THE HARDWATER BITE AND MORE VINTAGE STUFF

    Winter is nearly licked here at home in south-central New Brunswick and by most accounts it's been what most would call a 'good winter'. The Grand Lake area usually gets its fair share of snow but we were spared this winter.The same can't be said for the northern half of the province where the snow is starting to add up,especially this past month.
    I often find the final weeks of winter rather boring because there really isn't much going on besides the ice fishing and coyote hunting.February is often a repeat of January in terms of outdoor activities and many sportsmen get a little 'shack happy' this time of year if they can't get out and get their outdoor fix. Ken and I and the rest of our crew try to stay busy during the winter months but if the weather doesn't co-operate,we hunker down and wait it out. Usually we have lots of gear that needs attention from season to season so that keeps us occupied during any down time over the winter.
    The ice fishing has been good this year,largely because of the easy access to all the lakes in the Four Lakes region. The light snow pack this year made it possible for many fishermen to use their bikes or four wheel drive trucks to reach the many coves and hot spots in the lakes around our area. The fishing tournaments held this year were also well attended,again because of the relatively good weather we've had this winter. If you ever get the chance to attend one of these tournaments,you won't be disappointed.There are usually some very good prizes and lots of cash for the winners. There are always some good sports around ready to lend a hand by drilling holes, supplying bait or just offering up some tips on getting into some fish.
    It's not just the lakes that have good fishing in our area. The lower Salmon River from Chipman down to Salmon Harbour has some great pickerel and perch fishing. I have also caught smelt and burbot in the lower reaches near the entrance to Grand Lake. The following photo shows a two man shack set up at the tunnels near McLeod's Park in Chipman.

 I really like the design of these shacks because they are inexpensive to build and are very lightweight. Just right for two fishermen with a small propane stove to keep the chill off. Two or three holes drilled inside and a few more on tip-ups outside and you've got the recipe for a great day out on the ice.

    Ken and I have a couple of two man shacks and a portable four man shack that we use,depending on where we are fishing and for what species. The following photo is a shot of the inside of Kens two man shack.

 As you can see from the photo,these shacks can be made quite comfortable with a couple of good chairs and a small propane stove. We usually use these shacks on Grand Lake because they are sturdy and able to stand the strong winds that blow up the lake sometimes during the winter. We usually use our portables on the river where there is more shelter from those cold winds that blow up the lake during January and February. The next photo shows some smelt taken from Dallas' four man shack.

    Sportsmen here in New Brunswick can look forward to seeing more small deer next fall because of the mild winter we had this year. Usually it's the young deer that take a beating when we have a winter with a heavy snow fall but it's also hard on the older bucks. Hopefully,some of the big bucks we were chasing last year will survive and grow even bigger by next fall.The following photo shows me at a rub made by a nice buck I hunted at the end of the season last fall. This buck wasn't killed so hopefully he will still be around the area so we can take another run at him.

    I have been picking up some very nice vintage hunting and fishing magazines this winter and I never tire from seeking these great magazines depicting bygone days afield. The first photo is appropriate for this time of year and shows an ice fisherman hoisting a nice pickerel from his hole. I like covers that depict some action and this one fits the bill nicely. I also try to get ones that display the date prominently. The next two magazines are both from 1940 and are quite similar in their design with both having a marsh and ducks for a background. What I found unusual about this is the magazines are from two different companies yet the similarities are striking. Was someone copying the other? As you can see,the similarity is hard to miss. Finally, I have a photo of a hanging candle holder depicting some ducks flying over a marsh. I would date this item to the late Fifties or early Sixties.

   

Although this months blog is rather short,I hope my readers enjoyed it and hopefully it provides a small respite from the rigors of our long New Brunswick winter.If any sport would like a day or a week out in the Grand Lake area,just send me an e-mail or give me a call to make your arrangements. This is Dale Bauer saying 'Happy Trails to You....Until we Meet Again'!

