Grand River kayak fishing - smallies

OKFS Haliburton Kayak Fishing Classic

HKFC, the second leg of the Ontario Kayak Fishing Classic is less than 2 weeks away, and there's sure a buzz about the tourney after the Swift event at Bob Stinson's in South River in July 24/25.
The general feeling is that the Haliburton event at Kashaga Lodge could see 70-80 kayak fishing entrants!!

Just more proof of how the kayak fishing craze has really taken root in Ontario.  A really big thanks to all those folks who come out and support our events!

Nomad Adventures Expands!

Ok, ok so it's been a long time since we last posted in April, and a lot of big things have happened since then.  Nothing bigger than the new addition to our family!! 
Wesley Grant Wall, born May 19 2010. 

Spring kayak fishing for Lake Huron pike

As featured on WFN;

Spring came about a month early in Southern Ontario, and so did the ice out Northern Pike fishing. Most regions of Ontario have closed seasons for pike after March 31st, but Lake Huron is one of the exceptions. I was out on Lake Ontario March 9th trying for some early spawners, but it was just a bit too early then. Mid April to early May tends to be the window in normal years.

Most of our early season Great Lakes fishing is concentrated on bays, harbours and river mouths. That is what makes the use of a kayak such an invaluable tool for chasing down these big toothy critters. The kayak allows us to access the skinniest of waters, going totally undetected by the fish. Not to mention, it is a total blast to hook up with any fish over 10lbs from a plastic boat!! When the weather/wind cooperates, we can cruise many miles shoreline while stopping to fish all the bays and river outlets along the way. Kayak fishing for pike anywhere between lower Lake Huron and north towards Tobermory can be very productive when timed right, and you may even find yourself battling 50"+ fish! However, the majority of what we catch is in the 36-42" range and still very respectable.

Northern Pike, a member of the Esox family and often referred to as the "water wolf", tends to be very hungry and ferocious when coming off the post spawn activities. There's no mistaking what's on the other end when one does hit, even though the water temps are hovering in the high 40's-mid 50F range. The pike are feeding on perch, bass, suckers and even carp. So any lure resembling a baitfish or fish is fair game. We tend to throw a lot of large spoons, big crankbaits and swimbaits. Presentations need to be a little slower due to the cold water and even a stop and go retrieve may be necessary to entice these pike. Large Husky Jerk cranks work well using that method. 
Below: Brent Mattock and Mike Blumhagen with 36" & 38" Northerns

The great part about early season yak-pike is that you get a chance to fish when most inland waters seasons are closed. Aside from the great pike action, you may also experience incidental catches of bass, brown trout, steelhead, salmon or walleye while paddling down the coastal waters. Please be kind to the out of season fish and know the regulations before arriving.

Early season cold water kayak fishing is not for everyone and can be very dangerous, so take an expert and know the conditions before you go!

Nomad Adventures offers excellent guided kayak fishing trips and is a great way to find out if kayak fishing is your thing while allowing you the opportunity to land a trophy fish with their experienced and knowledgeable guides.

This type of outdoor activity is a great way to escape the house and get some cardio too!

Niagara River Anglers Forum

Following the closing of the Niagara River Steelheaders fishing forum, the core membership has re-formed to become the Niagara River Anglers. 
Unlike the previous NRS forum which was private, NRA has an open forum section but can only be accessed by registered members.  Also, carrying on the tradition of the old NRS board, there is a private section allowing all old NRS members to acess.  To become part Niagara Steelheaders group and gain full access to reports and conditions, new members must be referred or become regular contributors with valid reports.

The forum is very similar to the board plus the addition of a Kayak Fishing category and a 2010 NRA Virtual Derby.

If you live or fish the Niagara Region, then please stop by and see what's going on.

Good Fishing!!

Jeff Wall WFN Ambassador

That's right folks, I got accepted to the WFN Ambassador program, and all I had to do was apply!!
Here's my link - Jeff Wall on WFN, please show your support and read my contributions, thanks.

I'll try to be more creative than my first post was, but I wanted to get something up quickly to get the process started.  Better yet, come out fishing with me and become part of the stories!

2010 spring Steelhead season came early to Ontario

Can you believe the weather!!
We've had daytime temps ranging from +15/25C for close to three weeks now.  Ontario is the new Florida!  They wish they'd had our weather.

