Hooked Fishing Report for July 29th, 2022

Fishing on Lake of the Woods has been in a state of change the last week or so.  Due to a late mayfly hatch, the shallow walleye had become very difficult to catch, many of them suspending on 10’ mud flats after gorging on the annual hatch.  The off-shore walleye bite has been much more productive, with a lot of fish in and around 20’ of water.  A clack-shot and leech combo or a jig + meat have been tough to beat on the off-shore reefs.

Smallmouth fishing on Lake of the Woods went from being on fire to unseasonably tough in a matter of days.  Ashley and I participated in the 120 boat Bronzeback Classic on the weekend and with limited practice were confident we could run around on Lake of the Woods and catch a pile of smallmouth.  We had to work harder than ever before to rally up an average of 3+ pounds per smallmouth per day for a 9th place finish.  The winners of the tournament, Ben Gustafson and Ali Crandall had around 32 Pounds of smallmouth to win by a pound which was certainly an impressive weight given the tough  conditions.

To put it in perspective, Ashley and I won the Bronzeback last year with over 36 pounds of smallmouth over two days, and our weight this year would hardly have gotten us in the top 20.  I think a lot of it has to do with the late spring and dragging summer, but as always in Sunset Country, lulls never last long!  Look for big things to happen for the upcoming Kenora Bass International which will undoubtedly host some excellent fishing on Lake of the Woods.

We caught half of our smallmouth over the weekend on a BT Fishing Marabou jig fished slow and shallow, and the other half on a small swimbait rigged on a Smeltinator Underspin over deep points (www.btfishing.com)

“FLY BITES” reports from members of the Manitoba Fly Fishers Association (MFFA)

The MFFA will add to the weekly fish reports available through Hooked as members are out and about this summer. Please note this part the fishing report will only refer to fly-caught fish only! We typically target the smaller lakes early season and follow temperature trends as most of us transition from Trout and Char to post spawn Pike/Bass/Musky. You will also find members targeting the world class Channel Cat fishery at Lockport.

BLACK STURGEON AND AREA – MIKE CORRIGAN, PRESIDENT MFFA

 

With last weeks rain, the lake levels are up again and the fish seem to have scattered. Black Sturgeon is up at least a foot and Bass fishing has been tough. It seems the fish you do catch are of the large variety, as seen in the picture. This Smallie topped out at 19” and was quite thick! Largemouth are in the weeds around creek mouths and a diving Gurgler (Red Diablo, pictured) is the ticket.

We did a back country Musky trip to a lake that had been rested for a few years. As expected the trail had grown in and required an hour of chainsaw and machete work to get in. The lake was surprisingly low as a beaver dam had blown out. Two small Musky were landed and they seemed quite “tame” and forgiving, likely a result the lack of pressure. Expect that the remote boat launches to be eroded after the rains so be prepared for a little extra work getting the boat in. Another small lake Musky trip had us not even get a follow; a rare event on this lake! Hopefully stable weather drops lake levels and consistency will get the Musky back on the bite.

Tight lines!

The past couple weeks in Sunset Country have been a tale of extremes. Absolute brutal hot conditions that lead to massive storm systems within the same day. Flash flooding caused many road closures, including highway 17 between Kenora and Vermilion Bay. Thankfully almost all the roads have been fixed at this point, restoring access to most lakes.

The positive side of these strong summer storms has been cooling of lake temperatures. Over the weekend of July 16-17, most lakes were sitting at 77- 80 F. Following the damaging storm of July 19, the water temperatures dropped to a sustainable 72 F. Continued cool weather over the past week has actually cooled lake temperatures further. On July 25 I was seeing 68-70 F on local lakes. 

Why are lake temperatures important?

Being a musky angler, we are always worried about hot surface water temperatures. The warmer the water, the less oxygen it will hold. The unwritten rule amongst musky anglers is stop fishing at 80 F.

We can fish successfully in the warmer water, it becomes an issue as we try to release a fish that is stressed from the catch. The warm surface water is low in oxygen, causing the fish to struggle to regain strength. Add to the fact that some fish have been caught in deeper, cooler water and barotrauma becomes a serious concern. In most cases a released musky will return to the deep, but various studies ( some documented in Musky Hunter magazine ) have shown delayed mortality. 

This can affect fish of any species. As I mentioned, the cooling of the lake temperatures should bring safer fishing for the remainder of the season.