HUNTING DOGS,ICE FISHING AND VINTAGE OUTDOOR STUFF

    The big chill has finally settled in here at home on Salmon River and many sportsmen have hunkered down beside the fire,preparing to ride out the rest of the long winter months ahead. As far as New Brunswick winters go,this winter has been a pretty good one,in terms of temperatures and depth of the snow pack. For many of the hardier sports out there,the fun is just beginning now that the lake has about a foot of ice and there is just enough snow to run a sled.
    Jamie Urquhart,Kens nephew,has had his hands full this winter looking after a new litter of Golden Retrievers. Ken and Jamie decided to breed their two gun dogs,Maddie and Dixie,in hopes of establishing a good line of hunting Goldens to put to work on future hunts. They ended up with ten nice pups with both light and dark coats that should have the hunt in them.Both Maddie and Dixie are hunted on a regular basis and have proven themselves in the field. Ken and Jamie are asking $600. for their pups and if you are looking for Golden Retrievers with good conformation and strong hunting instincts,then please give me a call or shoot me an e-mail if anyone is interested in these pups. The following photo shows Dixie and the pups at three weeks of age.

 Golden Retrievers require a gentle hand when training because they are usually intelligent and eager to please so the trainer must control his or her emotions when training this breed in order to achieve success. In some show bloodlines of Golden Retrievers,the hunting instinct has been diminished because of the emphasis being put on conformation for the show ring rather than hunting ability for the field.Ken and Jamie went out of their way to acquire dogs whose parents were working hunting dogs and in working the parents of this litter,they are instilling that drive to hunt into the pups.Of course some pups will be better than others but with some encouragement at a very young age,these pups should all be eager to retrieve birds if properly introduced.One other comment I would like to make is to tell any would-be owners or trainers of this breed to make sure to introduce gun fire to this breed of dog very gently because of their high sensitivity and penchant for being easily startled. If the sound of the gun is associated with something positive,such as food for example,then the dog should respond to the sound of the gun going off in a positive manner.This is what the hunter wants to strive for if he wants a happy,productive hunting companion.

    The ice in Salmon River is at a depth of 12 in. in the coves and most of the main river down to Grand Lake. Most of the smaller lakes in the Four Lakes area are also at a similar depth,as is Grand Lake. This year the ice fishing started off a little slow because of mild weather and shallow ice but now that the ice has built up to a safe level some sports are getting out with their shacks to such places as Goat Island and Cox's Point. These two spots are popular year after year for such species as smelt and white fish but the catch usually includes burbot,yellow perch,land locked salmon and several other species that live in this habitat. The common theme between these two spots is structure.This structure draws smaller bait fish for food and protection and this in turn draws the more predatory fish that the ice fishermen are targeting. Most fishermen fishing out of permanent shacks will also put out a chum bait. Ken and I always use a chum bait at our shacks and we feel it increases fish activity around our fishing spot.

    The fishing has been very good on Grand Lake since the ice reached a safe depth and most of the shacks are reporting good catches of smelt and white fish. It seems the white fish have returned this year after last year when there was a noticeable difference in the catch numbers. All the sports I talked to thought this was a good thing since many of them will keep a fish or two for the pan. White fish have a nice delicate white meat that many find absolutely delicious,myself included. Not far behind white fish is the burbot or fresh water cod in terms of favourable flesh for eating.Traditionally,fishermen in this area will cube up fillets of bubot and make fish and chips with it. I can tell you from personal experience that this dish is mighty tasty! The burbot bite has been pretty good with most shacks catching at least a couple per day. The smelt fishermen are catching between six and twenty-five per day with some white fish mixed in as an incidental catch.Many years ago,when I first started ice fishing on Grand Lake with my uncles,we would always fry up a pan full of smelts in our shacks for lunch and wash it all down with copious amounts of our favorite beverage and a good time was had by all! The following photo is one taken from Cox's Point looking across toward Goat Island and Whur's Beach. Ken is checking burbot lines outside his two man shack at Cox's Point. On years with very little snow, like this year,it's easy to get on the ice at the lighthouse.If you click on the photo,you may be able to see some ice shacks off to the left that are located at Goat Island. As you can tell from this photo,there is miles of hard water to fish on Grand Lake that isn't being utilized. The next photo shows me with a nice smelt in the four man shack. This is a photo of my son Curt with a couple of nice yellow perch taken from one of the many coves and bays on the lower Salmon River.

