Fishing fun.

[Young Catcher]

So nice pike, Water wolf, way to go.

I have been always enjoying  your post.

Thanks again, WW.

Have a good season !


Young Catcher.

[Water Wolf]

Hi YC,

Good to hear you are enjoying the posts.
Hope you have a good season also.

Hi guys,

It's been a while since I have been fishing but the family and I went to Fishing Lake for a few hours 2 days this week.

Day 1. June 19th.

We decided to use the boat.  Some of the family opted not to fish.  My uncle and I did and were on the water by 5:10 pm and going until 9:00pm.

During that time the weather was mostly cloudy with a bit of a wind and some waves from the S. Toward sunset it calmed right down.

Water clarity is still quite good, with the odd bit of brownish orange algae floating with the waves.

The fish must have been in preparation for the upcoming storm, for after only 8 min of trolling and we were into fish.

This is the first fish and biggest walleye of the day, caught by my uncle.

It was a bit over3 lbs.

Once we found them we just anchored in that spot and that's where we spent most of the time and found most of the fish.

The fish were biting fairly steady.  My uncle and I got a double header on walleye.

This was an average walleye that day.


There were no other boats on the lake, but, one cabin had quite a few guests and they were all out fishing off shore and also landing fish, so the fish seemed to be eager.

Before we were on the lake we chatted with a cabin owner in the area.  He said the fishing has been not bad there for a while and as well at the other lakes in the area.
I also heard that there was a nice 6 lb walleye landed and released a week and a half ago right off shore.

Once we got on the water my uncle caught his largest walleye on a medium Len Thompson spoon, but later lost it on a snag. He then caught his other fish on a double tail grub.  I had the best luck on a jig head that I painted myself and did some modification to. I added a clear lip to the jig head which gave the single tale grub I was using a nice tight wiggle that the fish seemed to like.
I also made a few custom crankbaits that I will try sometime this open water season.

In the end we caught 8 pike & 10 walleye .
We also lost 5 more fish that threw the barbless hooks on us as we got them close to the boat or tried to net them.

We kept 4 pike and 4 walleye.  They will be a good meal in the next day or so.

The big pike of the day was mine, it's in the middle and my uncles big walleye is on the bottom.

We packed up and were off the lake just as it began to pour rain.


Day 2. June 21st {Summer solstice and first day of summer}

We again returned to the same lake to try our luck.

On the way to the lake we stopped to look at a new whitetail faun and it mom.
This little guy appeared less than an hour old and unable to stand. Mom melted into the trees as I approached, and the fawn crouched down.
I got to about 5 feet and snapped this photo.

Do you see me?

I could probably have touched it, but I didn't want my scent on it in case she abandon her baby. I also didn't want to be a subject in the next When Animals Attack video with the mom deer.

Once we got to the lake the plan was to use the boat again, but, just when you think you have it all figured out, mother nature changes the plans for you, and, we were greeted with strong NW winds and white caps.  Not good boating weather, despite the warm temps and sunny skies. undecided

The family and I had a lunch together and I waited until 4:20pm with no signs of it letting up so I decided I would try some shore fishing. Casting was a bit tricky in the strong wind and the lures would not go where I intended, but, despite that, the fish were still around in the murky stirred up waters. I tried one spot for 5 min but kept getting hung up so moved to a new spot a bit down the shore and on my first cast had a little pike on but lost it just as it jumped near the net.   A short time later I get another solid hook up and land the first walleye of the day.
This one was at the 3. 5 lb mark.


The next fish was a pike at 4 lbs.


After seeing those 2 fish my uncle joined me and we fished the rest of the afternoon together. Catching fish off and on.

Around 7:30pm the winds finally let up and the lake calmed to just gentle waves.  That's when the fish began to feed harder and we were catching them a bit more frequently.


My uncle quit at sunset but I went another 15 min and caught one more fish before leaving.


In the end we had good shore fishing results with myself catching 3 pike & 8 walleye and my uncle 3 pike and 2 walleye with 3 fish getting off on us.

