I’ve had both Humminbird and Lowrance. I’m going to stick with Humminbird from now on. I love my 898 bird. And am currently trying to work out some issues with one of my humminbird products…and have found nothing but trouble when dealing with their customer service reps. Just my two cents.

JD

Anybody have a Navionics Canada chip that they are looking to sell?

All the legal issues should not be a problem (at least not for me). I’m squeeky clean (just never got caught ).

What about leeches? I’ve heard leeches up in canada are poor quality and that I should try to bring my own…but the regs say you can NOT bring leeches across the boarder. Any comments?

How about mapping? I run a Humminbird and was thinking about trying to find someone to borrow me their Navionics chip…is it worth it up there, or is it not worth it? I know Northern Light is on the Navionics chip but don’t know if the detail is worth it.

As always, thanks guys.

JD

Eggs in a peanut butter jar?!? Great tip. Thanks to everyone else as well. We are driving up (6hr drive). Packing room is not a issue. And I’m not sure where we are crossing over…I’m following the lead car up.

Keep them coming guys. I love the advise. It’s going to be a great trip!!

JD

My best female’s name is Moxie. ‘Mox’ for short. Look up the definition and see if it fits your dogs style.

Wow! That should be easy! I’ll give it a shot. Thanks.

JD

I bought the latest LakeMaster chip and used for 2 weeks up on the flowage earlier this year (when the water was lower). I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t ripped my lower unit off in previous years. Spots that I had previous cruised right over turned out to be 3ft (And they were in the middle of no where). A lot of those spots also produced fish!

My two cents is that it would be worth it…if you are a routine visitor to the Chip. I know next summer I’m heading to Lake of the Woods and am struggling to decide of the extra chip is worth the price (I don’t anticipate going back yearly).

Good luck.

JD

I fish both every year. Wissota is close to Eau Claire so “running into town” for shopping or dining out is easier. Quite a bit of recreational traffic on the lake. But it also supports a good walleye population. Most of the shore line is inhabited with cabins and houses.

The Chip Flowage is just the opposite. It’s 20+ minutes to Hayward from most locations and Hayward isn’t exactly a metropolis. Very few houses and cabins on the flowage. The scenery is 2nd to none. It has a very “Canadian” feel to it. You can spend a lifetime on the Chip and never fish all of the potential ‘hot spots.’ Very little recreational traffic. On any given day, you can catch 4 to 5 different species of fish.

My two cents…Nothing beats the Chippewa Flowage!

Good luck.

JD

I’m having a similar problem, however my unit shows great clarity on the left side and a similar image to yours on the right side. I’m guessing I have to move the transducer (its mounted to the port side of my motor). Someone told me that I have to tilt the transducer more towards the right side, however when I get a couple of guys to sit on my starboard side, the image doesn’t improve…thus I’m left to believe the motor is interfering with the sonar.

Either way, I’ll be watching the responses to your post in hopes of finding a solution to my problem. I’m heading up to the Chip Flowage for a couple weeks tomorrow morning. If I figure anything out, I’ll let you know.

And for the record, I agree w/ the previous post. I like to keep my distance from 75-100 feet when looking for structure or weedlines.

Good luck.

JD

Thanks everyone! As always, I appreciate the advise. Now I have to find time to get on the water.

Tight lines.
JD

I’m glad to hear you liked your unit. I just put one on my boat after seeing Jason’s webcast. I can’t wait to get the boat back in the water and see the ‘whole picture.’

Keep up the good work!

Total= 21.1

Big Fish= 7.4

Thanks to everyone that spent the day last Sat. fishing in the Chetek tourn. Needless to say, it was a big hit. The organizers from ECFD were hoping for 500 participants, but got over 1500 registered fishermen; with many other just out to enjoy the day. They eclipsed their goal of 25K with a whomping total of just over $45,000. All the money is going directly to the grieving families. The weather helped quite a bit, but the large turn-out in addition to the generosity of WI outdoorsmen made the tourn a success. The winning pike registered in at 38 inches and over 18lbs. Thanks again to everyone.

JD

There are limitations to what lakes are can be fished, but off the top of my head I can’t say for sure. I know they listed 3 different lakes. I’m sure all the rules will be spelled out at registration…which starts at 8am by the way. The guys running the contest are still getting in more prizes daily. I think they are going to hold a few one item raffles during the day for some more expensive prizes they acquired after the printing of the previously mentioned raffle tickets. I know they got a vexilar that they are planning raffling by itself. Latest rumor was they got a autographed guitar from Uncle Teddy Nuegant, but I can’t confirm that…at this point, its just rumor. Either way, if the weather cooperates it should be a good showing with many of opportunities to take away great door prizes. A guy just told as I was typing this that they have two very large wheelbarrels with dozens and dozens liquor bottles donated. The wheelbarrows will be given away as door prizes. If your number is called your get the wheelbarrow and all, just wheel it away…then call in sick to work, cause your going to have to throw a party.

I just heard that the guys running contest are still getting more prizes not previously mentioned in every day. The latest is a new vexilar that will be either added to the prize shack or raffled off by itself the day of the contest. If thats the case, your odds would be best to be at the contest to fish since it sounds like they might have big dollar items individually auctioned off. A non-confirmed rumor is that they are getting an autographed guitar from Ted Nuegant. I’ll confirm as I hear more. Anymmore questions ask away.

