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Author Topic: My 2020 open water season.  (Read 6585 times)

Water Wolf

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My 2020 open water season.
« on: Jun 07, 2020, 06:12 PM »
Hi All,
Here are my 2020 open water season reports. :w00t:

May 7th.
This was my first trip out to dust off the open water rod and wet a few hooks.

I was hoping that the full flower super moon that night might have a positive effect on the fishing, and so, put it to the test.

I fished from 6:10 pm - 8:40 pm at 2 different spots.

It was a cloudy evening with the odd sunny break. The temp was + 12 deg C / 54 deg F and there was some wind from the E to NE.

Spot 1 was at Fishing Lake.
The lake itself was not totally ice free yet, but, I found an area, in a bay, where there was enough open water to make a full cast.
 I fished on 1 side of the bay while, on the other side, 3 - 5 other anglers were fishing.

None of us seemed to have any luck at all.  After an hour of pulling in nothing but a few weeds, and seeing only schools of small minnows and shrimp passing by, it was time to move.
The fish will usually let you know in some way, if they are around, be it a tap, strike or even a splash, so, if I don't see any of these indications I usually move until I do.

Spot 2 was a shallow creek.  There was no one else around.
On my third cast I get a strike, and land my first fish of the new open water season.
This pike.

It sure felt good to feel to that tug again. :)

I found out that the creek was the place to be that evening with the pike hitting fairly consistently.
After half an hour I had 5 more. :o
Barbless hooks made it easy to take a quick photo and send them on their way.











I fish for another half hour, but as it got dark the bites began to slow a bit.
The ones that did hit, bit lighter and were able to shake free, when they jumped.

All in all I was happy with my first trip of the season and was glad I moved.
Maybe the super moon did have a positive effect on the fish. It would seem so.

I know where I will try my luck when I go again.  I hope that they are still as aggressive next time around.

A few other photos from the evening.


The end to a nice evening. :)



May 11th.
I eagerly head back to the same area as I had luck at on my first time out.
I fish that area, plus a few other spots, from 5:00 pm - 9:15 pm

For the last few days, temps have been below average for this time of year, and this was no exception at only +8 deg C / 46 deg F with some wind from the N to NW and a mix of sun and cloud.
Thankfully, as it got later, it calmed right down.

Spot 1 was the same creek that I had luck at before.

There are no other anglers around and I start fishing.

It is interesting how a spot can be so hot one time and then dead the next, as was the case this time.  :P
I fished for a good long while with only 1 small nip at the lure near the start and then nothing the rest of the way through.
Time to move on.

Spot 2 was at Whitesand / Pelican Lake.
 I did not fish it at all last winter, so, thought I would give it a shot now.

The lake was completely ice free, and very clear. It was also very low, the lowest I have seen it for a while in spring.

There was lots of bird activity around in the form of gulls, geese, greebs, ducks and, of course, pelicans, which the lake was named after.

I also give this area a good long try, and, did a little bit better, landing a pike half an hour or so before I move on. :)



Spot 3 would be my last move of the day and I am back at Fishing Lake.
By now the sun is just starting to set in the sky.  I saw a fair amount of fish activity around with a few jumping near the shore line and others just a bit further out.

I was only in this area for a half hour, but, glad I went there in the end.
I could see large schools of minnows slowly moving along the shore line by my feet. That's what the fish were busting at the surface. I would watch for a splash and then throw my lure near it.
That seemed to work as I landed 3 pike and a walleye.
The 3 pike on average were some of the largest I have landed sofar this season, with the last fish of the eveing being a fair chunk. :laugh:






This was my first walleye of the season, and a nice bonus catch for me as well. :)


All the fish went back.  I was glad I did put them back this time, as one of the pike released a few eggs when I lifted her from the net. It would seem that their spawn is not over yet.

In the end I am satisfied with my results for the night.


May 19th.
This would be my last trip this month.

I return to Fishing Lake and set up in the spot I had luck at before.
I shore fished from 5:09 pm - 7:15pm.

We had a bit of a heat wave for a few days and this was the warmest day sofar this year.
Earlier on the temp was + 29 deg C / 84 deg F, but, by the time I got to the lake it cooled a bit to +26 deg C / 79 deg F.
There was just a bit of cloud cover, and the wind shifted back and forth from the N to NW.

Another group of anglers had the same idea as me, and arrive just as I started to fish.
There were 3 adults and 2 children.  They set up slip floats down the shoreline from me.
I did see them land and release a pike while I was there, + had 3 other fish that tugged their floats down, but, were not hooked.

Another angler sets up to my left later on in the afternoon.  They lose a pike as they try to hoist it up onto shore.

I was able to land a pike an hour or so into the fishing.
It was no monster, but, was still better than a skunk. :laugh:


I did manage to land 2 more pike no more than 5 min apart a few min before I left.
They were a bit bigger than the first one, but, the camera run out of juice, so no photos.

All the fish went back that evening.

I plugged the camera in the charger in case another photo opportunity pops up.

The ticks were out as well, (and have been for some time now).
I pulled a few of them off my clothing as I fished.

On the way home, the camera had charged just enough for a shot of the lake.


All in all it was a dandy afternoon / evening by the water.
I am happy with how the fishing was this May.