On this day all the fish went back.

There were a few shore anglers further down the shoreline and they were also catching a few fish.

My uncle caught all his fish on a smaller Len Thompson spoon, and I caught mine on a Pelican Lures spoon and on a Storm wildeye swimshad.

All in all it I feel it was a really good 2 days of fishing and I am looking forward to the next trip out.

WW

[Water Wolf]

Hi all,
 
Here is my fishing report for the long weekend.
 
The family and I spent June 29th, June 30th, and July 1st {Canada Day} at Fishing Lake.
 
During the 3 days the weather was nice, with hot temps in the day, mostly sunny skies and calm mornings and evenings.
 
We did see a bit of a thunderstorm the 2nd day but it was after dark so it didn't affect us at all.  On the 3rd day we had to quit a bit earlier that evening as we could hear thunder approaching fast.
By the time we ate, packed up and just started off for home the storm was on us with lots of thunder, lightning and heavy rains.
I am glad we were not on the lake or just loading the boat when that one hit.
 
The fishing was decent with a good number of fish being caught, and a good bite occurring on our last day there, {July 1st}.
The pike were ranging in the 2 - 4 lb mark and the walleye were 1.5 - 3 lbs.
 
We only kept a few fish each evening with 90% of them going back.
 
The water is also starting to develop a bit of algal growth but nothing too bad yet.
 
The fish were hitting on swimbaits, single and double tail grubs, crankbaits and on the last day especially spoons, Pelican Lure spoons in particular.
Those spoons really have a tough pattern on them and although you could feel the scratches on the spoons they never chipped from the fish, rocks or wood they encountered.
 
Here's a few photos from the 3 days. grin
First fish of the trip.









 
A calm morning.










I AM SMILING!




This was not the biggest pike we caught, but it was the most unusual.
I don't think I have ever seen one with this short a tail. It was also quite thick at the base.
Look how close the tail fin is to the dorsal and ventral fin. Mr. Stubby,lol. laugh

It did fight quite well, but I noticed when I let it go, it used more of it's body to swim than
the other pike.



All in all a relaxing time was had by all and I can't think of a better way of spending the long weekend than at the lake.
 
Once it got dark enough we were treated to some good fireworks displays here and there around the lake for quite some time each night.

 
I hope all of you had a good Canada day long weekend as well.

 

WW

 

[nightbird]

I always enjoy your pics and stories, WW! You really convey well the pleasures of fishing and enjoyment of the outdoors in Sask. Keep it coming!
Paul

[anglerbrian]

Way to go W.W. looks like you are having another great season of Sask. angling.
I also enjoy the wildlife pics. Makes me want to get back out there.
Oh well only two more days til the weekend.

[Water Wolf]

Thank you nightbird & anglerbrian. I am glad you guys are enjoying the fishin' reports.

Hi all,
Here are 2 weekend fishing reports.

Report 1{July, 6th, 7th & 8th}.
Here is my report for my weekend at Candle Lake and area. Thanks for all the info on the area.

Nice to meet you RAF, thanks for stopping by my booth, it's good to put a face and voice to the name.
Your sure in a scenic area of the province. I hope you have a good open water season.  

The first night I was there I went to the local trout pond and fished for 20 min without a bite.

We drove around to see all the beaches on Candle Lake before it got too dark.

Candle Lake was really busy that weekend, and it seemed that all the popular shore fishin' spots were occupied, so on the Sat. evening, we took a drive to Shannon Lake in the Narrow Hills to try for some brown trout.

On the way there we saw stretches of trees that look to be recently wrecked by a plough wind or tornado.


Once I got to Shannon Lake I fished for an hour and a half, just before sunset, {I was hoping prime trout time}, and had quite a few small to tiny trout { about 2"-5" inchers} following me, but alas, no trout hit the lures I presented. I even tried a worm under a bobber and that was rejected as well. There were a few good sized fish rising right in the middle of the lake and well beyond my casting distance.