Its actually a chain of lakes. The main lake is called Chetek. There are 4 other lakes that link up with Chetek, but the contest head quarters are going to be located just outside a bar in Downtown Chetek,WI called Gilligan’s. The contest runs from 9am to 3pm with the big drawing at 4pm. The guys running it are literally getting hundreds of $ worth of prizes daily right now. Most of which will probably be given away as door prizes. The big prizes mentioned before will be raffled off and those raffle tickets can be purchased the day of the contest or ahead of time from Gilligans Bar or any Eau Claire Fire Station. It sounds like there going to have a good turn out. Now all we need is good weather. FYI: guys having been posting catches of Crappies from Chetek Lake in the 14inch plus catagory lately. Good luck.

Altoona is hit or miss. The best spot is the North Eastern sand flat. Walleye and decent perch roam the flat for dinner. I’ve had my best luck trolling to cover the most groud. It sounds like they are going to lower the panfish limit to 15 next year which should really help the number. Right now too many guys are keeping the 7-8 inch perch. Good luck

JD

Hey BigPike. I’ve heard great reports from some of the locals this past week. I’m headed out tomorrow to see if I can’t get in on some of the action. Thanks for the great report. I’ll let you know how I faired. I assume you were using leeches for the Eye’s but what was the ticket for crappies??? Plastics?? Minnows??? Thanks and good luck.

JD

IF…and I repeat if the turkeys cooperate and I’m out of the woods by Sat, I’ll be splitting my day between Tainter and Wissota. In the past the Ol’ Miss has been my opening day destination, but I figure this year I’ll see what the lakes are giving up…not to mention its a 10 minute drive. Good luck to all…1 week and counting

Your seeing guys fishing for walleye primarely. Just off the golf coarse which is just west of there is another hot spot. But most of Wissota’s fishing pressure is seen up towards the yellow river over by the state park. Hope this helps.. Good luck.

JD

Not the best of days today. I heard of a few limits yesterday, but today seemed tough. We did manage a few nice sauger between 18-20″, but no consistancy. It seemed like fish were being hauled out left and right when the sun was out, but as soon as the wind pick up and clouds set in, I never saw another catch. Best results came from chart twister tails. Hopefully the warm weather this week produces some good results. I took off work, so Murphy’s Law says the fishing will stink. Congrads to the guys that landed the 20lb Catfish. What a pig!

JD

Thanks Jack. I found the one above the river the hard way yesterday. Thank goodness I was on a drift. Just below where the river dumps in had a bunch of turbulant water. Is that a 2nd wingdam, or is that just current merging. I did manage 4 keepers…for my first time out there, I’ll take it. Thanks again.

JD

Thanks guys. I’ve got a spool of both Hi-Vis and Fireline all ready to go. I plan on experimenting w/ both. Thurs will be my first Pool 4 fishing trip. If the weather cooperates, I’m expecting a great time. Thanks again to all of you who share your expertise. I’ve read almost every article on here to the point that my wife thinks I’m nuts. Who knows, maybe I’ll get lucky and land a few fish. Thanks again.

Quick question for…I’m headed out for my first Miss fishing trip on Thurs. What color jig head works best w/ the purple twister, or doesn’t it matter much. Thanks for any help.

Good luck Weds. I’m planning an all day outing on Thurs. It will be my first time on Pool 4. Needless to say, I’m looking forward to it. Drop a line back and give a report. Any tips on what you’d recommend would be great. Good luck.

I’m glad to hear your take on the LX-3. I bought one this winter and have loved it on the ice, but was wondering how it would perform on the open water. Any tricks I should keep in mind??? Looking forward to getting out and putting dinner on the table.

Man…I wish. I’m a full-time firefighter and am scheduled to pull a 72hr shift, otherwise I’d be there. This website has got me itching to get on the water and test all my new gear. I’ll keep a close watch on this board since my boat needs some TLC before I fire it up. Good luck this week.

Jeff, There is little one can say that will ease your pain. I work in a line of duty that surrounds me with death and suffering on a weekly basis. My experience has taught me that no two people handle it the same. Keeping trust in your faith may be difficult at this time, but it is that same faith that will see you through. Surround yourself with family and friends for they will serve as your strength when you have none left. Even if you don’t feel its necessary, I’d strongly suggest talking with others who have traveled the road your currently walking. You’d be suprised how many people out there are waiting to serve as a moral crutch. Be assured that prayers for Cory are raining down on heaven from all of us. Like others here, I’ll always have a lending ear. Best wishes and God Bless.

Lots of info here, but make sure you’ve got some coffee close by to get through some of the early fluff. In any regards, good info that taught me a lot. Thanks and keep the great articles coming.

JD

Wow, what a great video! Between the reading on this website and watching the video, I’m gaining more confidence each day. One question though. I got a decent map of pool 4 and don’t see any wingdams marked up near Everts Resort. The only wingdams the maps shows is down my Wabasha. Are there more wingdams up by Red Wing that I should search out, or are they primarly south? My map shows strictly Rip Rap up hear the Lock. Thanks again for your expertise.

JD