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Luigi & his son were with me today on another body of water. It was nice to have a change of scenery and fish solely for big smallies! They had wanted to learn about current breaks and how the fish relate to different depths. They were definitely going to learn!

We met up around 7:30 and headed on the water to check some deep areas. I idled over a few of them and settled on one that looked good. Drop shotting was going to be the presentation of choice and it didn’t take long before they were reaping the rewards. Rob managed to hit the first bass and it was a good one too. Seeing as how they were coming up from deep water I didn’t want to waste time taking pics. A very quick release was made as soon as the hook was removed and it bolted right back to the bottom unharmed. This day was already successful with his first deep water fish coming aboard, but I was only getting started!

We made several drifts over specific areas and I showed them that boat control was the most important factor in getting bit. A vertical presentation was used and keeping the line straight down was very important. Basically, dragging is snagging and we never lost a single rig all day! Luigi even managed his personal best smallie by doing this today, with two monsters. Rob landed many good fish as well but already had a giant smallmouth under his belt that would be difficult to match.

I moved around some during the morning, switching depth zones as well as locations and staying on current breaks all the time. Every area we fished held bass but the size was dependant on the depth we were in. Patterns were developing and I now knew what was needed to find the big ones!

As the day progressed, I jumped to a shallower pattern to see if there were still some big ones there too. First spot we hit produced a monster for Rob but it seemed to be the only one. Several more areas later without a single fish, I was beginning to wonder if it was worth the effort. We were seeing some good ones cruising around and that made me think that it was just a matter of time before we hit one. Sure enough, Rob set into what turned out to be the largest one of the day. It was a real pumpkin and had the length to go with it as well. Several pics later it was back swimming to be caught another day!

It was mid afternoon now and they had to be on the road by 4:00, so I decided to take them back to the deep to see if we could end with a few more good ones. It was definitely a good choice as both Luigi & his son managed to land more huge smallies. They had many chances but only monopolized on about half of the hits they had. Luigi lost several that seemed hooked but did land the one that counted in the end. He brought to net his second giant of the day and likely beat his personal best from earlier this morning! A very quick pic was taken and the fish was released unharmed, bolting straight back down to the bottom. We remained here a little longer and landed a few more fish before pulling the plug and heading back.

They had experienced exactly what they wanted to learn and now had a better understanding of how to fish deep water and current breaks. I’m sure that from now on they won’t be afraid to try fishing deep everywhere they go. By understanding how to read the water, they should always have good fishing from now on. My greatest reward will be if they contact me again, telling me that it produced on their own waters. This was definitely a great day of fishing and an educational one as well. It was also nice to have a change of scenery, with giant smallies as a bonus!

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A later than usual start and an early finish had Darren & I fishing limited areas today. We started out with a troll and despite many short strikes, only managed a couple of fish. I had noticed something strange with the water and figured out why on our next spot. There was very little current! I think they reduced the flow from one of the dams upstream. Add the zero wind and it felt like we were anchored!

We had to cast the drop shot rigs here instead of the usual drifting technique and It didn’t take long before there were fish being caught. Several keeper walleye and some bass were landed with a few other fish being lost too. I really would have liked to fish this area longer but it wasn’t producing as well without the movement and I decided to pull the plug and try for bass somewhere else.

We arrived on a shallow flat that had been holding good fish the last couple of weeks and it didn’t take long to find out that they were still here. Soft plastics were the ticket and fish after fish were landed. Although mostly medium sized, there were a few pretty big ones too! Eventually the bite just slowed completely and we were forced to move once again. I knew that we were pressed for time and that Darren wanted to bring a few walleye home so we decided to resume the troll.

Back at it again with the sun higher and the water flat, I wasn’t sure what to expect. After about 30 minutes of washing baits, I had my answer. Nothing was moving except us. I relocated again and tried it in another area with exactly the same results. Without any wind or flow, the weeds on the surface were also insane and the lines were covered with them constantly. It was impossible to keep the rods clean!

As there were only 30 minutes remaining before we had to pull out, I decided to look at a couple of areas that were in deeper water. I was shocked to see that one of them was setting up pretty good and showed signs of life on the bottom. So much so that as soon as I told Darren to drop down, he was locked up. The drop shot rod was loaded but we never got a chance to see how big the fish was as it came unpinned before it reached the boat. The winds had also began and were now blowing enough from the south that we were able to make a drift. With the time remaining, several good fish were landed including an over walleye that Darren caught on the very next drop. It killed me to have to pull out of here but we had no choice. Darren had to pick up his kids from school as his wife became sick and wasn’t able to do it as planned!

Although time was cut short, there were a number of fish landed today and we ended with bang. I can’t wait to get back out again and refine the area we last fished and hopefully find the mother lode. It will have to wait a couple of days though as tomorrow I will be on a different pond looking for giant smallies in the deep. Looking forward to the change of scenery!

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Stephan was with me today and this time he brought his entire family too! We headed out shortly after 7 and directly to fish for the big ones. He had landed many in the past with me and was hoping to get his kids into a few of the dinosaurs this morning. We spent about 3 hours anchoring in several places and only managed one smaller than usual fish for our efforts. His daughter was the lucky one as she actually got to reel it in and pose for the pic. Time to move!

I headed to a bass area and it didn’t take long before everyone was hooking fish. Although not all big, there were some really nice fish landed as we covered water searching for the real giants. They all thoroughly enjoyed casting baits and manipulating their own rods to entice the strikes. I had wanted to move around more but the weekend traffic on the lake was just insane. I eventually just gave up and pulled the plug here, opting to troll in another area of the lake.

