MANITOBA
LAKE MANITOBA AND TRIBUTARIES
The wild weather continues in Manitoba with more heavy rainfall disrupting the landscape. I had a chance last week Sunday to get out with friend Jim Price on the Whitemud River on the southwest end of Lake Manitoba.
As we headed north up the Yellowhead to launch at Sportsman’s Corner, a thunderstorm rolled through the already drenched landscape. As luck would have it the storm and rain finished just as we arrived. We quickly launched the boat in the fast-moving water and Jim moved us downstream a couple of kilometres to a stretch of the river that had a hard bottom. Our plan of attack was to troll crankbaits into the current, working the current seams.
With the current as fast as it was, Jim had to use the big motor to slowly move us ahead. Both of us knew that it was critical to use a crankbait that would not spin out against the force of water that was coming down. Jim used a chartreuse # 7 Flicker Shad while I used a #7 Berkley Flicker Minnow that was pink and green.
GIVE THE FISH SOME VARIETY
During the day we changed up colours and sizes, but the original choices worked the best. All the walleye we caught this day were under 22 inches or 56 centimetres. Jim said the post spawn female walleye had already moved out to the lake but there were still plenty of smaller fish to be caught. We did try spot locking and jig fishing, but it proved ineffective on this day.
BOTH DRUM AND WALLEYE WILL BITE
We had a fun day catching fish, but we had to move a lot to keep on the moving schools of fish. We also caught a few freshwater drum but none of any size. Jim thinks a fish kill three years ago eliminated a lot of the larger drum that used to come to the Whitemud in the spring. He says there are still lots of trophy drum in other parts of the lake. We didn’t venture out into the main lake on this day. Jim says the high water this spring washed a lot of the dead trees that were along the shoreline out to the mouth, making passage to the lake a bit of a minefield.
ANOTHER WASHOUT ON THE MUD
With more rain falling this week, water levels jumped back up to record levels, flooding shoreline and filling the river with debris. The way the weather is constant updates of conditions is critical. Once things settle back down the walleye and drum should still be in the system.
LAKE OF THE PRAIRIES
This reservoir located on the Manitoba/Saskatchewan border remains one of the hottest walleye fisheries on the planet. With water levels back up, the fish are going on a rampage. A wide variety of depths and lures are working, but use your electronics to mark fish before you drop a line.
Most anglers are just using jigs tipped with bait of some sort. A lot of the fish are coming in 12 to 18 feet of water and with the abundance of food in the water, a short shank hook and a stinger hook is getting those short biting walleyes!
LAKE WINNIPEG
Fishing on the big lake continues to improve day by day as the water temperatures jump up and the walleye get into a post spawn bite. Lots of fish are being caught in the 12 to 18 foot range but it pays to move around to you mark pods of fish.
If you find a transition from hard to soft bottom in combination with a drop-off to deeper water you will be on the money usually. On these kind of spots fish will move along the spot all day long so you can spotlock with your front troll motor and catch multiple fish.
NORTHWEST ONTARIO
LAKE OF THE WOODS – JEFF GUSTAFSON
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JAMIE BRUCE – LAKE OF THE WOODS
It’s been all about walleye for us the last couple of weeks. My wife Ashley and Bre Becker fished the 80+boat women’s walleye tournament over the weekend and did some damage on a few nice eyes. They fished purely in water 6 feet or less and caught all of their fish on a 1/4 oz Smeltinator and Z-man Minnowz and a 1/4 oz crusher jig with a Z-man Hula Stickz. They actually started with leeches and because of the heavy cotton on the water, they switched to plastics. Believe it or not they actually got way more bites on the plastics, it was just something about the nature of the walleye that day.
Next up is the Dryden Walleye Masters, which is one of the biggest walleye tournaments in North America. Wabigoon chain of lakes has great fishing and lots to explore. I got to sneak out there for one day prior to the tournament so am really rolling the dice on this one! I caught some really nice walleye on the Smeltinator underspin with a small Swimbait. The extra sound and vibration of the bait might help out in the coffee brown water that fills the ‘goon.
Have a safe weekend everyone !
VERMILLION BAY AND AREA – GLENN MCDONALD
One month into the Northwestern Ontario open water season and a few things are becoming obvious. The pandemic, while devastating to the tourism economy, has had a tremendous effect on fishing. The high water issues around sunset country are still an ongoing problem. Covid is still keeping American tourists away. High gas prices could not have come at a worst time.
And oh ya, less than 24 hours for now the real season starts for me. Musky season!
WALLEYE EVERYWHERE
Every fishing report I read, every social media post I see, one trend is obvious; walleye fishing is amazing across the region. At this point of the season walleye are starting to move out of spawning areas, and taking up summer residents on familiar structures. As these fish transition, following shorelines, the crank bait bite has been hot. Over the weekend, while bass fishing, we ran into a hot bite, casting X-Raps along weed lines. The walleye were following the rocky shoreline out of a spawning creek, and were pushed against the pencil weeds by strong winds. Casting crank baits and spinnerbaits against the weed edge we picked up a few limits in short order. When this bite happens, it’s a welcome change from the jig and minnow bite.