Unfortunately for a lot of steelheaders in Southern Ontario, it means they miss the spring runs if they don't get out in the next few weeks.  There are always the dropback fish I guess.  Smelt runs have been in full force with each sprinkle, for the past two weeks and there are guys steelheading the northern rivers around Sault Saint Marie for a week now too.  Crazy!
Can't wait for Brookie season around here because they'll be good and fat by then with the spring season being so far advanced.

The Niagara River has just started picking up for shore fishermen and has been decent from boats for about two weeks.  I'm predicting it to get real hot in the coming week and there already huge deluges of people flocking to fish it.  I picked up one fish in 6hrs on the big river last Wednesday after covering several miles of the gorge, and ended up breaking out the hardware to do it.  Lost a massive muskie in the process; estimate in the 50-55" range!



Reports from Lake Huron rivers are positive with decent catches coming from the Saugeen to the Maitland.  The water is clear and low for this time of year though.  Brown trout, steelhead, coho/chinook salmon, perch and pike are being caught.  Georgian Bay should soon pick up too.

So get out there and Good Fishing'!!

Grand River Kayak Fishing with Nomad Adventures

In 2010 Nomad Adventures expanded its guided kayak fishing trips and tours to include more Grand River destinations.  Areas to be added will now include sections of the Grand from Cambridge to Brantford.  In addition to these trips, we will now add flyfishing to our schedule.  Please see below for more details;

Paris to Brantford - catch & release, barbless
Steelhead Fishing: April/May, Sept-Dec
Smallmouth Bass Fishing: July-September

• Trips: solo kayak or in guides boat
• Times: Morning or Evening approx 5hrs long
• Method: Float, Fly or Spincast

Cambridge to Paris - no special regulations
Smallmouth Bass Fishing: July-November

• Trips: solo kayak or in guides boat
• Times: Evening only approx 5hrs long
• Method: Float, Fly or Spincast

We will also have trips below the Brantford Dam and on the Nith River.
The Nith produces smallmouth, pike and walleye.
The Grand below Brantford produces Brown Trout, Steelhead and Smallmouth.
All trips encourage catch-photo-release fishing.
First Steelhead trips begin April 24th and Smallmouth June 26.
All trips include boats, paddling gear and fishing equipment(if needed).

Book your adventure soon!!  Kayak Fishing the Grand

Fishing Report - March 24th 2010, lower Niagara River

Weather in Southern Ontario has been stellar for the past few weeks with lots of sun and plenty of days in the mid teens.  Doesn't bode well for fishing in most river systems though.
Made it out for a few hours today on the lower river.
Vis was about 8' below the dams and 15' above. My client Peter got nice fresh chrome hen in the first 15mins, and I managed a fat Brown Trout to cap of a half day of fishing.
Baitfish are moving in now but the fish aren't too active yet.
There were a lot of folks fishing all the different areas that we checked out, "get to work dammit!" :D
Beauty weather and they'd had a big rain down that way last night.








Can't wait to get out again for a loger day of less people.

Nomad Adventures OKFC'09 donates to HHOA

Thanks again to everyone who participated, organized, sponsored or contributed in any way to last year's kayak fishing tournament in Haliburton. It was a very successful tournament and we were able to give a considerable donation to our charity, the Haliburton Highlands Outdoor Association.
HHOA is the local hatchery for the area and also supplies stocking fish(trout-walleye) to various other regional programs in Ontario. We were able to raise just over $925 for a first year event!! Anyone who has ever been involved in charity events knows that is a sizable donation for a 1st year event, and is a true indicator to the success of the tourney.




If you ever have a chance while in the Haliburton area, please stop by and take a free tour to see the hatchery. They have some pretty impressive going on there! HHOA raises several breeds of Lake Trout that are unique to the area - Silver, Haliburton Gold, another which name escapes me. A couple of these breeds are specific to the types of glacial kettle lakes in the area and are thought to be the oldest breeds of lake trout known. Many of the regions lakes have some sustaining populations of these Lake Trout, but HHOA is there to ensure the future of the species.
You can also see brook trout, rainbow trout and sometimes walleye populations being reared at this facility.

We hope to carry over this success into all of our 2010 events, OKFS and River Smallies.

Jeff Wall of Nomad Adventures hosts beginner kayak fishing seminar

We recently had small 2hr seminar and information session at Fogh Marine in Toronto.
This was directed at new or prospective kayak anglers in the Southern Ontario Great Lakes region.  Fogh Marine offered great deals on Ocean Kayak, Old Town and Hobie kayaks.  There were several attendees from the http://www.yakfisher.net/ forum and others from the local area.  Even one guest from the Nippissing area of Northern Ontario.

