June 28th 2018

 

Neville & Tony flew all the way from the U.K. to fish for 3 days here in Montreal. This was to be the first day of their trip and I wanted to get them started with a bang. We were going smallie fishing and it would also be the first time I targeted them this season as well. I hoped they would bite!

I picked them up on my way to the launch and we arrived right after 7:00 eager to get started. I also had another couple of clients scheduled to fish as well that I had to once again send out with Don. When we were all ready, out we went to search for the smallmouth!

The skies were looking a little threatening, but as luck would have it, the rain gear wasn’t really necessary. We set up in the first spot and I instructed them on what to expect. Tony began on a crank and Neville was tossing a blade bait to a rocky area looking for that first bite. Several casts later, Tony was into a bass and loving it. Unfortunately on the third jump, it threw the hooks and that ended quickly. A few casts later he was locked up again and this too was over just as fast. He needed to finesse the fish with the tiny hooks and after a little explanation, the third time was the charm. He had been horsing them and pulled the hooks from the first two but not the third. This one was to eventually make it into the net and he finally caught his first ever smallmouth bass! It didn’t take long for me to switch Neville to a crank as well and soon they were both getting into fish.

After the action slowed from numerous fish being landed, I decided to switch them over to soft plastics. This should give them both several more bass with different presentations. I quick demonstration had me locked up on the very first cast, showing them that it definitely worked! Once again, they began hooking many more smallies from this same spot. This went on for a while and Neville decided to try his luck with a fly rod. I had brought a couple along and was sure he would be able to get into fish this way as well.

Tony continued tossing soft plastics, hooking up once in a while but Neville wasn’t having much luck on the fly. Although he did manage to hook into one, it came off when it took to the air. He finally switched back to the spinning rod and was into fish in no time!

Eventually this slowed as well and I gave them jigs to try for a few more bass. Although they were hooking the bottom frequently, they did get a few others before we just pulled the plug completely on this area. We had fished it for almost two hours with very little down time. Yuup, it was loaded!

Our next spot was to be an open water flat that I wasn’t sure what to expect. They did manage to hook up a few times, but it wasn’t really on fire. Thirty minutes later, we were on the move again. They both had chances and boated a couple of decent smallies, but I just wasn’t feeling like there were many fish here.

I was going to target the bass a little shallower now due to the post spawn and decided to hit a couple of points that I knew. Although one didn’t produce more than a few fish, the other was pretty good and there was plenty of action. Tony seemed to be doing better from the back of the boat however and not for any particular reason. They were both throwing the same thing to the same spots and he just had the hot rod today!

With Tony not ever having caught a largemouth, I thought I’d try a spot nearby and see if he could land at least one. Well it didn’t take long before he brought a chunky post spawn fish to the net. We had to take several pics of his catch to go along with all the other shots of the smallies earlier. Both of them were throwing soft plastics over weeds and Neville finally hooked into another decent fish as well. Unfortunately it had swallowed his bait but with a little surgery, I had it out without injury.

With only the two largies being caught, I decided to slide to another rocky area for more smallie action. Neville was having a hard time getting bit but not Tony. He was putting on a clinic from the back of the boat again. Although not very big, they were all decent fish and he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

With time not on our side, I decided to hit one final area in hopes of hooking them up several more times. It was here that Neville finally got his wish as he managed to catch a couple of giant perch and one really nice smallie on the fly. Tony was still pounding fish but this time he was in the front of the boat with Neville fly fishing from the back. He needed more room and it was much safer too! I had wanted to end around 4:00 but the action was so good that we finally finished 30 minutes later.

This was a great start to their trip and they both got a taste of what the next two days should hold. I will be concentrating on the bass but also doing a little trolling to get Tony some pike & walleye. These are two more species he has never caught and I need to tick them off his bucket list. Who knows, maybe I’ll get him a musky or even a sturgeon too! All I know is they will be landing many more fish in the next two days to make this the best fishing trip they can possibly have. With a little luck, maybe ever!!

June 27th 2018

 

I had a double today with the morning trip being a group from Toronto. Whinny’s gang hooked up with me shortly after 7:00 and we headed out on the water minutes later. With 4 people, I would only be trolling again!

