MANITOBA
LAKE OF THE PRAIRIES – ROGER & SUE GERES
Lake of the prairies this summer just won’t stop, crazy numbers every time you go, amazing sizes lots of fish from small to master anglers.
We mostly been jigging, depending on time of day usually start earlier in shallow water and as it gets hotter move a bit deeper trying to follow the fish. Bait doesn’t seem to be a preference and if you find bigger marks a reaction bite works to.
If finding enough fish to jig is a problem drop on spinners and cover some water and you’ll be certain to pick fish up. Zig Zag different depths till you find where they are !
FLY BITES” reports from members of the Manitoba Fly Fishers Association (MFFA)
Red River Catfish continue to be elusive for members, some are reporting success but numbers and size have been low.
Some angler have been targeting Rainbow Trout in our many stocked lakes in the province. Glen Harrison land this beautiful Master Angler recently from Barbe Lake.
The Whiteshell continues to provide good summer fishing for a variety of species including Crappie and Smallmouth Bass. Check out this beauty from Bird Lake caught by Lucy Sigfusson
The crappies are still a bit spread out but look out in the 16 to 20 foot depth with your fishfinder until you start marking fish. Drag a small spinner through them or vertical jig until you find out what works best!
NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO
LAKE OF THE WOODS – JAMIE BRUCE
We just wrapped up the 35th Annual Kenora Bass International here on Lake of the Woods
With a busy Bassmaster tournament schedule and other commitments, I had hardly fished Lake of the Woods until the weekend before the tournament, and I had really been missing out! The Smallmouth bass fishing was out of control this year, and the record tournament weights proved it. Adam Bachinsky and Andrew Beernart took the top spot with over 58 lbs for 15 smallmouth over the three day tournament.
It took around 51 pounds to get into the top 30. To put it in perspective, the 35 year tournament record was 57 pounds. The dominant pattern for most of the successful teams was targeting fish shallow.
It is great to see an event where having state of the art electronics had almost no impact on the outcome of the tournament. It was an old fashioned shallow bass fishing derby.
Bryan Gustafson and I targeted largemouth on day one of the three day tournament. We caught lots flipping and frogging and had a bunch of fun, but we only came in with 16 pounds putting us in 73rd after the first day. We scrambled on the smallmouth the next two days and caught two bags over 18 pounds on days two and three to make a comeback and land inside the top 20. We caught most of our fish on a Rapala X-Pop, Bass Tactics Elite Marabou Jig, and a Bass Tactics N-Jig / Z-Man Hula Stickz combo.
I can’t thank the volunteers, sponsors, and directors enough for putting on an event like this. After travelling to tournaments all over the US, it really puts it in perspective how special the KBI is.
A DAY OFF FISHING FOR GUIDE KRIS GUANE
After watching the Lowrance loaded with walleyes and seeing my clients catching so many fish I was itching to get a line wet.
DEEP FLAT IS THE TICKET
I have guided many of people to 30” and up walleyes and my biggest is 32” but there’s something special about this 30” Goldie!
NW Ontario Bass-Mike Corrigan – MB Fly Fishers President
Bass fishing has been very good the last few weeks as weed growth has peaked and water temperatures are stable. The fish continue to hold in very shallow water and along drop offs. Pick a lake known to hold Bass and give it a try. Several MFFA members, who normally target Nopiming lakes, have been surprised by both the numbers and size in NW Ontario lakes; try using both Poppers and smaller minnow patterns.
NW Ontario Small Lake Musky
Musky are being Musky as per their usual August pattern. The fish are generally present in relatively high numbers, but as angling pressure increases the larger fish are more cautious; smaller fish (<30”) continue to be aggressive taking smaller fly patterns once they hit the water. We successfully explored a couple of new small lakes during the past week. One, a Lake Trout lake, had the fishing holding near drop offs where the fish could quickly move away from the warmer surface waters once they had fed. Trolling in the clear water, while moving my inflatable boat from one potential holding area to another, has been very effective!
Water temperature and weeds appear to have peaked.
Black Sturgeon Lake
Smaller Pike are numerous as are smaller Smallmouth Bass, especially early. Try using smaller minnow patterns or a “Lindy Rig” setup using a small bell sinker/swivel followed by 2-3’ of tippet and a Floating fly, like a Booby and a second regular minnow pattern 2-3’ below, like a Stu Thompson DDH Leech; the results will surprise you! I have had multiple mid 20” Pike takers.
Tight lines!
Mike Corrigan
SASKATCHEWAN
Last Mountain Lake-Rob Schulz – G&S Marina Outfitters
Last Mountain Lake is continuing it’s awesome summer bite with surface water temperatures around 70 degrees. The walleye are biting well with lots over sized walleye up into the 30” range.
