Looking for help on the Otonabee river

[mugsmuffin]

Just getting into fishing and I live on the Otonabee just below Peterborough. Any tips or recommendations for bait or lures or hot spots would be greatly appreciated.

[canadianguy33]

hey mugsy,

 

I'm from ptbo too. I don't really fish the Otonabee much, but last year I saw three decent muskie in my boat (unfortunately, none of the good ones were on the end of my line).

 

I'm not really a multi-dimensional angler so I keep it simple and stick to lures that have been successful for me. For bass I like fat shallow running crankbaits like this. Stay clear of anything bright and stick to the more natural patterns like perch and crayfish.

 

I also like plain old jigs with berkley gulps. Also, you really have to get creative with your casting to get a decent largemouth. Try to cast through the fallen trees, beside logs and get your bait right near the shore.

 

For muskie, I've found that you almost have to use top waters or something that doesn't go too deep because the weeds are thick and the Otonabee really isn't that deep. There are a couple of muskie hot spots, one of them is about a football field south of the boat launch on Park St. (under the overpass). This time of year I'm not sure if you'll see many guys out fishing, but in the middle of the summer at around 8pm you'll usually see a couple of boats in the area I'm referring to (keep your eyes peeled for the guys with flashlights pointed on the water).

 

The thing with the river is that the bite really is dead all the time except for the early morning and evening. Usually, the fishing is only good when the damn bugs are eating me alive. lol

 

Ummm...I really should know more about the Otonabee seeing that I was born and raised here in the patch....

 

I hope I've helped you at least a little bit.