March 2010 L&M Newsletter

With the winter in the rear view and spring ahead, I am sure all of you can relate to this winter season being a crazy one. Seeing reports on the news that the southern states of the US are getting freezing temps with snow in some areas this winter, our Canadian winter has been wintry as well. Many areas did report lesser amounts of snow fall than normal though. It will be interesting to see what the water levels will be after ice out? It's too early to predict the ice out at this point, but from early thoughts, it does not appear to be a late ice out this year? Which is good. Time will tell. So far this new year we have been doing a small project to the Dryden Airbase, getting caught up on bookwork along with a couple of other projects keeping us busy in between 1 of 3 sport shows this winter/spring. A hot topic of conversation with everyone we talk to is the economy and politics. We could write an entire newsletter on that and only scratch the surface. For those who know us already, you know our views. Enough said on that.

Silent auction: We are trying a new sales method in this newsletter. We have had a couple of cancellation dates recently and we thought we might try a silent auction on one of these to see how it works out. If it does, we may do more in future newsletters? Fawcett lake, August 4-8, 4 day trip. Rules to apply. Auction starts as soon as this newsletter is sent out and will close April 2. If you wish to place a bid, email us your bid and we will require the following information to be accepted. Price per person of your bid, how many people will be in your group, name, mailing address, and phone number. If you are the high bidder, we will contact you (that is the reason why we are requiring your contact information) and a deposit will be required to secure the trip if you are the highest bidder. In the event the highest bidder does not produce the deposit to secure the date, the 2nd highest bidder will be contacted, and so on so on. L & M reserves the right to hold a reserve bid. If you are interested in placing a bid, please email us at LM@LMflyin.com and place Silent Auction Bid in the subject line of your email with the other information we have listed out in the email.

Facebook: We are putting together a Facebook page for L & M. Hopefully we will get a following by our clients started and use this as another method to communicate with you. We think it is worth a try. We could be able to give more updates than what our fishing reports blog can do. Such as weather patterns, ice-out conditions, random pictures, current events, etc. Please click here to take advantage of these upcoming features and become a fan of L & M. Please click here.

Montana Bunkhouse: In our last newsletter, we spoke about our bunkhouse in Montana. We have a full write up on our web site of this. If you apply to hunt in Montana and want a do-it-yourself hunting trip, please check out this page. We will be catering to the guy who wants to do the hunt on their own as this will serve just as your accommodations for the trip. There is a lot of public land to hunt near by. Please click on the below link for further information.
http://www.lmflyin.com/montana_rental.html

Boaters' Safety Information: For groups who booked before the new year, the group leaders should have received a letter in the mail mid January. For groups who booked after the New Year the information would be in your information packets. Some of the main points where the boaters' safety requirements and we touched base on this in our December newsletter. In case any of you have not been notified of this new requirement in Ontario, please read the following key information listed below.

Boater safety kits.
We will be asking each group to bring a couple of extra items with you to cover this law. This law has been in effect for some time, but we have a feeling that the conservation officers will start enforcing this. (because of the next topic below). Basically, you might have these items at home. If so bring, them with you. if not, just a couple of small items for a few bucks will cover it. These items need to be in the boat with you while you are out fishing.
1) Flashlight: Just need 1 per boat, not each person. This can be of any size. A good idea is to place a small one in your tackle box. Or attach it to your life jacket. A small key chain flashlight works well.
2) Signaling devise: You need 1 per boat, not per person. A small mirror will work or a small cheap little referee whistle. A good idea to place it in your tackle box or attach it to your life jacket.
3) 50 foot of rope per boat: This can be of any diameter. Many of you bring rope anyways.
4) Life Jackets: We ask you to bring these with you already.
5) Floating throw devise: Do not worry about this. We provide the seat cushions so take them in the boat with you.
6) Bailing bucket: Do not worry about this. We provide bailing cans at the lake. Make sure you have one in the boat.
7) Paddle: Do not worry about this. We provide many paddles at the outpost. Make sure you have on in the boat.
Or if you rather, many sport shops or sporting departing stores have small little kit that have most of the small items you are required to have and we are asking you to bring packed ready to go. We used to provide the entire kit. If you have been with us I am sure you have seen the green ammo cans at the lakes that are empty. We have found after a few groups, items start to end up missing and not telling us of this and this leaves the next group without a complete kit. It's best if each brings there own so you know if you get checked by the game wardens you are covered.

