Priority1

Tom, Thanks for the report. I have been hearing some good things about Linwood and the BC State Park. Be careful out there.

My face is too ugly for facebook. I had some requests before but never felt the urge to join.

Mother Nature can paint some beautiful pictures.

GJ Theresa and Ken. Thanks for sharing the video.

Microsoft had it's share of Loser operating systems. About 10 years ago it was windows ME. I think W98 was one of their best. XP was OK but it was a real memory hog especially for some of the older P3 systems. Kyle, SeaClear 2 is supposed to be compatible with VIsta. The DVD comes with the NOAA charts and SeaClear on it. Downloading the free charts and putting them into SeaCLear can be a PITA. This program has it ready to rock for $17. It's not worth trying to D I Y. I downloaded SeaClear 2 just to familiarize myself with it. This DVD can run the program from a DVD ROM drive or it can be loaded to your HDD. I'll only load the half a dozen or so charts that I will be using. As you navigate through one area, it will switch charts automatically. SeaClear does show SOG COG position, as well as store thousands of way points. Jim that set up you have sounds cool. If this pans out I'll get a refurbished military spec Panasonic Toughbook. Here is a eBay link. It does show some screen shots. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330340471412&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWNX%3AIT The red area in the upper right corner shows that the position is not locked. The same area will show coordinates as well as SOG COG etc.

I just received a GlobalSat BU-353 USB GSP Navigation Receiver. The cost was $37 total. This GPS receiver is about the size of a pocket watch with a 5 ft. USB cable attached. I have a free program called SeaClear running with it. I should have a DVD with all the NOAA charts in a day or two. The charts and software DVD is $17 total. I'm running this little gem on my PC, in the basement of my story and a half house. It didn't take long to lock on, and hasn't lost signal in two hrs time. It does show it's position on the rough SeaClear map. I'll post a screen shot after I get my NOAA charts. Technology is amazing. I'm not sure it will make it to my boat yet, but so far I'm impressed. Testing 1-2-3. From what I have read this set up will meet the Coast Guard requirements for charts, on Charter Boats and other commercial vessels.

None of the above, but voted Flasher Fly. A fly is not too much different than a squid.

Jeff, Nice pic. The big lake is beautiful, any time of the year.

Doug, She's a beauty. Those Penn Yans are a quality boat.

GJ Terry and Phil. They are the best out of ice cold water.

I wish I could have been there. A thief doesn't care where he is, or whom he steals from. Hopefully he will repent, and be forgiven.

Mike, A warm welcome to you. I fish mostly out of AuGres on the Saginaw Bay. You will like it here. Just holler if you need any help. I'm looking forward to reading your reports.

There was an 840 on my boat when I bought it. You will get a lot of opinions on what unit is the best. If you are still setting up, and need other gear, I'd postpone getting one. They are a handy tool but not required to catch fish. Your Sonar F/F will show you where the fish are. The bend in your Dipsy rods, and downrigger blow back will tell you if your speed is in the ball park. It's good to learn the old fashioned way, before going high tech. It's nice to know where the the thermocline is but if you ask someone will probably tell you. I like the new Fish Hawk.

Normally there may be some natural voltage between the rigger cable, in the water, and the boats ground. You have a major problem if it's 9.6 V. Boat wiring is completely different than Auto wiring. A boats hull should NEVER be used to complete an electrical circuit. This means that a positive and negative wire must be run to all electrical devices. Electrical shorts can occur, from worn insulation screws run through wires etc.

GJ. I miss jumping on brush piles.

Mike, Let me be the first to Welcome you to the GLF site. I know you will like it here. I don't fish for salmon as much as I used to, but our Dipsy setups most always produced. There will be a ton of great advice from our Salmon experts. Don't be afraid to experiment. Fishing with other productive fishermen, is the best way to shorten the learning curve. Take the information and fine tune it to your setup. It's as simple as, "Finding out what they want and giving them lots of it". With salmon it definitely can be your Total presentation. Most fishermen like to run the horizontal, and vertical V Patern. Again Welcome aboard.

Priority1 will get splashed in April. Early fishing is hit and miss, with a lot of bad weather. Mid May is usually when we start to put the hammer down. June is fabulous. The last couple of Summers were cool, and it kept the fish in the inner bay all Summer.

Probably trained by the poacher.

Good Luck Paul and Jeff.

GJ Adam. Those bonus whitefish are as good as the walleye. Gotta Luv Dat Bay.

Bob, Come on down this Spring or Summer for some walleye whacking. Ice fishing would be tough for me to do. I seem to do a lot better in the warmer weather with a boat under my butt. Walking on any uneven terrain, gives me problems.

I can't say enough about John W and the Big Jon Company. They will go the extra mile to help.

Tom, Thanks for the report. I'm glad you were able to get out there.

Bob, Very nice trophies.

Ken, A warm welcome to the GLF site. You will like it here. Holler if you need any help.