The lake was dead calm.  There were more loons in that area than I have seen in most big lakes. I counted 6 in one family group as they fearlessly swam right past me looking as interested at me as I was at them.
It was neat to hear their haunting calls echoing through the trees and off the steep hills of this narrow little lake.

On Sunday my work ended in the afternoon and I was able to fish for an hour after supper before we left for home.  I went to a new lake I have never been to.  I tried Heritage Lake for a bit of shore fishin'. This was a nice quiet lake with very clear waters, and in one area purple sand, neat. There were no fish biting there either but it did not matter.  

In the end I had lots of bites but none from fish, but still had a good time.

We also saw many deer {30 or more in the park} and 3 moose and a black bear.

I hope to be back there again in the near future.

Report 2. {Sat. July 14th.}
The family and I went to our local lake with my uncle and I fishing for the evening from 6:15 pm - 9:05pm.

There was just a slight wind on the lake that evening and with the cloudy skies and smoke blowing in from northern Alberta and or northern Saskatchewan it made the area quite hazy.
There is a moderate algal bloom in the lake now, so the light levels should be quite low making for good walleye conditions.
Not 3 min into fishing and my uncle hooks the first fish of the evening a healthy 3 lb pike.

We hook a few more fish before I see a boat cruising in at a fair rate of speed. They pull up beside us and we see it's the conservation officers. They check our fishing license, make sure we don't have barbed hooks on the line and take a peak at the one walleye I had on the stringer. We chat for a bit and they area off.

In the end we net 20 fish.
I net 10 walleye while my uncle nets 2 pike and 8 walleye.

The pike were around the 3 lb mark while the walleye were 1 - 2 lbs, and one nice walleye near the end.

Here are a few photos of the bigger ones I caught that evening.






This is my uncle's nice walleye.  
It was 27.5" long. It had big old head, and thinner body.


With the on-line calculations it would be 7.5 lbs.

It went back to grow even larger.

An action shot,lol.
It almost jumped right out of his hands and into the lake.


We kept 2 walleye for supper {one person's limit on this lake} with all the others going back.


One fish was caught on a rattlin Rapala, but spoons were again the lure of choice.

In the end we had a very productive few hours with lots of action. At one point I had 3 fish in 3 casts and we were lucky to find the biggest walleye I have seen since I got my personal best off shore on that same lake a few years a ago.  

WW

[Water Wolf]

Hi guys,

Here is the fishin' report for July 21st & 22nd.

Day.1
On the 21st we went back to our usual lake for some evening fishing.

The evening had a fair wind from the SE and a mix of sun and cloud.
Large storm clouds were gathering to the NW and E of us later on that evening. We would have to keep our eye on them.

The water was quite stirred up with all the wind, and there was a fair algae bloom in the water with larger brown clumps of it blowing by.
We had to anchor the boat quite a few times.

We fished from 5:30pm - 7:00pm, stopped to have bite to eat, then continuing to fish from 8:10pm - 9:25pm.

Fishing was a bit slower, but we still managed to net a few fish.
In the end we caught 10 fish. I caught 3 walleye and 2 pike while my uncle caught 4 pike and 1 walleye.

This was one of the bigger walleyes at  20 7/8" or roughly around the 3.2 lb mark.




My uncle had a few "not bad" pike in the 4 - 4.5 lb range but the batteries in the camera died on me.

We left the lake to the flash of lightning and rumbling thunder closing in all around us.  Good time to be off the water. :blink:

Day2.
I had some business to do in the Fort Qu'Appelle area on Sunday, but before I left the area I did a bit of shore fishing.
Most of the common shore fishing areas around Fort Qu'Appelle were quite busy with lots of shore anglers, but I did manage
to find a spot on the E side of Echo Lake where the mouth of the lake enters the river.


It was a sunny, but cooler afternoon / evening with a wind coming down the lake and into the area where I was.

The water here also had a fair amount of algae in it, but there were also very large clumps of weeds and algae mats drifting and swirling with the current.
The river bottom was also quite weedy and I was having to clean the lures almost every cast.


