MyFishFinder Canada > Saskatchewan
My 2021 Open Water reports.
Water Wolf:
Hi All,
Attached are my open water reports for the months of May & June, 2021.
May is the start of a new fishing season here in SK, with lots of fishing opportunities ahead.
I have eagerly anticipated opening day since the last day of the ice fishing season.
May has seen a surge of bird life to the province. All the usual birds that migrate South are back now, in a burst of color and sound.
I am also looking foward to a new gardening season, growing both veggies and flowers.
May 5 (Opening Day).
The much anticipated opening day has finally arrived, and, I just had to test the waters at least for a while. My destination was the Fishing Lake area.
It was a nice afternoon to venture out and wet a few hooks. :)
The weather was OK, with sunny skies, and + 13 deg C / 55 deg F temps, however, a brisk wind from the NW still made things feel a bit cool. At least it kept the now emerging mosquitoes in check.
Spot 1.
This has been my go to spot for several years now. It's a small creek that the fish use to move from the main lake, to and from their spawning areas.
There is no one else there so I fish from 5:10 pm - 6:15 pm.
As I fish, I can't help but notice how much the water level had dropped in the creek. You know it's shallow when you see snipes and ducks wading through the water that is only/almost up to their bellies. The deepest part of the channel would now be no more than 2 feet, at most. The water was a dirty brown color, and, full of old weeds, that I managed to hook on almost every cast. I fish for what I felt was a good length of time, and, not even a nibble, nor did I see any fish life swim past in the shallow water. Too bad, this spot has usually been good in the past, but, it was time to move on. :unsure:
Spot 2.
The 2nd spot takes me back into Fishing Lake, to another area where fish sometimes congregate after their spawn.
When I get there, I see part of the lake was still locked in ice, but, there is an area where a slight current has created an ice free zone.
A man and his 2 children are there fishing already, so, I socially distance myself from them, just far enough that we can exchange conversation comfortably.
He reported that the fishing was decent for them, and that they had caught a few pike and walleye already.
He was right, and, believe it or not, on my very first cast I hook into a pike. :w00t:
After a few energetic runs I get close enough to net it, and now, land my first fish of the new open water season, Whoo Hooo!
That didn't take long, lol. :laugh:
I fish this area from 6:28 pm - 9:00 pm. and the fish continue to bite off and on the whole time.
Two other anglers join us later, so for a while, there are a total of 6 anglers out fishing.
The local conservation officers made their rounds that evening, doing their usual licence checks on all of us fishing.
My fishing licence was hot off the press, so to speak, as I just purchased it that day.
The officers reported that the bite had been a bit slow for other anglers that they had checked at the other lakes around the area. There were just 2 pike landed by a man off shore at one of the other lakes and that's all they knew about being caught so-far. After the chat the conservation officers continue on their way.
My luck continued on that evening and the final total was 4 pike and 1 walleye.
All the fish went for a Storm Wildeye swimbait.
The final resuls.
I was a bit worried that the fishing was off, after visiting the first area, but, was happy to find action in the end. All in all it was a good season opener for me.
I hope all of you had a good start to your season as well. ;)
May 6th.
With the action I had the day before, I decided I would return to that same area of Fishing Lake again.
Not too far from the lake I snap a long distance photo of a pair of swans and what looked to be their signet from last year.
The lake still has ice, but, during the night, it moved farther out, and now could only be seen off in the distance.
Once at the lake I find a spot and shore fish from 5:40 pm - 8:50 pm.
It was another Sunny day, with + 13 deg C / 55 deg F temps and some wind from the N.
One other angler was out in the general area and only quit a short time before I did.
While I was there I didn't see him land any fish at all.
I had slightly better luck. It took a bit of time, but, I did land 2 pike.
The first fish hit half an hour into the fishing .
The other just after sunset, bit of a night pike.
I also had 2 fish that followed my lure right into shore, without biting. They were tight to the tail of the bait like they were glued to it, but, turned away just as I lifted the lures from the water.
