Bay of Quinte

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Bay of Quinte 2016

Southern Ontario is still in the grip of a drought.  Water levels are extremely low and the temperatures seem to stay above 30 almost every day.  Typically I would say these conditions do not bode well for fishing.  However chances to fish with my family are few and far between so we didn’t let that dissuade us this weekend.

We started the day off at the launch in Deseronto and took a quick trip down Long Reach.  we did a little scouting in some deep water and tried a few favourite spots.  The day started off with a bang as the first cast immediately landed a chunky largemouth in a favourite hole of mine.  Not the species we were looking for but a fish is a fish.

We moved on to a different area and played around fishing in varying depths of water ranging from 11 to 25 FOW.  Fishing was slow following the first largemouth and we decided to leave our first stop and head to a shoal not to far away.

The area seemed pretty crowded so we slowly approached so as to avoid interfering with other boats.  We trolled the outer edges of the shoal for a while until the crowd thinned and we were able to move in a bit closer.  Suddenly the bite turned on and the fishing heated up.  The first fish we landed was a decent fresh water drum caught on a spinner bait.  The fish put up a good fight with a few good drag peeling runs.  Sheepshead may have a bad reputation for being ugly and smelly, but man are they fun to catch.

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We continued to fluctuate our depths, make a gradual approach to the shoal as we did each pass.  We seemed to find the sweet spot as we  started to catch the odd smaller walleye mixed with perch and white bass.  Action steadily increased over the course of an hour and a half until finally we started get a few stronger hits.  One of those hits turned into a chunky 3+ lb walleye for my brother.  As a bonus, this was the first Walleye he has caught since we were kids (some 20+ years ago)!

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The four of us ended up caching 10 walleye in total on top of the countless perch and white bass which made for a very action packed morning.  Finally around 11:20 we decided we would do one more pass over one of the most productive area which happened to be right beside the shoal in 14 FOW.

Of course the last ditch effort paid off as my dad announced to the group he had hooked up, and of course it had to be the biggest fish of the day.  That’s just how fishing goes.  My dads claims of “this is a big one” were confirmed as the drag on his older real started to scream with strain.  The fish was making some impressive runs and didn’t seem to want to give up.  As I hung over the side of the boat with the net in hand, it seemed like the fish would never make it to the surface.   Finally my Dad wrestled the fish into the awaiting net.  What a tank too, a healthy 4.25 lb walleye.  Bigger than the other fish we caught which we guessed were in the 1lb range.  To make matters even better, the fish was caught on an old south bend spinner bait that was handed down to Dad from his father and that looked like it was 300 years old.  The fish was nice but the excitement on his face was nicer.

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The day was done and we returned home with a full live well of fish.  We don’t always keep fish, in fact we rarely do, but in this instance the fish looked too appetizing to pass up.

I’m glad the heat didn’t effect the walleye bite too much.  I’m also glad we caught fish.  I’m most glad that my brother made his triumphant return to catching walleye.

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I find it strangely fitting that we all got shown up by Dad.  It puts things in perspective a bit.  Maybe we have all the gear, a big boat, new rods, etc.  But regardless of all that, days like today teach us that nothing is more valuable on the water than experience.  Oh, and maybe that 300 year old south bend spinner that seemed to work so well.  Now excuse me while I go spend a few hours scouring antique lure sites…..

Cheers from the Lake,

Albert

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Early Summer Walleye on the BoQ

After the trip up to the French River I felt like chasing some more Gold around, and one of the best places to do that in Southern Ontario is the Bay of Quinte.  So I loaded up the Green Machine and hopped on the 401 headed towards Deseronto.

The morning crisp and pristine and the roads were vacant.  In my opinion, one of the best parts of fishing is the calmness and serenity you get to experience when you get up at 5 am and hit the road towards your destination. Nothing quite like it.  Not only does the early bird get the worm, but also a nice sunrise to boot!
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With the sun at may back I was on my way.

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on the way to the water I stopped and picked up my Dad and Brother.  Both were eager to get out on the water to try to search for the elusive eyes.

We started off fishing 9 to 14 FOW at the Mouth of the Napanee River to no avail.  Plenty of boats in this area and we were feeling a bit crowded.  With that we left and head down long reach to the Hogs back and Further on to Hay Bay.

Aside from perch, we weren’t having much luck until my brother connects with a hefty fish on one of our troll lines.  Using a crank bait, he was sure it was a healthy Walleye.  No such luck though as he quickly found out when a decent largemouth came towards the boat.  My brother worked diligently to de-hook while snapped a couple shots and the fish was released.  We promptly left the area and headed south down long reach.

We made it to a favourite spot of mine where I had caught my personal best last year and proceeded with another troll line.  Sure enough, the spot lived up to its reputation and produced this somewhat elongated Walleye.  Still a nice fish by any standards.

