Fishing Report - July 12, 2012

I went to the Forks of the Thames last night for a couple of hours.  Tossed in some bacon. I caught a small bass and a large snapping turtle. Both were returned to the water.

Where Have All the Good Bass Gone?

When I got back into fishing 6 years ago, smallmouth bass were abundant in the Thames River. I fished from Plover Mills to Komoka and every trip usually produced at least couple of small bass.  Sometimes we'd get 10 or more on a trip. Sometimes was would get larger smallmouth upwards of 16 inches. Bass were abundant in both branches of the river.  Excellent areas in town included Highbury Ave and the North Branch, the dog park on Hamilton Road and Thames Park downtown.

For the first couple of all areas of river produced bass. As time went on there were less and less bass to be had.  Since 2010 I've only been able to catch less than 10 bass in the river and they were all small (8 inches or less). I fish the Thames River at minimum 50 times per year and usually more. I try a variety of locations, techniques and tackle. I've been successful in other locations where bass are present. There is a problem with the bass population in the Thames River within the London City limits.

To address my concerns I emailed one of the aquatic biologists at the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority. The person I emailed returned my email right way, acknowledged my concerns and shared with me that he has received additional concerns from other anglers.  In addition he said he was going to start gathering some baseline data. He shared that water quality bethos sampling had remained stable and good for the last decade or so.  It does not seem to be a water quality issue. Also they have not "noticed any significant habitat changes, which fish communities tend be more responsive to and indicative of."

When I receive more feed back I will post for everyone to see.

Another fish kill feared

By RANDY RICHMOND, The London Free Press

After a brief rainy respite, rivers and creeks in the region have returned to the "worrisome" low levels that may have led to the recent fish kill in Pottersburg Creek, scientists warn.

"We've got levels in mid-July that we usually have at the end of August," Mark Helsten, a senior water resource engineer with the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority, said Tuesday.

Read more...

Fishing Report July 10, 2012

My daughter and I hit the Forks of the Thames after dinner tonight. We were down on the dock from 7 - 8:45 PM. We used worm and bacon on perch rigs for some lazy fishing. On the worm we landed a white bass and a small sucker. (both in the 1 - 2lbs range) We switched to a piece of cooked bacon I brought.  Thanks to the Ghetto Fishing Show for the tip. In the 30 minutes we fished the bacon, two fish annihilated the bait. The first was a small carp (3lbs). Carp normally play with their food, this guy hit so hard and fast I assumed it was a giant bass being eaten by a pike at the same time. The next fish was a 5lb catfish who hit and ate with normal catfish gusto. All fish were returned to the water no worse for wear. The cooked bacon really cam through for me. I can't wait to try it again!

3lbs Carp

5lbs Catfish

Fishing Report July 8th, 2012

My friend from Burlington came down today and wanted to do some urban fishing. What place is more urban than Labatt's Dam.  I cast in with a perch rig and worm and right away land a small rock bass. My friend is using a hook and weight on the bottom and is getting nothing but snags. I throw in again and get a nice 2lbs channel cat.  Across the river there are some guys starting to smoke crack, so it's time to move on.

We go to the Forks of the Thames next. Over the next couple of hours shooting the breeze my friend snags 2 little bass. About 8 inches. These are the first bass I've seen in this area in a long time. Needless to say they were put back with care.  I manage a small turtle that was let go with harm or trouble.

Not an awesome afternoon fishing but it was good seeing my friend.

Fishing Report - July 3, 2012

I'm battling bronchitis, which has kept me away from fishing for 3 days. I went to work today, so I figured I'm well enough to fish.

We hit Dorchester for all of about 10 minutes before thunder storms rolled in. On the way back to London things started to clear and we decided to hit the forks of the Thames.

We went down to the dock and I was casting a perch rig with dew worms on it.  In the hour we were there I caught two 5lb channel cats and a 4lb carp.  Not bad for a what the heck excursion.

I hope to be better soon and start hitting the water after work more often.

Getting my Bass Kicked

On the Bas Opener I got my ass kicked.

I threw all different kinds of lures, all different presentations and all different locations. I had one nice bass on, but it threw the lure on a big jump.  That was the only bass sighting I had on the weekend.  Clearly I was in the wrong spots for hours and hours on Saturday and Sunday.

Weekends like that really kick your ass. Everyone I spoke to was getting shut out last weekend on the bass.

I did manage a white sucker on a Live Target perch down at Gibbons Park on Sunday morning.

I will soldier on and get back at it this weekend.

Carpe Carp.

