# Friday pics!



## Harbormaster (May 26, 2000)

In 84 years I've only had 2 hooks, this was the second one this year and it was last satry night! Dr. Anna popped it out! 

Old popping cork in east Matty with a fish on it! I couldn't catch the thing, finally it went down for good!


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## WillieP (Jul 2, 2004)

Now that hurt!!!


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## mastercylinder60 (Dec 18, 2005)

nice photos, hm.


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## Soapeddler (Jun 18, 2006)

I got so much green from this pic earlier this week that I am shamelessly posting it again. Not so much for the greenies, but because its one of my favorites pics of my daughter.


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## Harbormaster (May 26, 2000)

Excellent pic!



WillieP said:


> Now that hurt!!!


 When that thing hit the bone in my finger it made my teeth hurt!


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## LIONESS-270 (May 19, 2005)

The boss Lady.........


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## Harbormaster (May 26, 2000)

What lake is that chief? There's water in it!


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## Freshwaterman (May 21, 2004)

*Tgif!!*

*bet you thought it was nice that is Friday *


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## Bimini Twisted (Apr 17, 2005)

*Ha Ha.....*

Looks like Robs was potlickin' Shirley Temples Hairdo when she was a young 'un back in the '60's.

<grin>

Rick


chiefcharlie said:


> The boss Lady.........


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## Freshwaterman (May 21, 2004)

*Please Grandpa*

please


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## Freshwaterman (May 21, 2004)

*My Two Helpers*

*My hunting dog being held by the feather remover in those days :smile: *


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## LIONESS-270 (May 19, 2005)

Few more....give some other folks a chance...Thanks Harbor, I look forward to this Thread every week...

BT...Reggie is the biggist potlicker in tha family...Robs is a close second...LOL


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## Freshwaterman (May 21, 2004)

*My*

fishin partner


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## Hullahopper (May 24, 2004)

Sunset at Terramar
My Niece and her shark
Quail Hunt South Texas
George West Dove Hunt Sunset
December Goose Hunt North of Brookshire
Dad, Odie & My Bride...I miss you Dad!


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## Hullahopper (May 24, 2004)

vBulletin MessageYou must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Reggie again.
​


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## RedXCross (Aug 7, 2005)

Awesome pics guys and gals . One nice Ling


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## activescrape (Jan 8, 2006)

*my son*

my son's buck from last season. We got it back during Labor Day weekend.


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## wading_fool (May 3, 2005)

Here is one of the wife at sunrise


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## Ag96 (Feb 17, 2006)

Great pics everyone!

Me plowin' the backyard
Hill Country sunset
My fishin' and huntin' buddy at 3 days old
GCB, me and friend at the lease


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## Trouthunter (Dec 18, 1998)

*Just a Few...*

Snow revisited.

Sterling and I were deer hunting on Christmas Eve on our place north of Edna. It started snowing and then it REALLY started snowing. I told Sterling we needed to get out of there as I didn't know what the roads were going to be like. On the way out of our place Sterling saw a spike buck and two small bucks standing under a mott of trees and I told him to shoot it. He did and then we had to clean it and still make the 35 mile drive back to El Campo.

By the time we had finished cleaning the deer it was snowing so hard that it was drifting up and it was pretty hard to see. We drove home in 4-wheel high and man were the DPS and wreckers busy that night at almost every overpass and bridge on US 59 between El Campo and Edna.

Anyway, Sterling shot a buck on Christmas Eve, in Jackson County, Texas IN THE SNOW. Don't know how often that's happened to others before but I betcha not a lot!

First Pic: Just getting home from Edna and about to unload his deer

Second Pic: We let it hang until the next morning

Third Pic: The next morning, Christmas Day

Fourth Pic: Hunter likes the snow

Fifth Pic: A little Christmas Cheer using snow for ice

Sixth Pic: Our yard Christmas morning

TH


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## Priority1 (Aug 21, 2005)

Sunset over Dickson Bay


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## Mont (Nov 17, 1998)

here's a few Poz I found. I still miss him. And one of Becky's blue Flounder.


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## troy merrill (May 21, 2004)

Now this is how a true gentleman hunts doves.


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## wading_fool (May 3, 2005)

My daughter coming into Port A harbor


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## Harbormaster (May 26, 2000)

Cool pics everyone! You funny Troy! :biggrin:

Rainey at one of the crab trap cleanups in Sargent

You drive, I'll push

Tammy N Raine cruising the creek

Chuck


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## Harbormaster (May 26, 2000)

Few more! :smile:

Pam


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## speckle-catcher (May 20, 2004)

My woodworking project. I'm making a set for the elderly couple across the street.

Someday I hope to build some nice pieces like HM does


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## Dmax2500 (Sep 4, 2006)

My Newly purchased RIDE. 

2007 Classic 2500HD 4x4 Duramax/Allison with LBZ motor at 650ft/lbs of torque and 360HP. Its a BEAST!


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## saltyj (Aug 11, 2005)

1) Just catch something this time!!

2) Big reel, small fish 

3) New beach ride


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## Charles Helm (Oct 22, 2004)

Hullahopper said:


> vBulletin Message You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Reggie again.
> ​


 :rotfl:

How many posts does Reggie have now anyway?


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## Charles Helm (Oct 22, 2004)

Trouthunter said:


> Fifth Pic: A little Christmas Cheer using snow for ice


Glad you clarified that -- I thought you were going to violate the #1 Snow Rule.

"Don't eat yellow snow!"


