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.
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.