While I was fishing a fellow angler beside me lost a "not bad" pike when it bit off his lure and I had a few taps and lost a fish myself.
It looked like the anglers further up the river were having not much luck as well.

Just before I was going to leave I had another few taps. I was ready and set the hook. This fish felt odd but it was also quite strong making a few runs and using the current.
I got it in and was surprised to find it was... a young carp.

This one must have tapped my lure, I felt it and set the hook, missing it's mouth and putting the hook right through the tip of it's dorsal fish.

I think this guy, or, others like it, were the source of taps before, it felt like the one that got away.
It was only 2 - 2.5 lbs but fought with the strength of a fish twice it's size.

I can't imagine what a big carp must be like, but would like to some time.

I let the little fighter go to continue up the river.

In the end the fishing was a bit slower for me this weekend ,but I still found a few fish and caught a species {the carp} that I don't often encounter in my fishing, so not a bad 2 days in my books.

WW

[saskcat20]

Looks good WaterWolf... I enjoy your fishing reports because I know of some of your spots that you fish at..

[Water Wolf]

Neat, glad you like the reports saskcat20.

Hi guys,

Here is a fishin' report for Sat. July 28th.

I started fishing in the mid afternoon and fished off and on until dark.

The weather was hot with a humid ex value of over +30 deg C / 86 deg F.

The water has also become alot more algal filled with the high temps these last few days and every time I see the lake the water looks greener.
On this day it was like a thick green soup with large clumps of floating brown algae.
Visibility into the water is about a foot when in the boat to only a few inches when fishing from shore.

I started my afternoon shore fishing and ended it fishing from the boat. I though I would compair the action from both methods to see if there was a better way or not
After that afternoon I came to the conclusion that they are both effective this year with landing a fair numbers of fish both ways.
My uncle jointed me to fish out of the boat a bit later on that afternoon.

At one point I had 3 fish on 3 back to back casts from shore and from the boat 2 fish on 2 back to back casts.

In the end 30 fish were caught.
My uncle landed 1 walleye and 2 pike and myself 7 pike and 20 walleye with no fish being kept this time.

Here are a few photos of the action.
First fish of the day, and one from shore.


Here is one of the largest walleyes I caught that day at almost 3 lbs out of the boat.


Spoons and swimbaits were the lures of choice by the fish on this day.

While I was there I chatted with a few other anglers and it seems the fishing has been good on all the beaches around the lakes this year with a few 6lb walleyes and caught and released last week on the same day by the same angler.

I hope this action continues.

WW

[Water Wolf]

Hi All,

Here is my fishing report for 4 days of fishin'.

On the first day I was travelling through the Fort Qu'Appelle area and thought I would stop for a bit and fish.
I went back to the Qu'Appelle River on the E side of Echo and fished for an hours time just before dark.
In that time I saw several fish jumping and cast to one of the jumpers. The fish bit and turned out to be another small carp, just a few inches wider and longer than the first one I caught a while ago.

I would have taken a photo of it but as I was holding it the carp gave a good flop and jumped back into the river.
He was going back anyway, but that fish made sure,lol.

That would be the only action of the evening.

The other 3 days were at my usual lake.

All 3 days had great weather with temps in the mid + 20 deg C with just a lite to no breeze.

The water on the first day had only a small amount of algae in it and I was beginning to think the lake was clearing some, wrong! That night the algae must have
drifted in from somewhere across the lake and I came back to some very nasty looking algal growth.

See for yourself.

This is the worst I have seen this lake for algal growth ever.

This thick algae bloom extend a good 80 yards into the lake as you can see in this photo.

I even had trouble just casting through it. Every time I brought in the line I would get a build up of algae at my rod tip a penny to loony in size.

This algae hung around for most of the afternoon ,but slowly vanished out towards the middle by late evening.
It returned the 3rd day, but was never quite as thick, thankfully.