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## Mrs Backlasher (Dec 19, 2004)

Some pics from our trip to Hawaii last November to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary.


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## Mont (Nov 17, 1998)

TXG11 aka freezing our tails off, lol.


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## huntinguy (Aug 22, 2005)

1) Sunrise on Louisiana Delta Plantation

2) Rodney and I on the hunt. RIP 11/17/05


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## LIONESS-270 (May 19, 2005)

2cool Mrs B. I loved hearing about the Chopper ride!!! I had a visual on that one.....

Some awesome photos fellow 2coolers!!!! Please keep em coming...

OK...last ones for me this week.....
Way Down South....A little faith, some local friends...and a lot of Hard Work!!!

If Gods Willing..One more trip....Next Year.


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## Mont (Nov 17, 1998)

lol, WJ is gonna kill me for this one


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## speckle-catcher (May 20, 2004)

don't worry Mont - I don't think he can reach that high without a ladder


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## Charles Helm (Oct 22, 2004)

Steak and taters:



We see you:



Hide and seek:



Tailgate party:



...Smells like victory:



Bowed up:



[Click images to enlarge]

*Don't forget to vote in the August 2Cool Photo contest!*


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## TXPalerider (May 21, 2004)

*Many moons ago*

Port O'Connor snapper and Wahoo


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## Charles Helm (Oct 22, 2004)

TXPalerider said:


> Port O'Connor snapper and Wahoo


Can I say Nice Hooter on TTMB?


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## Mont (Nov 17, 1998)

Sabine Gathering (we need to do another one of those, it's been too long)

and Yes Dear


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## Lesto (Mar 4, 2005)

*Trail Cam Photos From Last December*

Some of these fellers I'll be looking for starting next month.


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## Lesto (Mar 4, 2005)

*More*

More


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## Lesto (Mar 4, 2005)

*And still more*

Tell me if I'm using to much space, Mont..


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## TXPalerider (May 21, 2004)

*All of these were 3+ years ago.*

1. A proud Big Brother and Big Sister. (3 years ago when my youngest son was born)
2. Playing Babies
3.Playing Babies II
4.Playing Babies III


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## Trouthunter (Dec 18, 1998)

Lesto, where are the ground pictures of that double drop buck???

TH


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## Mont (Nov 17, 1998)

here's one for a grin...


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## TXPalerider (May 21, 2004)

*Green Chocolate*

Gotta love St. Patrick's Day!


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## Walkin' Jack (May 20, 2004)

*Fishing the Canadian wilds*

CANADA, JUNE, 2000

THE CREW: My borthers-in-law Skip and John, Skip's
brother-in-law Bruce, nephews Jason and Charles,
Nieces husband Jeff, and last but by no means least,
the inimitable Mr. Singh.

GETTING STARTED: It was a sunny June 1st.. We, were
gathered at the jump-off point in north central Texas,
just south of the Red River, and were making
preparations to get under way. We had already gotten
the 29' motor home and found a soft tire on the inside
right. Stopped by a tire store and got it patched. We
might have been aware that it was a sign of things to
come but no one mentioned it if they did. In
retrospect I can easily recognize the red flag but at
the time&#8230;who knew?

We completed our packing and loading and departed in
the early afternoon of June 2nd. We wound up rotating
drivers with each stop for gas, about 5 hours. The
trip went along without incident until we were inside
Oklahoma and that same tire that we'd had patched
blew. And when it blew it took a few things with it.
One thing was the damage it did to the floor of the
storage compartment just above it. Pushed the bottom
up and gave it a brand new shape, minimizing the
amount of storage room in that particular compartment.
More seriously, it ripped out all the propane lines
from the tank to the various appliances it served. We
managed to limp on in to a little berg called Paul's
Valley, Oklahoma. Found a tire store and made repairs.
While the tire guys were putting on the new tire one
of the nephews went across the street to a hardware
store and got the supplies to repair the propane
lines. The store only had enough fittings to get us
back into business with one line so we hooked up the
line to the refrigerator, which we all deemed to be
the most important. So now we are back on the road
with a new tire on the ground and a new spare, and
mostly back in business.

The trip progressed along uneventfully until it became
my turn at the wheel. I started off in Emporia, Kansas
and made it all the way until about 55 miles south of
Kansas City. I notice a sudden, violent shake in the
front end and was about to holler back to the crew
that we were pulling over to see what was going on. I
never got the time. Instantly there was a terrible
noise coming from the right front corner and the sound
of rubber pounding fiberglass and/or sheet metal was
deafening. My youngest nephew was riding shotgun and
he was in a major panic. I was wondering how long I'd
be able to keep that monstrous rig upright. The good
thing was that we didn't loose air pressure. It was a
retread (didn't know that there was still such a
thing) and it had separated and when it started
shucking rubber it did a number on the right front
fender as well as the nerves of the driver and
co-pilot, don'tcha know! Now here we are&#8230;side of 
I-35, 11:30 PM, nothing for miles ahead or behind
changing, another tire. Luckily it was on the front
this time and much easier to manage.

Spare tire in place, we once again gather our
determination and continue our quest for the great
Canadian adventure. I was aware, at this point that we
were well into our adventure, though many, many,
miles/hours from our destination. I drove on through
Kansas, across the little tip at the Northwest corner
of Missouri, and into Des Moines, Iowa. Between
crises I had realized that I had forgotten to bring my
shoes. Now, of all the things I worried about
forgetting, it never occurred to me that I'd forget my
shoes! Man, how could I have done that?!? So, here I
am at a truck stop in Des Moines, Iowa trying to find
suitable footwear for the Canadian wilderness. I'll
spare y'all the description of what I wound up with.
Just know that you won't ever see anything like them
in any fashion magazine, and I now have a new pair of
shoes to do the yard work in. But I feel compelled to
do it at night so my neighbors won't be offended or
question my sense of fashion.

