July 4th 2018

What a great way to spend your July 4th holiday, fishing in Canada! Jim and his son decided to try their luck at a half day, on the local waters of Montreal. He came all the way from Texas to hook up with his son who is schooling in the city. I planned on making it worth their while with variety of fish!

We headed out shortly after 7:00 and I decided to try a little trolling in an area that I hadn’t fished this season. The changes in the last few days from the extreme heat had me thinking that this spot might already be holding some good fish. Unfortunately after 30 or so minutes of washing lures, I pulled the plug and made a long run to somewhere I knew they would catch.

We arrived to flat calm waters and extreme heat, but I was sure the fish would bite! Within 10 minutes, the first reel fired and Kayden reeled in his first ever northern. It may not have been the biggest, but it was his first! We continued the troll and not long after his dad also brought to net, another pike slightly larger. We were definitely on the fish here and I was hoping to get them as many as possible. In a couple of hours they boated many fish each but they were all northerns. I wanted to see if we could get into some walleye and it wasn’t working out here! Time to move to another area and change up tactics.

I ran to some open water that produced yesterday and hoped it was still working. We didn’t have a stitch of wind and I knew the drifts would be slower than I preferred. Jim lost a fish almost immediately when a smallie ate his bait and instantly took to the air. He rebounded with a small walleye that was unfortunately under and had to be released. It was next to impossible to get a good presentation here and after a couple of passes with nothing to show in the well, I relocated.

I moved over to another area with more current and now we were drifting much better. Almost instantly Kayden hooked up and brought a keeper walleye aboard. I knew they needed more than one fish for their dinner and made several passes, looking for another. They did manage to catch some others, but they were all too small. Jim even landed a nice smallmouth and although fun, not what we were after. Eventually however he did hook into a keeper and it soon was in the livewell with the other one.

I stayed out about an hour longer than I was scheduled to in hopes of a third one, but it never happened. We eventually called the day by 12:30 and made our way back to the launch.

Although Jim & his son Kayden had 2 keeper walleye, but they definitely boated plenty of other fish today. They both enjoyed their July 4th holiday together doing something they love, fishing! To top the day off, they’ll be dining on fresh fish of the day. Who could ask for anything more!!

July 3rd 2018

Al hooked up with me today all the way from Tennessee! He was in Montreal to perform at the Jazz festival and wanted to fish before playing. He had requested smallmouth and I planned on hooking him up as many times as possible. Hopefully a high numbers day!

We set out shortly after 7:00 and I ran a good distance to the first spot. I set him up with a crank and he loaded the rod on his first cast. Although not a giant, it was a respectable 2 pounder and his first of many for the day. He must have landed about 3 or 4 bass and jumped off equally as many before I switched him up to soft plastics. This was when it got interesting as he nailed umpteen more before I ran out of the color he was using. I usually have loads, but hadn’t restocked from the three day trip a few days back. We tried another color but it just didn’t seem to work as well and he was forced to switch to a jig. This provided him with a few more fish before we decided to move.

Our next area was close by and he hooked up once again on his very first cast. Another decent smallie but not quite photo worthy! He continued throwing the same lure but other than a few lost fish, wasn’t able to boat any more. I switched him over to soft plastics again and almost immediately he was locked up. I was also throwing the same thing to increase his chances and picked up a few bites myself. A quick pass off of the rod and he slammed the fish, landing several more. We covered the entire area and managed a few more fish but it just wasn’t what I expected and we pulled out not long after. Our next spot wasn’t much better and after only catching a couple of fish, I decided to make another long run.

This was obviously the right decision as Al boated over double digits from one small flat. He was just hammering them on soft plastics but lost almost as many too. Eventually it slowed and we headed to another area right after a quick 5 minute lunch.

This place was almost as good as the previous one with high numbers and some really good fish too. Al was pounding on the smallies, big time! This went on for almost an hour before we just ran out of fish for him to catch. I think he stung every one that was there!

Our next top wasn’t nearly as good as the others and only put out a couple of fish before I decided to move again. Al had asked about drop shotting and I wanted to give some deeper water a try before we ran out of time. I was about to show him the basics and hoped the fish were there!