I set the lines and it didn’t take long before we were into fish. The first one to come board was a nice walleye, but it was too big and had to be released. Pike and walleye were consistent for a while until things just slowed. Time to make a move!

Although I didn’t travel far, I did switch depths and was now looking for fish in slightly shallower water. With lures changed I began the search! Once again it didn’t take long before they were back into fish and everyone was reeling in their share of quality pike & walleye. Fortunately there were only a couple of overs and they did manage to get one keeper. For a change, they were happy with just the pike!

With the exception of a couple of short dead periods, the fishing was pretty good this morning. They all landed plenty of pike and lost a number of other fish as well. Unfortunately they only managed to take one keeper walleye back with them as most were too big and released. They did however bring a few of the better pike home and thankfully they knew how to filet out the Y bone. You might say they left quite satisfied!!

Ahmed’s group this afternoon consisted of his wife and 4 sons. I needed the help of Don to take a couple of the guys and I took the rest. Although a little late in arriving, we were still able to get going by 1:30.

I decided to try an area that I hadn’t fished in several days, hoping for good fishing. It all looked good on the sonar but the water temps were crap! It seems like 67 is the number almost all over the lake lately and It really needs to heat up! Regardless, I dropped the lines in and began the troll.

After almost an hour without even a sniff, I decided to move out further and changed up to deeper diving baits. This too was a bust and I had one last small area to check before making a big move. I trolled over this place and never had a reel fire. We did however manage to bring a large perch and a keeper walleye aboard though. Time to go!

I had been hoping not to have to run to this spot, but desperate times deserve desperate measures! I was back in the area from this morning and began trolling over some of the same water. Well I guess it was the right move because in the last 90 minutes, they managed to land a good number of pike and a nice keeper walleye. This made the run all worthwhile!

We had all decided to meet back at the dock by 5:00 and I started to slowly pack up, 15 minutes before. Just as expected, one of the reels went off and a heavy fish was attached. Too bad it was short lived! As I passed off the rod, it came unpinned and was gone as fast as it hit. We almost ended the day with a bang!

Today was definitely a long one with the two groups but well worth it. A good number of fish were landed and plenty lost by both gangs. In the end though, everyone had a good time and that’s all that counts. Both groups even managed to take a few fish back for their dinner tonight!!

June 26th 2018

 

A morning trip saw Brahm & his two grandsons, Max & Sam in the boat with me today. They were hoping for anything that swims and I knew just where to go! We hooked up around 7:00 and were running minutes later to our first spot.

With lines in, I instructed them on how to remove the rods from the holders when the fish hit and began the troll. I was liking the sonar and was sure it wouldn’t take long to lock them up. The first fish to hit turned out to be a walleye and while I was clearing the other rod from the same side, I set into another fish. Now Max and Sam both had one of their own. First double and hopefully not the last! We took a few pics of the walleye and released the pike back as it was rather on the small side. I put the walleye in the livewell in case someone wanted to take it home and resumed the troll.

Although I was marking fish, they didn’t seem to want to move on the baits. I covered plenty of great looking water and finally had a rip that went silent almost as fast. Short striking, no eating fish are hateful and I hoped it wouldn’t continue. The 65 degree water temps had these fish very lethargic and not wanting to move. As I continued covering water we did manage to get another small pike that didn’t even fire the reel. I was checking lines and felt weight! It was going to be one of those days!

I had began deep and gradually moved towards shallower water, changing lures as we trolled. It didn’t seem to matter as water temps were pretty much the same everywhere and so were the fish. We did have a few more bites and landed a couple more fish, but it wasn’t great. I decided to pull the plug on this area and go to the second spot.

After a long run, I set up and began trolling deeper water in hopes of a better bite. Not long after the long line screamed and before Max could get it out of the rod holder, it went silent. Three trebles and it still got off! A little while later another long line went off and I grabbed it quickly. Sam had another northern and at least this time, it made it into the net. Barely though as it came unpinned almost immediately. We continued trolling the area and had only a few more hits. They never even got hooked up so I decided to cover more water once again.

From deep water to the shallows, everything was the same. Short strikers or fish that fall off in the net, or even worse, before! This was becoming an issue and I was sure it was due to the water temps. Nothing was active and it was next to impossible to get something to eat. A couple of times while checking the lines, we even had a rider attached!

