Hello All,
This past week has blessed us with some phenomenal weather. Temperatures in the mid- to high-20’s and pure and unobstructed sun made it feel like summer once again. Digging out the shorts and sandals in honour of this one last hurrah sure felt fulfilling.
I had the pleasure of sharing the boat with Ashley Rae of SheLovesToFish on Monday. Not only is this woman an accomplished angler in her own right – and a breath of fresh air for the fishing industry – but she is also one of the most down-to-earth and friendly people you could meet. Regardless of the fishing action, I knew we were in for a fun day on the water.
October 10
I made the drive down to Kingston to meet up with Ashley early this morning. After a quick introduction and a stop for gas, we headed northward to a favourite lake of hers. Arriving at the launch some twenty minutes later, we are joined at the ramp by Dale Minicola, CEO and President of . Behind his tow vehicle was the “Charger” bass boats he carries. I gazed over with a slight hint of envy!
After a few quick words and well-wishes, we set off in our prospective boats in search of some fish tales. Ashley and I take a short ride up the lake and stop at a point. Working out from it in the ultra-clear water, we begin tossing baits in the 8- to 15-foot depth range. It doesn’t take long for Ashley to connect with the first one of the day on her drop-shot rig.
The sun is blazing early in the morning, and without a breath of wind on the lake, the air temperature is already getting hot. I always have trepidation about weather like this in the fall. The fishing can either go one of two ways – really great or lacklustre to say the least. I was feeling a bit of confidence after we broke the skunk so early in the day.
We continued to work various water throughout the morning. While in some skinny stuff, and after catching a couple of small pike, we both looked down to see a hefty largemouth slowly swimming in water less than two-feet deep. That girl would be the first of a few we would gaze at but were unwilling to bite.
Fishing was tough to say the least. We worked deep, shallow, and all depths in between. One thing that did strike me was the tremedous amount of bait fish in this system. They were literally everywhere! And in massive schools. Could this be the reason the fish seemed to have a severe case of lock jaw?
While working a hump early afternoon we had a visit from Dale. Of course, we voiced our lack of luck and were expecting to hear the same. But, someone always finds fish and Dale had done quite well. Asking if we had a camera and a scale for one smallie he had in the livewell, I jumped in the Charger and obliged him with his request. His 4lb 14oz smallie came on a Rattle Trap.
With some helpful direction from Dale, we headed out to a few spots he suggested in hopes of picking up a few piggies ourselves. We did mark a few fish down deep – as well as a couple of suspended fish – but other than another pike, we were shut out. Frustration was beginning to set in a bit for us both, and after a bit of brainstorming, I came up with a plan. It was to go ultra-shallow. My reason was quite simple – the smallie bite was not working for us. Also, the few largies we had spotted were in skinny water. But, my overall thinking was with the sun high and the water temperatures rising, and not much in the way of cover throughout most of the flats, fish should be pushed back into any available overhead cover they can find – pads and slop – no matter how shallow the water is. Figuring we had nothing to lose, we headed to a back-bay shoreline and began tossing frogs. Ashley’s first cast and a missed strike. A few casts later – the same deal. Now I was getting excited!! We might have finally figured out the pattern.
While working my LiveTarget Frog past a clump of pads and slop the water erupted ferociously. I was thinking a big largie. This is what came to the net.
We continued to work the slop and pads and picked off a few fish here and there. Fish were “pushing” water at our frogs or missing the bait completely, so hookups were definitely lower in comparison to the surface strikes. Isolated pad beds or slop seemed to be holding more fish, so we actively targeted these areas.
With the afternoon fading and the action dying at the far end of the lake, we ran back toward the launch to end the day on a close-by shoreline. It looked mint with healthy green weeds and rock, but only a few puny bass came in the boat. Since the ramp was congested, I suggested to Ashley we might as well give the pads a try mere yards away from the launch. I get a quick largie on a frog and Ashley picks one up on a swimbait. With renewed confidence, we both decide to give the remainder of the pads a try as the sun is beginning to set. As earlier, we begin getting action on top and put a few more largemouth in the boat. The water was less than a foot deep. Ashley had two cracks at a largie that would have ended the day on a high note. Sadly, both times he missed the frog completely. The water was so shallow we actually could see his massive back come out of the water when he turned on the bait.
With the sun now dipping behind the trees and the air temperature dropping quickly, we motor over to the launch and pull the boat out. We ended up redeeming ourselves, and I kind of kicked myself that I didn’t think to work this pattern earlier on in the day. Especially since frogs, pads, and slop seems to be my “bread and butter.”
An awesome time was had on this outing and a new friend was definitely made. We already have plans in place to chase lakers in the next few weeks. I can’t wait!!
October 11
With the weather still nice and wanting to get out with my Dad for one more fair-weather outing, we hooked up the boat and headed off to our stretch of the Rideau River. Judging from the action Ashley and I had on the frogs the day before, I made the decision that we would work these all afternoon and see what would happen. Off we head to Valhalla and straight to the stretch of pads that hadcoughed up the 4lb 4oz fish two weeks before.
The water temperature was reading 59-degrees. The pads were less sparse and again, with the heat and sun, it was my hope that fish would be up amongst cover and in the shallows. We began to see action almost immediately. However, like the previous day, the largies seemed to be pushing water at our baits, or short striking altogether. I decided to downsize our LiveTarget frogs to see if a smaller profile might be what they wanted.
Here is one of the areas we were working.
The largemouth were keying in on very specific spots. We would only find action if baitfish were present and generally from pads that were facing into the wind. Fairly rudimentary thinking, but the baitfish presence was definitely key.
Although we had 15+ blowups on frogs, we only connected with 2 largies and 2 pike. Dad lost a decent-sized bass when it came unpegged after a short tussle. He was not happy.
Here is the best of the two. This fish actually made a bee-line wake for a good five feet before smashing the frog. Was cool to see.
Great to have a couple of good days on the water. Enjoying the weather, a new friendship, and time with family is something I was definitely thankful for.
The next couple of weeks will be seeing me ply the waters of Quebec for bass, a laker outing, and some crappie evenings.
Get out and enjoy the fun that fall fishing brings – it won’t be long until it is over.
Good Fishing,
Justin
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