    The pickerel bite has been very good so far this year on French Lake,Macquapit and Indian Lakes. There is usually some good perch fishing to go along with the pickerel fishing and the two species many times go hand in hand.Set lines with live minnows for the pickerel and hand lines for working the perch. This technique has made for many a good day ice fishing at any of the afore mentioned lakes. There are usually a couple of pickerel tournaments each winter with around fifty participants competing for a top prize of about $500. Smaller prizes are awarded for second,third and fourth place finishers. The winning fish are usually in the range of twenty-four inches,with an occasional one up to twenty-eight inches. The following photo shows me releasing a small pickerel taken from McLeod's Pond.

    The salmon fishing fraternity lost one of its most ardent members this past week with the passing of John Sharrock of Chipman. John loved to fish salmon and sea-run brook trout and he was a regular fixture at his spot under the Cains River bridge on Rt.123. He would set up his chair so he could rest between  casting sessions trying to intercept sea-trout in the spring or fall run salmon later in the fall and John caught his fair share of fish. Whenever I would meet John fishing under the bridge,I would always make it a point to ask him what fly he was fishing on that particular day and he would always respond with the same answer."Oh,I"m fishing the BLT" and I would respond"You mean an LT Special?" and he would say "Ya,you know,bacon lettuce and tomato!".John loved that fly and that is the fly he invariable used when fishing the Cains River. Johns high pitched,raspy voice hollering encouragement up and down the river will be missed by many.Rest in peace,John. The following photo shows John at his spot on the Cains River on one of his last outings before taking sick. 

    On a lighter note,this is the time of year when many people like to keep the bird feeders filled and get great pleasure watching the different species of birds visiting the feeders during the cold winter months.

 This photo shows some birds at my feeder in front of my house on Salmon River.I get a good variety of birds at my feeder such as goldfinches,sparrows ,chickadees,woodpeckers and the red and grey squirrels. On cold winter days,a bird feeder can provide many hours of enjoyment watching the antics of the visitors looking for a treat to carry them through the long New Brunswick winter. One visitor I particularly love to see is the pilated woodpecker. This large woodpecker must have mature trees in its habitat to supply it with the insects that make up this large birds diet and my place has lots of mature trees,so they are regular visitors,many times appearing as a pair,swooping from tree to tree in the constant hunt for food. Many times a birder will be alerted to its presence by its jungle-like call echoing through the forest.The call is quite unique and once you hear it,there is no mistaking the species making that loud  call that these birds make when communicating with each other. The next photo shows a pilated woodpecker on a large tree in my front yard.  Many sportsmen have been hunting coyotes with varying degrees of sucess in the Grand Lake area and across New Brunswick. We have found coyotes very hard to call in with any consistancy and most times we will set up a bait to watch,hoping their hunger and curiosity will get the better of them and cause them to come to the bait during daylight hours.Some hunters will call at a bait using howls and barks rather than prey calls. I had a close encounter with a large dog while sitting at the computer writing this blog. I heard a ski-doo out on the river and when I looked out I saw a coyote run up onto the island as the machine passed by. After the ski-doo carried on up the river,the coyote must have seen the duck decoy I have set up with its wings beating furiously in the afternoon wind.He immediately trotted across the ice towards the decoy but when he spotted the house he veered off and hit the shore and took off up a trail through the woods. If I had been a little more prepared,I wouldn't have had much of a problem to pick him off.That's the thing about coyotes,you have to be set up and ready to take the shot because they are quite shy and won't stand around too long if they sense anything wrong,especially the mature ones. Nova Scotia has implemented a bounty on coyotes and this seems to be working very well in knocking the coyote numbers down in that province. This system must be ongoing each year or else their numbers will rebound quickly. I can guarantee you,if you go after these critters every year,eventually their numbers will be low enough their impact on the deer herd will be negligible. This is what we should be striving for as sportsmen.We are never going to eliminate them but we can certainly manage their numbers to allow our deer herd to expand,especially in the northern half of the province.

