Sagamok Walleye Classic - Day 2

The morning started out dark and cold but river conditions were still the same, high and fast current.  The water still was a chocolate colour from Birch Creek down.  Our plan was to head to the Espanola Bridge first thing in the morning to get our position and stay there.  Most of the fish came from this area on day 1.  When we arrived at the bridge it wasn't too busy yet because we were out tenth.  Only a few boats passed us on the way down.  Unfortunately fishing was pretty slow at the bridge all day long.  Because of what happened yesterday when we left the bridge we decided to stick it out all day long.  We didn't want to miss out on the big fish today.  Well that was a mistake because people were catching fish a little further down river today.  The leaders stayed at the bridge all day as well and it cost them some positions.  We ended up with one fish that weighed 1.01 lbs.  That was good enough to put us in 27th place.  That alone says the fishing was tough.  We had this river figured out before the heavy rains changed everything.  Oh well it was our first time on the system and I think if the rains hadn't come we would have done very well.  Now we know where to fish in conditions like that.  Nonetheless, a humbling experience but a good one.  The tournament in my opinion was a huge success.  Sagamok First Nations with the guidance of Rob Mazzuca put on a stellar event that will be something to look forward to next year.  We had steak dinner on Saturday night and a great pasta dinner on Sunday night.  I didn't like the fact that the $10,000 cheque was going to someone else but these things happen.  With the 1st annual Kiwanis Invitational Walleye Tournament to be held on July 9,10 of 2011 in Sault Ste Marie, we can definitely take a lot of the positives from this event and apply them to ours.  More information about the Sault Tournament will be posted on my blog in the future.  The tournament season has now ended for 2010 and it is a little disappointing but I can look forward to next year's schedule and a new boat.  Check back because I am going to be doing so late fall walleye fishing on the St Marys River system and I have a Bay of Quinte trip planned for November.  Should be able to get a 12 pounder for the wall on that trip.

Sagamok Walleye Classic - Day 1

The morning started early and we discovered the boat to be in a different spot then where we left it.  The river crested another 2 ft over night.  Thankfully we had the boat tied up.  The river has risen about 4.5 ft.  The current is faster today and the water is chocolate in colour.  We decided to go to our spot where we caught nice fish the day before.  It was about a 40 minute boat ride to get there.  When we arrived their was 2 other boats fishing there.  It was okay because their was enough room for us.  We watched one boat catch 3 fish right away.  We missed one.  The other caught a carp.  After 2 hours we decided to move and that was our mistake of the tournament.  That move cost us the top 10 after day 1.  The top 2 weights came from our morning spot.  Still not sure why we decided to move and why we didn't go back to that spot later.  I am still beating myself up over that one.  We ended up with no fish after day 1 but so did 41 other boats.  We are currently ranked 21st with a 0 on day 1.  The 10th spot is 2.3 lbs.  We have a chance to still place in the money with a solid day tomorrow.  Many locals who fish the river all the time got zero's today.  They have never seen the river this high in years.  I am busy tying new tackle for tomorrow and I hope we can get on some fish right away.  I am not leaving my spot tomorrow.  The problem will be that 40 other boats will be fighting for position as well.  We are the 10th boat out tomorrow morning so that will help.  I think only a few boats will pass us.  Need to get a bigger motor in the future so I don't get passed anymore.  I will try to update my blog tomorrow night but it is a long day and 3 hr drive home after.  Wish me good luck as I will need it!

Day 3 of pre-fishing on the Spanish River

Today was a very different day for lots of reasons.  We probably got about 4 inches of rain by this morning.  The river was up about a foot and the water was very muddy.  This changed the fishing dramatically.  Fishing was slow but we managed to pull 4 fish in the boat.  The rain was relentless all day and the wind gusts ranged from 15 km/h to 75 km/h.  Really made boat control difficult.  The current in the river increased probably by 1-2 mph.  Their were rapids on the river where their were no rapids the day before.  Our fish ranged from 14-17 inches.  No pictures today due to hard rain most of the day.  The cold front is moving in and the water turbidity is about 6 inches.  This means you cannot see your lure when it is 6 inches down in the water.  The river has probably rose another 6 inches through out the day.  We saw many boats docked at camps on the river that were now submerged in the water.  Big day tomorrow as we need to put together a solid day so we are in the top 10 going into Sunday for the big $10,000 first prize.  Check back tomorrow.

Day 2 of Pre-Fishing on the Spanish River

This morning was a little warmer than yesterday but the clouds and the wind were going to make for a long day.  We decided to head up river first thing to see if we could find some fishing spots.  We didn't mark a lot of fish but we ended up getting a solid 18 in walleye and 16 incher.  We missed another solid fish but we didn't see it.  I am sure it was a walleye based on the big slow rod thumps.  Spent more time looking around in the morning than fishing.  We then decided to head back down river because we marked more fish the day before.  Found a good spot down river and pulled out a 24 incher.  The picture turned out alright considering the wind and rain.  We decided to leave this spot alone and move to another one.  At the very next spot we tried I pulled up another 16 incher.  We decided to head to the west boundary to see where it is.  We fished for a little while but the rain was coming down so bad that it was unbearable.  Now that we where soaked right through and the wind really howling, we headed back to the boat launch to call it day.  The weather tomorrow is not going to be nice either.  Hopefully the fishing stays consistent.  I am concerned as a cold front is moving in for the weekend.  Check back tomorrow night to see how we did.

First day of pre-fishing on Spanish River

The morning started with a little bit of fog and it was a little cool.  Launched the boat at about 8:30 am.  My heart skipped a few times as I headed down river due to the fact there was only 2 ft of water in some spots. I spent about 3 hours driving and checking out different areas.  I was targeting steep drops off the shorelines to deep holes.  Marked a lot of fish but not sure if they were walleye or not.  The spanish river has many species of fish.  Finally wet a line around 11:30 am and within minutes I had 7 lb walleye to the boat.  First thing that came to mind was that I am now jinxed for the tournament.   I quickly released the fish and moved to another spot.  I will share my tackle and bait tips after the tournament just in case someone is reading this blog that is in the tournament.  I ended up fishing for about 1.5 hrs total and caught 6 fish total without to much effort.  I got a nice 17 incher and the rest were 16 inchers.  Still many spots to try tomorrow.  Heading up river tomorrow and apparently there are some more shallow spots to be careful of.  Should be interesting.  Check back tomorrow night to see how I did.

Final stop on the NOPWT circuit - Sagamok First Nations

Get ready for the next and final stop on the NOPWT(northern ontario pro walleye trail) for 2010.  The tournament is being held on the Spanish River and hosted by Sagamok First Nations Reserve.  Top spot pays $10,000.  I am currently ranked 20th for Angler of the Year but will need a top five finish to possibly crack the top ten this year.  The Walleye fishing on the Spanish River is picking up as the water temperature drops.  The big water Walleye are starting to move up the river.  They will go on a forage as they travel to their spawning area.  I will keep everyone updated on my days of fishing.  I will be pre-fishing Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.  The tournament is a 2 day event total weight on Saturday and Sunday.  Talk to everyone soon!