We arrived on an offshore hump and I set up a couple of rods with the same baits. A quick orientation and he made his first drop. We were going to be drifting over the area and hopefully he would hook into a few fish in the process. We didn’t go far and he had his first drop shot smallie! He also missed a couple more and landed a nice walleye that turned out to also be his very first ever. Definitely worthy of a pic! The next drift he had the biggest bass of the day on but unfortunately it was short lived. The hook was thrown when the bass took to the air and disappointment was seen on his face. Many more drifts were made afterwards with fish on almost every one. In fact I made a couple of extras just because we were into fish!

Time flew by today and before we knew it, 4:00 had arrived. We headed back to the dock and took out. This day was definitely a great one filled with plenty of fish for Al to remember. He had also landed his first fish on a drop shot as well as his very first walleye. Who could ask for anything more!!

July 1st 2018

Well Canada day definitely brought out the boats today, with this most likely being the hottest day I’ve fished in years. With the humidex reading it must have reached 100 degrees! Thankfully I was under the roof, as we trolled the entire time we were out. Tino was back with me but this time we were going to do a little 101 for pike & walleye.

I headed to the first spot hoping to teach him how to locate these fish by covering water. I set one rod deep and the other mid and began the search. I was looking for bait and fish marks and noticed plenty of big hooks that I was pretty sure were not what we were after. There were several sturgeon jumping around us as we made our way along and this was definitely what they were. Although we did mark other smaller fish, we never had a reel fire. Time to move shallower!

I had switched up the baits and moved in some, marking plenty of fish as well as bait but again, we still didn’t have any takers. I did however see all kinds of nymphal shucks on the water indicating a recent hatch and wondered if they had fed all night. It wouldn’t be the first time this has happened with the lake looking like an all you can eat buffet!

We pulled the lines and completely relocated to another area much shallower, in hopes of our first strike. I once again switched the baits to something that wouldn’t run as deep and searched this flat thoroughly, without any luck. Again I was seeing signs of the empty shucks on the surface and noticed a bunch of mayflies in the boat. There had definitely been a substantial hatch recently and we were feeling the effects from it. Time to make a big move!

I ran a long way to a completely different section of the lake and was sure we would get into fish here. First task was to raise the roof as it was starting to get real hot! Once again I set the lines at two different depths and started the search for the toothy ones. About ten minutes in, one of the reels fired and we finally had our first take! It wasn’t a big pike but it was a sign that they were here. I kept trolling the area and shortly after we had another reel go off. I knew the plan was starting to come together! This too was another pike but a much better one than the first and released after a couple of pics. Tino was finally starting to see what was needed in order to catch fish from shallower water. He had trolled before but only on deeper bodies of water and for trout & salmon. This was a completely new method for him and he was starting to see why he hadn’t been very successful on his own.

Over the next several hours the temps got considerably hotter as did the fishing. We were now into both pike and walleye regularly and he was even starting to reset the rods after the fish were landed. There were also a couple of nice keeper walleye in the livewell for him to bring home tonight. He saw how effective this trolling could be and realized how productive a proper presentation over active fish actually was. He was definitely learning new tricks and techniques!

I wasn’t thrilled with the number of walleye that had been landed and wanted Tino to get more of them instead of the pike. He had caught a lot, but only two eyes so far! I tried to move over to a deeper edge but noticed all kinds of tree branches in the water. In fact the debris from the trees was just incredible! The winds last night must have been intense nearby because I couldn’t even troll this area! I had to go back to where we had been and kept catching more pike. I eventually slid away from the pike zone in hopes of a few more fish for him to eat. As I got a little deeper and after many more northerns, one of the reels fired with what we were after. He brought to net another nice keeper walleye and put his third fish in the livewell. This would be more than enough for him and his family to eat! I reset the line and switched the baits again to work even deeper water in this heat. I thought that they might have dropped off their feeding flats and took refuge in the cooler depth.

It didn’t seem to matter where we fished today, we just couldn’t seem to escape the northerns! It was nice to hear the reels scream but with zero wind and scorching heat from the sun, we didn’t want to leave the comfort of the top. I probably could have fished slower by drop shotting but we needed the shade and kept at the troll.

