Pete Collin

Hello All, I am pleased to say that both the main motor and the kicker started up and ran perfectly today. I had to don chest waders to launch, and by the time I got back, the docks were put in. Now that's what I call service! Went many hours without a strike. I am new to the "shallow spring browns" game, and wondered what I was doing wrong. I kept reminding myself that, in LO, you are always one 10 pound fish away from having a great day. At least it was enjoyable watching the huge flights of migrating waterfowl. One of these days I am going to learn all the different species of duck. There are always ones on LO that I don't see inland. First strike came around 11:00. Then I had about a 2 hour spree of getting many hits. I landed 7 fish. All browns except for a big 29 inch laker. The last fish was a treat. Smashing strike on my outside planer board, follwed by a run. Big silvery jump, made me wonder if I hooked a salmon. Played him carefully and landed a 28 inch male brownie - biggest I ever caught from a boat. Then it got cold and a breeze kicked up. So I quit around 3:00. So great to be fishing again. i guess you all can imagine! Pete Collin www.pcforestry.com

William, I am a consulting forester, not a logger. The whole saga surrounding my friend's boat is predicated by the fact that I really can't afford a big boat. Not without marital repercussions! Pete

http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/outposts/post/enormous-lake-trout-far-heavier-than-world-record-but-theres-a-serious-snag/

Hello All, Some of you may remember a post I made about a firend with a nice 21 foot Penn Yan that he never used. I was pondering whether to approach him with the proposition that if he left the boat in my care, I would keep it in good repair and street legal, and let him know when the bite was on. At first I had doubts about doing something like that (which we discussed on this board), but the purchase of a V8 truck and the fact that red oak markets are very good right now made me pull the trigger and approach him. He liked the idea. that was a couple of months ago, since which time I had visions of a wonderful summer spent up on Lake Ontario, trolling and jigging without being as worried about or limited by the weather in my little 16 footer. this would be the summer that I really give myself a case of fishermen's tennis elbow! So i went to visit the boat where he keeps it parked (outside) to see what things it will need. It was covered with snow and ice and was hard to examine. But the blanket of white couldn't conceal the glaring fact that the duellie trailer has been in a bad crash. One side of the wishbone frame was hit and stove in about 2 feet from the tongue. the tongue itself is bent about 25 degrees out of whack. I just felt this big sinking feeling. i don't even know if you could tow it the way it is, in order to bring it to a launch to float it off the old trailer should you buy a new one. With 2 flat tires, you'd need to buy tires just to get it off the old trailer! My friend gave me a budget as to what he'd be willing to spend to get the boat running again (don't think it has been started in 6 years or so), but a new trailer would exhaust that. The way things are, i don't know if I would take it if he gave the boat to me. What a shame. i rode this boat a few times years ago on Lake Erie, and it is a very nice craft. if I had approached him 6 years ago, the boat would be ship shape today. The only fate i see for this once fine boat is to sit under the sun until the fiberglass delaminates. Gonna have to be happy with my humble little 16 footer! Think Spring You All, Pete Collin www.pcforestry.com

In this post, it's not clear what you are asking money for. What is a "lift project"?

I have been a forester for 24 years and never had a problem with them. For many of those years, I had a dog with me. That will cut down on your wildlife sightings in general! but there have been quite a few times where I would catch a doglike shape out of the corner of my eye, call for my pooch, then get annoyed that he didn't come right away. The coyote would get unnerved by my shouting and take off, sometimes with my dog behind it. I am a large man and doubt that a coyote would have the nerve to come after me. The one time I got a little nervous was one March morning I found the remains of a yearling deer that got eaten the night before. From the tracks you could tell that several coyotes were involved in its capture. the thing was that there was not a scrap of flesh left on the carcass. Those critters were hungry. Maybe they had room for more. That's the only time I ever worked in the woods in NY while looking over my shoulder every so often.

Keep'n, You're killing me! We quit precicely when we drove into the south area with all the fish!

I've always said that you're too close if you could shoot a clay pigeon tossed from the other boat.

Thanks for all the help guys. I bought a new axle and put it in myself. We'll see how this one works. Was a bit annoyed that I also had to buy new hubs. The old ones didn't fit. you'd think something like that would be standardized. Pete

Hello All, Been a while since I've gotten out. Had my trailer all fixed up with fresh wiring and a new axle that hopefully won't chew up my tires anymore. There was a forecast of nice flat calm conditions so I was up at 4:00 AM for a trip. Was pulling out of the garage and discovered that the lights weren't working. No way am i going to drive an hour and a half in the dark without lights. So I fiddled and poked all morning with the trailer, eventually pulling out the entire harness that I so painstakingly strung through the frame. What I discovered that the ground connection, which is attached to the tongue, wasn't reaching the rear part. Either the rust or the coating on the tongue kept there from being a good connection with the rest of the frame. Took me all morning to figure that out. Joined front and back with a short piece of wire, and everything was glowing again. I launched at 1:30 PM. Bright and sunny - not best conditions of a good bite but at least it was calm enough for me to get out there. What is it with the wind often coming out of the exact opposite direction as forecast? I was expecting outgoing winds, but the breeze came from the NE, with some 2 foot rollers. Plenty safe for small craft, but a very bouncy ride and tough steering for trolling. Ran a shallow program, seeing plenty of marks from 20-50 FOW. No hits. I wanted to check on the lakers to see if they were where I left them. Went out to 100 FOW, and there they were on the bottom just like before. Trolled and jigged for a few hours, catching one and losing one. For the last hour of daylight I wanted to run shallow again, trying for a king or brown. With 2 lead cores and one downrigger, I worked from 30 - 50 foot depths. I could see marks peeling off the bottom to look at the rigger ball, so I was poised for something to happen. The rigger fired, and I fought both the fish and the steering wheel as I fan into the wind. It looked like a fat brown, and I patted myself on the back as I went to net what turned out to be a great big sheepshead! Oh well. I was expecting to see kings jumping at sundown the way I had seen them do out in the lake before. Nothing happened. The surface temp was 67 degrees. Looks like that wind blew in some warm water. I pondered trolling past sundown, but it was enough of a struggle trolling by myself by daylight! So i bagged it and wove my way through the pier fishermen on the way out. Not a great trip, but at least I got to play with my boat. Pete Collin www.pcforestry.com

Thanks for all the advice everyone. I hope to have a new one reinstalled before it gets too cold and/or I chew through another set of tires!

Both tires wear on the inside. Like what you would expect if the axle were bowed. The leaf springs bolt sits in a hole in the axle. You couldn't mount it any other way.

Hello all, I think I have to replace my trailer axle after chewing up several tires. Tried flopping the thing but it didn't help. Before I order anther I wonder. It has a square cross section. Is that a standard size? I'd like to mount the new one with the same brackets. What kind of factor of safety should I go by? If the boat is 1500 pounds, how heavy rated an axle should I buy? Am I better off mail ordering one or just go to silver lake marine? Pete Collin Www.pcforestry.com

Hello All, I have a question about salmon in the weeks to come. If I am jigging for them in a place where others are trolling, will that mess things up for everybody? Also, do lakers remain at roughly the same depths in the early fall? I can escape the salmon fleet by targeting lakers, presumably. I never trolled the big lake in sept and don't know what to expect.

Toughluck, no, I work in western NY.

Al, If you click on my name, it will take you to my profile. From there, you click on "find content" and that will show you all my posts from this summer. Pete www.pcforestry.com