We passed by the new Cabella's at Onattawa (?)
Minnesota just as they were opening for the day I
didn't dare go in as I was already over budget and
knew that my weakness would get me into trouble if I
did. The store looked great from the outside and those
that went in said that they were impressed. They all
dropped a few buck (seems that my particular kind or
weakness is universal among fishermen) and I was sure
I'd made the right decision. Still, I'd like to check
it out some time. Oh Yeah, how could I forget? We made
a stop in Minneapolis for more tires&#8230;. sort of a joke
by now.

We made it to International Falls and the border and
we were all relieved somewhat to have that milestone
behind us. We continued on up through Fort Francis and
Dryden to Ear Falls. The last 38 miles to the lodge
was a gravel road and took over an hour to negotiate.
General excitement began to grow when a black bear ran
across the road&#8230;Aw-riiiight, this is definitely It! A
little later, when 2 more bears ran across the road, 
that "Aw-riiight" took on an aspect of "uh-ohhh". 3
bears in a 20 minute span, and we aren't even at the
out post yet. Food for thought.

ARRIVAL: We arrived at Kabeelo Lodge, on Confederation
Lake, about 9:30 PM, Saturday, June 1st. We settled
into our cabin and prepared for the next day. We had
planned to spend Sunday fishing around the lodge for
lake trout as the lake at our outpost was a walleye
and northern pike lake only, no trout. We were all a
little frazzled from the tedious journey but we all
managed a good nights sleep. Sunday we rented boats
and fished around the lodge. The bite was very slow
that day. There were 8 of us in 4 boats and only 2 of
the brothers-in-law managed to dig out one trout each.
The fish were impressive in their size and appearance.
It was my first encounter with this species and I was
impressed. And even though the bite was slow the lake
and the terrain were just gorgeous&#8230;completely
different from anything I'd ever experienced. I could
only have enjoyed it more by boating a couple of
trout.

THE OUTPOST: The next morning we flew, in two planes,
to our outpost on Lake Kamungishkamo
(Kam-un-gish-ka-mo) approximately 90 miles from the
lodge and roughly 30 minutes by air. I was forced to
redefine the word "isolated". Our cabin was
functional and adequate but lacked many of the modern
conveniences to which I am accustomed. It was a thrill
to know that for the next few days we'd be on our own.
We had no form of radio contact with the lodge in case
of emergency. We did have a large red "E" to lay out
on the dock , but due to the remoteness of our
location it was the policy of the lodge NOT to do any
fly-overs as they would if we were closer in.

Our cabin was spacious with a kitchenette in the front
right corner; picnic style table in the front left, a
killer wood burning stove, converted from a 55 gallon
drum, in the middle. Bunk beds lined the walls along
the back two-thirds of the cabin. Just the year
before, they had put a little pump down by the lake
which ran off a 12-volt battery powered by a solar
panel&#8230;no carrying water up from the lake. It was cold
and it was unfiltered but when you turned it on at the
faucet in sink, out it came. We had a water purifier
and each of us had one of those plastic bottles like
the bikers and hikers use&#8230;worked out nice. I found the
water to have a wild but very pleasant taste, I liked
it a lot!

Now we are all at the point where we begin to be aware
of the mistakes we made in planning and preparation.
Notice I said "BEGIN", we still had some surprises
ahead of us. We all made some mistakes. Some mistakes
in what/how much clothing and foul-weather gear to
bring and some in what tackle to bring. The Marines
have a saying, "adapt and over come" and we all got to
do plenty of that over the next few days.

The boats were 14' aluminum V-hulls powered by 9.9 hp
Yamahas. We got around the lake in fine style those
little "Yammies" did a good job and moved the boats
right along. We fished two to a boat and I think all
of us were mostly satisfied with them.

The weather was something else! Here in Texas we have
a saying, "If you don't like the weather, just wait a
couple of hours and it will surely change". Still, I
have never seen anything like the rapidly changing
weather conditions we experienced. It could be bright
and sunny with blue skies and high white clouds one
moment and just a few moments later there's a 20
degree temperature drop, the low, dark clouds with
black bottoms have scudded in and the wind has gotten
brisk. Next thing you know you are in a
fair-to-middlin' shower&#8230;makes it hard to know how to
dress for the day. One day a BAD storm came over and
stayed around a while. Lightening, hail, cold wind.
You just never could be assured WHAT was in store,
weather wise. On the second morning there it was
snowing when we got up&#8230;far out! Later on it warmed up
and the sun came out and we had a beautiful afternoon.

We had a mixed bag of luck with our assorted panchos,
rain suits, jackets and windbreakers. Some did a
better job of planning than others, but we are going
back in '02 and we will ALL get it right then, you can
bet on it!

One terrific part of this trip for me was the wild,
and slightly threatening, and spectacular environment
in which I found myself. All manner of Spruce, and Fir
and Pine trees growing right up out of the rocks.
There wasn't any "ground", Per say, just rocks and
boulders covered by a thick mat of mosses and lichens
and other low growing plant life which I've never seen
and couldn't possibly name now. We didn't dare explore
the vast woods around our cabin for fear of meeting
Mr. Bear, a reality (even likelihood) of which were
all constantly aware. The guys that relieved us at the
outpost had bears come up to and try to get into the
cabin a couple of years earlier, claw marks on the
back of the cabin lend truth to their story!
Fortunately, or unfortunately, as you choose, we saw
no bears at the out post. We did see, one day, a moose
swimming casually across a little cove off the main
body of the lake. If he noticed us at all he didn't
give any indication that he knew he had company. I got
a hoot out of that!

