FJK

I should mention I speared Big Lake three weeks ago, clear water, no northerns, but had fun catching sunnies. Last year tried George and Fish with unremarkable results.

I spent the day on Clearwater, unfortunately, the water was much murkier than I'd prefer. No fish were seen. I've speared a few different lakes in the surrounding metro area since moving here. I live in Champlin, any suggestions for lakes within 30-45 minutes with better clarity? Thanks

Thanks for the input, I agree with everything you stated, well put. I was also at the Blaine expo and checked them all out. I'm going with the thermal otter cabin, very nice hose! Looking forward to something more reliable.. i fished out of an eskimo insulated fatfish last year. Seemed as though each time i took it out something broke, ripped, etc to the point where i couldn't use it by the end of the year.

I went to Cabela's yesterday to compare the otter lodge and the similar size clam. After going back and forth, back and forth between the two.. the sales associate suggested checking out the frabill. I had my mind set on an otter or clam but must admit I liked the frabill predator best of all three. I would have bought one but I wanted to stop at canvas craft as well. To my disappointment they had no display models available to look at. I've heard good things about cc and like the idea of supporting a local business but not being able to show me a fish house in the middle of November was a big turn off. They said they would have them out in two or three weeks.. bad business in my opinion. Anyhow, probably going with frabill.. now i need to decide between insulated or non. I can't say I've ever been cold in a house w a heater and I'm not concerned w the cost difference. Everyone seems to be "thermal" happy.. I'm curious if anyone doesn't care for the thermal and why?

I've been using Tri-Tronics for 15+ years, currently have a ten year old "upland special", great unit, no problems at all other than having to replace the batteries once. I'm looking at getting another dog and would like the ability to run more than one off the same transmitter. Thus, I've been doing some research on collars lately and I'll be going with Tri-Tronics or the Dogtra.. both units have some nice features. I really wish after ten years, Tri-Tronics would've found a way to reduce the size,(more than they have) of both the transmitter and receiver.

Fcspringer, I'm pro hunting/trapping. To me, "under" water as you stated is entirely different than half way out of the water. Especially when my VC gwp, whom I've spent countless hours and thousands of dollars training, is trudging around the swamp for whatever catches his attention. A dog with any sort of nose is going to be attracted to scents trappers use. When I'm running the dogs I see traps regularly, probably because I know where to look for them. Over the years I've released my dog on three occasions from the leg hold type traps set for mink and rats, not a big deal. Heck, I even once caught the family dog growing up in a trap I set. However, the 330's are a different story, they are absolutely something to be concerned about. By law, i feel they should be completely underwater with a pole running over the top. Just my opinion, take it or leave it. Oh, by the way, beaver season does run until April 30th, p39 of the regulations. And the Dnr does trap problem beaver year round. I'm now moving on, done with this topic.

Sorry, you are correct. I wasn't quoting facts when I said I "believe" the traps needs to be 3/4 submerged, it has been 30 years since I trapped to help pay for college. If you refer to p45 of the MN hunting/trapping regulations these traps need to be only 1/2 submerged. Perhaps you may also need to brush up on your regulations. Your comment about the "real truth" is absolutely absurd. Anyone possibly loosing their dog in one of these traps would be a terrible tragedy. You know as well as i do, that the 330 conibear is a very dangerous trap. With that said, I still support safe and responsible trapping practices.

The ones you need to worry about are the 330 Conibear traps, they have a 10" x 10" opening and are used primarily for beavers. By law, I believe they're supposed to be 3/4 submerged in water. "Most" trappers abide by the law, the problem is, water levels can fluctuate drastically in a short period of time; ex a beaver dam is opened or blown open, thus leaving these deadly traps completely out of the water. They are not easily seen, but they are generally set in areas where beavers are, which is pretty much near any water source, especially in the spring. If you do see one out of the water, set it off by throwing a stick against the trigger. I trapped as a teenager and placed them in beaver runs going into a house, runs leading towards food sources on higher land, near dams, culverts, etc. Unfortunately, if your dog gets into one of these, it's most likely game over very quickly, as they can kill a 65 lb beaver in the blink of an eye. Check out the conibear HSOforum for instructions. Basically, you need to compress each of the two springs and hook them closed with the safety latch attached to the spring. They are normally set with a scissor type tool because of the difficulty doing so by hand, in a jamb you would hold it up and compress the spring by foot. Hope this helps.

Give caribou a try.. I always had good luck there, back when I lived in Duluth.

I have the ff 949i. Works fairly well if its not windy, plenty of space, does leak some light. Mine is being replaced, every time I use it lately something new falls apart. Sounds like they are having some issues. Think I'm going to spend some money and go with a canvas craft flip over...

As do I, extraordinary dog.. what breeding?

It's probably going back to Joe's next week.. hopefully they will return it without hassel. I was thinking about just dealing with it until next year with hopes Eskimo puts out a better quality product, but that's not going to help me now. Did you pick up something new? If so, do you like it?

Jeff Paulus, Thunderhill Kennels, WI. He breeds some of the nicest gwp's in the country. [Please read forum rules]

Bought the Eskimo 949i in early December. Took it out of the box.. shoulder straps ripped right off the bag. Opened it up in the garage, very easy to set up.. immediately noticed a seam in the roof coming apart. Eskimo had since sold out of this model completely.. they agreed to replace it when the new ones come out next year, I was fine with that. Since then, each time I've used it I have had new problems.. the sewn pocket in one corner that recieves the poles has torn completely off and a couple days ago the hub on one of the wall has broken. At this point, the tent is becoming unusable for the rest of the season unless I start making repairs. I'm very disappointed in the quality of what appeared to be a great shelter.