This was the first of several seminars and clinics to be conducted by Nomad Adventures in Ontario throughout 2010.  The next session will be an on-water clinic at Guelph Lake on May 8th for the opening of Pike season.  Fully outfitted fishing kayaks will be available for those new folks wishing to participate.
The full 2010 schedule is available at Nomad Adventures.

Lake Ontario south shore kayak fishing March 9

The weather has been amazing here in Southern Ontario over the past couple weeks!!  Several days of mid teens temps combined with the lack of ice on the Great Lakes was enough for me to take a day off for some early season salmon and trout action.  With any luck a northern pike too.
The fishing was slow and I only managed to hook what was probably a Coho, but never got it close enough to see it before losing it.
Weather was +14C with no clouds and a slight breeze.










Saw a large pike but couldn't get it to commit.  The water temps was a cool 40F and there was 50' of visibility. 
Should only get better from here.
 
Good Fishing!

Spring Kayak Fishing Seminar at Fogh Marine, March 6

We will be hosting a kayak fishing seminar geared towards boat buyers and folks looking to get into the sport.
topics to be discussed will be;

• Choosing a boat
• Freshwater Fishing Basics
• Wind and Weather
• Electronics and Rigging
• Trip Planning & 2010 Events

Please see link for more details on time and location.
Hope to see you out!

Nets quickly pulled from Colpoy's Bay

Posted By PAUL JANKOWSKI, SUN TIMES STAFF

Posted 4 hours ago

Native fishing nets were taken out of Colpoy's Bay early Wednesday morning, according to a Ministry of Natural Resources enforcement supervisor.

Rob Gibson confirmed the nets were removed but when asked if charges were possible, he said the matter remained under investigation.
David Leggatt, the president of the Bruce Peninsula's Sport-men's Association, also said the nets were removed although no one in his club saw it being done. "It was before daylight and where they went with them, we don't know," he said.
Ralph Azkiwenzie, the chief of the Chippewas Unceded First Nation, said the issue had actually been resolved Monday.

The fisherman set the nets in the bay because he "thought the area was open and it was not," Azkiwenzie said. "As soon as notification was made as to us, I had my fisheries staff follow that up with the fisherman concerned and he agreed to disengage . . . From my understanding there was complete co-operation with the MNR enforcement officials" and no charges would be laid, he added.

Gibson said he could not comment about that and other Ministry of Natural Resources spokesmen were unavailable for comment.
Azkiwenzie said the matter of nets in Colpoy's Bay was brought to his attention by Gibson. He then informed his fisheries staff and "they got ahold of the fisher-man. Then eventually Mr. Gibson did speak to the fisherman and there was full co-operation."
A now-expired agreement covering the native fishery banned commercial fishing in some areas including Colpoy's Bay. It also forbade targeting of salmon and rainbow trout, Leggatt said, and the fisherman involved "obviously knows" the area where he set his nets was "right in the middle of where the rainbow trout are getting ready to spawn."
First Nations in the area have a right to a commercial fishery but they also have to "to fish legally . . . they're not fishing legally. That's not a legal area to put nets and they're not legally allowed to target salmon or rainbow trout and obviously they were right after the rainbows because that's prime staging area where they'll be heading into the creeks in about two or three weeks," Leggatt said.

Azkiwenzie said that while the agreement over fishing had expired, "the same rules apply . . . We have status quo right now, pending getting back to the table to talk."  He said negotiations had stalled because of "a number of procedural delays" including a provincial cabinet shakeup in January when Donna Cansfield was replaced by Linda Jeffrey as the minister of natural resources.

"At the local level we have the Lake Huron manager and we have the district director out of Peterborough, so all these people have been apprised. We're just waiting to get back to the table hopefully, very, very shortly."

Until there's a new agreement, there is a process in place "on how to deal with things before they get out of hand" and it had worked in this instance, Azkiwenzie said

.