In the evenings the mournful cries of the loons
drifted across the lake and haunted the long twilight
hours and lent an eerie feeling to the impending
night. It never got dark until around 11:00 PM and
then it wasn't completely dark. It was broad daylight
by 4:00 AM and we never did get to see the light show
we'd hoped to see from the northern lights or Arora
Borealis (?)

THE FISHING, THE FISHING!!: This trip was months and
months in the planning. Surely we all got lots of tips
and suggestions from friends as to just what to do/not
do and take/not take, I know I certainly did. Some of
the advice I got was pertinent and some wasn't. The
best advice I got was from a friend in New Jersey who
has done this many times before. The advice was "don't
go out and spend 2 or 3 hundred dollars on tackle
(which I did) just take a good supply of plain lead
ball jigs and minnows&#8230;gallons and gallons of minnows.
After all the swimming plugs and spoons and jigs and
soft plastic and assorted terminal tackle I bought and
lugged up there (We all did about the same thing) I
felt like I had it covered. Well, I did but I also had
about 12 pounds of useless, even if it was cool
looking, stuff. When we arrive at the outpost, the
guys that were leaving after their week there, told us
that artificial lures weren't making it. To catch fish
we'd need minnows, which they had left us a few and we
managed to get a few at the lodge and get them on the
planes, in spite of the weight restrictions, worms,
which a farsighted brother-in-law had ordered from
Cabella's, and leaches, (disgusting little creatures
but they catch fish). I felt my heart miss a beat but
I didn't get too discouraged at that that point, who
knows what artificial lures they used, etc. Besides we
wound up with way more live bait than I thought we
would.

They use a rig up there called a "Lindy Rig" It is
quite a contraption and it works well with live bait
for walleye and northern. I had already run my mouth
and declared that I was going to catch my fish with
artificial lures, period so I felt compelled to stay
with that if I possibly could. I couldn't. I never
caught any walleye on any artificial lure. Using the
Lindy Rig and the jigs with live bait did put me onto
some nice walleye. I was happy to make the
concession&#8230;it meant the difference between catching
and not catching fish. It wasn't the first time I'd
ever had to eat my words.

The northern were less finicky&#8230; they were happy to hit
the live stuff but the were also eager to take a
fairly wide assortment of artificial stuff: Top water
plugs with Propellers, white w/red head, white spinner
baits, and assorted spoons. The highly touted
Five-of-diamonds, assorted painted spoons and my all
time favorite confidence lure; my go-to lure when all
else has failed&#8230;the ¾ oz Johnson Sprite, both gold and
silver. The few northern I took were caught on the
gold. Most of the guys caught more than I did but I
squeaked by with the distinction of the largest
northern of the trip. God bless the ¾ oz gold Johnson
Sprite!

We went into this thing expecting (hoping) for some
northern pike in the 40" + category. Turns out that my
31 ½" was the biggest we could manage. Not exactly THE
LARGE but I was happy to get it. Most of the northern
ran about 22" to 27" and the walleye ran about 15" to
18". On the first day I was fishing with Charles, my
17-year-old nephew. I was watching his face when he
struck his first northern. Funny but it was a lot like
the face he made when he thought the right front tire
was coming inside the cab with him on the trip up. He
wound up getting a limit of northern that day. Kid's
turning into a real fisherman, Way to go Charles!

Other highlights: Bruce was throwing a spoon and at
one point had hung up in the rocks. They eased the
boat up and as he worked to free the spoon, it finally
came loose and he lifted it out of the water. When it
was about 3 or 4 inches out of the water a wild eyed
northern pike came shooting up out of the water under
it and caught it in the air&#8230;another Kodak moment!
Also, at one point, when I was fishing with Jeff, he
had a blow-up on his top water. I don't know what it
was but it had a propeller at both ends. Anyway he
threw it right back in the same spot and when he
pulled it over the spot where he'd had the blow -up
the frisky northern took another swipe at it and
missed again. A third time, right back in the same
spot. He slowed his retrieve down some this time and
the northern slammed it and got that big gator-mouth
or his all full of treble hooks! It was a great thing
to witness! Good work Jeff!

We had heard that walleye was very good eating, while
the northern weren't very good to eat. WRONG about the
northern! Our large Indian friend is an excellent camp
cook and he whipped up a light crunchy batter and deep
fried our fish one night and blackened and marinated
and grilled it the next night and we all floated away
on the heavenly, delightful flavor or both kinds of
fish. My first time to eat that kind of fish and I'll
never forget it. Hat's off to Mr. Singh! A fine man
and terrific cook (chef'd be more like it!).

We all experienced a totally new and different kind of
fishing in a wide assortment of weathers and we all
agreed that it was a wonderful and memorable
experience. We had gone into this thing believing
that it would be the experience of a lifetime. Turns
out that it was just the "trial run" for the real deal
which we are tentatively planning for in a couple of
years. THAT will be the experience of a life time
because we have all learned from the mistakes we made
this time and none of us could stand to let that trip
be it when we now had the knowledge to straighten it
up and get it right. Still, as a first time
experience, It was thrilling and I'll keep it in my
memory bank always. Next time the thrill of the "new"
will be somewhat diminished but we will compensate for
that by bring more knowledge and experience to the
show and I for one just can not wait!

