Tag: Casting

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Finally the weather cooperates! – The Right Angle RA-20

It’s about time!

It only took until late April for the weather to hold long enough for my wife and I to consider going fishing.  It honestly feels like a year has passed since the last time we went.  Winter feels like that in Canada at times.  Like the cold weather is neverending.  Well it finally did, and on a quiet Monday morning we decided to give the credit river mouth a try.  Fortunately for us access to the river is conveniently reached by transit.  Less than 20 minutes on the TTC, and then another 30 minutes or so by GO train, and you are only a few minutes walk from the river.  There are restaurant and coffee shops nearby, and an arena with public washrooms only a short walk away.  On a weekday it’s relatively quiet in the morning.  Only the occasional local taking their dogs for a walk come across us fishing.  In other words it’s a perfect spot to cast, and hopefully catch something on a weekday morning as the sun rises.

Pleasant company

This portion of the credit river is better known for rowing than fishing.  Periodically we would take a break from casting spinners and spoons to watch the rowers zip by us.  A couple of swans made their way to us out of interest but quickly moved on.  For about an hour we saw another gentleman fishing from the opposite bank with worms.  He had a folding lawn chair with him, and just cast out his line then settled in.  There was a cool breeze coming in off the lake, but the rising sun provided just enough warmth to keep us comfortable.  Early on it seemed as though our efforts weren’t going to be rewarded. For the first hour we hadn’t even got as much as a nibble on either of our lines.  Normally that would be enough to sour my mood, but with this being our first time out on what was sure to be a beautiful day I didn’t mind.

Would our luck change?

There’s always that moment when you have been fishing one area long enough that you struggle with moving on.  Especially when fishing from shore.  You wonder if there might be a shallow rocky pool, or tree that’s fallen into the river a little further upstream where the fish could be hiding.  Have you been endlessly casting into a section of the river that’s totally devoid of fish?  Well in this case that seemed impossible being so close to the river mouth.  There had to be fish there.  Stubbornly I stood my ground, and continued to cast until my shoulders and arms hurt.  Finally after about 3 hours my determination was rewarded.  Unfortunately for me the reward wasn’t mine.  It was my wife’s.

“I got one” she exclaimed!  I was in the middle of my retrieve so I looked over my left shoulder to see her rod severely bent, a look of pure determination on her face, and the fat body of a fish splash back into the river.  She had hooked a serious lunker!  Now we caught some pretty nice Bass last year, but just a glimpse of what she had on the line was enough for me to realize that this beauty was going to eclipse all of those.  The catch of the year might well be the first one we make!  I quickly reeled my line in as she fought to bring the lunker in.  To get to where my wife was I had to carefully traverse some rocks that made up the shoreline.  When I was merely 6 feet from her I saw the beast jump clear out of the river once more.  Almost definitely a lake trout, it’s scales reflecting the sunlight.  That last jump was so close to shore that my wife could have probably reached out and caught that fish.  She didn’t catch it though.  That last jump proved to be just what the beast needed to shake the lure loose. One last splash and the lunker was gone.  The only evidence that it was ever there was the look of astonishment on my wife’s face.  In the end we didn’t land anything that day.  Even so the urge to return to Port Credit and try our luck again couldn’t be greater.   On a day that we actually caught nothing, I doubt that I could have been more satisfied if we did.

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The Right Angle RA-6 Harbourfront

Fishing Toronto’s Harbourfront

Last Tuesday the weather forecast was calling for clear skies.  My wife and I figured that it was a great opportunity to try our luck down on the Harbourfront.  We packed up our gear Monday night, and got up early Tuesday morning ready to go.  Got on the Blue Night TTC bus heading South, and made our way downtown.

There are a few decent spots to fish along the Harbourfront.  I personally have a couple of favourites though.  We began our day fishing the first of those.  Just West of the Jack Layton ferry terminal is a short little boardwalk that’s normally a docking point for private Water taxis.

It sits just above the water line.  Well it usually does.  With the Lake level so high from Spring rains.  Lake Ontario was making itself felt by spilling over the edge.

This has always been a great spot for jigging just over the edge of the boardwalk.  I’ve caught a nice sized Pike here in the past.  After about an hour of jigging with s few different lures, it was obvious that there weren’t any fish to be had here today.  That’s something you should know about this particular spot.  If you don’t get a bite, or see any fish early.  Pack up your gear and move on.  Predatory fish patrol the Harbourfront, but rarely keep to one area.  So don’t stay anywhere too long if there isn’t any activity.

My next spot is the welcome exception.  Just West of Stadium road near Stadium road Park is a small harbour with a few boat slips.