SMALLMOUTH ARE A BLAST!
Depending on the area, smallmouth bass are just starting to set up for the spawn or are in spawning mode. Last weekend we encountered some that were just starting to make beds. When the bass are up shallow, in rock and timber, it’s a fun time to get out casting for them. We put together a pattern of crank baits and spinnerbaits casted tight to shore. And by tight to shore, I mean almost on shore. In some cases we were sight fishing them and calling the cast. Such a fun bite on clear water lakes.
As we moved into the stained water the fish were set up in a mix of rock and weeds, with sand bottom not available to them. I suspect these fish were on beds in the warmer stained water. In the same area we pulled walleye from, see paragraph above, we caught bass and pike. We did encounter a few muskies that had visible post spawn injuries.
MUSKY SEASON IS UPON US!
For many, like me, the wait from early November until June 18 is agonizing. But it’s finally here. Musky season opens this Saturday. The first opener with American anglers in three years should produce plenty of catches. I’m not going to lie, having the lakes to ourselves the past couple years was nice, but it feels great to see tourism coming back to our area. I predict some amazing fishing in the first couple weeks of the season. Most of these muskies have not seen many lures the past couple seasons. I would expect some solid days for seasoned anglers.
HIGH WATER CONTINUES
High water issues plague our area, from the Rainy Lake area to Sioux Lookout. Highway 105 at Buller Creek, just north of Vermilion Bay remains closed, with a detour through Quibel. The bridge has sustained damage due to high water this spring. Further north, in Ear Falls, the road to Long Legged/Stork Lake has remained closed with no firm timetable for repairs. Meaning two camps are still unable to open, after two seasons of Covid the losses remain an issue.
COVID AND GAS PRICES KEEPING TOURISTS AWAY
Everyday I hear camp managers talking about loss of bookings due to guests having Covid and not being able to travel. The other real issue is gas prices. Americans are choosing to just not travel due to high fuel prices. When lodges lose clients over high gas prices it’s a blow to the whole area. With no end in sight to the high prices, it’s going to continue to be an issue.
I wish all anglers good luck this weekend, and especially those chasing muskies. I know I’ll be out casting after the fish of a lifetime. And in most cases the fish of 10,000 casts will prove as tough as ever to catch.
Glenn McDonald- Follow me at
https://www.youtube.com/c/54orbust
“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 Lake
I am back in NW Ontario this week and the Bass are finally looking up! Fished lower Black Sturgeon and the Smallmouths were aggressive on top water. My favourite fly is a “Halloween Popper” https://youtu.be/djaA9vwH5To
Water temperatures in Black Sturgeon have warmed to 18C. We took a trip “over the rollers” (with the high water the rollers aren’t actually necessary) into the Winnipeg River system where the water was only 13C, and the fish were inactive. This weekend is Musky opener and that is where I will be concentrating over the next little while, mainly from my inflatable pontoon boat.
Tight lines!
Mike Corrigan
Visit the MFFA website at http://www.mffa.org
SASKATCHEWAN
LAST MOUNTAIN LAKE
The walleye are now biting well throughout the lake including the main lake basin areas with some real Last Mountain Giants over 30” being caught and released.ALBERTA-WES DAVID
No boat, no motor, no problem.
Pigeon Lake Alberta is a well-known walleye lake in central Alberta, about an hour southwest of Edmonton. Many anglers launch at the Provincial Park and head straight out from the launch and fish the first drop-off. This spot is an estimated 1000-yards out from the boat launch and runs north-south for a great distance. It also holds walleye along the edges of the drop-off year-round. The lake is filled with a variety of other drop-offs and sunken humps that hold an abundance of walleye.
A DIFFERENT MODE OF TRANSPORTATION!
I recently picked up a new Bite FD Jackson fishing kayak from AQ Outdoors out of their Edmonton location and Pigeon Lake was on my way home and the first drop-off out from the boat launch was the perfect distance to try the new pedal-drive system on my new kayak.
Walleye were holding tight to the bottom in 12 to 17 feet of water. I tied on a Snake Eye jig from Big Sky Jigs with a stinger-hook and baited it with a 3” Jerk Minnow from Big Bite Baits and sent it down. Vertical jigging the bait just off the bottom was the real key to hooking into walleye. It was a light bite but sitting in my kayak only 8” above the water it was easy to tell the subtle bite of a walleye. Walleye would also take my presentation if I casted the bait and jigged it off the bottom back to the boat. It, however, was not as consistent as the vertical presentation. Bites also increased if I touched up my bait with a dab of Liquid Mayhem scent attractant.
Launching from the Provincial Park at Pigeon Lake, is a great location for anglers fishing out of a kayak, canoe, or any other vessel that doesn’t have a motor, are maybe just the aid of a trolling motor. The first drop-off holding walleye is close to the shore and the walleye are eager to bite an angler’s offering.
Wes David host of Fishing the Wild West TV