Boater Safety coarse. We talked about this in our 2009 December email newsletter. In case you did not get our email newsletter or missed that section, each person who will be operating the boat will need a boater's safety certificate. This law came into effect Sept 15, 2009, so everyone who operates the boats, will need this for 2010. Any state coarse will work. Once you complete the coarse, you are set for this year and any following trips in years to come. If you could do the coarse before you arrive, it will help greatly. We can issue a crash coarse checklist when you arrive but it takes time, paperwork, and a pain in the you know what. If the coarse is taken ahead of time we can skip this step entirely by you showing proof of the certificate to us. Also the way the law reads is if we issue the crash coarse checklist, its only good for just this trip with us this year. It does not cover future trips,(another good reason to take the actual coarse ahead of time) as it's good for years to come. The most popular coarse is the MN coarse. Non residents and residents of Mn can do this coarse and it is FREE of charge. Remember to bring your certification of the coarse completion with you. It will be needed.
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/safety/boatwater/testpacket.html
Another coarse example, this is for Iowa residents only from my understanding.
http://www.boat-ed.com/ia/index.htm
Or the Canadian coarse.
http://www.boaterexam.com/canada/
Any state coarse will work, so you may want to check out your state if they offer a coarse and see what is involved. Please do not wait till the last minute on these courses Please plan ahead.

Insurance. If you own your own boat at home. Save money on your boat insurance. This is a separate reason aside from the above reasons to get a boaters safety coarse. Another thing to check out if you own your own boat at home and insure it as it could save you money. Some insurance providers give discounts for those who complete boaters safety coarses. Might be a way to save a few bucks on your insurance premiums?

Fishing licenses. We encourage just as last year, EVERYONE who hasn't already done so to fill out the online fishing license form through out web site prior to your trip (at least 30 days prior). We provide extra information on this form too that you may find helpful. This form only takes a couple minutes to complete and helps us greatly. This link goes to our license form on the web site. http://www.lmflyin.com/license_request.html

Why L & M Fly-Outposts: In a recent phone conversation with a prospective client for a fishing trip this summer who inquired for this season, I was asked " what sets you apart from rest of the other fly in outfitters in Ontario." That question gave me the idea to take a moment and answer that question in a newsletter. I know many who are reading this, are already L & M guests that already know these answers. For those who are prospective guests who are reading this, we hope it will help answer this question.
1) Family Fun. From the time of your questions to set up a trip, to the trip itself, the staff you will be dealing with is one of the Adams', Larry, Mary, or Shane. We hire No outside help or employees. We have an invested interest to make your trip the best it can be. We do our best to make sure your trip is full of great memories and is as hassle free as possible while in Canada.
2) Fishing. We have excellent lakes. Our fishing reports will back this up which are posted on our web site quoted directly from the clients themselves. If you want to verify any of those reports please ask which group (s) you want to contact and we'll have you speak to them directly.
3) Airplanes. We operate our own air service. Our airplanes are committed to L & M. We do not hire another air charter to do our flights.
4) Location. Dryden is centrally located in NW Ontario to serve as a great jump-off point to remote lakes. We will get you in to much of the same areas as other outfitters where you would need to drive much further to reach them. However, our flights are not much longer due to the physical location of Dryden and the speed of the twin beeches we use. Why drive any further than you must? Our airbase is only 114 miles from International Falls, MN border crossing.
5) Communications. We care about your trip. We do not just drop you off and forget about you. We give every group a satellite phone for your trip, free of charge to keep at the lake with you. Any personal calls back home or your work you would be charged for. A main concern of clients is safety. what if someone gets injured or has health problems during your trip. This is where the sat phone shines. You can make that important phone call if needed. Some of the other outfitters provide check flights for this but what if a emergency happens 5 minutes after the check flight plane leaves your dock? You're waiting until that plane comes back, and when will that be? We will let you do the math which is safer. Our satellite phones also work to make the phone call, not all satellite phone companies/brands are created equal, ours work. PS, thanks to Gino(one of L&M's loyal guest and friend) for getting us lined up with our satellite provider the past two years.
6) Cabins/equipment. No, they are not the Hilton but we offer nice cabins. They are nice with many comforts of home to make sure you enjoy your trip. Our cabins are spacious. Our equipment is in good condition and replaced when it is needed. We keep extra equipment at each location just in case there are breakdowns. If a serious breakdown happens. That's what the satellite phone is for also to give us a call so we can resolve the problem as soon as possible.
7) Our rates are very competitive. We also have many special offerings. Check here for details. http://www.lmflyin.com/rates.html

We do have openings left for 2010 if your still interested in a trip for this year. Or if you're not doing a trip in 2010, we hope to see you in 2011.

Flight times. For people who are booked during the months of May and June, we are preparing the times here shortly and will be mailing those to the group leaders. Keep an eye out for that in the mail and read the flight time letters. For you group leaders, if you do not get the letter in the next couple of weeks, let us know and we'll resend another letter. This is very important that read these letters.

We look forward to seeing you or hearing from you all soon.
Enjoy the spring season!
God Bless!
Larry, Mary, and Shane Adams
L & M Fly-In Outposts
www.LMflyin.com
LM@LMflyin.com