EDITORS NOTE: The last two weeks have been a whirlwind of activity for anglers across the prairies and into Northwestern Ontario. Water levels have come down a bit but the fish have remained on a feeding rampage on almost every body of water. You will see that by the comprehensive reports we have from the guides and anglers that contribute to this post. Some of the most spectacular fishing action of all has been here in Manitoba for the mighty channel catfish. We have two reports to highlight just how good it has been. First we will hear from Wes David from Fishing the Wild West t.v. Wes came out to Manitoba in August to film a series of shows.
FISHING THE WILD WEST TV VISITS MANITOBA!
CATFISH AND WALLEYE ON THE AGENDA – WES DAVID
We met my good friend Paul Munroe, the owner of CatDaddy Fishing Guide Services. I’ve fished with Paul on the Red River for channel catfish before, so I had a good idea of what to expect. I was about to catch a bunch of big cats in the fast current of the Red River.
We met at 6:00 am and by 11:30 am, I had lost count of how many channel catfish I had caught and released. Every spot Paul stopped at we landed three to 10 catfish. We were using cut bait and touched the bait up with a little Liquid Mayhem scent attractant and lob cast our baits out of the back of the boat.
We then let the 8oz wights find their way to the bottom of the river. Within a few minutes, I would be doing battle with a catfish against the current of the river. The action was non-stop and by 11:30am, I was played out and my arms were starting to feel the effects of the morning bite. To my surprise, Paul pulled the anchor and headed for the dock. He said, go get some rest and meet me back at the dock at 9:00pm.
NIGHT FISHING FOR CATS
I was eagerly standing at the dock at 8:30pm when Paul arrived. Paul’s boat was now equipped with lights, and we were going to do battle with channel cats on the Red River at night. Please note, that Paul’s boat is equipped for night fishing and as far as I know, he is the only guide on the river that is set up for night fishing. In the same fashion as the morning, one catfish after another was caught and released using cut bait and a little Liquid Mayhem. By 11:30pm, Chuck, the chief cameraman and editor of Fishing the Wild West TV, said we have 212-minutes of catfish footage, enough to do three episodes. So after listening to Chuck and Paul make fun of me and giggling at how exhausted I was from landing catfish, I handed Chuck the rod. I sat back and watched him enjoy the experience of battle channel catfish through the Red River current with CatDaddy Fishing Guide Services. To everyone’s surprise, the first catfish Chuck landed was a pinto channel catfish.
After two hours of Chuck battling catfish, he said it was time to head back to the Canalta Hotel for some much-needed rest, however, we would have very little time to sleep. https://canaltahotels.com/hotels/canalta-selkirk
“FLY BITES”
reports from members of the Manitoba Fly Fishers Association (MFFA)
Finally Some Catfish! Mike Corrigan – President of the MFFA
I was finally able to spend a few hours on the Red River below the dam prior to a MWF “learn to fly fish session”. The river had dropped enough to wade out to cast to a current seam and the Catfish were plentiful! We landed a dozen or so Cats on a heavy fly that the fish aggressively took. We had 3 double headers in 2 hours and I don’t think I made more than 20 casts total for my 9 fish.
All landed fish were in the 30” to 34” range. A video link to the pattern we were using is below.
Catfish Pattern: https://youtu.be/7sNnGRVZBwk
LAKE WINNIPEG SCORCHING – WES DAVID CONTINUES HIS MANITOBA ADVENTURE WITH CATDADDY GUIDING
The next morning at 6 am Paul was waiting in the hotel parking lot to take us to Lake Winnipeg. After launching the boat, we fished standard August walleye locations. Around islands, rock points, and mid-lake sunken humps in 14-22 feet of water. A ¾ oz Big Sky Jigs tipped with a frozen minnow or a 4” soft plastic from Big Bite Baits was all that was needed. We caught and released several walleye in the 1 ½ to 3-pound range but every now and then when you set the hook you could feel the weight of a Master Angler walleye on the end of your line.
I landed more walleye than I could count but it was such an amazing experience being on Lake Winnipeg, a lake that I have heard so much about and catching world-famous greenback walleye. https://catdaddy.ca
EASTERN REGION – DON LAMONT
On the first part of the trip Wes took to Manitoba, as I wrote in the last fishing report he spent time with Hooked Publisher Kevin Stobbe and I along with Eric Mullen the Eastern Region Fisheries Biologist.
Wes files this report on his experience.
Trail End Camp & Outfitters out of Point du Bois, MB, would be our home base for the next four days. We fished for crappie and smallmouth bass with Eric, giving us insight on the fishery.