Full Moon Fever

A mid July full moon is considered one of the best times of the summer for muskies. I would argue the incoming new moon is the BEST time of the summer. Mid July until early August is generally looked at as the summer peak, lake temperatures are at peak, weed growth at peak and fish activity is at peak. 

I fished with good buddy Dustin St Aubin over the full moon period. Fishing Wabigoon Lake in Dryden can be a challenge for anyone, it’s muddy, clay based water giving near zero visibility. Dustin lives on the lake and knows it well. On a hot and humid, flat calm evening, Dustin put us on fish. We had some solid chances at fish and Dustin capitalized on a beauty of a fish. Wabigoon is known for its pale, almost white coloured muskies. It amazes me how different muskies look, based on their environments. 

A day after the full moon, Dave Chaval and I took my kids out for a beach day, mixed with some fishing. Choosing to fish the late day, moon underfoot major period we landed two fish in quick succession. Hooking a great tiger musky way out from the boat in heavy weeds was a highlight of the trip. We have been so fortunate this season, catching a number of amazing tiger, or hybrid muskies.

A personal best for a client

Cedar Lake and Perrault Lake have always held a special spot for me. We have caught so many great fish there, and always look forward to fishing there.

July 17 was no exception. Guiding some clients I met through my YouTube channel, the trip started off great as I landed a solid fish on the first spot. Things would only get better from there. 

Fishing a current break, behind a main lake point, I called the spot. On video, I actually called it out that a fish would be laying in an upcoming slot. The fish was a few casts past the spot, but what a fish.  Mike, my client actually thought it was a large pike coming in. Boy, was he wrong. When she hit the bag, we knew this was a special fish. I didn’t know if she would go fifty inches, but she was close. Measuring out at 49.5”, it shattered his personal best of 34.5”. Well done Mike on a fish of a lifetime!

Closing out the full moon 

Wrapping up the full moon period, we were fishing Cedar Lake again. A narrow bite window opened up around the moon set, we missed a few fish in the figure 8. Thinking we missed our chance, I set up on a main lake reef. Two hot fish followed us in, again I missed in the 8. Throwing back over the fish, she hit this time and we got her in the net. Just after releasing her, my partner had another hit on the first cast, unfortunately she spit the hook. 

These intense bite windows around minor periods can be insane. They happen so fast and end just a quick. Lucky for me I was able to pick up another leading up to the moon underfoot major.

The last week of July brings the new moon period I mentioned earlier. This is my favorite moon to fish. Rolling storms throughout Northwestern Ontario this week are making for tough conditions to fish, however it can be very rewarding. 

Follow me at 

https://www.youtube.com/c/54orbust

Look for video of all these catches to be posted

SASKATCHEWAN

RAFFERTY RESERVOIR

Friend Kevin Stobbe and I were invited down last weekend to fish with Ralph Smart of Prairie Pro Outfitters for a couple of days. We were certainly not disappointed by the fishing. The walleye and pike action was nonstop.

The fish were holding along the new vegetation, feeding on the abundant bait fish that were holding there. Ralph has top of the line equipment and we fished out of a 21-foot Nitro fibreglass boat. All our fish were caught on a jig. When the fish were active, we used a ¼ ounce jig with a plastic swimbait. When the action slowed, we added a frozen shiner. We found the most active walleye in three metres of water on a shallow rock reef that had some scattered weed growth.

I would compare Rafferty to the Lake of the Prairies as far as fishing goes. Main Prize Park also has accommodations available and a links style golf course. You can find Ralph at Prairie Pro Outfitters.

 The water temperatures are now touching 70 degrees and the bite is still on hard on the big lake! The walleye are continuing to bite throughout the lake, including the main lake basin areas. Anglers are catching both numbers of fish as well as some Last Mountain Giants over 30 inches!

With the warmer temperatures the walleye are moving deeper to depths ranging from 20’ to 28’ but when the wind blows hard they can still be found in 12’ to 18’. Trolling cranks, bottom bouncers and crawler harnesses, vertical jigging and jigging spoons are all great presentation right now.

The Northern Pike have started to move back in shallower as the weed lines are now present along the shore lines. Trolling medium depth crank baits are producing some really nice Pike.

The Carp are out of the shallow bays and now with a good pre baiting along the shore is producing good numbers of carp with a few scratching the 40 lb. mark.

Some Perch are be caught in the depths from 20’ to 30’. Good luck fishing and please practice catch and release those trophy fish !!

