Bass season opening marks peak fishing and boating

Jeff Green | Jun 15, 2016

With the opening of the season this weekend, all of the major sport fish in Ontario, including walleye, trout, muskie, pan fish species, pike, and of course, bass, are available for fishing.

Along with the closing down of schools for the summer and the appearance of red Canadian flags on white hats and t-shirts in anticipation of Canada Day, there can be no more doubt that summer is here - never mind that wood stoves were being fired up across the region earlier this week.

To mark the occasion there are bass derbies taking place at many area lakes this weekend. Fancy bass boats are tuned up and ready to go; tackle boxes are being checked and inventoried to make sure everything is there; parents are checking the SPF value of sunscreen; and some kids are even looking up from their phones and thinking about getting out of doors for a day.

The perennial questions that come up where bass are concerned are: where are they on the lake? How can they be coaxed onto the line? And then how can they be reeled in?

Big Jim McLaughlin, a Canadian fishing icon who publishes the informative free quarterly magazine “Just Fishing”, will be making his annual appearance at the Palmerston Lake Derby in Ompah this Saturday. McLaughlin knows a thing or two about how to catch bass.

One of the techniques he advocates is drop shotting. The hook, generally with a small plastic worm as bait, is set about 18 inches above a line weight. The line is simply dropped from the side of the boat and sunk. The line is left taut in the water and a simple back and forth motion is used to catch the attention of the fish. There are variations and subtleties to the technique, but it is relatively simple nonetheless and has proven to be successful.

There is some interesting science to this, and in the latest issue of “Just Fishing” there is an article by Queen's University Biology Professor and fishing enthusiast, Dr. Bruce Tufts. Extrapolating from scientific studies into other species, Tufts concludes that when it comes to fishing lures, for all species, but for bass in particular, colour might be more of an attraction for the person buying the lure than for the fish they are trying to catch.

Tufts asks the question, why would fish strike at bait that does not resemble anything they would normally eat, and cites studies into various species (birds as well as fish) that demonstrate that there are certain key factors, such as shape and motion, that stimulate the animal to react.

The brain reacts to certain stimuli. It does not wait until it is sure that the stimulus is from what it wants; it makes assumptions. There is a biological advantage to this because for fish in particular the prey moves fast, so the first sign, a flash of light or the appearance of a shape in the periphery, is enough to prompt a strike. Waiting to make sure it is a worm or a fly and not a lure will lead to a hungry fish.

As an angler, Tufts hastens to mention, as does McLaughlin himself whenever he gives a presentation, that in fishing there is nothing that is more relevant than personal experience and a willingness to adapt.

The theme is taken up by the website Bestbassfishinglures.com, which lists the five most popular types of lures. They are, in order, plastic worms, spinnerbaits, crankbaits, jigs, and topwater lures. The choice of lure relates to the style of fishing being employed, and each also requires a different technique when the hook is hit by a fish.

Going to different locations on a lake; trying drop shotting as well as casting; trying different lures; are all necessary to catch fish on familiar or unfamiliar lakes.

A quick look at the fishing guide on the Land O'Lakes Tourist map shows that both small and largemouth bass are commonly fished on all the lakes in Frontenac and Lennox and Addington. Mosque Lake in North Frontenac is the only lake on the list of 75 lakes that does not include at least one of the two types of bass. There are some lakes in the Verona region: Hambly, Rock, and Howe, and North and South Otter Lake near (and in) Frontenac Park that are not small mouth lakes according to the map.

Generally, however, there are bass in all the lakes; but where to find them?

In an article about fishing on new lakes in Probassfishing.ca, Nic DiGravio says that he finds it best to devote more than one day to a new lake.

“Weekends make the best destination trips for me because I find that people who work for a living don’t have the luxury of constant weekly visits,” he wrote. “So, Saturday mornings are spent exploring my new found territory and rigging according to what I find, then fishing it the rest of the weekend to see the outcome. Day trips are then worth it when the lake has been fished many times over because now we have a basic idea where to go. We know, at the very least, we have a starting point for the next trip.”

The best way to learn about a new lake, according to Digravio, is to ask the campsite and resort owners what makes for a successful day on their lake. Since they tend to know the lake and it is in their interest to see people enjoy themselves, they are likely to be helpful.

However, there will be little help this weekend from fellow fishers on Bull Lake in the Elm Tree area of Central Frontenac, on Palmerston Lake in North Frontenac, and on many other lakes in Central Frontenac.

That's because there are a number of fishing derbies taking place to start the season off with a flourish.

The Palmerston Lake Bass Derby, an annual catch and release event that takes place on Sat. and Sun. June 18 & 19, features a $750 first prize for adults and $100 for juniors, as well as gift prizes. For info and to register, contact Rose at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 866-661-4939

A new event this year is being run by Woodland Park on Bull Lake, west of Arden on Saturday. With prizes valued over $2,500, it has proved to be a hot ticket, and only 4 spots are left. Interested parties should call Mary at 613-335-3240.

There is a derby being put on by the Central Frontenac Firefighters on Saturday as well (see the ad below for details). For this derby, fish can be caught on any lake and brought to the Mountain Grove or Arden Fire Halls for weigh-in. There are prizes for largest fish and total weight for four fish. The entrance price is right - $10. For information, contact Art Cowdy at 613-375-8337 or Virgina Gray at 613-335-2730.