THE TRIP BACK: went smooth and without event. The
"pucker factor" remained reasonably high as we were
all mindful of the difficulties we experienced on the
way up, but we all managed to settle down as we made
our way. Our women were all glad to have us back, even
in our grubby state. NO one was sick or injured and
they graciously overlooked all the whiskers and odors.
Of all that I learned in this deal I think no. 1 is,
never go for 5 days in the same thermal underwear with
out ever removing it once. The temptation to do so,
from comfort, convenience, and modesty may be strong,
but take my advice and don't do it. The experience of
removing it after five days is not one I care to
relive or re-peat&#8230;take my word for it.

Kabeelo's: I can't say enough about Harold Lohn and
his staff. They are all professional, friendly,
dedicated to pleasing their guests and seem to care
only for fulfilling the wishes of their guests. If
anyone is thinking of a trip like this one, you might
check them out. They are flexible and can and will
tailor their services to fit your needs to a degree
you wouldn't believe. Harold Lohn is "Da Man"!

Until June, 2002&#8230;&#8230;

Pics
1. The inlet to our 10 sq mi lake. Lake Kamangishkamo, or Kami as we affectionately called it. 
2. The outlet of Lake Kami
3. This stuff was growing every where all over the ground. Very spongy and weird
4. The view from our front yard over looking the lake
5. This was taken at night. Actually just as it started to get light. It never got much darker than that.
6. Just under and between the windows you can see claw marks where a bear tried to get into the cabin. There are bunkbeds just on the other side of that wall. Imagine laying there when Mr. Bear came a calling!


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## BIGSTICK (Jun 11, 2004)

One of my favorites when my oldest was 2.5. I wasn't getting the playhouse done fast enough for him. He was going to help by taking the lumber out for me.


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## Walkin' Jack (May 20, 2004)

CANADA JUNE 2002



Foreword
To properly report this trip comparisons must be
made
with the trip 2 years ago. The stated main purpose of
this trip was to improve on our last effort in
packing, fishing and otherwise doing what we really
meant to do in the first place. In every measurable
way we improved, individually and as a group. 
I suppose it would be best to just start at the
beginning and follow it to it's ultimate conclusion

CREW
Besides myself, there were bros-in-law Skip, John,
Bruce; nephews Jason and Kevin, Skips friend Richard,
and last but by no means least,the illustrious Mr.
Harmeet Singh.

Getting Started
We all converged at the kick-off point up at Skip's
house on 5/29/02. As the twists and turns of fate
would have it we were unable to get the bigger, better
motor home we had reserved for the trip because of a
problem in the fuel system and were stuck with the
same great galloping jalopy we had before, sans the
Firestone tires. Other than the tires no improvements
were apparent. As soon as we got it home we had to
commence to working on it. It was an "all-hands"
effort. While we were working on it we had the motor
running to test out all the stuff and the gennie was
up and running as well. At one point the muffler of
the generator fell off...yep, that sucker just fell
right offa there. It was easily replaced but by no
means
encouraging about the over all road worthiness of the
rig. The show stopper turned out to be a crack in
the exhaust manifold. Myself, I considered this to be
an act of kindness from God himself. As a result of
the
short time we had before departure it became necessary
for us to make the trip in two personal vehicles. The
trip was made without event, safely, and trouble fee,
and in great time. We agreed that it wasn't as much
fun because we were separated and unable to get up
and move around and stretch our legs while on the road
but other than that it was a much better trip. 
We left Skip's for Canada about 0630 on 6/30/02. We
made a stop at the big Cabellas store on I-35 about 70
miles south of Minniappolis/St. Paul. Another chunk of
the budget gone...sigh. We stopped for a late supper
at fine steak house in Minnesota before crossing the
border as well. We were in great shape time-wise,
since we didn't have to spend any time in the
break-down lane or waiting in tire repair centers and
stores, so there was no need to rush. We arrived at
the lodge in Ear Falls, on Confederation lake at noon
on 5/31/02. Had a nice lunch and caught a very lucky
break.
The group that was scheduled to be on Lake
Kamungiskamo the week
before us was to be the first of the year.
Unfortunately, for them, there was still ice on the
lake at that time and the float planes were unable to
land and these folks had to go to another of the
lakes. The ice was melted by the time it was our turn
and we got to be the first group on that lake for
the year. Just one benefit of that was that we had the
option of going on out and, in effect, getting an
extra day on the lake. We had to spend about 5 seconds
thinking THAT one over. We, and all our gear were
flown out to the lake and we got settled in and ready
to fish by days end. Saturday, all our travel and
chores out of the way, we got to spend the entire
day fishing. Things were definitely looking up!

