Outdoors Ontario

Need or want a walking stick?
The next time you go out to your woodlot; don’t cut one out of your favorite park or off private property. Look around for a small sapling that has been damaged from snow press, you will notice that at the base of the sapling snow has caused the trunk of the sapling to bend. This creates a natural handle for a walking stick. If you look at the photo to the left you can see the natural handle, each stick is unique, no two sticks the same. The preferred time to harvest your potential stick is in March or early spring when the sap is flowing in the trees. This makes peeling simple and if you find a Black Cherry sapling it can be done with your fingers. Otherwise a draw knife available from Home Hardware or a jackknife will also get the job done. Once you have it peeled, let it dry for a couple of weeks;but not in direct sunlight as this can cause it to crack. Then sand either by hand or with an orbitable sander, first with 80 grit, then 120. Some people prefer the natural color of the wood or you can use a stain to get the color you prefer. Let the stain dry and then apply 3 or 4 coats of clear (outside) varethane; letting each coat dry for at least 24 hours. After each coat drys, sand lightly prior to applying the next coat. Be sure to wipe the walking stick with a cloth to remove dust prior to applying the varethane. You can then either put a brass end on the cane available from Lee Valley or dip it in a rubber compound available from Canadian Tire. This puts a kind of none slip end on the stick and protects it from water/snow/gravel. As you can see from the photo, the shapes and character from each stick is unique. So on your next walk get your son or daughter involved and make it a project you complete with them from beginning to end. Its something they will remember, and will probably use for years to come.

These maps are excellent for your GPS. Especially for a Garmin 60CSX. Check them out at http://www.toporider.com/topogpsONT.html They also carry maps for other regions and specified uses.

I just had a thought…..lol; thinking outside the box again, forgive me. Let’s look at the recent over inflated price of fuel in Ontario. Ok, the price of 1 litre of gas was $1.03 a day ago, today $1.09. We all know that when a holiday weekend approaches gas takes a jump up to $0.12 cents a litre, and most of the time is not a reflection of world prices, supply & demand or any other factual excuse. Who pays it every day; we do. Where does it go?……I’m not sure; waiting lines still at hospitals, crumbling infrastructure, cuts to transfer payments to municipalities, Ok to my point; ok let’s take $.01 cent from every over inflated litre of gas sold in Ontario………now let’s take that $.01 cent from the Provincial windfall collected daily. Now let’s just collect 1 years worth and put it into an account. What is your estimate of how much money would be sitting in that account? I’m fairly confident it would scare the crap out of all of us. Now imagine if that money was utilized to manage our Natural Resources…………It’s all about priorities………I’m just not sure what those pritorities are……are you?

Some of my most memorable moments while fishing were wading through thick cedar swamps in a pair of old sneakers, a pair of shorts, my favorite ball cap and some worms, a few flies and some small spinners in my vest. It’s truly amazing the size of fish you can find in a stream that disappears under log jams, or under vegetation. I’ve even had streams totally disappear and come upon them twenty or thirty feet away. What size of fish you ask……..well would you believe Browns in the 1 - 5 lb range in a stream no wider than 2 feet……specs in the 10 inch to 1 1/2 lb range. Most people drive by these types of streams thinking there couldn’t be fish in that ditch. I have fished streams in southwestern Ontario some of which lead into the Upper Thames River, branches of the Beatty Saugeen, small streams around Lake Huron, and quite a few around Lake Superior. If you really want to have a ball give it a try sometime. I have fished beaver ponds and small lakes and found unreal specs up to 3 lbs more than willing to snap the rod right out of my hand, I’ve had browns take a worm so hard, and pull so fast and with such force that I have snapped my ultra light in two …..not to mention that I wasn’t expecting that kind of a hit. Unreal moments, unreal fish, and memories……I can’t wait til spring………..!!!

This is a comical recollection regarding slot sizes. Ok, I’ve gone out and done it this time, I bought a ($3500) boat. Oh yeh I bought a motor ($1500) …and trailer ($1000) now for plates ($75) insurance ($250) , tackle, rods, fishfinder, net, oars, safety gear, floater jackets, fishing licence, cooler, gas for truck, docking fees, GPS, add another ($2500)You see where I’m going with this..well you will in a minute. I finally arrive at my destination, been waiting for weeks, launch the boat, go to a nice rock face and start trolling out from shore…….15 minutes first Lake Trout, perfect! Well wait a minute..it’s in the “Slot Size” can’t keep him, oh well maybe the next one…..back he goes. Ok I’m going to keep this brief, this goes on all day long, we catch measure and return to the lake over 15 Lake Trout. Do you think the Ministry knows that 99.9 % of all the fish in the Lake are within the slot size? Of course they do, will the slot size go up next year……of course it will…….does anyone keep fish in the slot size?……of course some people do……..do the majority of fish get taken through the ice when the Ministry isn’t going to be around checking……of course……Why when anglers contribute so much to the economy and to the resource will government not properly fund the Ministry Of Natural Resources, so that our Lakes and Rivers and our Natural Resources in general be managed properly. Come on, give me a break, I just contributed a lot of money to ensure, government got taxes and licencing, people were employed to manufacture what I bought………….this story has been witten a thousand times……when will government wake up……….probably after its too late, and everyone stops enjoying these sports, because there are no fish and even if you were lucky enough to catch one, you wouldn’t be allowed to keep it. Wake up government!

If you’re looking for a knife that holds an edge, looks good, feels good, excellent craftsmanship…….look no further. Ron Post creates some truly beautiful yet totally practical knives; whether for the avid wood carver, for your kitchen, unreal fileting knifes, folding knives……..check out his website http://www.postknives.com/ He usually goes to the Sportsman Show in Toronto and can sometimes be found at the Magnetewan Market during the months of July and August.