I fished a bunch of areas that I hadn’t this season and on one of them, Tino landed a nice smallie. He also had another good fish on from here that was either a small or largemouth, but it threw the hooks. I made a few passes here and fired both reels simultaneously, landing only one of the two fish. This was about the 2nd or 3rd double of the day, but the first one where a fish came off. This was also the last bite we actually had in the amount of time remaining. We pulled the lines, downed the roof and headed back to take out.

I was surprised to see only one trailer in the lot but was about to find out why! Turns out they barricaded the entrance while I was on the water to celebrate July 1st activities in the park. It was a shit show of epic proportion getting out! They even told me I would have to wait till midnight in order to leave. Not happening! I managed a tight turn leaving that had me running over the sidewalk just to make it by the posts for the bicycle path. I pay for this launch but they can close it anytime they want, nice!

Despite the difficulties at the start and the end of today, the middle part was great. Tino had learned several new trolling techniques that will benefit him in the future and boated plenty of fish in the process. This may have been the hottest day I have ever spent fishing with temps near 100 degrees but we survived. I can’t wait to get home to the cool comforts of my air conditioned home. Might even take a dip in the pool, but probably not!!

June 30th 2018

The last day for Neville and Tony was an interesting one, to say the least! We weren’t sure if or where we would be able to fish with the winds expected. I just had to wait and see in the morning, for what we were going to do. They were forecasting over 40 knots and at that force, it really doesn’t matter what direction they were from!

I picked them up close to the ramp and headed down to the lake to find it absolutely flat calm. Unbelievable how these weather forecasters can be so wrong, almost all the time! We were going fishing and nothing was going to stop us now!

I decided to fish for smallies to get the day started and almost immediately, Neville was tight to a nice one on the fly. It was going to take the jaws of life to pry that rod from his hands now! He followed it up with a few more a little later and with zero wind, it was easy to see why. He was catching fish the way he preferred and doing a pretty good job tool. Tony was throwing soft plastics and picking up a few fish as well. He even managed to get his very first sturgeon on a jig when it accidentally got fouled hooked.

We had been fishing for a couple of hours and had a bunch of bass landed when I noticed that the weather was about to change. According to the radar we were going to get hit with some sort of a storm and I didn’t want to stay where we were. I immediately went to a safer area to wait it out!

Prefrontal winds kicked up pretty good as we made our way into shallower water. This turned out not to be necessary as we found out soon after. We were all in rain gear and it barely sprinkled in the next 30 minutes. Eventually it passed and so did the wind, so I decided to have them fish the area we were in before leaving. I guess it was the right choice as two nice largemouth were landed. One was the regular way over the weeds but the other was a little bizarre. Neville had failed at skipping a bait under tree branches and actually was in the tree. When he tried to lift it out, a huge largemouth just grabbed the bait and took it down. I told him to keep pressure and used the electric motor to crash into the tree and rescue his catch. When I grabbed the fish I couldn’t believe how big it actually was. It was huge! Let’s just say he got lucky as anything could have happened.

After all the craziness, we headed back out to where we were before the fake storm hit. It was now time for Tony to start catching several nice bass on soft plastics. He must have put four or five decent fish in the net in the next 30 minutes. Neville on the other hand was back on the fly rod and only missed a couple of strikes. We made another move not long after, trying a couple of other places with similar results before relocating again. Although Tony did manage to lose a couple here, we decided to head to the area we fished yesterday in pursuit of more bass.

The winds had increased quite a bit now and were blowing 10 to 20 knots from the SW as we ran. This was going to make fishing a whole lot tougher! Even worse for Neville as he was going to fly fish for the bass!

I wanted to see if the fish were still here and unfortunately managed to hook a couple when searching the area. Tony also caught a few on soft plastics and Neville hooked up twice on a fly. It was definitely tough but apparently doable! We remained here for almost an hour and boated several more decent smallies before leaving. I had hoped to get Tony into some pike & walleye and decided that trolling was the way to go. We packed everything up and headed to where I wanted in 2 & 3 footers once again.

Once we arrived I knew the rough water was going to help and before I could get the last rod in, one of the other reels fired. Neville reeled in a small pike and I reset the rod looking for more. They both hooked up quickly gain with Neville catching a walleye and Tony getting his first northern. These winds had the fish really fired up and I was sure we were going to pound on them good. Unfortunately the wind layed down and we lost the bite too. It was a really strange day for weather, but I decided to stick it out despite the nearly flat conditions.