The Weather, Scenery, Lake conditions
The weather was picture perfect. Last time we had
violent and sudden outbursts of weather. Extreme
temperature drops, driving rain storms, lightening,
etc. This time the weather was much milder and more
stable. We all came prepared for the cold stuff with
plenty of clothing and those that needed to, upgraded
their sleeping bags. By making an all-out effort I
even remembered to bring some shoes!
The lake was up considerably from last time. The end
of the dock was under several inches of water when we
arrived. One good thing about that was that it allowed
us to cross over to the west side of the lake which we
weren't able to do last time because of the rocks in
the narrow passage. Some of the guys spent some time
exploring this area and reported back with detailed
info and some great fish to demonstrate just part of
what we missed before.
Perhaps one of the worst mistakes we made last time,
as a group, was that we did not explore the lake to
any degree. We stayed fairly close to the cabin. But
this time we ventured south all the way to the lakes
end (beginning is more like it) where the river comes
in. The lake is fed by the Kamungishu River. We
ventured northward and eastward to see the outlet
where it dumps back into the river. In our travels we
found and explored the only other two man made
structures on the lake, two old abandoned trappers
shacks. We found truth in the report that we got at
the END of our trip last time that the bigger fish
were in the southern end of the lake. I think we all
did a lot more snooping around and exploring than we
did last time and we are all glad that we got the
chance to finally see so much more of the lake. It is
about 10 miles long with may "fingers" that lead to
other large parts of the lake. Our out-post is just
about in the middle of the lake, very convenient for
having the best access to all the fishing and
exploring as well.
They say that at this time of year you might get to
see the northern lights. We didn't get to see that
last time and, although we hoped to see them this trip
it was not meant to be. The sun sets very late in the
day in that area, sometime between 10:30 and 11:00 PM
and it doesn't get nearly as dark as it does here in
Texas. The sun is already up over the horizon by about
4:30 AM and the sunrises are breath-taking. Every
evening the plaintive call of the loons haunt the lake
and add to the totally wild feeling of being
alone...with no sign of civilization any where near.
The thrill is not possible for me to justly describe.
All I can say is that it is awesome and I'm greatful
for the opportunity to experience it in my lifetime.
Believe it or not they have gulls there too. These
birds are solid white and at least twice as big as the
seagulls which are so common around here. I remember
thinking that I'd like to see one of our gulfcoast
seagulls (that have been sitting on the overhead
lights of the fishing pier and laughing at me for over
half a century) come up against one of these Canadian
giants. Might learn a little respect, or at least some
better manners!
We saw many beavers. They would swim back and forth
in front of the cabin and seemed frustrated by our
presence. Finally we'd get a slap of the tail on the
waters surface and poof, no more beaver. There was
another moose sighting this time, too. Eagles and
hawks and ground squirrels abounded. 
None of the creatures in that region had seen a
human being for over 7 months. They seemed startled
and confused by us being there. The fish were TOTALLY
unprepared. We caught them with their guard down and
very hungry. They hit almost anything thrown.

