positive features. You'll also be on a very quiet lake with a good bass population. Sure, it's an extra portage from all your planned activities but most of that travel on day trips will be very light.
Fishing » Perch Lakes in Algonquin Park » 10/30/2015 6:48 am |
We've caught some nice sized Yellow Perch in Lavieille. I concur about the quality of their meat - one of my favorite freshwater species to eat. Light, flaky morsels that can be cooked in a variety of ways and take seasoning well also.
Where In Algonquin? » Where in Algonquin 11.1 » 10/26/2015 1:24 pm |
Lavieille?
Wildlife » Fall behavioural changes - Algonquin Wildlife? » 9/22/2015 4:08 pm |
By no means would I recommend using any immitation or call during the rut with Moose. A bull bugle may attract a dominant adult bull intent on defending his turf with raw aggression. A cow call may attract a hormone-filled bull looking to mate. In either case, to be on the receiving end of such a visitor would be a situation I would recommend you avoid. Moose are faster than you on land and in the water and should be given a wide berth - especially this time of year.
In fact, I would recommend making noise when in confined areas such as a winding river or a portage; moreso to alert any potential Moose in the area of your presence (and, hopefully, they will realize you are not a threat or a love interest).
I have a much lower level of concern with Black Bears. The behavior of Black Bears in the Autumn is quite similar to summer months - they are actively trying to consume as much food as possible to bulk up for their long nap ahead. The only difference might be that they are combing the woods for protein-rich nuts instead of the summertime visits to the berry patches that have now been picked over by a variety of wildlife.
Test Forum » Test Post » 9/04/2015 7:07 am |
and one more so I can private message