The walleye are on the steep break lines ranging from 18’ to 28’ in depth in the main lake basin area.
PRESENTATION
You can catch them by dragging crawler harnesses, trolling Deep diving crank baits, jigging spoons and bait rigging.
The PIKE have been very tough to catch as they have moved into very deep water.
The Carp are fishing very well also in the main lake basin. You bait them and they will come!!
There is lots of Perch biting almost everywhere we are fishing walleye with some good sized ones being caught.
Good luck fishing and please practice catch and release on those trophy fish !!
VISIT ROB AND BOOK AT TRIP HERE
RAFFERTY RESERVOIR – RALPH SMART-PRAIRE PRO OUTFITTERS
While Rafferty doesn’t have the jumbo walleye in the quantity that Last Mountain and Tobin Lake has, it certainly has numbers of good average size fish. In our trip last weekend we had non stop action. It wasn’t until the last day that we found the money hole. It was a relatively deeper flat adjacent to the main reservoir basin. It also had scattered boulders and sand. It was different than the other weed edge areas we had been fishing before. While those areas held fish, on this spot they were stacked. It always pays to try different patterns on any body of water and in this case guide Ralph Smart made it pay off.
PRESENTATION
Since we were fishing out of Ralph’s extremely comfortable 23 foot pontoon boat, we jigged during our stay using crawlers and frozen shiner minnows. All the hooks and bait and the best ice cream anywhere is available at the THE DAM STORE that Ralph and his family operate out of Main Prize Park. You can also rent fishing and pontoon boats from Ralph.
VISIT THEM HERE
ALBERTA-WES DAVID-FISHING THE WILD WEST T.V.
Due to a very hectic April through July Fishing the Wild West TV shooting schedule, Chuck and I took 10 days off to rest and spend time with family and friends which started on August 7th. There was a six-week stretch in June and July when Chuck and I were on the road/water, in two countries, six different provinces, and on nine plains including the stresses of getting through the Toronto airport. However, we have made it to August unscathed with nine complete episodes shot and we are both looking forward to 10 days off before we start the push to finish the last five episodes of season #8 of Fishing the Wild West TV.
On the Road
I would like to give a big shoutout to the Watercraft Inspection Stations across the western provinces and the individuals working at the inspection stations. Yes, some people travelling with boats and other watercraft think it is a pain in the butt to stop at the inspection stations. However, the Watercraft Inspection Stations and the individuals manning the stations are doing everything in their power to keep our water bodies free of invasive species such as Zebra Mussels and Quagga Mussels. I have pulled my boat across the western provinces six times so far this season and have two more trips across the western provinces before October, and if I add all the time that I’ve spent at a Watercraft Inspection Station, I may have lost 2 ½ hours of travel time all summer. To me, that is a very small price to pay to keep not only our water bodies and fisheries free of invasive species, but also our water treatment stations, and irrigation systems.
Low water
Once again, central and southern Alberta are experiencing drought conditions. This is the third straight year of these hot dry conditions. A combination of very little snow and spring runoff and little rain combined with hot dry conditions, has drastically depleted water levels. In the Alberta Foothills, many river and stream systems are closed to angling during the afternoon hours, due to warm shallow water. This is an effort not to put any extra stress on the fish. Many stocked trout ponds have lost the little water they gained from the spring runoff and are extremely low. In some cases, at an all-time low. In the ranch and farmland where I grew up, there are shallow-water bodies, sloughs, and dugouts that are bone dry. I personally have never seen these areas dry in my lifetime. I don’t mean this to be a doom-and-gloom subject, but we do need water.
Walleye wings
I recently shot a walleye episode of Fishing the Wild West TV on Lake Diefenbaker, in southern Saskatchewan. The fishing regulations state, I could take a slot-size limit of walleye home. In my opinion, there is nothing better than a feed of walleye. However, when I fillet my walleye, I always keep the cheeks and pelvic fins for appetizers.
After some needed rest, one of the first things my wife and did during my time off was invite some close friends over to spend time on the deck for some friendly conversation, a few adult beverages, and of course, I cooked some fish and wild game. The hot and spicy walleye pelvic fin appetizers also referred to as (walleye wings) were a huge hit.
There is a lot of precious walleye meat on the walleye wings. I cook them in garlic butter, spiced to your liking, meat-side down on the barbeque in a cast-iron pan. In my opinion, all fish should be cooked in a cast-iron frying pan.
Do you keep and cook your walleye wings?
Wes David, Host and producer of Fishing the Wild West TV.