Hoping for continued luck in June and hope you all have had good fishing luck as well. ;D

WW

WyoMinFisher

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #1 on: Jun 07, 2020, 08:41 PM »
Thanks for the updates!  We were supposed to come up to Kuroki this year and hit Fishing Lake, Stoney and Tobin but the Covid have us trapped down here.... Hopefully next year!!  Keep up with the updates please!!

ran7ger

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #2 on: Jun 07, 2020, 10:26 PM »
great post WW, thanks for the pics and good luck this season!
got a fish on the line and my boat on the water
and it's gettin' near time to take the cows to the slaughter

Water Wolf

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #3 on: Jul 16, 2020, 11:33 PM »
Hi WyoMinFisher & ran7ger, thanks guys.  :)

Yeah hopefully it will get better next year.
In the meantime here is another update for the month of June.



Hi all,
Here are my reports for the month of June.

June 5th.
This would be my first trip of the month.
There was a full "Strawberry" moon this night, so I was hoping it would yeild some fishing results.

On the way to the lake, I pass the same herd of bison I saw this winter, and stopped to snap a few photos.
This is the heard of females with their new spring calves.

A real prairie scene from days gone by. 8)

The little ones were bucking and kicking all around. 
The adults, now shedding their heavy winter coats were slowly rubbing at the patches of loose looking hair from their hides.


Spot 1.
This is the spot where I fished a few times previously, in May, and, today I fish from 2:30 pm - 6:00 pm.
I am the only one out shore fishing this day.

The weather is a mix of sun and cloud with + 18 deg C / 64 deg F temps, and wind from the SW, that switched to the W later in the day.

There is a bit of boat activity at the boat launch across from me, and while I was there, I see 9 boats and 1 personal water craft
(sea-doo) come and go. Some boats are fishing, other are tubing or water skiing.
For the boats that troll past me, I don't see anyone catch a fish.

I do have some luck, and land this pike after an hour of fishing. :)


The fish flies are also out, good thing they don't bite. :P

An hour before I leave spot 1, I land another pike.

This one is larger and gave several runs before unwillingly coming ashore.

At 6:00 pm I stop for a bite to eat. I found that "The Lakeside Lodge" is open again, and is doing
only take out now for the time being. That's fine with me, and I order a meal to go.

Spot 2.
After eating I fish for a while longer in the 2nd spot from 7:45 pm - 8:15 pm.

On my 2nd cast I land another pike.


I pick up 1 more at 8:00 pm, but no picture this time.

The last fish stayed for a meal, but, the others went back.

I stay until I see the full moon of June rising above the lake.


All in all a nice trip out. ;D



June 12th.
I decide that I am going to try a different lake this time, and set out for Last Mountain Lake.
This lake holds a number of opportunities regarding fish species, but I am focused on, and set up for, carp this time.

I ask mom if she would like to join me and she does. She does not fish every time she goes, but, still enjoys the day out whenever she goes.

On the way to the lake we pass several fields of cows and a field of bulls, 12 in total.
This guy posed so nicely, I had to stop and take his picture.

That's a lot of bull! :w00t:


As we get to the area of Last Mountain Lake where I intend to fish, I see something very unique. It's a raven, but, not just any raven.  This particular raven is 1 of 7 and was all brown in color.
At first, I though it might be just dusty, or, a hawk and raven interacting with each other, but, I got a good clear look as it flew by very close to the vehicle, and, it was indeed a chocolate brown raven. :o
I am able to get a quick picture of it as it flys by.


As we watch we see a 2nd raven that is also brown, but, not quite as brown as the one I got the photo of.
We watched until the group of ravens float over the field and are out of sight.

On doing further research at home, there is a raven species that is brown (the fan-tailed raven), but, it's in Eastern Africa, so I concluded that this must be a color phase of a common raven, that we have here in SK. and North America, very neat. We were both happy to get a glimpse of them.

We check a few spots along the lake until I see what looks like a good spot for carp, on a wind blown shoreline in a small bay.

Other anglers think the same thing, and 2 of them set up the same time as me.
They are geared up for carp as well, with the long rods and bite alarms. 
I don't have a carp rod, but, use my regular 6 foot Shakespeare ugly stick rod and 15 lb Power pro braided line.
I see it's way too windy to throw any bait out, when I tried, it just blew back at me, landing at my feet.  On the end of my line I have a pickerel rig. I have caught carp on, corn, worms and even frozen minnows in the past. This time I offer them 2 choices, a fresh night crawler on 1 hook and a few kernels of corn on the other.

I fish that area from 4:30 pm to 8:30 pm.

It was a nice afternoon / evening with mainly sunny skies and temps at + 26 deg C / 79  deg F.
A strong wind from the SE whipped up the waves in the small bay, blowing right toward us on shore and cooling the temp significantly.

It was only 10 min into the fishing, when we hear the squeal of the bite alarm go off on the pole of the anglers beside me. He stands up and set the rod into a fish. When he got it closer to shore I could see a carp splashing about. At least I know I picked an area that does have carp in it on this day.
The fish was landed and I heard him say 15 lbs when he showed the other angler the fish - nice.
He decided to keep the carp and tied a rope through it's gill plate and placed it back in the water.

For most of the time I was there I spent much of it checking bait, to make sure I still had some, and enjoyed watching the bountiful bird life around me. There was a warbling meadowlark, who sang the whole time I was there.  There were pelicans, terns and grebes that fished just a few feet out from us, and,ducks, geese, gulls and other bird life on the fly.


At 6:00 pm more anglers show up to fish for carp.  This is turning into quite a popular spot.
By the time everyone arrives, there are 8 anglers, including myself, out fishing from shore, and
2 anglers, who fish the area from their boat.