I had just returned home from fishing the Columbia River near Castlegar BC and had five hours of sleep before I boarded a plane to Orlando Florida for ICAST 2022. It was 107-Degrees Fahrenheit (42 Celsius) with a humidity of 82 percent in Orlando Florida, on July 19-22, and you instantly felt the weight of the hot damp air on your body the moment I stepped out of the airport. However, inside the airconditioned Orange County Convention Center, it was even hotter with the latest and greatest fishing products from leading fishing manufacturers within the industry being revealed at ICAST 2022. Most of the companies at ICAST 2022 were American-based companies, however, many of them are partnered with Canadian companies and outdoor sports stores and utilizing Canadian buyers to get their products to Canadian locations.

There was no end to the new products being revealed at ICAST 2022. More than I could ever mention within this fishing report. The latest in freshwater and saltwater rods, and reels, terminal tackle, fishing line, clothing, coolers, hard and soft lures, and tackle storage were just a few of the products available to see and even test. But there is always one or two products that stand out in each product category.

Over the years, I think I’ve seen or even owned every hard and soft tackle storage on the market. However, like most western Canadian anglers, I cast, troll, and jig a lot of spoons for a variety of species and have always struggled to find a tackle system for storing my spoons so the hooks don’t become entangled with each other, and I waste valuable fishing time untangling hooks before I can cast my spoon of choice, so I was excited to see the new Spoon Trunk from Flambeau Outdoors. The Spoon Trunk is a hard storage system that stores your spoons vertically and is sure to eliminate spoon entangled issues.

I had the good fortune of talking everything fishing with many Major League Fishing pros, such as Andy Montgomery.  I can’t wait to see the new product lineup for ICAST 2023!

BRITISH COLUMBIA

Although the ambient air temperature ranged from 31 to 37 degrees Celsius in the town of Castlegar BC, the Columbia River water temperature was hovering around 50 to 51 degrees Fahrenheit (10 to 11 degrees Celsius). On the Columbia River, walleye are considered an invasive species and have a catch and keep limit of 16 walleye per angler. I fished the Columbia River walleye in September 2019 and couldn’t keep the walleye off my hook. However, during my July 14-17 visit, the walleye bite was extremely slow. Walleye polluted my fish finders in a wide variety of depths, but bottom-bouncing worm harnesses and jigging produced very few walleye. However, like most of the western Canada water bodies I’ve fished this season, I believe the Columbia River is about two weeks behind schedule. But all was not lost.

The world-class rainbow trout that call the Columbia River home preferred the Columbia River’s cooler water temperatures and were eager to bite on #0 Len Thompson Lures. When these lures were casted and retrieved in common rainbow trout locations such as fast-moving water over rocks, fast-moving water around inside and outside corners, or at the bottom of short waterfalls (2 feet or less), creating white water, rainbow trout couldn’t resist. However, on our second day, the caddis hatch began. We moved to calm water within close proximity of the waters mentioned above and casted dry flies and sinking nymphs beneath a Torpedo Float. These two presentations were irresistible to the rainbow trout and at times, the water was so clear we could sight fish rainbow trout.

The mighty Columbia River, near the town of Castlegar, BC, is an angler’s paradise with a world-class rainbow trout fishery and walleye are considered an invasive species with an extremely high catch and keep limit. However, the Columbia River can be a very dangerous river to fish if you’re not familiar with it. Like any river there are dangers hidden just below the surface and the current in this mighty river can be very unpredictable and unforgiving.

I hired the services of Graham Cloutier, the owner of Chillbilly Sportfishing Charters to keep us safe and in the hot fishing spots on the river. Graham has been guiding on the Columbia River for 11 years and can put you on fish regardless of the conditions. https://chillbillycharters.com

The community of Castlegar, BC, is amazingly angler friendly. During our stay, we stayed at the Sandman Hotel https://www.sandmanhotels.com/castlegar The Sandman Hotel was about an eight-minute drive to the boat launch where you meet Graham and you have the added bonus of passing right by the Humble Bean Coffee Company. https://humble-bean-coffee-co.business.site The Humble Bean Coffee Company is a family-owned deli that has a wide variety of freshly homemade sandwiches, a variety of coffee that is second to none, and homemade pastries that will remind you of grandma’s baking, and best of all, the Humble Bean is open early enough for you to be on the water for the morning bite.

After you come off the water, the Lions Head Smoke & Brew Pub, is only a pint away from the boat launch and welcomes anglers to enjoy their favourite food and beverage and tell their fishing stories with other anglers after a day on the water. http://www.lionsheadpub.ca/about-the-lions-head.html