Winter Steelheading in Ontario

Most of the fishing is confined to creek and river mouths from Dec 31 until the last Sat in April when the season opens again. 
The Niagara River is open for business all year and winter catches of Brown Trout and Lake trout can be as common as Steelhead depending on what section of the river you are fishing.  The lower river below the Whirlpool is a definite must fish section with several different options to drop in on.  The key to success is to not spend much time in any section, but rather fish the hell out of it for 2hrs and move on to the next.  In two hours, you will have either detemined if there are active feeding fish, and have caught the most active ones or nothing is holding there at that moment.  Catching three fish out of any one spot is a good "drop-in" and you've probably exhausted the run so you should consider moving half an hour to one hour after hooking the last fish.
Try everything before you leave though and overlook nothing.  When fishing with buddies, be certain each is using something different.  ie. roe, streamers, bunny/marabou jigs, plastic minnows, pink worms etc.  If fishing solo, then start changing up after 10 drifts in each of that runs pockets because the key to success can be as simple as a colour change or size change away.  Pinks, oranges, whites and purples are all very good winter colours.  Winter baitfish are generally emerald shiner or smelt patterns in 3-4" sizes, so match the hatch.

I have a friend who is unemployed and fishes several days per week.  He has started to get successful in the last 2 weeks because he's discovered where fish hold and basically runs to those spots for first dibbs - yes, he's still a buddy.  If your friend does this, then you are within your right to fish in close proximity.  Unfortunately though, this same fella when not on the fish and you are, likes trying to grease you out and is always low holing people.  Stand Your Ground!  Tell 'em off if there isn't enough water for the both of you to fish.  Luckily the Niagara is a big river and you can almost always find other produtive spots to fish.

The temps are rising and this coming week is forecasted as sunny and +2/7C, so the fish are going to get very active shortly.  Get out there and get your fix before the masses see the forthcoming reports and start flocking to the productive water.

Good Fishing!

Nomad Adventures at the 2010 Toronto Spring Fishing and Boat Show

It was a hit!!
Our kayak fishing display and the unveiling of the Ontario Kayak Fishing Series went over very well.
Thanks in large part to Morten of Fogh Marine in Toronto who offered us to exhibit with his Ocean Kayak and Hobie Fishing Kayak display at the show.  There was lots of interest from folks who had never seen anything kayak fishing related before and from folks in-the-know and experienced kayak anglers.  The big surprise came from all the pro anglers and power boat fisherpeople.  The benefits of fishing from a kayak in Ontario are now being realized by the general public.

Nice to meet all the folks who stopped by to talk and I hope to see you at the Kayak Fishing Seminar at Fogh Marine on March 6th!  Jeff Wall will cover topics such as "choosing your first kayak", "minimal get started" and "kayak fishing basics".

Our next show wil be the Niagara Outdoors Show April 3/4.

The Niagara river is in good shape for hooking some steelhead.

Good Fishing!

Feeling the heat, Obama comes good on Asian Carp.

But, is it enough and is it already too late??


Chicago Suntimes

http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/obam...-carp09.article

The Obama administration said Monday it will spend $78.5 million to help keep giant Asian carp out of the Great Lakes as the ravenous species of fish threatens the water's ecosystems as well as nearby home values.

The U.S. seeks to reduce the number of times Chicago's waterway navigational locks are opened to slow carp movement into the Great Lakes, the White House Council on Environmental Quality said in a statement. The U.S. also will use sonar, electrical shocks, netting and expedited carp DNA testing to control the population of the fish.

DNA from Asian carp was found in Lake Michigan for the first time last month, hours after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to order the closing of locks and dams on rivers in the Chicago area. States including Michigan and New York have said immediate action is needed to keep the fish from hurting commercial fishing.

The White House plan includes 25 short- and long-term actions, including the expedited testing of environmental DNA and doubling the testing samples to 120 per week.

Also, the federal government will award a $13.2 million contract in March to build barriers between the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and the Des Plaines River.

And it will award a $10.5 million contract to build a third electric barrier.

Canada's best year round multi-species fishery?

The answer rolls off my tongue with ease and not second thought.  The Niagara River of course!
What, an Ontario river you say?  Not a BC river, you must be joking?
Quite the contrary actually, and it is likely the best fishery in North America.  Although Chinook Salmon runs are down in all the Great Lakes, the other opportunities just keep on improving.  This is thanks in large part to established, long term stocking intiatives by both the US and Canada.
The Brown Trout returns this past season has got to be as good as anywhere and has definitely bested any year the river has ever seen.

So you are a die hard Trout fisherman and Ontario is currently in the grips of winter, so what do you do?  Head to the Niagara of course!

Winter tends to a bit slower than say Nov/Dec but there can always be a few fish willing to take a well presented offer.  An average winter day can easily have you battling three fish over a half day of fishing.

So get out there and good fishing!

The Credit River - politicians playing God

Here's a recent report of the goings-on of the Credit and how the government plans to dump wild Steelhead into one of the last and best Brook and Brown Trout fisheries left in Southern Ontario.
http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/621082

As if the Atlantic Salmon fiasco isn't enough!!

