TROUT

Original Story of the Discovery of the Aurora Trout (Field and Stream, 1925)
The Trail to the Aurora Trout by Wm. H. Rinkenbach  The finding of a new species of the gamy Salvelinus, which has been accepted by science as a new trout. 09/11

Lake Trout Tips and Tricks!
Ontario’s pristine lakes offer world class fishing for a variety of fresh water species. The Ministry of Natural Resources has a soft spot for one species in particular, lake trout. Ontario lakes are home to 25% of the world’s lake trout populations. This is not the only amazing fact about lake trout from Ontario waters. Lake trout are definitely a true rarity. In fact they represent only 1% of all Ontario’s lakes. Since lake trout are a prized catch and my surrounding area (Sault Ste. Marie) has the highest concentration of lakes with populations of lake trout, I get the opportunity to fish these very plentiful fisheries. 06/11

Northern Ontario’s Steelhead!
Northern Ontario is blessed with world class walleye, pike, brook and lake trout fishing. The Canadian Shield offers the perfect habitat for our lakes to host generous populations of each species. With so many different species available in abundance to anglers of the north we can be easily described as “spoiled”.

Spring Steelhead – A Newbie’s Gear Guide
With the spring thaw only a few weeks away. Ontario steelhead bums like myself, are anxiously waiting for the rivers to open up enough to get a drift in. No doubt, the next few months is my favourite time of year. Migratory trout have already begun to stage and even move into rivers throughout all of the Great Lakes.

Deep Down Lake Trout
Deep, cold and gin clear water usually represent most lakes that hold healthy populations of lake trout throughout Ontario. During the summer months Lakers drop down in the warming water column. These fish are often very aggressive and concentrated in the most predictable areas in the lake.

Spring Steelhead
Every angler tries it and often most give up. It’s slippery, damp, and often leaves you frustrated and fishless. Fishermen and women spend countless hours on the banks of Great Lake tributaries in search of spawning rainbow trout each spring. Mouths of rivers where steelhead begin to congregate in late winter become an open water hotspot at ice out. As the water begins to warm steelhead will begin their spring run up rivers to spawn. Casting at the same pool or drifting a current break for hours with minimal results, often steers anglers to fish for other species. Little do most anglers realize; spring is the hottest time of the year with amazing numbers of fish accessible to anglers willing to put in the time

Ice Out Trout!
You’re in your own little world, your eyes are focused. You wait patiently, yet posed to strike. As that little clear float drifts down the river, it rockets under and you set the hook. This is when you feel those head shakes that you have waited all winter for. It’s time for “ice out trout.

Icing Rainbow Trout
Every year thousands of rainbow trout are stocked in many lakes. Targeting these chrome-coloured fish makes for exciting ice angling. These worthy adversaries will test your angling skills, demanding finesse presentations at times and peeling line with bursts of speed once hooked. Not to mention they’re darn tasty on the dinner table. Here’s where to find them and how to hook them this ice season.

Run and Gun Ice Lake Trout
When winter wraps its cold grip over the landscape, a lot of underwater life slows down. Warm-water fish get lethargic. This is not the case for cold-water species, like lake trout. Lakers prefer frigid waters. They aggressively feed and are frequently on the move in winter. To succeed at finding and catching these silver, spotted fish, adopt a run-and-gun approach. For any angler, catching a few wintertime lake trout will surely shake off a case of the winter blues

Shallow Spring Browns
The loosening of winters grip on the Great Lakes signifies one of the best times for boat and shore anglers alike to welcome spring with some brown trout action.  Starting in mid to late March, brown trout start to show up in the shallows of the Great Lakes making themselves available to the savvy angler that recognizes the right places at the right times to enjoy this spring bounty.

Floating for Spring Steel
Of the various methods employed to catch migratory rainbow trout, or steelhead, in the tributary rivers, creeks and streams that flow into the Great Lakes, float fishing is likely the most popular. Float fishing allows the angler to present a bait at any level of the water column, including in the prime fish-holding zone located within 18 inches or so of the bottom. But these areas also tend to snag hooks and sinkers. A float can carry a bait safely above these tackle-eating snags, and right at eye level of waiting trout.

Temperature, Tackle and Techniques
Early Season Longlining For Trout From The Gardiner Expressway To God’s Country  Your boat works around a small, rocky knob along the shoreline, and the warm, offshore breeze immediately dries up. With no more chop music on the hull, the only sounds are songbirds flitting in the naked hardwoods and melt water’s crisp daytrip down the land and back into the lake. Shade from big cedars, pines and sharp overhangs has kept snow alive in brilliant patches amongst the black, grey and pink rock. Light jackets and sweaters instantly come off.

Late Season Steelies
The late fall is often looked upon as the slowest time for fishing as it is kind of a transition period. The warm water species have shut down until springtime and the ice-fishing season hasn’t quite started yet. Even though it is technically still fall, the cold days of winter can definitely be felt in the air, which can scare away a lot of anglers who don’t want to bundle up and battle the cold north winds. But without question, some of the hottest Steelhead action of the year can happen right before winter sets in and the coldest days arrive.

Spring Steelhead Primer
As winter makes way for spring, the world, once again, starts to flourish. The ice melts away, the birds return, and the creeks and rivers become alive with silvery-sheened steelhead!

Spring Rainbows on Trolled Streamers
Mid to late April is when ice often leaves Ontario lakes, unveiling open water trout fishing. I particularly enjoy targeting rainbow on small lakes at this time of year. Fishing tactics in the spring include casting or trolling small spoons, minnow plugs, or streamer flies. It’s the latter that has consistently delivered for me over the years, and you don’t need a fly rod to fish them.

Discover the Joy of Small-Stream Trout  
Imagine yourself exploring a small tranquil stream – lost in your own world yet in the thick of trout country. Cascading waterfalls, riverbank critters and satisfying solitude are yours to enjoy and explore for the length of a day. Thousands of tiny creeks and rivers call Ontario home, and the wondrous colours and energetic tussles that the resident brookies, browns and rainbows exhibit is like discovering a new realm in the land of angling fun. Come take a walk off the beaten path and reap the rewards that small-stream fishing can offer.