Bass Opener

Bass Opener, the third holiest day of the year. (Easter, Christmas, Opener) It is the beginning of summer for me. It makes the end of the Scouting season. (I make sure we're done by opener) It is the day I begin fishing in earnest. My goal is to get out 100 times before Halloween. I've been out about 20 times so far, so I really need to hit it in the summer.

I have my new rod Charlene, my new lures #1, #2, my old stand bys. (tubes, inline spinners and worms)

The only questions is where to fish? The river is a little low but now within normal tolerances. Do I hit hit the North Thames? (In town, out of town) My old spot by the dog park on the South branch? There a new pond I was turned onto that I want to try. So many choices, so much guess work as to where the bass will be.

I might try and hit about 5 spots on Saturday and give no more than 45 mins at each unless the bite is on.

I'll post about where I fish and the success of each early next week.

Fishing Report - May 29th, 2012

Hit the Forks of the Thames with my daughter.  Lots of ducks, lots of geese, little bit of fish.  I got one carp (7lbs)  It was a nice night with the temperature gently going down.

Long Weekend Report

I fished a lot this weekend, in a bunch of different places.

Saturday night I fished Black Creek while visiting, a couple small sunfish. We did get a boat ride on the Niagara River, which was very cool.

Sunday I fished Hamilton harbour for a bit, lots of gobies and a nice sized bullhead.

Monday I hit the Thames and pulled in a nice 10 pound carp. I've never fought with a fish for so long. It took me 10 hard minutes to land it and my arms were like rubber. Awesome fish though. Carp are definately heating up in the warm water.

Weekend Report - May 10-11

I only got out once this weekend. I was supposed to meet up with Derek on Saturday morning, but I couldn't get out of bed after a late night Friday. My daughter and I hit the forks at Ivey Park in the afternoon.  After some nibbles, I did manage a Redhorse sucker and she fed the ducks. The weather was great and it's fun to get out for the afternoon.

I discovered a new bass hole last week and can't wait to try it.

A... Trout Hole?

So, we get an insider tip that there could be some good trout fishing inside Komoka, close to the bridge. This is potentially amazing news, as we'd heard there was some limiting factors on them getting that far up the river.

Anyway, needless to say we're taking the information we've got and heading out Saturday morning.

One concerning suggestion was to have a fishing buddy tag along. Generally, this isn't a big deal, but Mark and I don't always get out together, and if this hole pans out to be good for trout, I'm going to be keen to get there often. The advice suggested that while the fishing buddy probably couldn't directly save your ass if it starts going down river, at least they can call for help. What?! I guess if it's not difficult, it's not fishing!

Finally, it'll be a bit of a sore point if this advice turns out to be true. We've been fishing that bridge for cats going on 4 or 5 years now! It always delivers fiesty cat fish once the sun goes down. If there's trout in the same neighbourhood, think of all the times we could have been sporting the evening away, and then slumming it with cats after dark!

Upper Thames Watershed in Level 1 Low Water Condition

Taken from the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority web site.

While most people enjoyed the past winter’s lack of snow and warmer overall temperatures, one impact of the unusual weather is becoming evident in the Thames River and its tributaries.

The Upper Thames River Low Water Response Team (LWRT) has declared that the Upper Thames River watershed is in a Level 1 Low Water Condition.

Low water conditions are evaluated by looking at several indicators, including precipitation over the past three months, and stream flows over the past month.

Precipitation from January to March was well below the normal range across the watershed. By the end of March, stream flows were also significantly below normal for this time of year.

“We had a really unusual winter,” said Mark Shifflett, Senior Water Resources Engineer at the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA). “Precipitation was below normal and temperatures were above normal, so any snow that we had melted quickly. The result was we had no significant accumulation of snowpack in the Upper Thames watershed this winter.”

The melting winter snowpack typically feeds into rivers and streams in late winter and early spring, contributing to high flows at this time of year. Flows usually drop in the summer.

“There is concern that these dry conditions may continue and worsen in the summer months, when water demands are higher,” explained Mark.

A Level 1 Low Water Condition is part of a three-tiered advisory system used in Ontario to inform the public of local low water conditions. Level 3 is the most severe low water advisory level.

The Upper Thames LWRT includes representatives from agencies and industries across the watershed, including municipal government, the UTRCA, and several provincial ministries, as well as the local golf course, agricultural, and aggregate sectors.

The Upper Thames watershed includes the communities of Mitchell, Stratford, and St. Marys in the north, and Woodstock, Ingersoll, and London in the south, as well as surrounding rural areas and smaller communities.