Even though it was slower than before, I was happy to be out and not be skunked. :)
May 8th.
I am back to Fishing Lake, but, decided to try a new area this time.
The weather is a mix of sun and cloud, with some wind from the SE. and + 12 deg C / 54 deg F temps. A bit cooler, but still OK.
Spot 1.
I get to the area, but, found that the ice on the lake had shifted and blew what was left of the ice into the area, filling it up a fair distance out.
The cement pads for the boat launch were also bent and buckled with the ice pushing on them.
I moved a bit further down the lake, but, it's still the same.
This small bay was really full of ice.
Spot 2.
I then try my usual spot on the lake and thankfully found it ice free.
I set up here and fish from 5:15 pm - 7:30 pm.
The action here is good, and in the time I fished, I land 4 pike and 2 walleye. ;D
All the fish hit hard, and fought well, for such cold water. The water still feels like your dipping your hands into the lake while ice fishing, it's finger numbing cold.
Up until now, I have released all the fish, but, this time I keep my limit of 3 pike.
When I caught the first walleye, milt flowed freely from it, as I lifted it from the net, so I decided to release that one, in case the spawn was indeed still on.
A few from the day. :)
This walleye had it's pectoral fin missing. It looked like it was ripped off, with just a nub left, ouch!
In the end I was happy with today's results.
Here's to more days like that. ;)
What a wild week it was from May 17th to the 23rd.
The week started off hot with summer-like conditions, + 30 deg C / 86 deg F on the 17th and even hotter, + 32 deg C / 90 deg F on the 18th. The heat sparked a lighting storm the next day.
On the night of May 19 the temps took a nose dive and on May 20th we received snow. I haven't seen snow this late for several years now. On the night of May 20th and into the 21st we had ice pellets and freezing rain. The freezing rain went for most of the night and into the morning. This gave us trouble, as the power was off for over 5 hours. Some areas in SK. saw power outages for a day or more.
There was quite a bit of damage to the trees in my yard and around SK in general.
A good number of my single specimen trees had broken or cracked branches. Sad to see when you try to take good care of them. :(
The frozen forest.
May 31st.
It been a fair while since I was out fishing, so, I though I would try Fishing Lake again, and, see what's happening, fishing wise.
I set up in my usual spot and fished from 8:00 pm to 9:15 pm, hoping for an evening bite.
It was a nice warm evening with the temps still at + 23 deg C / 73 deg F, with a mainly sunny sky and some wind from the SW.
There were 2 other anglers shore fishing a short distance from me. They both reported that the fishing had been poor since that snow / ice storm and cold weather rolled through. They said they had only been catching 1 - 2 fish from shore each of the numerous times they have tried. Not the best news. :-\
I must have had luck with me, as just a few minutes into the fishing, I feel a tap. I set the hook and fight a not too bad walleye into shore.
After a quick photo it went back. It's my largest walleye for the month. 8)
I though the action was off to a good start, but, that 1 fish would be the beginning, middle and end of the fish landed that night.
I did have 2 other nibbles that almost removed the tale from the swimbait, but, that was it. At least there was no skunk.
Hope that the fishing improves a bit in the coming weeks.
Here are few extra non fishing photos from May.
A few backyard birds. :)
Last year I had a pair of Baltimore orioles in the yard, but, this year I now have several pairs.
They enjoy eating orange slices and grape jelly.
There are a pair of osprey I always enjoy seeing each year, and, this May I managed to see them again. Their nest gets bigger with each year's add on's.
This year I got to see both of them in the nest together, and, sure enough, they were busy adding onto it.
They have tidied their nest up from last year. The last time I saw it, the ospreys had managed to haul a pair of old long john underwear up into it, and, the long johns were flapping around in the wind. :laugh:
Much better job this time.
June 2021.
June started off hot, temperature wise, cooled to more normal temps for most of it, ending up hot again, at the end of the month.
The fishing was decent for me this month.
Following are my June reports.
June 13th.
This would be my first report for the month.