My action did not start until later - at 7:00 pm.
I had my rod sitting in my homemade rod holder when the fish struck. The clip-on bells and rod tip both disappeared into the waves right at shore. I take the rod from the holder and set the hook.  The fight was on. The fish made quite a few line burning runs that stripped off 80 % to 90 % of my line each time. What a fighter.  I thought the fish was almost on the other side of the small bay each time it ran. While it ran, I could feel the line and sinker ticking along the bottom, through the weeds and over the snags, all the while I am hoping that the line holds, and is not being frayed too much. As it got closer to shore, it made several good jumps in an attempt to throw the hook. I could see it was a carp and looks to be a big one at that. The closer it got the larger it looked. By the time I have it near shore, it's forced to swim on it's side in the shallow water.  Mom comes over when she realizes the fight I'm having, and, I maneuver the carp into the net and, she pins it down. My net is inadequate for this size of fish. :laugh:

I am now looking at my new personal best carp. 8)


Mom runs back for the camera and scale, while I make sure to keep the carp in the water.
I only take her out of the water for 2 quick photos and a weight.


I weigh her in the net so she is nicely supported, and when I subtract the net's weight, she weighed in at
30.1 lbs. 

She is also now my new heaviest fish to date, double bonus, woo hoo! :w00t:

I am glad I got to weigh her before she broke the net.  She proved too much for most of the rubber webbing holding the net to the frame. I'm going to need a bigger net. :whistling:

Looking at her in the water, I could see she was a big female who had not yet spawned. She was built like a 5 gallon pail and just as round. Her belly was so tight that the scales on her, near the bottom were sticking straight out. I have never seen such a fat fish.

I had no desire to keep such a nice big fish that gave me a great fight for over 15 minutes, so I let her go without hesitation. She had to swim back out on her side, to deeper water, but once she got upright again, she really sped off nice and strong and was gone as quickly as she arrived. 
What a rush!
My hands were a bit shaky after that fish, lol. ;D

In the end, she was my only bite that day, but, sure glad it happened.

When I got home I thought I would look back and find a photo of one of my first carp a few years ago.
This wee guy was it. :azn:

It was roughly 6" long. A perch sized carp.
Quite a difference between then and now, lol.

I will definitely be trying Last Mountain Lake again for carp sometime soon.

All in all it was a great day with a unique raven spotted and my new largest fish ever.
I was also glad I could share these moments with mom.  She is the one who got me into fishing in the first place, when I was young. :)





June 19th.
After the fun we had last time, mom and I decide to try for carp again.
We head off to the spot at Last Mountain Lake where I caught the big girl a week ago.

When we get to the lake we see there is no one else around in the intended swim / fishing spot.

There was, however, a truck and trailer parked right on shore and into the water, right on the spot
where I caught the carp last week. :P
Oh well, I move a bit further down the shore line, and set up carp rigs for both me and mom.

We shore fish from 3:40 pm - 7:30 pm.

The weather is mainly cloudy with a stronger wind from the NW, switching to the N, half way through the trip. When the wind switched it got quite nasty even whipping up a few white caps and a foam line.
The temp was + 17 deg C / 63 deg F, but it sure felt much cooler, with the wind. I am glad I had my heavier sweater with me.

Not too long after setting up, we have a group of 3 angler come in and ask about the fishing. I let them know I just set up, but, tell them I am going for carp. They say they are also. They drive off and set up a long way down the same shore line and fish for the same length of time as me, not sure how they did.

Not too long after that, 4 more anglers show up and fish not far from me along the same shoreline as well.
They all are casting, and fish for over an hour.  I never seen any fish landed.

At 5:05 pm, I get a hit and the line peels off. It's a steady pace. It does feel like a carp.  Sure enough,
when it jumps, trying to throw the hook - its a carp! This fight is definitely not as long as the big girl last week, but it was decent none the less.  Mom comes over and nets it for me while I back up keeping the tension on the line as I drag it closer to shore.
Good thing I fixed my net this week. ;D

The sight of the landed fish brought thumbs up and words of encouragement from the anglers beside me. :thumbup_smilie:

After  a quick photo and weight check it's off again.
It weighs in at 13 lbs

No skunk today. :)
 

There must have been a school passing by as only 10 min later and I get another bite. This fish peels off more line and at a faster rate than the first one. It also feels like a carp, and again is verified when it leaps from the water, shining a nice gold color in the light. It is indeed bigger than the first and takes several long line burning runs, before it's tamed. Mom is right on the spot with the net, and lands this carp too.
It also gets a quick weight check and 2 photos before it's off.
It's quite a bit thicker and longer than the first.
The weight is 23 lbs, yeah! ;D


Here's looking at you. ;)



Both fish seemed to hit when the wind was a bit calmer, from the NW.  When the skies darkened, and the wind increased from the N, it seemed to shut the fish right off.
They did seem to like it when the sun was out a bit more and waters not as rough.  Not sure if that's the case all the time with carp, but, this was what I thought I observed today. :-\

I only had 1 bump on my line after that.  A carp either lightly tapped the bait, or one just swam into my line, but, that was it for the day.  Two carp would be my limit today - and that suited me just fine.

On the way home I stopped to take this photo.

I though it was kind of neat with the sun set projecting the tree's shadow on the gravel pile.

The gravel pile looks a bit like a pyramid. 8)

Another photo I could not resist on the way home, was this old barn , also in it's sunset days.