Smallmouth bass were caught casting a jig and a 4” swimbait from Big Bite Baits to shallow rock piles and offshore rock humps at a variety of depths. I don’t get the opportunity to fish for a lot of smallmouth bass, but I was quickly reminded of this specie’s acrobatics and never give up attitude on my first hookset. Pound for pound, smallmouth bass have to be one of the hardest fighting fish I’ve ever done battle with.
Crappie were scattered throughout the water column in small schools which I learned from Don and Eric is very common for crappie during the month of August. However, using 1oz bottom-bouncers and two feet of line with a small j-hook tipped with a small piece of nightcrawler or pan fish plastics from Big Bite Bait and covering a lot of water .7 to 1 MPH in eight to 16 feet of water we lost count of the number of crappies that were caught. Since the cabins at Trail End Camp & Outfitters have all the comforts of home we were sure to bring some fish back. The crappies were introduced to Wild West Seasonings fish batter for an incredible meal amongst friends to close out an amazing day.
On Day #2, we fished the Winnipeg River. I resisted the urge to fish for walleye and northern pike to continue fishing for Smallmouth bass. We fished with Carter Hrechkosy, the son of Vance & Maureen Hrechkosy, the owners of Trail End Camps & Outfitters. Carter is 21 years old and one of the most knowledgeable and passionate guides I have ever fished with. We fished the Winnipeg River out of the comforts of a 30-foot custom-built river charter boat that easily fishes eight people without getting in anyone’s way. Carter had us fishing mid-river humps in 16-20 feet of water and at each location, we caught and released walleye, northern pike, and smallmouth bass.
Day #3, Carter shuttled us across the Winnipeg River, and we did a 15-minute hike into Burton Lake. We made our way through the woods until the trees opened up to reveal a small lake loaded with eager-to-bite smallmouth bass.
These bass were found everywhere on the lake and couldn’t get enough of the F-Bomb and Zzombie Max lures from Lucky Bug Lures. These two shallow running crankbaits were an irresistible one-two punch for the Burnet Lake smallmouth bass.
This amazing trip was something I have to do more often. Getting back to the basics of fishing with friends and enjoying the great outdoors. https://trailendcamp.com/hunting
NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO – MIKE CORRIGAN
Musky 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. I had one fish that explode right at the shoreline in mere inches of water. I am still throwing flies with wiggle tails and doing very well! My “Diablo” continues to produce for both Musky and Bass.
Black Sturgeon continues to drop and both Pike and Bass action is good, especially rock, piles in the early morning. Tight lines!
VERMILLION BAY AND AREA-GLENN MCDONALD
As August, and with it, summer draws to a close, fishing will enter a transition period. The long days and warm evenings make way to shorter days and cooler nights. The best of summer peak fishing patterns are behind us. For those of us that enjoy fall fishing, the best is yet to come. August has brought some great fishing throughout Northwestern Ontario, and musky fishing has been a highlight reel.
Muskies have hit the bag in numbers
Bucktails are always a great musky bait in the summer months, and this summer was no exception. We have caught muskies on a variety of lakes on bucktails and spinnerbaits. Our favorites? Dadson Blade Baits and DropTine Tackle. With weed growth at all time highs, picking the right bait has never been more important. Spinnerbaits, such as the Growler from DropTine Tackle have been a stand out bait for us. The ability to get through thick weeds with ease, great hook up percentage and ease of use make them a great choice.
Top water lures have always been a musky angler favorite. Not much is more exciting than a top water musky strike! Asked to use a prototype lure from TR Custom Lure this season, we put it to good use! My fishing partner, Dave, had his father visit and we were fortunate to put him on his first two muskies.
A new favorite jerk bait?
Jerk baits, or twitch baits, or even Dive and Rise style baits are a huge category of musky baits. I use a bunch of these styles of baits, and have some distinct favorites. A new bait I was given to try this season, the Dip Stick from Top Line Baits has proven to be an amazing bait. Straight away this year, that bait has been a solid fish catching bait. As the summer has started to wind down it has remained a go to bait. Look for a full video review to hit our YouTube channel early this fall.
Big pike and big musky
Not only are we blessed to have waters to catch big muskies, we also have the ability to catch big pike on a lot of the same waters. On a recent trip with a buddy from Kenora, we put three nice muskies in the net and one beautiful pike. Using Dadson Blade Baits, David started off with a great musky to start the day. Switching to a Lake X Toad proved to be the right decision for myself as I bagged two fish on three casts. Danny Litwora hooked a wicked pike on a DropTine Tackle Growler to finish the day.
Having the ability to catch both species on one body of water is amazing. We are so lucky to live where we do.