Despite this very thick algal growth in the lake it didn't seem to bother the fish, and they continued to actively feed beneath it.


On day one, 25 fish were caught most of them walleye but pike also mixed in.

On day two, the fishing slowed just a bit with myself landing 10 fish, again, mostly walleye.

Day 3 was day of the pike. On this day I caught 16 fish, mostly pike, thus giving me a 3 day total of 51 fish.

Here are a few photos from the days action.






I think this guy wanted the lure. :blink:






Most of the walleye averaged 1 - 2 lbs and the pike 2 - 3 lbs, but I did get a couple nice ones of both species.

Here are the top 2 walleye and top 3 pike.

Walleye #2
21"x 11" 3.5lbs

It's not too long but quite fat.

Walleye #1,
26" x 13.9"  /  6.5lbs 

This is my biggest walleye so far this open water season and it came close to my personal best a few years ago.
This big girl hit the lure only 10 feet from me and gave a good fight, with a few nice runs.

Pike #3
27.75" x 10.25"



Pike #2
30" x 9.75"



Pike  # 1
36" x 13" / 13.3 lbs.

This pike is the heaviest fish for me so far this open water season.

When I bring in my lures I make a habit of letting the lure settle before lifting it from the water and that is what I did.
I had a Rippin' Rap on at the time and as I got it close to me I let the lure stop and gave it good rip 3 time pausing for a few seconds between each rip.
This lure is so loud I could hear it rattle above the water. After the 3rd rip I was going to bring it up but I felt a dead weigh on it like It has snagged on a rock, the hook bit home
and the fish exploded I had only about 7 ft. of line from the rod tip and she took almost half of my rod into the water on the first big run for open water. What a shock as it all happened so fast.
The fish peeled out the line and I got some back only to have her peel it again. After 3 runs like this she came back towards me and I had to really reel to keep up with her. I finally got her close to me, but with all the thick
algae it was tough to see how big she was. I got the answer when she did a big jump, with over half of her body coming out of the water. She did this another time and I was fearing that she would throw the hooks as quite a few pike had done to me the last few days. She gave one last leap and I stuck my net under her and she flopped right  into it. Pheeww that was too close.
When I take a closer I see I was lucky, as she did that last jump she broke the split ring off the only hook holding her, so, if I would not have caught her in the net she would have been gone.

The pike gets a quick tape measure and a photo and is on her way.  As she leaves she flicks her tale and sends a shower of the green goop my way, now that's gratitude for you.

I only keep one smaller walleye that had it's gills too damaged, all the rest went back.

I thought I would try a variety of lures and see if they showed a preference for lure type but they hit crankbaits, spoons, regular soft plastics and soft plastic swimbaits
equally well.
The big pike went for a Rippin' Rap and the big walleye attacked a Koppers Livetarget perch.

In conclusion it has been a great few days with many nice fish and lasting memories.
I am now eager to try and beat these the 2 big fish on the next trip and hope the good fishing continues.
I also hope to catch a larger carp sometime.

WW

[Water Wolf]

Hi guys,

Here is my fishing report for 2 days spent at the lake this week. My destination was, as usual, Fishing Lake, for some shore fishing.

The weather for both days was nice with sunny skies, but stronger winds and white caps on the water for most of the time.
It only calmed for an hour on the first day just before dark. Once it got calm and dark the mosquitoes really came out and eventually forced me off the shoreline.

The water was alot more clear this time, with only a  fine algae, and visibility a good couple of feet down. Along the shore I could see the bottom quite well.

The fishing was not bad the 2 days with both walleye and pike biting.  The peak time was closer to dark.
In the end I found 16 pike and 6 walleye for a total of 22 fish for the 2 days.

The walleye on average were a bit smaller this time with 1 - 1.5 lb fish the more common catch.  I did get one that would be 2lbs.
The pike were 1.5 - 3lb on average. With the biggest at  24.5" or roughly 4.2 lbs.

Here are a few photos from the 2 days action.









This is the big fish of the trip.