In conclusion I spent another fun afternoon / evening in the pursuit of fish.
Carp are a species I don't go for often, but, when I do, I always enjoy fishing them.
I will definitely be going for them again in the future. :w00t:



On a different note,
I was out working in my yard on June 26th, when I saw something orange pass by my head.
I though at first it was an old leaf that fell from one of the nearby trees with the wind, but, when I took a closer look, I saw that it was a butterfly, and not just any butterfly, but a monarch butterfly. 8)

This was the first time I have seen a monarch butterfly in many years, and only the 4th one, I have seen ever, so I had to get a photo of it.

It looked tired, maybe from it's migration N, that happens in late June here in SK. 
It was still very nervous, and would not let me get too close.  I did manage to get close enough that I could positively identify it as not being a viceroy butterfly, which looks almost identical to the monarch butterfly, except for an extra line on the lower wings, which it did not have.

Here's the photo. :)

It was taken at the only distance it would allow, on a cedar bush, in the front yard.

I wish I would have had some milkweed plants to offer the monarch butterflies.  They apparently lay their eggs only on milkweed.  Note to self for next year's planting. :whistling:

I saw another monarch on July 3rd., but, it would not sit still for a photo.


WW

filetandrelease

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #4 on: Jul 17, 2020, 05:11 AM »

 Wolf Thanks for sharing 👍

Water Wolf

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #5 on: Oct 19, 2020, 07:02 PM »

No problem filetandrelease.
Here are more reports for you all. :)

Hi all,
Attached are my fishing reports for the months of July & August.
:w00t:

July 1st. (Canada Day)

First trip of the month.  Can't think of a better way to celebrate Canada Day than
being by the water. Destination, Fishing Lake, at my usual shore fishing spot.

Mom joined me on this trip, and, was happy to just enjoy the nice day.  No fishing this time.

I fished off shore from 4:00 pm - 10:00 pm.

It was a mainly sunny afternoon, with some wind from the SW and + 23 deg C / 73 deg F temps.
The wind kept things at a nice temp, not too hot, but not cool either.

The water still felt cool, but, warm enough for algae to start to show a bit.

There were fish around, but, I had to work a bit to convince them to bite.
A storm we had early in the morning may have thrown them off a bit.

I did have some luck though, and, in the end, landed 5 walleye while 2 pike managed to shake free. :)


These little barn swallows were celebrating the day with the rest of us, lol. ;D


I stopped fishing at 10:00 pm, once the fireworks started, and, we watched them together.
 They first appeared, for about 15 minutes, on the main beach, with additional fireworks from a few of the other beaches around the lake.

All in all, it way a nice way to spend Canada Day.




July 19th.
It's been a while since I have been out, so, I head to Fishing Lake for the afternoon.
It had rained and stormed the day before, so, I was curious if the fish would be active or not.

I fish from 2:00 pm - 4:15 pm, take a short break, , start up again from 5:00 pm to 6:10 pm.

The weather was still cloudy with the odd sunny break. Thankfully, the wind was lite from the NW, with just a breeze at times.
The temp was + 20 deg C / 68 deg F.

The fish were around, and, on my 3rd cast I hook and land a pike. A few casts later, another pike.
It slows for a while, and a walleye is landed before I take my break.
Things pick up again after the break. 3 more fish are landed, 2 more walleye and another pike.
 The final total is 6 fish, 3 pike and 3 walleye. :)




I'm happy with those results.


July 24th.
I am back again, at Fishing Lake, for the afternoon, and, shore fish from 6:15 pm - 9:00 pm.

Weather is mainly sunny with the odd cloudy break. There is some wind from the NW, and the temp is + 25 deg C / 77 deg F.

The water is now looking fairly green with algae, and, is beginning to feel warmer.

There are a few boats on the lake.  Half are fishing and half are enjoying water skiing or tubing.
The fishing boats seem to be having some luck.  I see them catch a fish or 2 as they troll by.

Shore fishing, for me, was great. On my 3rd cast, I land a pike. The action was steady.  I land 3 fish on 3 back to back casts, not once, but, twice, with the action picking up closer to sunset.

In the end, I land 14 walleye and 5 pike. ;D

A few from the day. ;)










It was one of my best days this month. 8)



July 26th.
This would be my last trip for July.

I decide that I would like to try a bit further N, and, set off for a group of lakes in the porcupine forest area.
I ask mom if she would like to join me. She does, and, we are off.

The weather was a mix of sun and cloud, with the odd rumble of thunder near the end.
The wind was strong from the NW and the temp was + 26 deg C / 79 deg F.

On the way, we go past Fishing Lake.  It was raging, with large waves crashing up on shore, spewing spray and foam on the wind. :o

Good thing we are going somewhere else this time. :whistling:

The drive is nice.  Open farmlands transition into the thicker bush country of the North.
The area is a mix of evergreen and deciduous trees.
The air even smells different, with the evergreen's perfuming scent afloat on the wind.

There are a total of 4 lakes in this area. I hope to fish each of them while I'm here, which I do for the next 4 hours, from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
It was quite windy, but, at least with the tall timbers, a person could find some shelter from the direct blast of wind.
In the southern lakes, where I normally fish, we don't have water lilies.  These lakes were all in bloom, with nice yellow water lilies, near shore.  Tannic acid in the water stained all the lakes a weak tea brown color.