She had never seen a musky before today…
Wrapping up my musky fishing last week, my buddy Jamie’s wife, had never seen a musky before. We fixed that problem with not one, or two muskies, but three muskies in the bag on a great evening on the water. What may sound like a broken record, the Growler from DropTine Tackle pulled through for Jamie. And to no surprise the DipStick scored two great fish for myself.
Not only do I love putting friends on muskies, but seeing their wives and kids get excited is icing on the cake.
A rare walleye trip
On a weekend where I spent some time on Eagle Lake at my brother-in laws cabin, we spent some time chasing walleye. I don’t get a chance to walleye fish much during the summer, but getting the kids on them is so much fun.
Targeting deep water humps that top out around 18-22’ proved to be the ticket. Jigs tipped with live minnows were the preferred bait. Watching the kids catch fish after fish is awesome. Size matters little when the kids are catching. When they say ‘take a kid fishing’, they mean it. Kids love fishing and it’s such a rewarding experience.
Not to be outdone, the adults put a few nice fish across the deck. Catching trophy size walleye never gets old and Northwestern Ontario is the place to do it.
Fall is in the air
Labour day weekend signals the end of summer. For some, the end of summer means less tourists on the water. For others it means the end of the fishing season. Surprisingly, many anglers rarely venture out after the first week of September.
For us, fall is the season for fishing. The season of giants. We will fish until the boat launches are frozen over. Is it cold? Is it miserable? Yes it is, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. So, while many of you will be wrapping up your boating season, we will just be getting started.
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SASKATCHEWAN
RAFFERTY RESERVOIR – RALPH SMART, PRAIRIE PRO OUTFITTERS
Our jig bite still very good here on Rafferty Reservoir A huge number of aggressive small eyes right now but our perfect eaters still can be found tight to weed edges in 15 ft but also even shallower in weedless pockets Keep moving until you find them for an all day bite which we are known for then tap jigs with minnows crawlers or leech’s on the bottom to attract them and hover motionless off bottom no more than 6 inches for up to 30 seconds Don’t over work your jigging motion
LAST MOUNTAIN LAKE – ROB SCHULZ, G&S MARINA 0UTFITTERS
PIKE ON THE WEEDLINES
NORTHERN SASKATCHEWAN – WES DAVID
On August 16th, I had the good fortune of spending the day fishing for walleye on Otter Lake, Saskatchewan, with Steve Venarchick, a Vietnam Veteran, from Minnesota. Steve is a big fan of Fishing the Wild West TV, and each year (not counting 2020 & 2021) Steve comes to Canada to fish on a variety of lakes with guides and lodges and it just so happened that Steve was at Thompson’s Resort in Missinipe, SK, the same day I was.
Perry the manager of Thompson’s Resort arranged a Sun Tracker pontoon boat and a guide to take Steve, Chuck, and I out fishing for the day. It was a simple walleye jigging bite with Big Sky Jigs and frozen minnows followed by an amazing shore lunch. But it was a day of fishing Steve said he will never forget. The next day Steve flew into Twin Falls Lodge, and I flew into Daly Lake.
Thank you to Perry the manager of Thompson’s Resort for going above and beyond. And thank you to all veterans for giving us the right to live our lives as free men and women! https://www.adventuredestinations.ca/thompsons-resort.html
Dead Lake Saskatchewan
On August 17, we were loading all our gear into a flat plane on the dock of Otter Lake and flying another hour north-east into Daly Lake to one of Adventure Destinations International (ADI) outpost camps. This was a self-guided outpost trip, and my goal was to do battle with lake trout and I’m being conservative when I say, I believe I caught and released over 300 lake trout in 3 ½ days of fishing.
The weather was on our side for all four days, and we found large schools of lake trout in several locations on the lake. The key to finding the lake trout was depth. Lake trout of all sizes were holding in 70-90 feet of water and although we did a little three-way rigging, the lake trout, especially the big lake trout, wanted a vertical jigging presentation. My go-to in these situations is a Buzz-Bomb or Spinnow from Buzzbomb Tackle out of Courtenay, BC.
Jigging a 2.5oz Spinnow in a variety of white, silver, pinks, and blue colours in 70-90 feet of water proved to be irresistible to the lake trout. Once hooked up, the real lifeline was the 50lbs Sunline braided line. The no-stretch line was key to not only fighting the fish but also getting a good hookset so you could fight the fish.
Daly Lake is a self-guided generator-powered outpost camp complete with, a fridge, stove, freezer, hot showers, amazing scenery, and world-class lake trout and northern pike fishing. https://www.adventuredestinations.ca
Sorry for no Alberta Fishing Report. At the time of this writing, I’m just passing through my home province on my way to fish the west coast.
Wes David Host & Producer of Fishing the Wild West TV