THE FISHING...OH, THE FISHING 
2 years ago we thought we did fairly well. We knew
we hadn't broken any records or set any new ones but
we were fairly satisfied with how well we did. Now
that I have a point of reference I can see that we
really didn't do all that well...in numbers or size.
Every one that was with us last time caught many more
and much bigger fish this time. The two that were on
the trip for the first time did really well also.
Richard is a tournament bass fisherman in the North
Central Texas area and has won several tournaments. He
recently won a fancy new bass boat with all the
trimmin's and Kevin, John's son, drove in from
California for the trip. He came not having a lot of
fishing experience to draw from but he has a
tremendous amount of natural ability and his casting
and handling of heavy fish resulted in him catching a
lot of fish. No body had to spend a lot of time
telling him what to do, he just fell right in and got
with the program.
Here are a few items of comparison. Last time the
typical walleye caught was in the 13" to 16" class
with only a few going over 17" and I don't think we
had any over 18" or so. This time every one caught
lots more walleye and the typical size was 16" to 19".
The largest walleye caught measured 20 1/2" and there
were quite a few that were 19" and 20" I believe. Last
time the largest northern pike caught (and the only
one that measured 30" or over was my 31"er. The
typical size caught was about 22" to 26". This time
every one caught several 30+" ers and the biggie was a
whopping 42 1/2". I'd guess the average size northern
was 26" to 31" long.
This time I think every one had a personal goal.
Something that he wanted to accomplish over and above
last time. Bros-in-law Skip and Bruce brought their
fly rods and both accomplished their goals of catching
heavy pike on their fly rods. Bro-in-law John had no
clue this would happen and I'm sure he never set any
goals along these lines but as it turned out he won
the trophy for the biggest walleye AND also for the
biggest northern pike. He caught them within 45
minutes of each other and it bothers him not that he
caught them both on minnows. Most of us were chunking
our hardware and plastic but John continued to
faithfully drag his Lindy-rig with a minnow on the
hook. It surely paid off for him, too. He deserved to
win and we were all happy for him.
Mr. Singh is John's boss at work and he is one of
the most entertaining and easy going guys you could
ever want to meet. He is also the worlds pre-eminent
camp cooks. He prepared all our meals and I'm bettin'
we ate better than a lot of folk do in their own homes
for Sunday dinner. We took turns on the clean up
detail and it was great. We had a big breakfast every
morning. Straggle in for lunch at our own convenience
and have a sandwich or whatever and then have a big
supper at the end of each day. It was one the the best
aspects of the entire trip, thanks to Mr. Singh, who
did all the menu planning and cooking. If you think
that is an easy task then you should try cooking for 8
hairy-legged fishermen, 2 meals a day for a week. 
Mr. Sings goal must have been to improve his casting
and number of fish caught. If it was then he may
certainly claim success. I fished with him some and he
was keeping up with me and my Curado, cast for cast
with his high-dollar Browning. Dropping his lure in
right next to mine time and again. Easily the most
improved fisherman of the group. We got together and
presented Mr. Singh with a plaque in acknowledgment of
his value to the group.
Jason just wanted to catch a lot of fish. He did
that, no problem. He had a little trouble catching any
heavy fish for the first couple of days but he more
than made up for it the rest of the time. I don't
think any one caught more pike over 30" than Jason
did.
It was the first time for Kevin and Richard but If
they had any goals they must have been to catch a
bunch of fish and they both did that with ease. I have
no numbers but I have the impression that no one
caught more walleye than Richard did and he has the
dubious honor of catching the smallest northern pike
of the trip...perhaps in all history. He was plugging
off the dock, just fooling around and caught a little
feller that couldn't have been over 6" long. 
I had a very particular goal. I wanted to catch some
heavy fish on ultra light gear. I spent some time
using a very whippy ultra light rod rated for 4 to 8
lb line. Mounted on this was a Quantum ultra light
spinning reel rated 2 to 6 lb line. I had it spooled
up with Trilene 4lb line. I caught several 30+"
northern pike on it and did a very dumb thing in the
process. I decided not to use a leader and tied a 1/4
oz, Chartreuse, Mepps Rooster Tail. The very first
fish I caught with this rig (after about half a dozen
casts, was a very heavy bodied 32" northern pike. That
was the largest of my ultra light catches and that,
along with the other 30+" northerns and some walleyes
gave me a great deal of satisfaction. Mission
accomplished. 
At the end of our week, we were back at the lodge
and I was telling the owner about all that. He got a
horrible look on his face and stopped me mid sentence.
He began to stutter as he fired several questions at
me without giving me time to answer. You caught a 32"
northern on 4lb line? You weren't using a leader? Did
you take a picture? Have a witness? Then his speech
deteriorated into unintelligible gibberish. I thought
I was going to have to slap him to calm him down. He
was finally able to explain that I had easily set a
new world line-class record. He said that I should
have kept the first 50 feet of line, the lure, and had
a witness willing to swear under oath that my claim
was true. Had I done these things, Shakespear,
Quantum, Berkley, and Mepps would have kept me in
fishing gear into the next century and I'd have my pic
on every fishing magazine in the free world. 
Well those that know me know that I'm no money
fisherman. I care little for fame and glory. I fish
for my own personal relaxation and pleasure. It's my
way of celebrating God's natural world and
experiencing the great outdoors. Still, It puckered me
good when I thought about it. At the time of the catch
I was just in a hurry to get my lure back and get that
fish back into the water in as good a condition as
possible. I didn't even thing to get a pic of it.
Here's one for the "strange" department. At one
point, I was fishing with Mr. Singh and Kevin and John
were in another boat on the other side of the inlet
(about 40 yards or so apart) I was chunkin' a rattle
trap in a Firetiger pattern and got slugged by a big
heavy norther pike. He managed to get a tooth on my
line above the bite leader and cut me off. A little
later, Kevin was fighting a heavy fish and it was
splashing water all up in their boat. After they had
the fish in the boat Kevin hollers out, "Who lost a
firetiger rattle trap?" I couldn't believe it. I
claimed it and motored over to have a look. The fish
went 36" and in his maw my firetiger rattle trap. I
took that as proof positive that northern pike aren't
the smartest fish there is.
Another interesting thing was that last time, all
the walleye were caught on worms, minnows, and
leaches. No takers on any artificials. Northern pike
hit all that natural stuff but did well on hardware
too. In fact, most of the northern I caught last time
were on the trusty Johnson 3/4oz gold spoon. Things
were very different this time. Every thing caught
fish. Those using live bait caught fish and so did the
pluggers. Richard threw a lot of soft plastic flippy
tail type baits and also sluggos and bass assassins.
Spinners and swimmers were all successfull. One of my
all-time favorite bass plugs was a Bagley's
Bang-O-Lure. A shallow diving swimmer. I caught
several northern on it. I threw rattle traps in
firetiger, halloween patterns as well as
chrome/blueback, gold, and green/orange. Every one
caught northern pike and the firetiger and chrome/blue
back caught walleye. Mepps rooster tails, Vibrax,
spoons, (silver, gold, five-of diamonds) all caught
good fish. I can't think of anything I tried that
didn't catch some fish. It is a fisherman's dream come
true and I'll never forget it.
We kept some of what we caught for the first couple
of days and ate fish twice while we were there. After
that it was pretty much catch-and-release the rest of
the time. We were permitted to bring back 4 fish each
so we kept the 32 biggest walleye and everything else
was safely returned to the water.

Afterword
I had planned on a daily report type of write-up for
this but since every day was so great and I have slept
so many times since that magical week it is all kind
of run together in my mind and I can't quite recall
what happened on just which day. What I wanted to do
was recall as many of the highlights as possible and
try (although it is impossible after all) to convey
the feeling of being in a world so far and forever
removed from civilization. An area seemingly unchanged
since the dawn of time...to live, to survive and to
thrive where there is nothing there but what you
bring. No phone to call for help...no one to call even
if you had one. No stop-n-rob on the corner to run to
for that forgotten item...indeed, no corner! No help
if you get sick or injured or bit by the bear. There
is only one way in and only one way out. That is by
airplane. They drop you off and if you stay a week
then they come out mid-week and check your boat fuel,
firewood, propane, ice and beer supplies (most
essential!). and then you don't see them again till
it's time to go. There is a large red plywood "E" that
is to be placed on the dock in case of an emergency.
The theory is that a plane flying over would see it
and get help for you. In our case, however, our out
post is the furthest from the lodge, about 90 miles or
so and they don't make fly-overs that far out. Even
the game warden rarely checks Kami because of it's
location.
Well, I don't know what adventures lie ahead but
what ever they may be, they had better be spectacular
if they want to measure up to The Kabeelo Logde,
operated by Harold Lohn, his family and staff of
hardworking pilots and maintenance folks the great and
gifted ladies that work in the restaurant. Every one
is great and dedicated to the pleasure of their
clients. I just can't imagine anything any better.