 

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My spot produced a few more strikes and a fairly hefty pike that was about 30″ in length.

Mid day approached and we decided we had all gotten enough sun for one day, so we packed up and  boated back to the launch.

The numbers were huge but the trip was still enjoyable.

It always is when your out with family.

Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Bay of Quinte Gold – January 18, 2014

The Bay of Quinte is a Mecca for Walleye fisherman.   Blessed with proximity to Lake Ontario, fairly eutrophic conditions, and several rivers feeding into it, you couldn’t ask for better fish habitat.  Its for these reasons why fisherman flock to the Bay during the winter months to take advantage of the spectacular runs of giant Lake Ontario walleye which are cuing up for early spring spawning.

And so, armed with this information, and an insatiable desire for big walleyes,  I joined the ranks of eager fisherman who have tackled the hard water on the BoQ.

The day started with an early 4:15 am drive to Belleville, with an initial stop at the bait shop (Pro Tackle).  After a quick chat with the knowledgeable owners, I was making my way down Sydney Street to a point along Dundas Street where I would be meeting two of my uncles and three good buddies as well as several members of the Ontario Out of Doors, online fishing forum (here comes the shameless plug! – http://www.oodmag.com/community/).  Several of the members of this forum had arranged for a meet and greet that day at a spot near Potters Creek in Belleville.  I have got to say, fishing enthusiasts are some of the nicest folks out there and a couple of these guys really put a lot of effort into coordinating the event and making the rounds on the ice to introduce themselves and take pictures.  Heck there were even prizes to be won and a big fish contest!  A chance to win swag and fish all day?  Who doesn’t love that.

Being the first of our group to arrive at the meeting point, I spent a bit of time chatting with some of the early risers until finally, the anticipation of some big Bay of Quinte Gold got the better of me and I headed out.

I was set up around 5:45 and fishing hard in 15 FOW.  There was 12″ or more of ice in every hole I drilled which made me thankful for my awesome Finbore auger.  My approach included jigging a shad rap and a set line tipped with a minnow several feet away.  Within in minutes of start up I had a fish take hold of my line and make a run for the bottom.  After a valiant effort fighting the fish to the hole, he finalized realized that something was up and decided to let go of the bait.  More fish activity came and went on the finder however nothing was iced.  That is until the rest of my group arrived……

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The first fish came on my friend Dave’s line.  It was a healthy fish with some pretty good girth and length.  Not to mention this was Dave’s personal best!

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The second fish was caught by my uncle, and it tipped the scales at around 8lbs.  What a tank!

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Some times the Bay of Quinte can be tough and can send you home scratching your head with not even a hint of fish.  Other times, she is generous and gives up some of her golden treasure from the depths.  Some times, if your lucky, she’ll even allow you the chance to see some of the giants that lurk below.   Then there are times like last weekend were you not only catch big walleye but your given a shot at something special.  Now catching a gar pike is a pretty rare experience, but as far as I know, catching one through the ice is almost un heard of.

And so it was my other uncle hooked this massive 43″ beast and wrestled it through the hole.

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I am pretty sure this fish made his day if not week!

The fish was promptly released to be caught another day.

Although the Bay of Quinte can be tough for catching numbers, its pretty hard to beat the size of fish it produces each year.  So if your looking for a trophy walleye, or if your an avid Gar pike fisherman, pack your gear and  hit up the Bay this winter.

Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Personal Best! – Shallow Water Walleye on the BoQ

The bay of Quinte has always been an intimidating body of water to fish for me. The stories of giant walleye are pretty easy to find on the Bay, however I have never been able to crack the big fish code here. That all changed today.

This morning’s dawn found me on the road travelling to Deseronto to meet up with my Dad and Brother.  After numerous attempts to get out for a fish together we were finally able to make it happen which was a great feeling in its own right.

The morning was clear and cool with a slight ripple on the water and temperatures were hovering around 12 degrees.  Not perfect walleye conditions, but as my Dads says, “its nice just to get out”.  Regardless of the optimism he always has when fishing, I wasn’t expecting a banner day with the walleye as the temperatures were supposed to climb to the mid 20’s and the sun was supposed to be in full force in a clear sky.  Not to mention little to no predicted winds. Boy was I wrong.

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Fishing started slow with only a few white bass and perch caught, albeit jumbo in size.  My thought today was to run and gun the whole stretch of Long Reach until we found some active walleye.  This took us past hogs back and the entrance to hay bay.   We passed over what seem like endless schools of pan fish until we were nearly to at the end of the reach.  It was at this point I kinda gave up on the walleye and started pitching bass along the shoreline, but still maintained a steady pace for my Dad and Brother’s troll line.

The next thing I know, my dad has a hit and his rod is bent over the boat.

“Drum” I say.