Stephan was hoping to take a couple of walleye home for dinner, so I decided that trolling would be our best option. Getting there however wasn’t easy as the water looked more like city rush hour than an actual lake. It’s been a while since I’ve seen this many boats out and I hope it’s even longer before I see it again! Eventually I arrived safely and set up everything to troll. Not long after, the first reel fired and we had a walleye for them to take home. It was a high end keeper and really thick too! While here,we had three doubles and many singles along with probably a half dozen fish that never really stayed pinned. By the time it was all over, they had landed two walleye, 6 pike and a hand full of decent smallies, all in under an hour! I can’t wait to try this area again when there’s no boat traffic!

Although the day wasn’t easy, I managed to make it work again by changing up often. The kids had a great time catching fish on their own as well as reeling in many from the troll. They called it a little early and we headed back right around 2:30 as Stephan had a couple of appointments later in the afternoon.

Considering all the boats out today, it couldn’t have gone better as we were always on fish. I know summer is still upon us but I really can’t wait for the fall and less traffic on the lake. Either way, I will be on the water pretty much every day right up till the end, catching everything that swims. Cooler weather and water temps will soon be making fish more active and easier to target and all the pleasure boats will be stored until next season. Bring it on!

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Jeff, Avery & Kevin joined me today for a great day of smallmouth fishing. They were in from Texas and hoping for some Canadian bass! Despite a terrible cab ride in from the city, they still made it for our 7:00 meet time. Apparently their driver didn’t own a GPS and had no clue where he was going with the address they provided. Sounds about right!

I had given them the option to try for sturgeon this morning and they were all for it. Unfortunately after several hours of nothing, we pulled the plug and opted for plan B and the smallies. I would at least get them into plenty of great action doing this!

I had been drop shotting deeper water lately, but today I thought we’d try some soft plastics in slightly shallower water. I knew they would be into fish quickly and on Avery’s first cast, he almost had one. A softer than needed hookset allowed the bass to get off but at least I knew they were here. I decided to give them a demonstration on what they needed to do and immediately slammed a smallie for them to see. They now knew exactly how hard to set the hook!

For the next couple of hours, they all had many chances and managed to get a good number of their fish to come to net. Plenty of great pictures were taken to ensure they had memories of all the first time smallies they had landed. Being from Texas, they hadn’t tangled with the bronzebacks before and didn’t realize just how hard they actually fought. They loved it!

After catching so many fish in this area it was inevitable, someone else moved in to get theirs! A local had seen the action and decided it was alright to just slide in and anchor directly where we were catching all our fish. Absolutely unbelievable! I decided not to get too pissed off and slid out to another area close by where they continued to catch more fish once again. Not long after, another boat also moved in and did the same thing. It really doesn’t pay to fish weekends anymore! Time to leave before we educate these weekend warriors!

I made a distant move and informed the guys that the numbers wouldn’t be the same here but the size would be much bigger. Well it didn’t take long before Kevin had on the big fish of the day. It was definitely larger than anything they had hooked into so far and after a great fight, I netted his catch. A few quick pics later, it was back swimming to be caught again. Avery managed the only other fish from here but we saw some really big ones follow their baits that just wouldn’t take. Time to move again!

They had really wanted to catch one of those dinosaurs this morning so they all agrees to give it another try. I set up in an area and we waited. Although we did manage to have one bite, it turned out to be some sort of sucker and Avery reeled the fish in. A few more hours of drowning baits and we were done. Zero for two on the sturgeon but plenty of bass in between!

The gang had usually gone to Louisiana for their annual trip but had opted to come here this year. Lucky thing as the weather over there right now was quite nasty! They were receiving torrential rains and a hurricane too! I think they made the right decision because they were at least able to fish here in Montreal. They may not have gotten into the sturgeon but the smallie action was absolutely on fire. High numbers of great fish were landed by everyone and who knows how many they missed! Good times were had by all!

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A last minute cancellation opened the door for Fang & his family today. Mary and their two children, David & Claire would be with me for a half day of fishing this afternoon. As I was no longer booked in the morning I offered them an 11:00 till 3:30 instead. They gladly agreed to the adjusted time!

We launched the boat right on schedule and soon after were fishing open water for a mix of fish. I figured with this many people in the boat that they would be best to drop shot. After a quick instruction, Claire hooked up on a small walleye. Her brother David was soon to follow with a large perch too. The parents were also getting bites but they were missing their fish on the hookset. Multiple drifts later and only small fish to show for our efforts, I decided a change was in order. The winds started out perfect but had now increased to 15 or 20 knots from the west and I made the move.

Trolling was to be the method now and I began fishing an area I hadn’t been in since June. With all the high water, this place was still looking good! I set the four rods in the holders and began covering water looking for our first bite. Although it took a while to find the fish, I eventually located what I was looking for. The first reel to fire was the long line and Fang was into a nice walleye. I knew the fish still had to be in the area as all the offshore spots weren’t holding them this year! He reeled it in and after a few pics, we put it into the livewell for Claire to keep watch over. I continued the troll and soon after, another walleye was landed by their daughter and things were looking up. We fished the area more and managed another nice eye and a double header on northerns before moving on. They had wanted to get back to drop shotting and I had left about an hour for them to do it.

The run to where I wanted to fish was a little bumpy as the waves had increased to 3 footers while we were gone. I hadn’t noticed this as we were in a somewhat sheltered area where we had been trolling. Although it was rolling, I was still able to get them back on fish in the remaining time we had. I think everyone hooked up in the end and they even had another double of walleye on their last drift.

Although the fishing wasn’t great in the short time out, there were still many fish landed and lost by everyone. Half days are always more difficult as I am limited to certain areas, so as not to waste time running too far. Regardless of the outcome this afternoon, this family had a great time catching fish that they had never seen before. Most of them were fishing for their first time and it was a success! Hopefully they’ll continue the sport on their own when they get back home from their vacation! Good times were had by all today!