Author: Don Lamont

We are well into summer now and by all accounts the fishing in most parts has been pretty darn good. I had a busy month with a lot of travel and some awesome angling. This despite unstable weather, rain, wind and intense thunderstorms. The fish, for the most part, seem unbothered and ready hit anything that might arouse interest. HOT SUMMER PRESENTATION:   It’s still almost impossible to beat a bottom bouncer and spinner rig for summer walleye and even huge pike. On a recent trip to Tobin Lake, Saskatchewan, friend Boyd Holmen and I caught numerous walleye using this setup.…

It was cool and dry in the mountains when we arrived on July 11th for our semi-annual fly fishing trip to the Crowsnest Pass region. Two years ago the streams and rivers in the region had been fairly high and fast. Totally different conditions greeted us this year and that was a good thing. Water conditions were relatively benign, with lower water levels and medium flow. In fact, when talking to Vic Bergman the first night, he said he was hoping for rain for the next couple of weeks in order to increase the flows a bit. Vic owns “The…

Over the years, I have spent a fair amount of time on Last Mountain Lake north of Regina. This natural lake stretches more than 70 miles and is also known as Long Lake for this reason. It is the largest naturally occurring body of water in southern Saskatchewan, although Lake Diefenbaker (created by damming) is larger. The lake was named for a Plains Cree legend about the Great Spirit shovelling dirt from the valley the lake now occupies and forming Last Mountain Hills east of Duval. It was early June when I made the trek there this year, heading north from Regina past Craven on…

Recently, my wife and I had a chance to visit Spain. Unfortunately our schedule didn’t allow us time to fish. A friend of mine, Ron Enns, had spent one day fishing in that country the year before and provided me this story: In April 2015 I walked a large portion of the 780 km pilgrimage from the Pyrenees to Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain.  I am an avid fly fisher and there were plenty of trout in most of the rivers I crossed so I arranged to spend a day fishing the Cea River near Leon with C & S Fly…

Start at the boat show when ready for a serious relationship. Others may question your commitment and mock your impulsive nature. Take comfort that you and your boat, your new love, can always cast off to where the current leads and where others’ voices are distant. I was told as a boy “the sea is in your blood”. Seems fate leads one to the boat show. The first boat I remember was made by Fisher Price and arrived with water ski and scuba gear, dolphin and mini sub. The experiences we shared proved transformative. Next, I captained our robin’s egg…

It all started a while back with a call from Kevin Stobbe, publisher of Hooked magazine. Kevin was asking if I could set up a helicopter ice fishing trip and write an article about it. Of course I said yes, but I needed to call my cousin Derek Longley owner of Prairie Helicopters Inc. for approval. Before I could even make the call Kevin calls me back saying wouldn’t it be cool if we could get Winnipeg Jets superstar Dustin Byfuglien to come with us? Now Dustin Byfuglien had just stated to the media playing in the All Star Game would…

In 2000, the Area A Slot Limit for Walleye was implemented. Area A defined by ‘the area south of Gammon-Bloodvein Rivers to the south and west shores of the Winnipeg River, including Lac du Bonnet, and the southern boundary of Whiteshell Provincial Park, and from Lake Winnipeg to the Ontario border (excluding the Winnipeg River from Pine Falls Dam to Lake Winnipeg)’. The slot limit initially was all walleye between 38 cm and 70 cm must be released. Notice the lower end is not 45 cm but 38 cm. This reflects the different growth rates for walleye located in lakes…

By Josh Wood & Jason Murdock Kayaks have been around for thousands of years with a primary use as an aid in the pursuit of fish and game. Originally built with animal skin stretched over a whalebone or wooden frame their modern counterpart is typically polyethylene resin. Over the last 15-25 years the sport of kayak fishing has taken off and is flourishing all over the world in all types of water bodies. From a stealthy pursuit of easily spooked fish in the shallows to jigging in the wide open ocean, these vessels are putting more and more people on good numbers…

Known for its wildlife, great golf course and scenery, Riding Mountain National Park is also an angler’s paradise. The gem of all the lakes within the park though, is Clear Lake. One of the most popular tourist destinations in Canada, most people that launch their boats use it for watersports such as tubing and water skiing. The Lamont family has a long history with this region, having made the Wasgaming town site a summer destination from the early 1950’s. My dad grew up on a farm near Margaret, Manitoba so Clear Lake was the number one resort destination for people…

Don’t worry guys, I hear it’s a very peaceful death,” my brother Matt reassures us, as he butters his toast over breakfast in Kelvington, Saskatchewan. Sean argues, “We’re not not going to be using the portable heaters. Besides, I’ve got a detector!” Matt lets out a doubtful smile, “If you want to put your trust in a machine I guess.” After squaring up for the meal, we gather by the vehicles. “We’ll have few hours of sunlight to find a spot and set up our tent, so they’ll just have to find us,” I announce excitedly, but annoyed that three…