This is my typical response for big hit and run situations on the BoQ.  But as soon as I saw the flash of gold I knew this this was not the case.  Sure enough My dad was hooked into a decent 4lb walleye and was having a blast fighting his quarry.

That’s when I threw everything I knew about walleye fishing right out the window.

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Fish were caught in relatively shallow water on spinner baits.  The water seemed pretty warm and was murky with lots of dispersed algae.  Again, not what I expected considering my idea of ideal walleye habit includes 20+ FOW and crystal clear waters.

I readjusted our troll line and promptly dropped a spinner bait in to test this new found success to ensure it wasn’t a fluke.

5 minutes later, the fluke test was passed and I was holding my new personal best walleye.

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Weighing in at close to 9lbs, this beast toppled my previous 4lb record caught on lake Nippissing.  This fish gave me one of the biggest rushes of my life.  We were so excited when this fish came into view we were lucky to land it amongst the shaky hands, thumping heart beats and profanities.

One more decent eye was caught following a location adjustment.

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In summary, this fish gave me a new found appreciation for the walleye species in general and a peak at a slick new way of targeting giant gold in the BoQ.

My advice, don’t get to attached to patterns of fishing.  Sometimes it takes a little “outside the box” thinking to get the job done right.

Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Bay of Quinte Report

This weekend found me fishing my old stomping grounds: the Bay of Quinte.  Together with my dad and another gent, we launched at the Deseronto boat launch  around 7:00 am.  Winds from the previous day were lingering which left a good “walleye chop” on the water.  In addition the sky was overcast and periods of drizzle were common.  This seemed like a perfect day for catching walters!

From the launch we travelled past foresters island and headed for Catalaque Shoal where we dropped the trolling motor and proceeded to troll.  Bottom bouncers and spinners were our go to lures that day however the action was slow to start with only perch and white bass caught.  We criss-crossed the lake fishing in everything from 18 to 40 FOW.  Again only perch and white bass seemed to be interested.

Being a firm believer in “If it aint working, try something else” we decided to try a troll line of the eastern shore line where there was a definitive drop.  Trolling in everything from 17 to 24 FOW we started getting lots of hits and proceeded to land several nice sized drum.  One we estimated to be around 13 Lbs.  We tucked in even closer to the shore line to find a submerged weedbed where we caught a couple decent sized largemouths.  As an added bonus we even caught a walleye while on the out side of the weedline.

All in all a decent day on the water.

 

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My apologies for such crummy photography work.  I left my DSLR at home as the weather was predicted to be pretty lousy.

Ah well, low quality fish pics are better than none at all right?

 

Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Quinte Tourism – interactive Map

Once again I have been suckered in by the bells and whistle of a good online interactive map.  The following link is provided by Quinte Tourism and shows locations of interesting sights and tourism features in the Quinte Area.  I am always amazed at how many hidden gems there are right in my own back yard!

http://tourism.bayofquinte.ca/interactive-map/

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The Untapped Resource – Fishing Forums

Getting started with a specific fishing technique can be difficult.  What colour of lure? What trolling speed should you use?  Live bait or artificial?

I am sure at one point or another we have all asked similar questions.  Even the professionals had to start somewhere.

Im my experience, the ultimate way to get a leg up in the fishing world is to reach out to other, more experienced anglers.  The best way to do this? Aside from being in any Tim Hortons at 4 am on a Saturday, Fishing Forums can be a close second.  Fishing forums are great places to make connections with fellow anglers, discover previously hidden resources and ask virtually any question under the sun.  In my experience, if you can ask it, some one can answer it.  Almost always someone will reply with a tip to get you on your way to mastering a technique or species.  If your lucky and polite, they may even take you out for a one on one demonstration!

Below are a list of great forumns which have a strong Ontario base:

Fish Ontario: http://www.oodmag.com/ – very good resource for all things hunting and fishing.  This was the very first forumn I joined.  Filled with great people who are friendly and helpfull, I have made many friends on this forum over the years.

Ice Shanty – http://www.iceshanty.com/ice_fishing/index.php?board=26.0 – dedicated to ice fishing in Ontario.  This is a great resource for the Kingston Area.

Bay of Quinte Be ‘N’ Brag Fishing Forum http://forum2.quintefishing.com/viewforum.php?f=1 – you guessed it, specific forum for both soft and hard water fishing in the Bay of Quinte Area.  Also includes several members who are well versed in the brown trout fishery on Lake O.

Hawk Talk – http://www.fish-hawk.net/index.php?i=forums&mode=forum – Also a great forum for Ontario.  Also includes great information including fishing maps for specific lakes with directions on generic ways to fish specific lakes for beginners.

Lake Ontario United Forum http://www.lakeontariounited.com/fishing-hunting/  – all the gab on salmon, rainbows and browns that you can handle!