I kept moving to different sections of this area and changing up lures to try and get a bite. I finally had another reel fire that had Sam locked up on one of the better eyes I’m use to seeing. Unfortunately while bringing it to the boat, it just came undone. Another one that just fell off! With time running out quickly I decided to hit some water closer to the ramp as they needed to leave by 11:30. Dirtier water had the temps at 69 degrees and hopefully the fish active. Well after trolling for almost 10 minutes without a touch I decided to check the lines. There were a lot of nymphal shucks on the surface from a big hatch last night and this made me also wonder if the fish had fed heavily during the hatch. Something was definitely off and I couldn’t put my finger on it! When I got to the second rod, I realized that there was a fish on the end and handed off the rod. It was small, but it was a walleye and also the last fish of the day. Brahm was ready to go and we were officially done!

Although this wasn’t a normal day for numbers, the kids still managed to catch several fish each. I strongly believe that today the afternoon bite would have been much better if we had more time. The cold nights have slowed water temps from rising and at 65 degrees in most areas, it has a long way to go before these fish become active again. I’m crossing my fingers that we get south winds and hot weather for this week, warming the water up more. With many bookings ahead, I really need to find active fish. I guess I’ll be mixing it up more between casting, trolling and possibly deep drop shotting in the coming days. All I know is that bass is looking pretty good right about now. Might have to mix the species up a bit in order to get the numbers I’m use to seeing again!!

June 25th 2018

 

I had a full boat again today but this time it wasn’t all adults. Sam had brought his daughter Mia, who was celebrating her 7th birthday. Steph was also accompanied by his daughter Tiffany and it was going to be interesting! They would be having a little competition between fathers and daughters and would each be taking a side of the boat.

The weather had taken a turn for the worse this morning with another cold front & strong north winds and the ride was a rough one! The waves were crossways to the current and creating 2 to 3 footers in the open lake. It’s times like these when I really appreciate the boat I run!

We arrived at our starting location and I wasted no time setting up the 4 lines. It was game on as they split the sides and chose rods. I had noticed that the water temps had dropped yet once again and I was in between 64 & 65 degrees in most of the area I was trolling. I hoped this wasn’t going to be an issue and after a couple of minutes, we were hit. As luck would have it, the girls side went off and Mia began to reel in the first fish of the day. I saw that it was a nice walleye and readied the net when another reel fired and Tiffany had one of her own as well. We landed the two fish and shot a few pics before releasing them. The walleye was an over anyway and had to be returned!

I trolled all over the areas that had put so many fish in the boat a couple of days ago, but only picked a fish here and there. Fortunately the girls side of the boat were the only reels firing and they were up on their dads, six to zero. It was really becoming a competition and the girls prize was said to be a trip to Toys R Us if the won. I was going to make sure of that! Eventually one of the rods on the dads side fired and Stephane reeled in a pretty good pike. They were officially on the board!

I kept at the troll over all kinds of areas, catching more pike & walleye. The girls numbers were climbing and were over ten with the fathers less than half, when I decided to switch up a couple of the baits. I had ventured into slightly deeper water and ran the lines a little deeper as well. Almost instantly the girls long line fired and another big walleye was brought to net. While we had slowed down to land the fish a second rod on the other side went off and Sam landed a northern. I quickly reset the lines after returning both fish to the water and refined the area a little more. It was here that the numbers started to climb for both sides with many more walleye and pike being caught. The girls were still leading by quite a bit but I don’t think it mattered to their fathers. Everyone was just having a great time!

I knew they wanted to end the day early so I focussed my efforts on some of the key areas to try & increase their catch. For a while, every reel that fired seemed like it was coming from the girls side and they really increased their numbers. Sometime after 2:00 they decided that they wanted to end the day and I slowly brought the lines in and packed everything up. Wouldn’t you know it, the last rod to be removed from the holder was heavy and Mia got to reel in one more fish. This was definitely the icing on the cake! They had finished with a bang and by over double to their dads! Toys R Us, here they come!

I wasn’t sure how the waves would be running back but was pleasantly surprised to see that they had changed direction slightly, blowing out of the NW. The waves were still pretty good but at least they weren’t as bad as this morning. We never even took a splash on our way back to the dock!