Several more pike were caught but I was unable to get Tony the walleye he had wanted. We were running out of time as I had to have them back at the dock by 3:00 so that they could get to the airport for their flight. I pulled the lines and called it a day!

There overall fishing for the three days had been great with a variety of species being landed. Smallmouth were the main goal and they boated a bunch! The others were just a bonus as Tony had never caught any of the ones he landed before. I’d have to say that this worked out just great with a little luck from Mother Nature on the final day. What could have ended in disappointment turned out to be the icing on the cake with Neville’s giant largemouth. It was the perfect end to a perfect fishing trip!!

June 29th 2018

Day two for Neville & Tony was a little different with the conditions. We didn’t have flat calm like yesterday but rather a strong SW wind gusting over 20 knots at times. In fact, depending on where we were on the lake, it felt more like a straight west in some areas. Fly fishing was going to be tough!

I decided to hit the same starting spot that had produced well for them yesterday. With expectations high, they began casting hard baits, in search of their first strike. Unlike the day before however, many casts were made before Tony finally hooked one. Too bad it threw the hooks on the jump! His second fish was almost immediately after and this too ended with the same results. He was starting out just like the day before by losing fish again! His luck changed however when he finally put the third one in the boat. Neville wasn’t as fortunate as Tony but eventually this all changed. Between the two of them, there were about a half dozen fish landed here with a bunch of missed strikes. Tony did however land his biggest fish of the trip so far, making up for the lack of bites. Time to move!

I had wanted to try an area further away but wasn’t sure about the wind direction. When I arrived, I realized that it was blowing directly on us and we were forced to fish in big waves. It didn’t matter though as the fish were here! Tony hooked up on almost his first cast, once I positioned the boat. He was on fire again today but Neville got in the game quickly too and they even had a couple of doubles. These fish were really active unlike the first spot we fished and hammering their baits. So much so that Neville decided to try the fly rod again. With the electric motor I was able to hold him in position allowing him to cast properly to where the fish were holding. If someone hooked up I just hit the anchor button and went back to net their fish without moving from the spot. I love this feature and don’t know why I never change sooner!

With Neville only managing one small bass and one really good one on the fly and Tony slowing down on his catching, I decided to move to another area in hopes of more active fish. What I thought should be holding plenty of post spawners turned out to be only having a handful of medium sized males. We also hit another area nearby and found it to be almost the same. Although there was only a small percentage of what I expected, at least they were larger ones and Tony brought to net a good fish. After another long period with only a few more bass, I decided to move once again. This time however Neville wanted to try for largemouth and I headed to where I knew they were.

We went in really shallow and once we were deep in the weeds it was like a furnace. With very little wind to help us, it was just a scorcher! They saw all kinds of wildlife along with a ton of gar but the bass were almost nonexistent. It was also a challenge for them to cast their baits and not hook the weeds. Tony finally managed to land one decent largemouth but that was the only one. We covered plenty of water, but we fished way too fast for what we needed to do. The water was 75 degrees and I’m sure the bass were tucked deep into the pockets, requiring more of a flipping & pitching technique. After about 45 minutes, we pulled out and went to another area for smallies once again.

I realized that the wind was more of a west blow when I arrived here as I was once again forced to use the anchor feature on the electric motor to hold them in position. With a SW wind we would have been protected, but we weren’t! This didn’t stop them from hooking up though and a number of good bass were landed from this place. Neville even managed a couple more on the fly and had several follows from others. With little time remaining in the day, this was going to be the last place we would be able to fish. I repositioned the boat multiple times allowing them to properly fish the entire area. They caught a good number of bass from here on a variety of soft plastics, before we ended the day.

Although fewer fish were taken today, the size seemed to be better. Neville even managed to pick up 4 of his fish on the fly rod and the balance on a variety of other baits. I think Tony still had the numbers overall once again however but Neville didn’t mind. According to him, one on the fly is worth 5 on the spinning rod! It’s definitely more of a challenge at this time of the year and one he was willing to try. In the end, they were both satisfied with the outcome of the day and that’s all that counts!!