It felt like a cool day in March when we boarded a float plane in Winnipeg, Canada earlier this month for a week of fishing on One Man’s Lake in Western Ontario. Its trophy waters were teeming with walleye northern pike and smallmouth bass that were hungry after being under the ice covered lake all winter

The fish were in shallow bays where they were easy to catch with gold weedless spoons, chartreuse spinners and crank baits. The walleyes were concentrated on sand bars and rocky points and were attracted to curly tail jigs and minnows bounced off the bottom. While forty inch northern pike were few and far between this year, there were plenty in the thirty to thirty-six inch range, along with smallmouth to nineteen inches and walleye to ten pounds.


Photo: Capt. Gus holds a twenty-eight inch walleye.


It wasn’t just the fish that got our attention. One group watched a bald eagle swoop down, carry a walleye to the shoreline and began to shred and eat it, only to be chased away by a bear that eventually finished the meal. Beavers, pulling branches to rebuild their dens after a cold winter, and loons sitting on eggs were commons sights. The islands were filled with nesting terns, gulls and white pelicans.

Because One Man’s Lake is so isolated, the only boats on the lake are aluminum fishing boats owned by the camp operator, Gene Halley. It’s quite a change from Lake Norman where pleasure and wakeboard boats outnumber fishing boats ten to one during the summer months. Another point of interest was the absence of jet skis. An occasional float plane delivered supplies to our fishing lodge, no trucks or delivery vans.
Numerous eagle sightings and an abundance of loons, decked out in their mating plumage, made for some great photo opportunities.

Those who have been to Canada know that the scenery is breathtaking and the fishing is fabulous. There are thousands of lodges and camp sites to choose from. The all-inclusive One Man’s Lake Lodge (www.halleyscamps.com) is in the middle of the English River System.

Points to consider when planning a Canadian fishing trip:
* Choose the lake and accommodations carefully. Each has a different mix of fish. For example, if it’s muskies you wish to target, be sure they live in the lake you are fishing.
* If it’s big fish you are after, choose a catch and release trophy designated lake.
* Since most cold water fish are toothy, boga-grips, long nose pliers and wire fish mouth spreaders are useful.
* Ten to twenty pound spinning and bait casting tackle is ideal for most fishing conditions.
* A passport, along with a Canadian fishing license is needed.

Hot Spots of the Week: The sun is getting hot and so is summer fishing. Spotted bass are schooling on river points, which makes catching a limit easy. When fish aren’t chasing baitfish to the surface, they are suspended on the drop-offs. Largemouth fishing is best after dark, but they’re hitting throughout the day under deep boat docks and lay downs on deep shady banks.

White perch, the fish of summer, are schooling in twenty to forty feet of water in coves and along channel edges. As a bonus, a flathead catfish or two can be taken while fishing for perch. Use a heavy rod, baited with a live fish (perch, bream, shad or herring) and drop it to the bottom. Surprisingly, large crappies are still hitting in deep water throughout the day, but the best fishing is after dark.

The surface water temperature varies by location, but is mainly in the high eighties in open waters not affected by power generation. The water level is about 2.9 feet below full pond on Lake Norman and 3.2 feet below full on Mountain Island Lake.

Capt. Gus Gustafson of Lake Norman Ventures, Inc. is an outdoor columnist and a full time Professional Fishing Guide on Lake Norman, NC. Visit his website www.Fishingwithgus.com or call 704-617-6812.