It had kind of an odd coloration on the bottom of it and more so on one side
than the other.


In the end I was satisfied with the 2 day results and now look forward to see what the fall fishing brings.

WW

[Water Wolf]

Hi guys,
 
Here is my 2 day shore fishing report for Aug.27th & 28th from my usual spot on Fishing Lake.
 
 
I fished from 4:00pm to 7:20pm the first day and had to quit due to mosquitoes (avoiding West Nile Virus hopefully).
 
The weather that afternoon was nice with a light S breeze and small waves. The water still has a fine algae but nothing like it was a while ago.
 
After I had a late bite to eat I thought I would try the lake at dark. I hardly ever fish at night so tried my luck to see what might happen.
The lake is very calm with with moon glistening over the dark water.  I fish for an hour (from 1030 - 1130 PM) and during that time I have a tap and net 2 walleye.
 
The 2nd day was warmer with alot more wind and white caps on the water. I fished for a few hours in the morning and then went out again for an hour just before dark.
 
Over the 2 day the fish were biting OK and I did manage to get fish on back to back casts at one point.
For the most part the walleye averaged 1 - 2 lbs and the pike were a bit larger this time at 2 - 4.
 
In the end I caught and released 14 pike and 9 walleye.
 
The fish hit on various spoons, swimbaits and a lipless crankbait.
 
Here are a few photos.









 
 
Here is a shot of the moon on the lake.


The night walleye:





This is my biggest walleye of the 2 days at 21"x10" / 3.5 lbs

It's not really that long, but quite chunky.

This is the 2nd biggest pike at 25" / 4.5 lbs.


This is the big fish of the trip at 28.5" x 10" / 6.6  lbs.



This is my smallest fish this season.

This wee one attacked the lure with the same savagery as the larger fish of his species, no fear, lol.
I hope it's is a future trophy fish.
 
In conclusion I enjoyed the time I had at the lake and was glad to make it out one more time before fall.
 
WW
 

[Water Wolf]

Hi guys,

Here is my fishing report for the month of Sept.

My first report is from Sept.16. I was returning from a show in the SE corner of SK.
On my way home I stopped for half an hour at the Qu'Appelle River to see what was biting.
I was hoping for a channel catfish.

It was a cloudy and cool evening.

I fished with a pickerel rig for most of the time but didn't get a bite. I see a few fish jumping down stream.
The last 5 min I changed my rig for a swimbait and started to cast. In the final 2 min I got a strike and wrestled a pike out of the water.

The fish had not bad length to it but hardly any weight. By it's length this fish should have been in the 3 lb range but it was just around 1.5 lbs
with a big head, small body, and sunken stomach area.

This poor fish either had a major dose of tapeworms robbing it's body of all the nutrients, a rubber jig in it's stomach making it feel full or it can't find enough food in the river.

I returned it to the river and ended my fishing on a positive note.

The 2nd set of fishing reports is for Sept. 23rd and 24th.
On these 2 days I am again back at my usual spot to see if shore fishing is still holding up.

Both days had good weather with nice summer-like temps, sunny skies and some wind that eased off near sun set.

On the first day I fished from 4:30pm to 7:30 pm and on the 2nd day from 3:00pm - 7:20pm.

The fish were still around my area both days and the fishing was decent, with hits often enough to keep you on your toes.
At the end of the 2 days I caught and released 8 walleye and 19 pike.
On both days I had fish on back to back casts and also had a couple pike follow right to the shore and strike just as I paused the lure before lifting it from the water.

Here are a few shots of the 2 trips.
First fish of Day 1.


A few photos of some of the fish.


This pike has a deep scar like dint near it's pelvic fin and along it's back.




As the moon rose,


the sun set.


Day 2.
Fist fish for the 2nd day.


I took a snap shot of this squadron of anglers setting out to fish for the day.

There was 15 in this flock but, they came by me so fast I just got these 4

This horned grebe and it's buddy fished beside me all afternoon, not nervous of me at all.