Great Lakes Asian Carp Invasion

If you fish any waterbody that has connections to the Great Lakes, then you need to know how the future of this fishery is being severely threatened!!



There is new DNA evidence, as early as last week, that the carp has now breached the Chicago barrier.
For those of you who don't know what that means, then you need to watch these videos.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS7zkTnQVaM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ChwJiKKBdA

Lets hope for swift and immediate action to save our $7 billion/year fishery!!

The Steelhead Gods are smiling again!

It was long time coming, but we finally got out again for some winter steelhead fishing on the Niagara.  The day was beautiful, +3C with sun all day.  There was a bitter E wind just to remind us that it was still winter but the sun made it feel more like +10C.  The morning was slow and we never saw any fish where we started out at Pebbley.  Around noon we decided to make our way upriver toward the Glen, and it was at this point that I noticed the fish had begun to get slightly active around the surface.  We fished the tailout section of a long 17' deep run, and on the second drift my partner hooked up with the smallest steelie I'd ever seen pulled from the mighty Niagara River.  But hey, it's a start!!  We kept moving upstream fishing all the pockets and deeper runs as we came upon them.  I spotted a real slow run of about a 50 metres in length and decided to set up shop there.  On the third drift my float did the super slow sink as it does on all telltale snags, so I gave it a quick rip back in the direction it had drift from.  Oh what is this, the snag fought back!!
I landed this hearty buck after a very lacklustre battle.

The drift kept changing speeds from very slow, to dead stopped but we persisted.  Two drifts after my fish, Ben nails another buck just slighty larger than the one I caught.

We fished for about another hour and I lost one fish about the same as these two.  The sun had now left our side of the river and the temps started to drop quickly, so we decided to weave our way back up and out of the Gorge.
Not a stellar day by any means but hey, it was great just to be out on a gorgeous winters day and catch fish.

til next time, Good Fishing!

Southern Ontario, Niagara outdoors and the 2010 Spring Shows

It has been feeling more like winter in Southern Ontario this year, since the start of the month. The slightly lower avg temps of -4 to -8C have kept snow down though. Niagara had a week long dump of snow due to some continued N - NW winds bringing heavy flurries in off Lake Ontario. The cold coupled with poor water vis has kept me away from steelheading the Niagara River for 2-3weeks! There's a mild spell of +3/4C coming by the end of next week. Provided the water stays at its 3ft vis and green, there should be some good action! The Browns are still around in the river, possibly dropping back now.

The Toronto Boat Show started this week and continues til next weekend.  We'll be in Toronto with Fogh Marine, presenting at the Spring Fishing and Boat Show Feb 12-15.  The unveiling of our 2010 Ontario Kayak Fishing Series, the new Nomad Adventures Brochure and Hobie's '10 fishing kayak line-up plus Fogh Marine's great sailing display.
We'll also be presenting at the Niagara Outdoor Show on April 3/4. 
Hope to see some of you out!

Lake Erie has started to freeze on the N-W end, so it won't be long til the river stays clean for at least a month!  Now just have to contend with cold weather and freezing rod guides.

Good fishing and see you on the river!!

Happy 2010!!

We've been experiencing slightly cooler temps here in Southern Ontario over the past couple weeks.  Hopefully that means Jan/Feb will be warmer, but not very likely.  The Niagara was blown by severe southwest winds again early last week and vis has been around a foot or less and cloudy, ever since.  Here's to hoping Lake Erie starts to freeze soon!

The website is starting to come into form after having a substantial make-over in the past several weeks and Nomad Adventures is finally looking like it has a definite focus or niche in the world of adventure fishing and eco-adventures.  In 2010 we plan to heavily market our Southern Ontario kayak fishing tours, and with a successful inaugural season of steelhead guiding the Niagara River, I intend to build on that business in this new year.  My personal guiding time may be reduced with a new addition to the family this spring, but Ben Vernik, a fishing partner and skilled steelheader will pitch in to ensure all our clients are well taken care of.  Ben also brings with him some Georgian Bay tributary experince for those looking to explore some rural Great Lakes steelheading.

We are planning an ice trip with some folks from the http://www.yakfisher.net/ kayak fishing forum in late Jan/early Feb for some Lake Simcoe, Lake Trout and Whitefish.  It'll be great to get out with some of the crew while we anticipate the spring ice-out to get back in our yaks.

Good fishing and keep those guides ice-free!!