First on the list is the largest one, McBride Lake.
This lake also has the most cabins.
We drive along the lake until we spot an area to fish near the main boat launch.
Due to Covid-19, McBride, and, the other lakes in the area, are not allowing anyone to fish off of the public docks.  Only boat launching allowed.
I found an open spot in the reeds on shore, down from the main dock, and, shore fished there. 
Not long into the fishing, and, I hook into a pike, but, it shakes free and is gone.
Near the end of the fishing at McBride Lake, I hook into this pike. ;D 


Check out what looks like a thumbs up in the clouds behind me,lol. :thumbup_smilie:


The next lake we checked out was Saganis Lake.
This lake had the least amount of wind that afternoon.  It also had fair action.  I had several smaller pike follow the lures into shore, had 1 bite the tale off of one of my swimbaits, and 1 pike that shook off, just as I was reaching down to net it.

Finally, as I swam a spoon through a near-shore weed bed, this pike struck. :)


There was one family, out boat fishing on the lake while I was there.  You could hear the echoing call of loons from the far shoreline across the lake - ahhh.
A lady conservation officer stopped by to check my licence. We chatted about the fishing around the area.  She said that I was the first person she had stopped that day who had caught any fish.

Next stop was at Pee Paw Lake.
This is the smallest of the 4 lakes. It was very weedy.  Too weedy to fish with anything but a topwater lure.  I didn't have one with me, so, moved on, after a few casts of pulling in great clumps of weeds. :P

On the way to the next lake, we spot this rainbow down the road. 8)


Last on the list was Parr Hill Lake.
This is a bit larger lake, but, I have read it's quite shallow, and, in the past, subject to winterkill.
To to correct the winterkill problem, a part of the nearby creek was diverted so it would continuously flow down hill, and, into the lake, thus, supplying the fish with much needed oxygen and fresh water all year long.


I set up on a long road that runs along a portion of the lake shore, near the dock and running water.


While I fished, we could hear the rumble of thunder in the distance.
I was hoping it would not come any closer, and it didn't.

I caught a pike here before we had to go. :)


One last look at the lake, with a 2 adult Canada geese and many many, young.

The dominate pair of Canada geese like to take the young of the less dominant parents around.

While up in that area I found 2 more lakes I didn't know about, White Lake and Dead Steer Lake, plus we crossed over the Swan River, which I know has fish in it. 
All 3 areas warrant more exploration in the future. ;)

This area of SK. is a good area to explore in the fall, when the colors are popping, and, the fish are sometimes closer to shore.
Case in point, I landed a larger pike at McBride Lake in Oct. a few years ago.

She was 37" long by 12" round. :w00t:

In the end, mom and I both enjoyed our day of fishing and exploring.
Here's to more days like that.



Aug. 1st.
I start this month of fishing at my usual spot on Fishing Lake from 6:50 pm - 9:10 pm.

It was a nice day at the lake with mainly sunny skies, +28 deg C / 82 deg F temps, and, a lite wind from the NW.

Since it was the Aug. long weekend, I expected it to be busy.
It was indeed a busy place.  There were quite a few boats on the lake, some were fishing, but, most were either water skiing or tubing, and a good number of sea-doos zipping about. The shore line was also active.  There were a few folks shore fishing, and, a few kids enjoying their summer freedom, jumping and splashing and swimming in the lake.

With all the activity around, I was a bit surprised at the walleye I caught, not long into the fishing.
The other fish took their time. It was not until the traffic on the lake and on shore settled down near sunset, when I caught 6 more walleye, all within half an hour.
At one point I caught 3 fish in 3 casts. :)


Did you know, this lake has flying fish? :laugh:


Just after sunset, there were a few short fireworks displays, at a few of the beaches around the lake, nice.

I quit for the night when the mosquitoes started to come out in biting swarms.



Aug. 2nd.
On this afternoon I decide to do some exploring at few lakes new to me.
My mom joins me on this adventure.

Our first stop was at Nelson Lake. It is a bit N and W of the town of Preeceville SK.
It's a neat little tree lined lake, but, it seems that the whole area around the lake is private.  There was no public boat launch at all. There are cabins along the SE to NE side of the lake and a bible camp on the W side. I see no spot I could shore fish here, so, onto the next lake.

When we were in the McBride Lake area, we heard of a lake called Shutte Lake, so, we thought this would be a good time to try and find it, as it appeared to be a bit NW of our current location.  While looking for it, we went through some neat back country.  Eventually we found Shutte Lake.

Our first stop was at the picnic grounds on the W side of the lake. There looked to be a small trail heading down a steep hill and through some thick brush. There are bears in the area, so, we opted to find an easier spot to access the shoreline, to wet a line, and, be closer to the vehicle.

We find a promising spot at the main boat launch on the S side of the lake.
It looked OK, and I fished there from 4:20 pm - 5:15 pm.


It was nice afternoon, temp wise, at + 26 deg C  /79 deg F with sunny skies, and, some wind from the SE.  This spot was nice and sheltered.

Half way through my time there, I feel 2 taps in a row as I reel in. The third tap feels a bit better and I set the hook.  After a brief fight, this pike reluctantly comes to the side of the dock, and, is netted. :)
It hit a dimpled Len Thompson spoon.


When I let it go, I watched it swim off for a long way out.  The water was clear and quite shallow there.
That would be it for the action.
I think this might be an OK spot in the fall, once the water cools, and, the fish return closer to the shorelines.

After that bit of additional exploration, we returned to Fishing Lake for some evening / night fishing.
I am back at Fishing Lake by 8:06 pm and shore fish until the mosquitoes got too bad at 9:00 pm.
There are folks out tubing, water skiing and a few still boat and shore fishing.

At Fishing Lake I catch and release 5 more pike and 6 walleye, they were going hard. ;D

All in all, it was a fun two days of fishing and exploring new lakes.


