tdotfisherman

For me this whole issue is a catch 22 situation. I live in Toronto, and fish both around Lake Ontario, but also quite a bit on Georgian Bay and the North Bay region. I find it extremely annoying when people post fishing reports and neglect to say where abouts they were fishing. How do we know that these fish were even caught in Ontario? At least give us a region or something.. it makes the repots a lot more interesting. But on the other hand I do understand that blurring out backgrounds and not being too specific with urban spots is probably the right thing to do. I've noticed a lot of new people at some of the GTA spots that I fish in the last year or two, and in talking to them I realized they were lurkers that picked up information by snooping on forums like this one. They jacked the spots off the internet, and even used lures that they saw in the photos that were posted on fishing boards. I feel that if I had to spend a few years doing legwork on spots and productive lures, so should they. Anyways, this isn't really that big of an issue to me anymore, becasue I have a boat, and rarely shore fish around Toronto anymore, but I still do feel for the shore anglers that have to compete for a few good spots.

Beauty Pike bud.

The Jays player muffed on the first cast, but caught the second one.. Good job Dave!

Yup.. West end Salmon can break your heart.. Caught one right off the bat, but...recap of MY last 3 outings at Bronte: 12 Hours Fished, One Boat, No Competition for good spots, 0 fish on, 0 fish landed.. awful.. a complete waste of gas money.. My Salmon season in the West end is done for this year..

Sometimes they just won't cross over to the dark side. My ex-girlfriend broke up with me because I spent too much time fishing/boating/cottage, and not enough time with her.. What can I say, I'm not going to compromise some of the best things in life.. Does anyone have Mariko Izumi's number?

Yeah, you better get used to that.. it happens.. Over the last few years I've had a few people PM me for fishing information or for GTA shore spots, and most of the people haven't said thank you or anything when I shoot them a helpful reply..

I've had a better year so far off the West End tribs/piers/mouths than I did last year.. my first 20 hours of fishing last fall I didn't catch one fish, this year my first 20 hours have yielded 3 salmon on, and 1 Chinook landed. 20 hours is a fair amount, but we're not exactly targeting small Rock Bass here are we?

Lately when I've been going out on the boat i've tried to bring the following items every time, both as tools for fishing and for safety/personal.... water, pliers, bolt cutters, jaw spreaders, air horn, flashlight, bandaids, and matches/lighter.

My avatar is of me sitting on the dock fishing up around North Bay.. Nothing better then relaxing up in Ontario, on a beautiful day, and getting a couple casts in..

Yep.. you better get used to that kind of crap around the Greater Toronto Area.. as many people have already said.. there are a lot of fisherman, and not too many good spots (especially during Salmon/Steelhead season). I'm not really too bothered by this kind of behavior because I'm not exposed to it as much.. I work odd hours and when I head out fishing the tribs for Steelhead or fishing the piers for Salmon its usually the middle of the night or early morning and its basically dead out there, and people don't usually push their way into a tight spot. But hey, if someone's behavior has bothered you, or you think they've gotten too close feel free to politely talk to them about it, and maybe they will move.

we'll see tonight

The Bass Pro Shop is amazing.. I'm lucky that it isnt closer to my home or else I'd be very much in debt. LeBaron is a nice place too, a few of their staff that I've delt with have been very friendly and helpful

I always throw the big ones back.. and I usually throw almost every fish back. Each year I only keep a couple fish.. and usually the ones I keep are Northern Pike that have taken the hooks too deep, and can't be released. The way I figure, the more fish that I let go, the more fish there will be for me and others to catch in the future.

I took a vacation up north in July where I fished for 13 days straight.. that would have to be my record. If I won the lottery and could retire and do nothing the rest of my life.. I'd probably fish for like 6 months straight.. at one of my 10 lakefront properties..lol..

Georgian Bay Musky fishing.. hopefully you are a patient man.. On G-Bay we consider ourselves lucky if we raise one Musky or get one follow in an entire day of fishing.. Good luck.

Of all the Smallmouth Bass that I've ever caught, most have been in shallow water.. 3-10'... i've also caught some jigging between 10-20', but not as many.. By the way, has anyone mentioned how great Smallmouth are to catch.. they fight like crazy for their size!

Wow.. that is an absolute HOG.. great catch man!

Thanks for all the comments guys!

Well.. I had an extended period of time off work, and a few buddies and I decided to organize a cottage vacation. I was away for 13 days.. half of them on Georgian Bay, and the other half on a lake near Loring, Ontario, and the trip was a complete delight! I've been wanting to buy my first boat for a while, and I finally made that purchase the first day of my vacation. I bought my friends uncle's boat. Its a early 1980's Mirrocraft with a 2001 15 HP Mercury (2-stroke) on the back.. a great starter package.. and we really put it to good use during the week. Now that I was loaded up with a boat, and my fishing gear.. it was time to enjoy beautiful Georgian Bay! The second day we did a lot of work.. we worked all day.. 8am to 9pm.. but afterwards I snuck down to the dock for some after hours bullhead fishing The next day it was time to hit the water hard.. there were lots of Northern Pike and Largemouth Bass around the area.. and we laid into them pretty good. between the two of us we caught 45 fish.. a lot of snot rockets.. but still a ton of fun.. my buddy got a chance to test out his first baitcast setup.. here are some pics: Unfortunately.. my time on Georgian Bay was over.. but the good news was it was time to meet up with family up 1.5 hours north.. The fishing wasn't as fast and furious as it was on G-Bay.. but being on a smaller lake was very peaceful, and I enjoyed myself very much. Here are some photos of the second half of my trip: Beautiful Canadian north that I had the pleasure of enjoying for a week - our cottage is on an island.. completely away from distraction and annoyance: At first we started off with mostly small guys: But as the trip grew on, the fishing turned on a bit better: The only fish I kept - a tasty eater Walleye: My first Smallie of the trip: Better Sizes: And now for the two best fish of the trip.. both surprisingly caught within 30 minutes of each other.. both caught in the same back-bay: Beautiful Fat Gator: Monster Trophy Smallmouth Bass - WOW: and that does it.. I'll leave you guys on that high note.. the last day we woke up.. packed our bags.. cleaned the cottage, and headed home.. now I am back in Toronto.. and compared to up north.. the city sucks! I had such a great time.. and can't wait to get back up north again.. Canada is beautiful, and we should all give thanks we live here! I hope you all enjoyed my report as much as I liked posting it.. Thanks, -TdotFisherman (Jay)

Great report, thanks for sharing!

Wow, nice pics man.. can't complain about fishing opporunities that close to home, eh!

For Northern Pike I use 50 pound braided line on my baitcast setup, and a 45 pound home-made fluorocarbon leader.. I enjoy the strength and durability of the braid, and I appreciate the invisibility of the fluorocarbon leader. You just have to learn how to snap the jerkbait properly so that you get the best action with the braided line, and learn how to jerk on just enough slack line. I find with this setup the jerkbait stays properly suspended (as long as your leader isnt too heavy), and you know that if you lay into a big Pike, you won't have any breakoffs..

I'd say that some essential fishing tools/tackle for me would be pliers, jaw spreaders, bait cast setup, camera, gloves, tangle-free net, flashlight, and a pack of smokes

My top 5 lures on a multi-species lake 1) rapala husky jerk 2) rapala x-rap 3) terminator green/white spinner bait 4) jig and 4" gulp 5) rapala taildancer

Absolutely no fishing unfortunately.. spending tonight, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday working.. but.... going up to the cottage next weekend to make up for it!