Finally,I had mentioned in a previous blog about acquiring a magnificent painting done by the late Moses Weaver.The painting hung in a smoke filled room for many years,so I had it cleaned and brought back to its original state. I am very happy with the results and I will hang this great painting in my living room for now but I will sell it at some point in the future. Moseys paintings and carvings are becoming harder and harder to find because many of the works he did went to the U.S. Visiting American sports who were guided by Moses often took paintings and carvings with them when they returned back home and Moseys grandson,Sheldon told me that the bulk of his artistic work is scattered across the States,so I feel very lucky to have acquired this piece. This painting was done with acrylic enamel on hardboard. Moses also custom made his own frames and the end result was a large folio of two bull elk fighting in a meadow.If you look closely.you can see a hunter approaching in the background and I like to think Mosey painted himself into the picture. I say this because the hunter is wearing a brown stetson hat and Mosey got a new one every year. The painting is quite large at twenty-four inches by forty-eight inches.The following photos show the painting and the signature Moses used on his paintings. I will be selling this painting for $2800 and I will offer it to the Weaver family first,since they have been gathering up as much of Moseys work as they can find in recent years. I hope my readers enjoy this mid-winter blog and be sure to give Ken or myself a call or send me an e-mail if you are looking for a day out in the Grand Lake area.We have lots to offer outdoor enthusiasts in our scenic location. Until then,this is Dale Bauer saying 'Happy Trails to You,Until we meet again!

2011--THE YEAR IN REVIEW

     We are closing in on the New Year and I like to look back on the past year and try to evaluate how our different seasons went and how we fared afield here in the beautiful Grand Lake area. As you can see from the photo above,there is no shortage of beautiful scenery and great photo opportunities in our area.This photo was taken last fall at the height of the changing of the leaves to their fantastic fall colors. It was taken from the beach in front of my home on Salmon River and to say I live in paradise would be an understatement. Many times, Ken and I both forget what a wonderful place we live and work in at home here on Salmon River. It seems that many times a person becomes so used to living in a certain place that one has to remind themselves just how unique and special that place is. I know, speaking for myself,all I have to do is look through some old photos and I find myself with a big smile on my face,marvelling at the sheer beauty and wildness of our home here on Salmon River. In my post last month,I said that 2012 will be a year of change for Ken and I, so I hope the readers of my blog will stick around and see what's new each month in the coming new year.
    The year started off well for our crew ice fishing on Grand Lake and Salmon River as soon as we had enough ice to safely travel with a vehicle. We don't take any chances with thin ice at any location we fish and we like to see six inches of good ice before we get out there putting up our shacks and tents. We fish out of shacks on Grand Lake and sometimes we use temporary shelters when fishing the more sheltered bays and coves in Salmon Harbour. There are several species to pursue on Grand Lake but we usually set up for smelt,whitefish and burbot,using a variety of baits. When fishing Salmon River and the Harbour for pickerel and perch,we use worms,grubs and bead head jigs for the perch and live minnows or a piece of oily fish with a spinner for the pickerel. We like to set some lines and work one or two.Multiple lines raise your chances of a hook-up dramatically so we use as many as the law allows us. The following photo shows Kenny hoisting up a nice burbot from Grand Lake. Ken has caught them much larger than this one but he says this size makes the best fillets for fish and chips. We always keep a few to deep fry because they make such delicious battered fish.                                                           

    The next photo shows Ken with my son Curt and his girlfriend Erica with some nice pickerel taken right on the edge of town at McLeod's Park.

This would be a typical catch after fishing for a few hours in the afternoon.

    As you can see,we have had some good success ice fishing in our area and this is a great way to spend a day outdoors during our long New Brunswick winter.

    When our winter finally broke,the Miramichi River started to run and we began to get ready for our annual trek over to Doaktown for the black salmon opener on the 15th of April. We had good fishing again last spring with many grilse and salmon being caught during the season. The following video shows me catching a nice grilse last spring near Sutter Pond in Carrolls Crossing. It remained good fishing for most of the season because there was lots of ice around to keep the water temps cool.As I said earlier,the fishing stayed good well into the season and the sea trout arrived right on schedule to provide some good fishing at the mouth of the many brooks that flow into the Miramichi River. The bright salmon runs that normally start in June,started in late May and never let up until the end of a season that many will remember as one of the best in recent memory.There was an abundance of large salmon interspersed with some nice grilse that came in on every raise of water all summer long. The water temps stayed good and with lots of water,it was a great year for the salmon making their spawning runs up the Miramichi and all her tributaries. The following photo shows me playing a nice fall grilse on the Cains River in 2010.   If there was a highlight during our seasons last year,it would have to be the bright salmon fishing that the large runs provided for the many ardent salmon fishermen from around the world. Any sport who made the trip to the beautiful Miramichi River for a weeks fishing last year was not disappointed both in numbers of fish seen and hooked. The many large spawners that made up the largest part of the runs bodes well for this magnificent fishery in the future but the keepers of this great resource must be ever on the hunt for new and better ways to improve the size of the runs and their health and well-being if these great game fish are to survive in the future.