Aug. 16th.
I am at Fishing lake a bit earlier this time, fishing from 10:35 am - 12:00 pm, out of the boat.  After a bit of a break, I start boat fishing again, from 6:15 pm to 7:05 pm.

The weather was mainly sunny with a lite wind from the W and + 23 deg C / 73 deg F temps.

When I got there I could see the water was calm so decided to use the boat.
I seemed to have the best luck closer to shore, putting 3 walleye in the boat.
All the walleye went for a rattling crankbait, a favorite when trolling.


I have several boats troll by me, with a couple boating fish as well.

This walleye had a nasty, already healed, injury.
It's gill plate, on one side, was completely torn off.

I'm not sure what would cause that. :o

I catch 1 more walleye before calling it quits.

The action was a bit slower than normal, but at least no skunk. ;)



Aug. 29th.
I am back at Fishing Lake to try some some evening / night fishing going from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm.

It's a nice evening at  + 26 deg C / 79 deg F, with a mix of sun and cloud and a fairly strong wind from the SE.

The water feels warm, and, there is some algae present.

The evening fishing was OK, finding 4 pike and 1 walleye + 1 more pike that shook off as I was about to net it.

This pike was larger than any others caught the rest that day. 8)


The 1 walleye. :)


It was a bit hard to cast into the strong wind, with regular lures, so, I switched up to a lipless rattle bait ( a well worn live target golden shiner), and, cast with the wind. This produced all the fish. It cast well, and, was loud with enough vibration to be detected through the churning surf.
The bigger pike hit 3 times before finally getting hooked on the 4th attempt, as I got closer to shore. 
An active evening in the end.


Aug.30th.
I was back to Fishing Lake for some shore fishing for part of the afternoon.

It was a dark and cloudy afternoon with strong winds from the W at 47 km/h and only +12 deg C / 54 deg F.
With the strong winds, there was actually a wind-chill now, feeling more like mid Oct. ::)

I waited for an hour or so, but, the winds would not let up at my usual spot, so, I was off to find a new sheltered spot, if I could.

After a bit of searching, I finally found a sheltered spot in a larger bay.
The wind was still whistling from the W through an opening in the bush,but, the water was a bit calmer here, and, with the wind at my back, I could really pitch the lures out. 
It was shallow, 2 feet or so, and, weedy, but, I though I would give it a try, and, did from 4:30 pm - to 5:15 pm.
Spoons and crankbaits all got tangled up, but, a single hook swimbait made it through a bit easier. I also started reeling as soon as it hit the water.
On the first cast with the swimbait, I had a strike, and, fought the fish half way in before it gets off, a long distance release.

Not too long before I go, I get another strike, and, pull in this reluctant walleye. :)

I forgot the net at home on this trip, so, had to pull the fish up into the shallows and gently grab it.  Not easy with 1 hand holding the rod, and, the other trying to get the fish.

I also try at a 2nd spot from 5:30 pm - 5:45 pm, but, no action there at all.  I usually have some luck there, but not this time. :-\

Considering how cold and nasty it was out, I was just happy not to be skunked. ;)

All in all, I have been happy how the fishing has been these last 2 months.
Here's hoping that the fall fishing is just as good. :)


On a side note -  In mid Aug. I purchased some of the new Berkley X9 braid in the 20 lb test / crystal color for a spinning rod and reel.
I have been impressed with it so-far.  Just like it states, it does have good knot strength, abrasion resistance.  I feel it has improved my casting distance, even casting straight into the wind, seems to be less of a challenge than before.  The price was lower than the other braids on the shelf, at $22.99 CAN.
In short I like it, and will us it again in the future.
If anyone is looking for a new line to try this might just be it. ;D

WW

Water Wolf

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #6 on: Dec 15, 2020, 12:51 AM »
Hi all,
Well, you can tell autumn has arrived, the leaves are changing, a good number of the birds are on their way S and the fish are feeding up for the long cold winter ahead.

Attached are the last of my fall fishing reports for September, October and November.

Sept 5th.
My 1st day of fishing for this fall season. ;)
I planned to spend a day or 2 fishing on the Sept. long weekend. The destination, Fishing Lake.

I decided to take the boat out, and fished from 4:30 pm - 7:00 pm.

The afternoon was a mix of sun and cloud, with some wind from the SE and a nice temp at
 + 18 deg C / 64 deg F.

I had chosen to troll a crankbait ( in this case a Storm rattle tot), and pick up active fish wherever they may be. 
The fish seemed to be around, and, before long I found them, picking up 3 walleye and 4 pike in total.

First fish of the afternoon.


Two of the others.




Being the long weekend, there were quite a few other anglers out fishing, but, I only saw 2 other boats bring in a fish.
There were also a few pleasure boaters, and water skiers as well.

I called it a day, and packed up before dark.  All in all a good day. :)


Sept. 7th ( Labor Day)
I am back at Fishing Lake.
The 6th was a write off due to very strong winds from the NW.
The 7th was only a bit better, so, I went back to shore fishing, and, once again tried to find a more sheltered location.

It was a mainly cloudy day, with a fair wind from the NW and +15 deg C / 59 deg F temps.

I went out earlier this time, from 11:00 am - 1:20 pm.

The fish were around, I could see them busting schools of minnows at the surface, along the shoreline, and, in the reed bed further out. 

My first catch of the day was a large ball of fishing line with a small Len Thompson spoon tangled in it. I was glad to get that mess out of the water. Greebs and diving ducks could easily get tangled in it and drowned.
 I found a dead greeb, a few years ago, that had been entangled in either fishing line, or a hook and anchored line.  It couldn't get free and drowned with only inches to the surface, sad.