Mia & Tiffany enjoyed their father daughter day on the water but were really looking forward to their trip to the store afterwards. They also stopped for ice cream after fishing, making this day even more enjoyable. I also loved having their two daughters in the boat and getting some really great pics of the girls holding their fish. This was one of the most relaxing days I’ve spent guiding this season. I wish more dads would take their kids fishing at such a young age. Mine did and look what happened to me!!

June 24th 2018

 

I had a client requesting largemouth 101 today and Tino was his name. I have fished pike & walleye so much this season that it was a welcomed change to go for old bucked head. Let the class begin!

We headed out on mirror calm waters, right to where I knew they lived. I informed him that I hadn’t fished largemouth this season and I was going to dissect it just like a tournament practice. He was looking forward to seeing how and welcomed the opportunity to learn!

I don’t think he realized what I was about to do when I ran into such shallow water. I told him they were either in spawn or post spawn mode, but either way I was going to find them. I set up a couple of lines with soft plastics but before beginning the search, obliged one of his requests. He had brought along a new baitcaster that he was struggling to learn how to use and within 5 minutes fell in love with it. A few adjustments and basic guidance and he was casting like a pro!

We started on the outside of weeds, but eventually moved to the inside of the area when he finally locked up with a nice fish. Too bad it was a pike, but it was a pretty big one nonetheless! The next fish turned out to be a beaver fish or bowfin and in full spawning colors. Tino had never caught one before and was thrilled to land his first ever “poisson castor” in the province of Quebec! All that was left, was the bucket head to complete his slam!

We covered more water and eventually, he connected with his first ever largemouth bass. Although post spawn, it was still a really good one! He now captured two species that he had never caught before and was learning a lot about location and presentation. This would help him out on future outings in his boat as well.

The fishing was a little slow at times but we moved along and picked at them along the way. We landed several more largies and a few more bowfin by covering water. I could see by the way these fish were acting that it was completely post spawn and continued the search for more. This place was alive with fish and we saw giant carp and loads of long nose gar. Several of the gar even took a swipe at out baits but unfortunately none were caught!

Tino was having a blast seeing everything from a new perspective as we slowly covered water. He said that he never would have thought of fishing a place like this for bass and that I had opened his eyes to a whole new way of fishing. Always good to know!

The morning had gone by quickly and I was glad we were into the afternoon as the sun was really warming the water up nicely. With the rising water temps, the fish started to become more active and plenty of species were moving all around. We saw a lot of bass just cruising that didn’t want to eat as well. At one point in the day, Tino actually caught a largemouth that jumped over a gar, that was following his lure, inhaling it right under his eyes. These gar were becoming a pain as they were eating baits and breaking them in half with their scissor like mouths.

Later in the afternoon after standing all day casting and catching fish, Tino was feeling the pain. His back was becoming a little sore and we decided to pack it in. It was past 3:30 by now and I could see the skies darkening where we needed to take out. Although we were still in sunshine and unbelievably hot conditions, it was about to get dark.

As we ran across the lake to the ramp, it felt like we had just entered a fridge. Between the heavy clouds and the temperature drop, it was amazing how cold it had actually gotten. We were fishing in almost 90 degrees and now it seemed like 60. The winds were blowing out of the north and some waves were building too. I was glad to arrive back at the dock as we were about to get a storm!

With a little help from a buddy with my trailer, we were out in no time! The bell had rang and Tino’s class was officially over for the day. He had learnt a lot today about largemouth and a few techniques on how to catch them. He was even looking forward to getting back out and using his baitcaster, now that knew how to cast. He was also in a hurry to leave as well, as he was hoping to get to a store to pick up heavier braid. After seeing where these bass lived, he wanted to replace the light fluoro he had on the reel before venturing back to the jungle!

This day couldn’t have gone any better because the steps used to find the fish were quite basic and easy to duplicate most anywhere. Tino will be able to apply what he learned today when he searches for new areas on his own and hopefully he will find fish. It was also nice for me to target a different species for a change, but I will be back at the troll once again tomorrow. Either way there’ll be plenty of bent rods and screaming reels for all to enjoy, the next time out!!