On this trip I decided to try a lake and species I have not tried for some time. I was off to Last Mountain Lake to try my luck at some carp fishing.
Mom accompanied me on this trip. Always good to have another person on the longer trips. :)
It was a nice afternoon with sunny skies, a temp at + 26 deg C / 79 deg F and some wind from the SW.
I decided to try the spot where I had luck for carp last year, around the same time.
When I get to Last Mountain Lake there are a few other anglers fishing for carp as well, but, they are further down from where I though I would try.
I set both of us up. Now, we hurry up and wait for that 1 big bite.
We shore fish from 3:56 pm to 9:00 pm.
In the beginning of June I ordered 2 rods online.
One of them was the one I brought with me on this trip.It was a Shakespeare Ugly
Stik gx2, 9 foot spinning rod, which I specifically purchased with carp in mind.
I was hoping that this rod would be long enough and strong enough to handle these usually hard fighting fish. I also hoped that I would get to feel what it's like to catch a fish with this rod. ;)
While we fished I added some carp bait to the area, and the gulls were right there to eat the pieces that did not sink quickly. ::)
It's a while into the fishing before 1 of the anglers from the other group came over to see how the fishing was for us and chat for a while.
We had no luck so-far and his group was the same with just a few carp that bumped their bait or hit their lines, and that was it.
Mom and I also have a few fish, bump or swim into our line, but, finally at 6:50 pm, I get a strike, and what a strike it was. I had my rod sitting in an adjustable rod holder I use for ice fishing, anchored by 2, what I thought, was large rocks on each side of it. The fish sucked in my corn baited hook, felt the the hook, and bolted in a very powerful line burning run that toppled my rod holder over and sent by bite alarm ( a fishing bell clipped near the tip of the rod) flying. Even though I was sitting beside the rod the whole time, I still had to really scramble to catch the rod and reel before it was dragged into the water, and would have been gone. I grab the rod and set the hook, this caused an immediate reaction, and, I now see a carp make a big leap a long distance out from shore. Even with this more beefy rod and 40 lb test braided line, this carp would not give in, making several long line stripping runs. :o Just when I got close enough to almost see it, the fish could tell it was being pulled towards shallow water, and, was off again. This tug of war battle lasted until 7:00 pm when I finally got it close enough to shore to net. Mom was right there with the net, and was able to at least put the net over it's back and hold it in place. This was a large carp, but, I didn't know how large until we weighed it. She weighed in at 38.5 lbs. ;D
It's now my new personal best carp to date and also my largest fish ever, WOO HOO!!! :w00t:
After several photos, this hard to hold fish, was carefully released back to her watery home.
She was so big, she had to swim sideways in the more shallow shore waters, but, once it was deep enough for her to rite herself, she shot out of there, giving me a shower in the process, lol. :laugh:
What a fish, she just made my open water season right there! :flex:
Later on mom had a nibble on her bait, and I had something bump my line, but, that was it for any more action. A that point I didn't mind a bit.
We left once the sun began to dip below the horizon and the mosquitoes, black flies and no-see-ums came out. :P
Since I caught the carp, I have purchased some pre-made carp boilies and a new carp net that will hold a large carp much better. Hope to test them both out maybe later on this open water season. ;)
June 22nd.
I decide to try Fishing Lake and see how the fishing has been.
I try my usual spot at the lake and fish from 4:10 pm - 8:00 pm.
The day was cloudy with some wind from the SW + 24 deg C / 75 deg F, but, it had been +28 deg C / 82 deg F, earlier that day.
On this day, I try the 2nd rod I purchased online. This one is a 7 foot Shakespere Ugly Stik Elite spinning rod. It seems to be a strong yet lite rod with good sensitivity when paired up with braided line. I put it to the test and could feel the action of the lures as I reeled them in. I was also able to test it during a fight with a fish.
For me, the shore fishing was a bit slow, for this time of year, and, it took a good while, (around 6:00 pm) before I got a bite. A nice eater sized walleye was netted, but, jumped out of the net before I could take a photo. The 2nd walleye was half an hour or so before I left the lake, and, I finished off the night with a pike. :)
It sure had a full belly.