I kept the spoon and repainted it half neon orange and half black.  Hope the fish will like it. ;)

The first fish caught was this pike.  It had an interesting looking pale colored lower half of the body. :w00t:

I have seen this type of coloration before in Fishing Lake.

I then run into a bit of bad luck, hooking into 3 more pike, but, having them all come off either part way in, or, just as I go to net them. Sheesh, whats up with that? The hooks are sharp. :P

Near the end of the trip I land my last 2 fish.
The first one is another pike who falls for one of my own painted spoons.


The other was this stickleback.

It was a real whopper, and put up a heck of a fight, for it's size, lol. :azn:

In the end it was an active day, but, not so many fish landed.
Oh well at least I was not skunked. ;)



Sept 13th.
I am back at Fishing Lake and take the boat out again from 3:00 pm - 7:00 pm.
My goal was to try another of my newly painted Len Thompson spoons.


There is only a lite breeze from the SE with mainly cloudy skies.
The temp is a cool + 10 deg C / 50 deg F

That afternoon I only saw 1  boat and 1 kayaker out fishing.  The lake traffic has quieted down alot.


It was not too long into the day when I hook into this walleye. :)


Biggest catch of the day. :whistling:


While out trolling I pass by a few white pelicans resting.


With more coming to joing them.


In the end I catch 2 pike and 2 more walleye.
The fish were around, but, they were not as active as I thought they might have been.
No matter, it was fun all the same.


This walleye is missing a good part of it's front dorsal fin.


This pike had the same lite lower body coloration as the one caught in the same area the last time out.
Must be something in that area.


Some of the fish were caught trolling and a few were caught drifting through promising looking areas, like along reed beds.

All but 1 of the fish caught that afternoon hit the spoon that I painted.
On this day at least, the fish liked it.



Sept 14th.
I am back at Fishing Lake, and out in the boat fishing from 3:00 pm - 7:00 pm

The weather is a mix of sun and cloud. The wind is lite from the SE and the temp is
+ 18 deg C / 64 deg F.  Even though it's warm out, on the lake, the breeze still feels cool.

There are lots of ducks as well as Canada and snow geese coming and going from the lake to the nearby fields. They fly over the boat in large flocks, just don't look up,lol. ;D

The fishing is good this time out. While I am there I catch a total of 12 fish, 8 pike and 4 walleye + 2  more fish that throw the hook before being netted.




I don't see any other boats out this time, nor anyone fishing from shore.

I am really happy with today's results. 8)




Sept 19th.
This would be my last fishing day for this month.  I am back at Fishing Lake for a few hours.

This would be a 2 part day. Part 1 would be from shore & part 2 from the boat.

It started out to be quite a windy day, so, I waited until later when it calmed a bit to take the boat out.
The weather was a mix of sun and cloud, but the skies were hazy with smoke from the wildfires in the Western USA and Canada.
The temp. was a dandy +25 deg C / 77 deg F, feeling like summer again. The wind was from the S, shifting to SE later on.

I started shore fishing from 3:40 pm - 5: 12 pm.
 In that time I caught 5 pike, including one of my larger fish sofar this season. :)


I stop for a very quick snack and then was out in the boat from 5:15 pm - 7:00pm
This produced another pike and 3 more walleye.






There was only 1 other boat out that afternoon. They were anchored and jigging.
Not sure how they did.

Swimbaits from shore and husky jerks from the boat were the productive lures this time.

All in all I am pleased with how Sept. went and now looking forward to the rest of the fall fishing. ;D



October fishing reports.

Oct. 2nd.
This is my first report for the month.
Fall is in full swing, the leaves are all gone, and, the days are getting colder.
There are still a good numbers of water fowl around the lake, and, with it, several bald eagles and I even spotted a golden eagle. They were both taking turns hunting the water fowl, small mammals (and in the bald eagle's case) an occasional fish.

I am at Fishing Lake again, doing a bit of shore fishing from 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm.

The sky was cloudy, with a lite wind from the N to NE and + 9 deg C / 48 deg F temps.

The lake looks to be in full turnover now, with cooling water temps and floating dead weeds / weed clumps.

The fish were not very active, but, finally, I did coax 1 pike and 1 walleye into samping what I had to offer, just as the sun was setting.

The fish. :)




Despite the slower action, it was still a nice and relaxing day out.



Oct. 3rd.
I returned to Fishing Lake with the hopes of finding a few more fish.
I gave it a try from 4:00 pm - 4:20 pm, took a bit of a break, then went from 5:40 pm - 7:30 pm.

The weather was mainly cloudy, with a lite wind from the SE and the temp was
+10 deg C / 50 deg F.


There were 4 fish caught this time, 2 pike in the first try, and, 1 pike, and, 1 walleye the next. :)

The first 2 pike were caught on a homemade lure. It was, in fact, a regular sugar spoon, with a hole drilled in the tip at each end. I tuned it in the water until I was happy with the action.
It had surprisingly decent action when retreaved and really good flutter on the fall.

The proof.

It actually works,lol. :w00t:

2 pics of the same walleye.


I find it amusing when walleye do their flared gills angry face. :laugh:


The last fish of the evening was the largest catch of the day, hitting close to shore, near sunset. 8)


It seems the bigger pike might be making their way closer to shore again, good news for the shore anglers.

It was a nice time overall.