I would also like to add a very special word of thanks
to Bro-in-law Skip. He has been the driving force and
organizer of our little Canadian adventures from the
beginning. He was the one who first had the idea of
putting together these trips and he has done the lions
share of the research, communication, and other time
consuming chores necessary to have a deal like this
come off without any major problem. Skip, all of us
owe you a debt we can never repay. Because of your
vision and dedication we all have some memories that
transcend the very term "value". These are the
memories that will last a lifetime and could never
ever be replaced. Each of us contributed where and as
we could but you are the one that make it all
possible. You made it happen and made it happen right.
Thank you my, brother! 

Jack Moncrief 
June 15th, 2002 

Pics
1.The remains of an old Trappers shack dating back to the early '50s
2. Another trappers shack. it has some writing inside which dates it back to '72
3. The privvy for the '72 shack
4. Some of the crew
5. and 6. Some fair sized northern pike all taken on light tackle


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## Charles Helm (Oct 22, 2004)

*One More*

I may regret this one later.

Nap time:


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## BEER4BAIT (Jun 24, 2005)

I felt like I just read a novel. LOL Very good story indeed with good pics


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## Wes (Apr 1, 2005)

Here is Drayton, napping with Winnie.


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## idletime (May 11, 2005)

a few from the beach


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## BIGSTICK (Jun 11, 2004)

*Boys*

My boys Labor Day '04. Before the internet police get involved, the boat is beached on the island on Lake Livingston, motor off, parents on hot standby. Lifejackets go on as soon as they wake up and jump over the side.:spineyes:


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

Harbormaster said:


> Old popping cork in east Matty with a fish on it! I couldn't catch the thing, finally it went down for good!


So now we know how you are able to follow the fish around east matty and know where they are at. LOL


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## cj9271 (Aug 24, 2004)

Best wife a man could ask for. Bristol Motor Speedway 8-06 wearing a Texas Motorspeedway shirt.


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## cj9271 (Aug 24, 2004)

Another of my youngest sweetheart.


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## disgusted (Feb 16, 2005)

What you dressed up for? Looks like a good ole East Texas Wedding.











Harbormaster said:


> Excellent pic!
> 
> When that thing hit the bone in my finger it made my teeth hurt!


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## Charles Helm (Oct 22, 2004)

cj9271 said:


> Another of my youngest sweetheart.


I'll see that and raise you two:


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## Walkin' Jack (May 20, 2004)

Chief Charlie, your pics just keep on getting better and better! Those look like stills for the movie The Deep! Fantistic! 

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to chiefcharlie again.

Mont...Go to your room!


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## bbridges (May 21, 2004)

My little one at two and again now two years later. She's growing up way too fasthwell: .


Brian


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## LIONESS-270 (May 19, 2005)

I have a couple for this friday. Just family.

The last one is Aggie Muster at the Temple of Ur in Iraq


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## Harbormaster (May 26, 2000)

Why are Reggie and Whitecap knot speaking to each other? Looks like WC rigged that jighead, that young man never could get one on straight! 

Good family pics!

I dug some up from the Big Bucks Ranch in Sanderson

Mr. Cash

Blue quail, look at the breasts, most of 'em were head shot! J/K


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## Harbormaster (May 26, 2000)

Turkeys under feeder! Gawd it was cold, first snow in years!

Pops


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## Lesto (Mar 4, 2005)

*Drop Tine Buck*



> Lesto, where are the ground pictures of that double drop buck???
> 
> TH


 I don't know.... He's smarter than me!


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## LIONESS-270 (May 19, 2005)

Harbormaster said:


> Why are Reggie and Whitecap knot speaking to each other?
> 
> Cause Whitecap is a catch and release angler.... and Reggie is a steal and keep Fish thieving Hound....He wines when to toss one back....
> 
> ...


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## MT Stringer (May 21, 2004)

*A Few Pics From Past Gatherings...*

at Sam's Beach. Wish I could make it tomorrow, but I have to work.

1) WJ Fishing the sand bar 
2) Bay Gal yakkin' baits
3) Jack and his fish
4) Pickin' and grinnin'
5) Full Stringer and Pelican


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## General CoolBro (Jun 13, 2005)

Kinda late, but it is still Friday. Very nice pics everyone.

Letting some special ones go this week.

1st 2 pics - both of them captured a sense of God's presence. The one of my youngest by herself, it was the 2nd day of her life and when we saw this picture we were surprised by smiling expression. I think she was still being tickled by the hand of God and smiling at his face.

3rd - it sure was cold that day, but that kiddo really loves ole Rev.

GCB


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## TXPalerider (May 21, 2004)

GeneralCoolBro,

BEAUTIFUL Picture of the baby. You gettin' a heavy greenie fer that one.

But, in that last pic I noticed someone done put you in a purple room, with a funny looking dog, and made you wear a funny lookin' hat. Was you being punished fer sumpin you did? 
.
.
.
.

.J/K 

Looks like I'm gonna owe ya that green.


> You have given out too much Reputation in the last 24 hours, try again later.


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## ripleyb (Mar 20, 2006)

Pics from our cruise.


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## ripleyb (Mar 20, 2006)

A few more nice pics.


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