Hi Paul!

I've thought the same thing. I love to fish, and would like to learn to hunt.

What do you do?

Hi Maddie. I'm up here in the great white north, Canada, where I hunt whitetail deer, rabbit from time to time, and a few grouse. Fishing tends to be speckled trout and atlantic salmon , although the salmon are disappearing quickly. I was initially enthusiastic when I found this forum but apparently there isn't a lot of interest, which is very sad when I think of the fun I've had over the years in the outdoors.
What about you and your fishing, what's fair game in old Kentucky ?

Well, believe it or not, I rarely fish at home; I usually fish in NW Ontario for pike and walleye. :) We have an outfitter around Sioux Lookout that is great, and if I'm really lucky, we'll go both spring and fall. I've never fished for salmon, although, I've seen folks do it. Is it hard? Does it require special equipment?

When I do fish around here, it's for panfish. I love getting into a mess of bluegill. The Indiana record largemouth bass was caught in a lake that a cousin lives on; you know I'm hunting for his brother! LOL

Sorry that I didn't get back but life, you know ! To answer your question re salmon, maybe, yes and no. Some think atlantic salmon fishing is hard because they are only fished with fly rod, they do not feed in fresh water, they come in , spawn and return to the sea to come back another day. So in order to catch them you have to entice them with a fly, which sends people off in all directions as to which fly is best, in that river, with a certain presentation, and on and on and on. Oh, and in most areas it's hook and release only due to the declining population. So why fish the not so little buggers ? Maybe because hooking a fresh from the sea atlantic salmon is a little like standing on the corner with a grappling hook with a bit of clothesline attached and tossing the hook in the bed of a passing pickup truck.. then hold on !! A bit simplistic but you get the idea.

If you're interested in a change from your Ontario trips, google Newfoundland and Labrador tourism and see what they have to offer, maybe a little pricey but fishing there is what dreams are made of !

LOL! The mental image is just great! I had no idea that they would fight like that; makes me want to have a go at them. I hope you'll forgive my ignorance, but are they king salmon?

I don't fly fish, unfortunately. We have several fly fishing schools in the area, but they are out of my keen. (Not that I don't want to learn, but I just wish that someone could come to a consensus on what a beginner needs to purchase. One person wil tell me this, and the other will argue for days on end about why that would be a mistake, I need to buy that. And you're right. The debates about tying can get interesting!)

I love to hunt for pike, and my favorite method is trolling (I think because I love being on a boat, and the only time I can do this is when I'm in Canada). I caught my biggest fish (pike)on a Williams Wabbler while trolling. Man! Talk about a fight! :)

Do you live in Newfoundland?

First the answers. I'm in Nova Scotia, next door as it were to Newfoundland. And no, they are Atlantic Salmon, i.e. Salmo Salar, in the same family as Trout, Arctic Char etc. . Chinook "King" Salmon, are a different species entirely, " Oncorhynchus Tshawytscha. Atlantic salmon do not die after spawning, they go back to the sea to feed , grow and come back to spawn again, and ( hopefully) again, and again.

As for the fly rod deal, there's always someone who wants your money, so they will tell you that you NEED to have whatever type of gear. There are also a number who truly believe that more expensive gear will make you a better fisher, and while that's true to a degree, I think that it's crazy to spend a couple of thousand bucks on gear that will enable you to cast 10 or 20 feet further, or what ever the case may be. If you have any interest in flyfishing at all, go to your local library and see what they have or can get for you on the subject. There are lots of good videos and books etc. out there. If and when you are ready, maybe start with a good , cheap lightweight rod & reel combo for your panfish, take a look at Walmart or whatever is close to you.

And by the way, you can troll with a fly rod using streamer flies etc. I wonder what it would be like to hook a pike on light fly gear ? My brother-in-law , who is the best fly fisherman I've ever seen, keeps threatening to haul me off to try for striped bass with our light salmon rods, and that would be trolling streamers.. We'll see what happens this year, we're both getting up there and aren't as young as we wish we were !

Check out the library !

Tight Lines !!