Sweet spot

The combination of the boats, boat slips, a dock, and underwater vegetation make for a perfect fish habitat.  It’s kind of an out of the way spot as well, so you won’t have to deal with too many distractions.  I absolutely love this spot!  I’ve caught Pike, Bass, and Drum here.   A quick note before I continue.  If you enjoy Carp Fishing, then anywhere along the Harbourfront is fine.  Just find a spot with calm water, and put out a line.  There are Carp all over the place.  I’m not interested in Fishing for Carp.  Still I see so many I’m tempted to begin.  Honestly I could just bring a long net along, and catch one with that.

I wasn’t out that morning looking to land a Carp though.  It didn’t take long before my favourite spot teased me.  A good sized Bass broke the surface by the boat Slips across from the Dock.  I switched to a heavier Spinner to make casting beyond that point easier.  I went with a number 4 Mepps Gold Spinner.

After about thirty minutes of casting I got a strike.  It was a hard strike, and I set the Hook well.  Really well in fact.  I know this because immediately after the Hook set the fish got Tangled around a Slip support post.  What should have been a minute at most to bring it in turned into twenty.  I was tempted to just cut the line a couple of times.  This was the first fish of the day though so I was determined to land it.  Fortunately my perseverance paid off and I was able to bring it in.  Looks like our luck had changed, or had it?

What I had assumed was a good sized Bass turned out to be a small Catfish.  Shit!  You think I’d be happy with at least catching something only a couple hours into our day.  Well I wasn’t, and neither was my wife.  What you don’t know about our previous Fishing trips is that my wife and I have a Catfish jinx.  Sounds like bullshit right?  Well it isn’t.  Whenever one of us catches a Catfish as our first catch of the day.  You can pretty much guarantee that it will be our last catch of the day as well.

Might as well just pack up our gear, and call it a day.  My wife did just that.  Packed up her rod, found a Park bench to relax on, and wait for the morning sun.  We had been out for such a short length of time that I wasn’t ready to give up just yet.  In the end I probably should have.  Not another bite for the rest of the morning.  There is a silver lining to this catfish cloud though.

Fishing downtown definitely has it’s advantages.  You are never too far from bathroom facilities.  Getting there, and back is really easy.  If you are craving a snack, or something to drink you don’t have to walk far.  Today’s advantage though, if you get Catfish jinxed you can just pack up, and find a decent place for breakfast.  We chose the restaurant at St. Lawrence Market, and got a spot on the patio.

All in all it wasn’t the best morning Fishing, but still managed to be a pretty good day.

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The Right Angle RA-5 Cheltenham

A totally fantastic Fishing hole!

Less than an hour Northwest of Toronto.  Provided you aren’t driving during rush hour of course.  Realistically you shouldn’t be driving during rush hour if you are hoping to catch a few fish.  There is  a little known spot that’s fantastic for Brook, and Rainbow Trout.  Along a stretch of Creditview road between King Street, and Olde Base Line in Caledon lies the small village of Cheltenham.  Unless you are from Cheltenham, or somewhere else close by.  You’ve probably never been to the great little stretch of the Credit River that runs alongside Mill Street in Cheltenham.

Beginning just behind the Cheltenham General store, and continuing Southwest to Mississauga road.  This small stretch of the Credit River is perfect for casting lures, fly fishing, or drifting worms with a hook and bobber.  There is a campsite Park at Mississauga road by the river which gets busy at times.  Personally I prefer to avoid fishing in groups, so I tend to stay closer to Creditview road.  As an added bonus, having the Cheltenham General store close by is really convenient.  It’s a great place for an early morning coffee, or lunch after fishing.

http://www.cheltenhamstore.com/

If for some strange reason the unthinkable happens!  You’ve been fishing for a few hours, and haven’t caught anything.  Don’t worry about it.  You are within a fifteen minute drive of a number of great spots.  About a five minute drive away is another great spot on the Forks of the Credit. There’s available parking, and one of the most picturesque spots on the river below the trestle bridge.

If you have read my previous The Right Angle posts then you will already know about my favourite spot in nearby Belfountain. Refer to my previous post for the exact location.

The Right Angle RA-2 Guelph Lake fishing

I’ve had the most luck in this area casting with Spinners.  A number 3, or 4 Blue Fox Silver Spinner has worked well.  Try whatever you prefer.  If you find something that works particularly well for you.  Please leave a comment and let me know.

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Keep landing Lunkers!

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FISHING

The Right Angle RA-2 Guelph Lake fishing

Would I consider myself a professional Angler?

 HELL NO!