    The brook trout fishing this past year was very good,as this has been the case for some years now. Since the allowable catch has been managed more closely,we have seen both sea-run and regular brook trout numbers increase and we are usually able to get into good numbers of both of these species at the right time of the year. Speaking of timing,it's everything when fishing many of the species here in the Grand Lake area and our guides know when and where to intercept the different species as they make their pilgrimages up our various rivers and streams. The following photo shows me with a nice brook trout taken on the Cains River.    We also pick up some nice trout while fishing for spring salmon on the Miramichi River. Each year,sports will pick up some trophy sized sea- trout from the lower stretches as they make their run up the river in May.The next photo shows me releasing a nice trout while fishing for spring salmon in the Carrolls Crossing area.

    The pickerel bite was off a bit last summer because of an abundance of water in the system all season long. I've mentioned in my blog before that if conditions are good for salmon and trout,chances are the pickerel bite will be off and that was the situation we faced this past summer. The beauty of fishing for pickerel is if you know your stuff,you can usually coax a fish or two into taking something,even if you have to try a few different lures to entice these great game fish into taking. My view on pickerel fishing is that it is an underutilized sport fish here in New Brunswick,largely due to the fact that most sports are concentrating on Atlantic Salmon and brook trout. This is too bad because sports are missing out on some great action during the low water later in the summer. The next photo is one of my son Curtis fishing with Sgt.Cain on Salmon River.last summer. It was tough fishing but Curt is a great pickerel guide and he got the Sgt. into several nice fish.

    If any hunt up here in New Brunswick could be termed a sure thing,it would have to be the spring bear hunt. This past year we had multiple bears on our baits and some of those bears were trophy sized. If any hunter wants to take a nice average sized bear,New Brunswick is the place to hunt.Of course,if you are after a trophy sized animal,the hunter will have to wait it out and hope the larger bears show themselves during daylight hours. Ken and I have a couple of little tricks we use to get those big boars to show themselves. Ken guided for a native lady in northern Ontario and ran one hundred baits for her and she taught Ken a few good baiting tricks  that her father taught her when he was running the show before she took over after her father retired. Not all baits are created equal and you can trust that Ken and I are doing things up right at our bait sites in order to bring in those big boars.The next photo shows a very large bear at one of our baits in the Gaspereau River area.

    My highlight for the past season was being invited to guide Wanda Doherty on her 2011 moose hunt. I've known Wanda and her husband Jake for most of my life and we had a great hunt that included good friend and fellow guide Allen Davidson as well as Wanda and Jakes daughter Chelsey. I want to tell my readers a bit about Chelsey and her very interesting life she has had so far. Chelsey is the type of girl that loves adventure and travelling and meeting new people. This Christmas Chelsey is in Malaysia competing in the Miss International Tourism competition,representing Canada. Now Chelsey didn't get to this competition by being a couch potato who thinks a pretty girl just has to stand around and,well,look pretty! No, not this girl! What I really like about Chelsey is she will roll her sleeves up and work right along with you to get a job done. Chelsey maintains a good grade average at university and works part-time for N.B. DNR.She really enjoys her work and has made a big impression on all the folks she works with and I can see a great future for this young lady no matter what path she takes. The next photo shows Chelsey swimming with some sharks while working on a project in the Bahamas.

    The next photo shown is one I took of Chelsey relaxing for a bit after we loaded her mothers moose to transport it to the Cache for registration. As you can see from this photo,Chelsey is as comfortable in the bush wearing blue jeans as she is wearing those fancy gowns while modelling on the fashion runways around the world.   I had a great time hunting with the Doherty's this past moose season and I wish Chelsey all the best in her future endeavours.

    I hope the readers of my blog enjoyed my look back on the past year and I would like to take this time to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous and Happy New Year! from Ken,Jamie Dallas and I here at home on Salmon River.

    Anyone looking for an adventure in the Grand Lake area,please give me a call or shoot me an e-mail and Ken and I will arrange a trip for you that you will enjoy here at home in Gods Country!

    This is Dale Bauer saying 'Happy Trails to You.....Until we meet Again!'