While fishing, I chatted with an angler in a boat who was trolling close to shore. He said that the fishing has been really slow so-far for him, from the boat and shore. Hopefully it picks up this season.
I was happy with how my 2nd new rod preformed, and, will continue to use it as my general go-to rod this season. 8)
June 27th.
I am back at fishing lake for a bit of evening / night shore fishing, trying my luck from 7:15 pm - 10:35 pm.
It was a sunny day with some wind from the N and + 28 deg C / 82 deg F temp earlier in the day, but, was +24 deg C / 75 deg F when I got there.
While fishing, I chat with a fellow angler walking by. They reported that the fishing had picked up for them, from the boat, in a bit deeper water.
The fishing was better for me as well, and I was able to land 7 fish, 2 pike and 5 walleye. 8)
The flash is working! :laugh:
I had several fish short striking my swimbait, almost removing the tail completely, so, I switch to a smaller sized spoon, and that solved the short striking problem. All the fish that evening were caught on the spoon.
I quit for the night once the mosquitoes got too nasty. :P
There is a hot week coming up with the temps in the mid + 30 deg C /80's deg F and the humidex is suppose to be into the high + 30 deg C / 80's deg F.
I am a heat lover, but, that's a bit hot even for me. ::)
June 30th.
Wow, is it ever hot out now! :o The predicted heat wave did set in for my area, and most of SK and western Canada for that matter. Right now we are all under a heat dome that is supposed to last for several days yet.
I decide to see if the fishing is as hot as the weather, so I am back to Fishing Lake for a bit of late evening / night shore fishing.
Too hot for me to try at mid day. ::)
Earlier that day it was + 32 deg C / 90 deg F.
When I get to the lake it's sunny with some wind from the N.
The temp is still a hot + 28 deg C / 82 deg F even this late into the evening - from 9 pm - 10:20 pm.
The lake has warmed up a lot during this heat wave, and it feels almost warm at the surface.
There were several other boats out, and it appeared that most of them had caught fish as they trolled, by, just a bit further than I could cast.
Fishing was OK for me and while I was there I caught 4 walleye. :)
The walleye went for grubs on jig heads and also hit smaller spoons.
Surprise! :w00t:
All in all, I have been happy with how the first 2 months have been for me, and, hope for more action to come in the rest of the open water season. 8)
Here are a few other photos from the month of June.
They were all taken while fishing.
These first few photo were when I was carp fishing.
I had 2 species of ground squirrels visit me.
They eagerly watched what I was doing with the carp bait and my chocolate bar snack.
The first one was a thirteen-lined ground squirrel, or, striped gopher.
It was a nervous little critter who darted in and out for treats, but never really stopping too long in any one spot. Good thing too, there were lots of other animals around that could make a meal of this little guy.
The next one was the much larger Franklin’s ground squirrel, or, bush gopher.
This guy was big and bold. He was comfortable being close to us and, at one point, even sat on the toe of my rubber boot, touched my leg and tugged at the lacing around the top of the boot. Next we went on to explore what was in the net bag hanging off my chair. He quickly decided there were treat-worthy crumbs and a wrapper from my already consumed chocolate bar that he undertook to help himself to through the netting. I spilled out the crumbs that were left and he eagerly ate them up. Apparently he also has a sweet tooth, lol. :laugh:
Near Last Mountain Lake, we had a rare sighting of a female pronghorn antelope.
I think she may have had a young one near by, as she kept looking at one particular area of the field.
The next 2 photo are of snowshoe hares or bush bunnys.
They were taken a far distance away, so as not to spook them.
WW
Raquettedacker:
More great reports and pictures. I always look forward to seeing them.
Thank you very much and keep it up.👍👍👍👍
iceman260:
Nice report water wolf. Nice pics also.
zwiggles:
Awesome photos all around!
Raquettedacker:
:thumbup_smilie: :thumbup_smilie: :thumbup_smilie:
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