MANITOBA
Lake of the Prairies
It was time for our annual fall trip with a group of old friends from Saskatchewan and the West Coast. We stayed at Kilman Resort as we always do. It has four nice cabins, a good boat launch and a nice filleting station by the water. Oh and three of the four cabins have hot tubs which is nice after a long day on the water. This was my second trip this year after visiting in June with Wes David and other industry members.
I must say this time the fishing was not as good.
While we caught plenty of fish it was nothing like the action we got in June. I am sure the warmer temperatures and algae blooms didn’t help. As always we tried a number of different techniques and locations. As far as depth, the largest walleye caught was a beautiful 25 inch fish caught in three feet along a weed line. It smacked a swimbait and put up a fantastic battle!
The most consistent bite was in 12 to 14 feet using bottom bouncers and spinners tipped with nightcrawlers. We also caught them on jigs and salted shiners. The last day when the fish finally got a bit more aggressive small jigs and plastic worked just fine.
All in all another great trip to one of my favourite places to fish in the world.
NOTABLE CATCHES
The Channel catfishing in the Red River remains really good despite the warm temperatures. Anglers have been adjusting by fishing at night when the big catfish become more active.
There have been plenty of other species providing anglers with consistent action including bullhead and common carp. Check out this beauty caught in the Little Saskatchewan River by Trent McGorman.
For anglers willing to put in a bit of hard work and patience there are some awfully big largemouth bass in the Reynolds Ponds. Check out this beautiful largie caught by Myles Katrensky.
Speaking of notable catches Manitoba Fly Fisher President Mike Corrigan headed up to one of his favourite lakes in Manitoba recently. Twin Lakes did not disappoint as Mike landed a massive 24 inch tiger trout. This lake just continues to amaze.
I spent 2 windy days on Twin and the Tigers were very aggressive on surface flies. Most of my fish were caught on a small foam mouse in the shallow, weedy, areas. The only hatches I observed were Damels and Dragonflies.
From there he headed up to Manitoba’s only musky lake, West Watjsak.
I had another opportunity to give West Watjask another shot, and it certainly didn’t disappoint! The launch, with the lower water in September is more conducive to inflatables or canoe/kayaks. The Musky were plentiful, but smaller, with the larger fish suspended in deeper water. Surface temperatures were 17-18C. Poppers and smaller “Diablos” were the ticket and orange was the preference.
Did you know why these lakes are so special? That because of the relentless efforts of a number of stakeholder groups in this province. The Manitoba Wildlife Federation recently put together a fantastic video that outlines the great work that a number of these groups have been doing for years.
This documentary film explores the collaborative efforts of Manitoba Fisheries, recreational anglers, Swan Valley Fish Enhancement, Lac du Bonnet Wildlife Association, and Mound Wildlife Association to enhance our province’s aquatic ecosystems. Join us as we uncover the behind-the-scenes efforts to sustainably manage and replenish fish populations across Manitoba’s pristine waters. From stocking strategies to community involvement, discover how these organizations are making a difference in conserving our outdoor heritage.
We have one of the best stocked trout programs in North America, if not the world. It is made possible by the collaborative effort of the groups listed above and the great respect and appreciation that our anglers have for the work done.
We need to protect this heritage and you can help by attending the province wide town hall meetings that the MWF is hosting. The Manitoba Wildlife Federation will be hitting the road again in October to run another series of townhall events after a successful Northern run.
NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO
Guide and tournament angler Ian Waterer has been having a productive fall guiding out of Ash Rapids Camp on Lake of the Woods. Ian recently joined me on The Complete Anglers podcast to talk about his fishing career and the recent controversy at the Kenora Bass International.
Ian does a great job of explaining his passion for the sport and his dismay at what happened during the event.
Check it all out here
SASKATCHEWAN
LAST MOUNTAIN LAKE- G & S Marina never fails to impress.
WES DAVID – FISHING THE WILD WEST TV
Last week I had the good fortune of fishing with Rob, the owner of G & S Marina, on Last Mountain Lake. I have always wanted to fish Last Mountain Lake in the fall and finally, my schedule allowed. However, it wasn’t the monster walleye I was targeting, it was the northern pike and the common carp I was after.
Over the last two weeks, the water and ambient air temperatures have been dropping causing the large northern pike that Last Mountain Lake is known for to move into the shallow bays. We didn’t cast Len Thompson Lures or a jig and swim bait for northern pike, we casted large flies using a fly rod into five and seven feet of water. The changing water temperatures were causing the pike to be a little sluggish and the sinking five-inch fly, (Mc Fly) had to be casted 30 to 40 yards out and striped at medium to slow speeds as the boat drifted across the bay. The fly would sink about three feet below the surface and pike would hit the fly at their will. Several pike were caught and released, and a few allowed us to enjoy an adrenaline-filled fight before spitting the hook.
The next day we moved our attention to the common carp that call Last Mountain Lake home. As far as I know, G & S Marina is the only ones who guide for carp in Saskatchewan. We fished for carp in the traditional European style, and everything was provided through G & S Marina, including the guide. As a bonus, our guide was Anthony Russell, the 2024 DT Baites Canadian champion. We were fishing with nine-foot Streamside rods and reels and 20lb line.
The action started immediately after the first cast and we had Anthony baiting and setting rods, and netting carp for the next four hours. Carp on Last Mountain Lake, in southern Saskatchewan, with G & S Marina, is one fishing adventure I will be penciling on my calendar for years to come.
If you have never had the chance to fish for common carp, I highly recommend calling G & S Marina. This is an exciting experience and a hard-fighting species.
Where else can you catch 15 to 25-lb fish with the chance of a 30-lb fish or bigger all day long from the shoreline? https://gsmarina.com
ALBERTA – WES DAVID
The sun triggered the walleye to bite at Crawling Valley Reservoir.
On Monday, September 23, I loaded the boat and headed south to Crawling Valley Reservoir, to fish for early fall walleye. When I pulled into the boat launch, I was pleasantly surprised to see the docks were still in the marina. We launched the boat and went east out of the marina about a 1/4 of the way down the reservoir. Crawling Valley Reservoir is loaded with great walleye structure however, the early morning water temperature was (58.4 Fahrenheit or 14.6 Celsius) and the walleye were holding tight to the bottom. The walleye were very sluggish, and it was a slow bite, to say the least. A 3/8 oz Snake Eye jig from Big Sky Jigs tipped with a frozen minnow resting right on the bottom was the only presentation that would trigger the walleye to bite.
The early morning bite was slow but as the sun rose higher in the sky, by 10:00 am walleye were willing to move off the bottom and were a little more aggressive. We never changed presentations throughout the day, and the bulk of the walleye were found in 25 to 27 feet of water adjacent to structure with sharp drop-offs. The odd northern pike would also take our offering.
I don’t know when the docks will be pulled out of the marina at Crawling Valley Reservoir, but even if they are removed, the boat launch is very launch-friendly for all sizes of boats.