 I don’t enter tournaments, own a boat, or have ever purchased high end equipment.  I would consider myself an enthusiast.  My wife loves fishing almost as much as I do.  She never fished as a kid growing up so she’s still learning.  Every catch she makes is full of excitement for her.  We live in midtown Toronto so we are always looking for decent shore fishing spots in, and around the city.  We have found a few.  I’ll share them with you, along with what we caught in this blog.  Over the summer we take a few day trips out of the city to fish as well.  This year we are adding  Peterborough, Sandbanks provincial Park, the Bay of Quinte, and Minden to our list of places to fish.

Our first drive out of the city this year was up to Guelph Lake.  The Guelph Lake Park and Recreation area doesn’t open until 8:00am so we began our day at a great little spot I know of.  It’s only about 5 minutes from the Guelph Conservation area entrance.

The road 29 marker at the center of the picture is the spot.  The East side of the bridge is the better location but both sides will yield results.  Having a small dingy to get further away from the road is a real advantage for landing some really good sized Bass.  My wife and I just casted spinners and spoons for a couple hours from shore.  There are a lot of snags so precise casting is necessary from the East side.  If you can’t control your casts yet, then there are far more open areas on the West side of the bridge.   We spotted a few decent sized Bass breaking the surface about 30 feet further in from where we were fishing.  I hooked a Bass that immediately got under a downed tree and shook loose.  The time we spent there wasn’t for naught though because my wife landed a Smallmouth Bass.  Just a little guy,  but it was her first Smallmouth so she was thrilled.  We packed up, and headed over to the Guelph Lake Conservation area shortly after that.  It did not disappoint.  There’s a small dock a little ways in toward the island access in the Guelph Lake Conservation area.  We parked there, walked over to the dock and began casting spinners.  My third cast in I hooked a decent sized Largemouth Bass to start my day.  It’s the one pictured at the top of the Post.  My wife had a solid strike just a few minutes later but wasn’t able to set the hook quickly enough, and it got away.  It was about another hour before I landed another similarly sized Largemouth.  Already a good day by our standards.  The real celebration would happen another couple hours later.  Around 1:00pm I had worked my way a little further along the shoreline and found an access point where I could comfortably cast alongside​ the shoreline.  Maybe 25 casts later I got a heavy strike and set the hook well. Fish On!  I’m using an Ugly Stik spinning rod with 8lb test monofilament, and a size 3 Mepps spinner.  By the time I brought the fish within eyesight after working it out of some branches and reeds I realized that it wasn’t another Largemouth Bass. It was a Pike.  Not the largest Pike, or anything worth bragging about, but thrilling all the same.  My whole reason for coming out to Guelph Lake was to hopefully land a Pike.  I didn’t land a single Pike last year.  Not even a strike actually.  I’ve caught Pike in this area before, and there was a lot of talk of decent sized Pike being landed in Guelph Lake recently.  My day was a total success.  The wife was thrilled because she had never seen one caught before.  There’s something about the sleek lines of a Pike that just makes you think it’s a fast capable fighter.  Needless to say that my wife is now hell-bent on landing one herself.  We fished for another couple hours but the Pike was our final catch at Guelph Lake.

We took the 124 to Erin where our favourite little Pizza place is.  Whenever we are anywhere near Erin we will go a little out of our way to buy a Venezia Pizza.  Their signature pizzas are excellent.  There are a lot of great pizza places in Toronto.  What makes Venezia Pizza that much better is the crust.  Thin but not too thin.  Crisp without being brittle.  The taste actually adds that little extra zip whereas most pizza crust is just dull.  We took it to go, and made our way to Belfountain to try our luck at my absolute favourite fishing spot as a kid.

Favourite childhood fishing spot

At the corner of Shaws Creek and River roads there is an access that takes you down to the credit River.  I have never left this spot without landing a fish.  Usually a great spot for Brook Trout, we spotted a school making it’s way upstream.  We were casting Yellow spotted  Panther Martins upstream into the current, and slow retrieving them.  Basically we were allowing the current to carry the lures past the school, and just reeling them fast enough to keep them off the bottom.  Took about 30 minutes of casting but we both landed what I originally assumed was a couple good sized Brook Trout.  It wasn’t until after I posted a picture to the Fishbrain app that I was informed that they were actually Atlantic Salmon.  I was happy when I thought they were Trout.  Realizing that they were actually Atlantic Salmon made it that much better.  I’ve never fished for Salmon.  I was planning on fishing for Salmon later this year. There’s an area on the Don River that very few people fish that they’ve been spotted the last few years.

If you are serious about fishing, and are looking for places to fish.  I would strongly suggest that you download the Fishbrain app.  The community is very active, and like me aren’t afraid to share great fishing spots.