In one instance I watched it follow my lure under the water, that was neat to see, but I am glad it didn't grab
the lure.
What a mess that would be. :blink:

A few more fish photos from the afternoon.






The fish went for spoons, swimbaits and I even caught a few on a jig and minnow under a float.

In the end I was happy with the results and the nice weather I had these last 2 days.
 I am hoping the fall bite continues.



My next fishing excursions were on Sept. 28th and 29th.

On the first day I decide to try a new area so I set off for Theodore / Whitesand Reservoir.

The weather is nice with summer-like temps, just a light breeze and sunny skies.

Not far from the reservoir we come across 3 moose in a field {2 cows and a nice bull}.

I try and snap a shot of the bull before he exits, stage left.

As I arrive there were a few boats leaving, and the anglers from the boats chatted with me for a bit.
They told me that they saw alot of fish on their fish detectors all over the reservoir but, could not get them to bite no matter what they tried, not good news.

Despite the poor results I would give it a try anyway.
As I started fishing I noticed the reservoir looks lower than it normally is and, was quite algae filled.

I fished from 3:40pm until 7:00pm and in that time I landed one pike around the 1.5 lb range, had another throw the hook not far from me, and, had one walleye follow
the lure right to shore but would not grab it.

Here are a few shots from the area.
The afternoon catch.


A shot of the moon and still waters.



After eating I decide that I would try some night shore fishing so I make a swing past Fishing Lake, and fish from 10:00pm - 11:00pm.

The night is quite calm with just a few small waves on the lake and with the almost full moon + clear skies it was quite bright, hopefully the walleye would
think so too.

They did, and after an hour of shore fishing I land 4 walleye, before hitting for home.






This is the big one, at a bit over 2 lbs.

It was quite chunky, must be eating well.

The next day we decide that we want to see an area we haven't been this year, so we make our way to the Hudson Bay / Mc.Bride Lake area.

The weather was awesome with temps in the +28. deg C / 82.4 deg F range, not what I would expect for late Sept here in SK., but, would gladly take is as it could be one of the last warm days of the year. cool

My goal was to fish a few of the lakes in rapid succession only stopping for half an hour or so at each one, but, before I did that I stopped at Fishing Lake for half an hour on the way by and found one pike that was a few lbs.


On the way to the other lakes we stopped to watch this big boy for a bit.

He was in no hurry to move and gave his best impression of a rock.

Parr Hill Lake is the first stop - no fish in the half hour.
PeePaw Lake was a bit too weedy to fish effectively off shore so I didn't stop to fish it.
Saginas Lake was the next stop and on my 3 cast I had a nibble.
I cast out and the fish hit again and was hooked, {yeah fish on}. A feisty little pike was the results.
The fish were a bit more aggressive here and I landed 2 more and had another 2 throw the hook, not bad.

Here are the 3 pike.







This region of SK. has some great scenery and with the fall colors it's really enhanced.


My last stop in this area is at Mc.Bride Lake. The fish are not active, but I am not worried as I take in the evening surroundings. I can hear folks talking on the boat in the distance, the splash of jumping fish, the buzz of the mosquitoes and black flies, {not the best sound} and the calls of the birds on the water and in the forest around the lake.


I also stay long enough to watch the sun set and see the moon rise.




On the way home I swing one more time past Fishing Lake and stop for another half hour to fish.
The time is from 11:00pm 11:30pm and the moon again is sparkling on the water, but this time with a stronger wind.
The fish are a bit more reluctantly this time but, I do end up with another walleye for my effort.

It's nice end to a fun 2 days.


The pike were in the 1.5 - 2 lb range and the walleye were 1.5 - 2.5 lbs. All the fish went back.
 
The lures of choice were again spoons and swimbaits.

All in all Sept. was a good month for me and I was happy to see the areas I did.
I hope some of the big fish come to play before ice up.

WW

[Raquettedacker]

Awesome new pictures WW...   I thought you would be ice fishing by now..

