Great Lakes Hunters

[Dirty_Coins]

I already posted this on the Tesoro forum but I should have put it here.

I am an experienced Minelab / Fisher user. Tonight I am purchasing a Tesoro Stingray 2 with an RTG scoop. My intentions are to use this as a water hunting machine on the Canadian side of lake Ontario.

Would anyone like to share with me their equipment preferences for hunting in the frigid waters of Lake Ontario?

Do you use waders? A wet suit? Do you scuba?

What months of the year do you hunt in the water?

What about footwear?

Thanks guys!

 

[mudpuppy]

Welcome! Yeah, theres several of us that hunt the Great Lakes that post here...insulated waders, wetsuit, trunks, whatever the situation dictates...as much of year round as we can tolerate...the guys that hunt the Atlantic all winter use the same gear and they post here all the time too...

Heres a few tips...find the nearest live beachcams and watch them for daily condition changes, weather reports, wind and waves etc...Locate some potential hotspots that get some traffic, or had some back in the day...get to know those places, how the sand moves and all that...be ready to get in there right after a big blow...you may only have 1-2 perfect days per season to hunt those before they sand back in...maybe only 1 real perfect day in a decade when it blows out to the hardpack...at least thats what we deal with here, miles and miles of sand, we had NO perfect days this past summer, a few OK days, but not the real GREAT ones......you may be in rocks eh? Thats a different matter...

Another good site is 'windfinders.com' thats the ones the surfers watch specifically for the wave forecast..you can plan a hunt around that since it uses the buoys for its data..anyway, you may find out its not for you...unless you find a great beach, it can be a long time between pings with a whole lot of walking in between...good thing is once you get to know your area, you can smoke jump in and out quickly when conditions are right...Good Luck!
Mud

 

[landman]

Went last Sunday. Water 45 degrees. The hands were the biggest issue. Everything else in my 5mm chest waders were fine.
Used a pulse and was a waste of time. Get an Excalibur and the biggest scoop you can handle IF you are getting into the water.
Saves time, and motivation.

 

[Dirty_Coins]

Hey guys, thanks a lot for the input. I know nothing about wet suits / waders so I know where to start. 5mm. If you can tolerate this weather that's impressive!

 

[scubadetector]

I use a 5mm all summer. Well until last summer I went to a 3. I use waders early spring and fall and gauntlet gloves or trappers gloves you can by at sporting good stores. I wade, snorkel, and dive with diving being my main way to play. However I can make a tank last 8 hours if I snorkel and dive together while detecting. Snorkel till I hit a target and dive to get it if it takes me longer than a breath of air to uncover it.
I am in the inland lakes of Michigan and lake St Clair and lake Huron. My website might help with any questions you might have. http://www.scubadetector.com

Good luck out there and stay safe.

 

[togamac]

Thanks for all the info on this topic. I've never tried trappers gloves. The pictures of them lead me to believe that they're good for shallow water as the water could enter through the top if you reach too deep. Is this correct or is there a way to seal the top?

 

[scubadetector]

Thanks for all the info on this topic. I've never tried trappers gloves. The pictures of them lead me to believe that they're good for shallow water as the water could enter through the top if you reach too deep. Is this correct or is there a way to seal the top?

They go all the way to your shoulders with a strap across your back that keeps them there.

 

[Dirty_Coins]

Your website is awesome, very helpful. Thankyou

 

[eagle52]

Great Tips Robert.
Thank you.

 

[scubadetector]

No problem. Glad I can help some fresh water hunters. This is what the gloves look like for cold water hunting. Mine are all green though:

http://www.flemingoutdoors.com/31-gauntlet-trappers-glove.html

I also made a floating sifter to dump my scoop into. Very easy to do. Get some 3" PVC pipe and 4 elbows and glue. Then by some metal or plastic mesh and lots of zip ties. Will take a picture of it later. Easier to pick the item out of the sifter than out of the scoop with gloves on. You can dump the scoop into your hand a bit at a time if in rocks. In sand a piece of cake. Unfortunately lots of rocks here.

Any questions feel free to PM me or ask here.