Oct. 10th.
This would be my last report for the month.

The last few days have been nice and this one was very good at + 18 deg. / 64 deg F with a mix of sun and cloud. It was like summer all over again and I though this might be my last chance to fish in some warm weather, so, I went back to Fishing Lake for more shore fishing.

A large flock of snow geese were feeding in a field right by the highway.


Hardly anyone has been hunting them this fall and they are quite calm.
I watched them for several minutes before moving on. 8)


When I got to the lake I saw it was quite windy from the SE.
This time I would move around a bit and try 3 potential areas.

Spot 1.
I fish this area from 4:00 pm - 4:30pm
The waves are quite strong here and all that I accomplish is loosing a small swimbait when it's blown sideways on a cast into the thick reed bed.

Spot 2.
This area was further down the lake, and, a bit more sheltered. I tie on a larger spoon and cast with the wind, from 4: 45 pm -5:15 pm.
Half way through, I get a hit. After a few fair runs, I bring in one of my largest walleye of this open water season.
:w00t:

Not too long before moving, I get another hit, closer to shore this time, and, finally haul in a feisty pike of decent size. :)


Spot 3.
This was my usual area.  I fished from 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm.
This area took a bit longer before I got some action. The bite didn't start until the sun was setting on the horizon, and, then the walleye showed up. I caught 3 more walleye here and lost 2.
By the time I was done, it was too dark, and now, chilly, to fish effectively so I packed up.

I felt it was another good afternoon / night for me and was happy to find the 5 fish.

All the fish this Sept. and Oct. were released to fight another day.

As it turned out this would be my last report for the month.
After Thanksgiving,  Saskatchewan experienced below normal temps and constantly windy days that lasted to the end of the month, not really much fun for fishing. :P

Not sure how many more open water days there will be in Nov. for me, but, I will take whatever I can get. :-\



The month of November started out nice, with above normal temps.  I had to take advantage of these days, while they lasted, from the 1st to the 5th, after that, the temps began to drop again.

Nov. 2nd.
This was my first and last trip for the month.

I though I might as well finish off the open water season at Fishing Lake.
It took a bit of time to find some open water, as most of my usual spots were now iced over a fair distance out. I finally found some open water and tried shore fishing at 2 different spots, from 4:30 pm - 6:00 pm.

The afternoon was great with above normal temps hitting a +18. deg C / deg F. By the time I got to the lake was a bit cooler at +10 deg C / deg F, but, there was just a lite breeze from the SW and all was OK.

While I fished, I saw 2 boats out enjoying the bit of open water that was left.
They slowly trolled along past me, but, I didn't see any fish being caught.

Spot 1.
It was a good spot for me in the past, but, this season it has become quite shallow, with many more snags showing up. Most of those snags turned out to be fishing lines that have been lost and now seem to be everywhere around this shoreline area. Not good for the local wildlife, nor my lures. Over this open water season I have only lost a few lures, but, in this area. I lost 4 in a short time, sheesh.
As I tried to free them, I actually had them out of the water, but, they were hopelessly entangles in the strings of fishing line that now crisscross the area. :wacko: 
I didn't have any fishing luck in that area this time. :unsure:


Spot 2.
It was a bit down the lake in slightly deeper, less snaggy location.

I only fished this area for half an hour before calling it quits, but, it did produce results.

On my very first cast, with one of my larger spoons I get a hit 10 feet or so from shore.
As I set the hook, I see, in the fading light, a pike doing a back flip out of the water with the spoon in the corner of it's mouth. By this time of day, I was out of fluorocarbon and steel leaders so I tied the lure on with just a snap swivel, and was hoping that the line would hold and not be bitten off by this razor toothed fighter.
This one would not come in without a fight, and gave several good long runs, before she was finally netted.
I made sure she caught her breath in the net, before removing her, for a photo and measurements.
After all that, I placed her back in the water, and, she shot off, thoroughly soaking my pant legs in the process, lol.

As it turned out she would be my largest pike this open water season coming in at 36" X 15". ;D


Even though she was the only fish that afternoon, I can't think of a better way to end this fishing season. 8)

I now eagerly await this upcoming ice fishing season and will be out there before too long. ;)



Thanks again everyone for coming along with me this year.
I know it's been a tough year, but, we can only hope for better days ahead, until then,
be safe and have fun. :D

Water Wolf out!

WyoMinFisher

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #7 on: Apr 11, 2021, 05:37 PM »
Living vicariously through your adventures, still hoping for the border to open this summer!!  Stay safe and hope to hear about your adventures this year.  As of right now I have vacation in the beginning of July and we are crossing our fingers to be fishing around Kuroki and Tobin then!!

Water Wolf

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #8 on: Aug 08, 2021, 03:38 PM »
Thanks WyoMinFisher. :)
Yes, staying safe here with some 2021 posts to come. ;)

WW

Raquettedacker

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #9 on: Aug 08, 2021, 04:20 PM »
Great stories and pictures as always.  Keep it up..👍👍
Sometimes we live no particular way but our own.....<br />Strangers stopping strangers just to shake there hand...<br />\"Dying is the easy part. Learning how to live is the hard part....\"

zwiggles

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #10 on: Aug 08, 2021, 09:20 PM »
Great stories and pictures as always.  Keep it up..👍👍

X2, keep the reports coming! I do enjoy reading through these well written posts!

Water Wolf

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Re: My 2020 open water season.
« Reply #11 on: Feb 24, 2022, 07:05 PM »
Thanks zwiggles & Raquettedacker. :)

WW

 



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