[Water Wolf]

Thanks Raquettedacker.
With the temps we have had these last few days it feels like ice fishing weather, chilly {just above freezing} with falling and melting snow.


Hi guys,

Here is my shore fishin' report for my first trip in October (on the 7th).

On this day a family member and friend joined me on my excursion. They didn't plan on fishing, but were happy just to take in the sights and sounds in the area we were going to, (Good Spirit Lake).

We stopped at the first spot we came to and I fished from 2:15 pm - 3:05 pm.

It was a cool and cloudy afternoon with a slight wind from the W.

At this first area the water was quite shallow and I could walk a fair way out with just my rubber boots.
Hip or chest waders would really get a person a long way out into the lake.
The water was quite clear with a pure fine sand bottom with streaks of purple here and there.

This area was quite scenic, but, seemed to have no fish.  I had no strikes at all.

The 2nd spot I tried was a bit further up the lake and I fished there from 4:05pm - 6:00pm.

This area was a bit deeper and had more structure on the bottom. It was also a bit softer bottom, so I didn't walk out this time. The water was also darker.

When I got there I notice an item in the water and I fish it out with my hook.  It turned out to be a set of bells that anglers attach to their
rod so they hear when a fish strikes. They don't jingle as loud as they use to but still work a bit.

Fifteen min into fishing and I feel at tap, finally, so I cast back to the area and a fish strikes.  As I get close to landing the fish I realize that I forgot my net at home, sheesh.
I am now forced to land it by hand.


As I release the fish and think, now would be the time to get a big fish, and me with out the net.

A few casts later and I feel another tap, I let the spoon I am using flutter and feel a good strike, I set the hook and the fight is on.
When this fish struck it struck hit hard and kept on going. I moved down the beach to keep up with it, stopping with I could not go any further, but the fish kept on going and by then it had taken 3 / 4 of my line.  I gingerly applied some pressure and began to reel, gaining some line. When the fish felt it was getting too close it again went for a line burning run followed by a few wallows on the surface. After the 5th time of more than half my line being lost and recovered I finally got it close to see that it was a pike and it looked big. It burned off 2 more times before I was able to get it near my feet.  Without my net I had no choice but to try and gently grab it by hand.
When I got it as shallow as it could go, I gave my buddy the rod and I tried to scoop it up with a belly lift and tail grab, she was just too big and slippery and she shot off again almost tangling the line around my legs.  My next try was under the belly and just holding the gill covers, this hold works, and I am able lift her up.

She was indeed a large pike, with a thick girth and good length. She also had just a few scars on her head and back from some hardship in her life in the past.
She posed for one photo and a measurement and then I sent her on her way.
She thanks me by splashing water and muck my way, before shooting off for deeper water.

Her measurements were 38" x 16".

Ten minuets after the big one, I get another strike, and land another pike.

This one is no slouch either.

After this fish the clouds really start to get heavy and it began to rain. This turned the fishing right off and I didn't get any more bites casting that evening.

Ten min before we leave I decided to try my new float I had with me, so I set it up and cast out and wait. There is nothing until I was just going to bring it in. As I do so I feel a tap and the end result was this walleye.

It was a nice eater size walleye and was a good way to end the evening.

The hot lures were a spoon for the pike and a dead minnow and drop shot rig, under the set float, for the walleye.

I also somehow caught a steel leader and later on another spoon, so they were a bonus.
The spoon was in the water for some time and was a bit corroded but I have buffed and polished it up and have now applied a black coat of paint to it on both sides.
I also painted an orange eye on it and dots down the middle on both sides. I though Halloween colors would be appropriate given the month I found the spoon. The black color should make a good lure for dark water or low light conditions and the contrasting orange eye should add something for the fish to target, I will see if it works or not.

To conclude Good Spirit Lake was good to me on this trip and I hope to try it again.
Since this was our Thanksgiving weekend I am thankful that my family and friend were able to come fishing with me and
I was fortunate enough to catch and release nice big fish.

I hope all of you had a good Thanksgiving long weekend as well.

WW