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Dan had been looking forward to today for almost two weeks now. It was either stay home with his wife’s gang and Karaoke, or go fishing. There’s a no brainer! I knew the best bite would be in the afternoon due to the cold night so we launched right around 9:00 this morning. To make matters even better, we were using his boat to fish! Due to the shallow waters we had to navigate, a lighter boat was our best choice. Unfortunately, the big winds and waves had me soon second guessing our decision. We were faced with 2 & 3 footers and a giant howl from the SW. A little splashy but we got the job done! Once we arrived at our destination, he was put to the test. Now he had to operate the electric motor and try to fish in these hateful winds. I was definitely enjoying being a passenger caching fish from the back of the boat. Dan on the other hand was struggling a bit, using the foot pedal on his new electric for the first time. Although it was  difficult in the beginning, he eventually managed and now we were both hooking up. We were targeting crappie and working hard to get them. Bluegills and sunfish were more active under our floats, but some crappie were cooperating. We moved around a few times but found ourselves back where we began, by the afternoon. With the air temps much warmer now and sunshine blazing down on the water, it was only a matter of time. Unfortunately the winds had also picked up and I eventually gave in and took over on the electric motor. With the boat so light, we were being blown all over too quickly and I didn’t want to spook the fish. Although I’m use to cables for foot control, I soon realized that his pedal wasn’t much different. For the last couple of hours in our day, we both boated our share of these tasty morsels. It was also their lucky day as every last one was released! Dan managed to get the biggest one and on his last cast too! I decided to call it a day and end on a high note. I’m pretty sure if we stayed there, we would have caught many more. Unfortunately I had dinner plans and needed to get home. What started slow, eventually changed with the weather and ended with a bang! There’s still plenty of days ahead for more crappie action but I’ll be splitting it between panfish and salmon now that the season has arrived. Either way, I’ll be on the water as often as I can in the coming weeks. Hopefully the weather as well as the fish will cooperate once again!

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With the seasons about to start for various fish, I am still catching the only thing legally open. Crappie and giants at that! Yesterday was a little better than today but the quality is well worth the lack of numbers. Some real monster « Gorillas » have been landed under a float and on extremely light tackle. These fish may not be the best fighters but what they lack in strength, they more than make up in taste. Very similar to a walleye for their fight but even tastier!

Salmon will be next on the list this week and hopefully the season opener will provide plenty of action for my guests. Fly rods will be the tackle of choice and trolling the technique used to pursue these feisty silver bullets. Hopefully there will be many reels screaming, just like they always do!

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With the season about to begin, I thought I’d take a look at the lake before dropping the boat in for a run. But after seeing all the crap floating and the water levels so high, I decided against it. No need hitting something big and costly before getting started! Plenty of time to fish starting next Friday when the trout & salmon opener hits Quebec anyway! Pike will open the following Friday, May 5th and walleye a week later. With all this high water, it should be great fishing for everything as the shallow bite will make for easy pickings. I can’t wait to get out with clients, both new & old, for another excellent season. Plenty of openings available for anyone interested in catching both numbers and size of these early season fish. Gift certificates also make for great fathers day presents as well as birthday gifts! Just something to consider!

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Chris & Chris hooked up with me today and experienced their best day of ice fishing, ever! Although it rained pretty much the entire time we were out, it didn’t stop them from catching loads of crappie. They both learned that the use of a sonar while fishing on the ice, can increase your catch rate tremendously. Most of the fish they caught were returned to the water, but not before harvesting a small amount for the table. They caught so many fish that they called it quits after only four hours of fishing! Alright, maybe the weather had something to do with it too!

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Several years back, the use of live minnows was disallowed for summertime fishing here in Quebec. Now the Quebec Ministry has decided to pull the plug on using live minnows during the winter months as well. This new rule is said to be coming into effect April 2017 for the 2018 ice fishing season. Ice fishing is a way of life here in the province of Quebec and a family sport enjoyed by most fishermen as well. Many outfitters work hard to set up mini villages of cabins on the ice, providing hours of pleasure, the whole family can enjoy. Tip ups are the most commonly used rods and live minnows, the best bait of choice. These dead lines require little attention as the lively minnows do their work under the ice. Dead minnows, not so much! Lethargic fish need some movement to trigger them into biting and without live minnows, it’s minimal to none! The proof is in the pics! These fish were all caught on dead lines with live minnows!

Here’s a website that’s started a petition, in hopes of reinstating the legal use of live minnows for the ice fishing season in Quebec. Please log into www.menes.quebec to voice your opinion and hopefully stop the new law before the 2018 ice fishing season begins. You can also view the website below for a complete list of all the rules and regulations for the province of Quebec.

http://mffp.gouv.qc.ca/presence-de-la-carpe-de-roseau-confirmee-dans-le-fleuve-saint-laurent/