2021 Trip report Aug 14-20

[tbayboy]

Hey everyone. Just got back from 6 days at Camp 3 Seasons and thought I'd share some details and pictures. We drove up to North Bay from Prince Edward County on Friday with the boat in tow. Was nice to take side roads without having to deal with Toronto at all though it was a bit of a further drive.  Stayed overnight at the Hilton Express in North Bay right off the highway - we've stayed there for years and its always treated us well, same this year as expected.

Quick note: if the images aren't working you can find them here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/fi89dHeETNS4urdM8


Saturday morning meant grocery shopping then over the Quebec border to ProNature in Temiscaming where we picked up a pound of leeches and our licenses then off to the docks and a 30 minute ride to the camp where we were met by the new owners - really nice people and hopefully that means things will continue to run the way we've come to expect at Camp 3 Seasons.



The weather was... well it was hot.  Saturday and Sunday had some decent winds and we explored some old haunts while avoiding the big water and managed to pick up enough for a few dinners:





But then it just got flat out hot - each day was 30+ afternoons with next to no wind. Gonna have to bring an air conditioner next time .  On the plus side... no bugs!



Did get one 30 minute bout of rain and the fish really turned on - shooting fish in a barrel mode and then just like that it shut down again. But refilled the fridge for a few more meals



Also tried some trout hunting when I saw the graph like this





but I really need to learn more about using dipseys, speeds, lure presentation etc. 

Anyhow, the walleye for us were mostly in the big bay on the humps surrounded by deep water.  20-25' was the ticket with most in that 23-24 foot range. Of course some were shallower and we marked several deeper but our 'dinner runs' were out to the humps each night and morning and it was pretty dependable. Both trolling worm harnesses and jigging leeches worked.  We ate fresh fish every night but one

Before:






Middle:


After:






For me however, the most fun was the bass fishing this year.  With the heat and the calm waters the top water bite was amazing. I know most people don't come out here for bass or complain about them but I don't think they're causing any problem with the walleye and they are a lot of fun to catch.  I'll take a bass busting the surface to take a popper over a jig bite any day. Didn't take many pictures of them as they were mostly on video.




I took a fair bit of video on the gopro and on the drone (and didn't sink the drone this year - progress!). I put a bunch of it together - I can't embed here but you can find it at this link: https://youtu.be/esRCMMwDhv8

Anyhow, in summary:
- Hot flat weather does not mean you can't find and catch the 'eyes - but you'll need a decent fish finder
- leaches, worms, all seemed good
- Julia outfished me as usual by simply putting a leach on a pink jig and reading her book while my OCD had me changing things every 5 minutes
- Bass fishing was a blast this year


As you all know - its a beautiful part of the world and I'll end this with some random pictures













This young seagull never EVER stopped whining for food - every day he was chasing the parent around, I can still hear his 'feed me', 'feed me', 'feed me' squawks in my sleep






And thats it, another year under the belt and still managed to fit it all in the boat .  Happy to answer any questions below.

[stubborn1VT]

Glad you had a good trip.  Thank you for the report.  It does my heart good to see your pictures.  It really is a special part of the world.  No trip for me this year.  Hopefully in 2022.

[plowjock]

Great report, enjoyed the photos of everything. That Loon shot was spectacular. It must've been warm, no breeze. Congrats on the fish dinners. Glad you enjoyed the Smallmouth Bass fishing. They are rather feisty and give you a great fight. Topwater action is amazing.

[Greg]

Fantastic photos and drone video... thanks for sharing...  looks like a great trip... 32 more days for me!!

[Ozzy30]

Great report and pictures.

Thanks

[GregL]

Great report and pics!!!

You just made our 2 week wait till we go even longer!! THANKS!!! LOL!

I can't believe you got a pound of leeches!! I've been trying since last week to reserve some NO LUCK!

[Hodgey1]

Great report and great photos. Thanks for sharing!

[tbayboy]

Great report and pics!!!

You just made our 2 week wait till we go even longer!! THANKS!!! LOL!

I can't believe you got a pound of leeches!! I've been trying since last week to reserve some NO LUCK!

When I called ProNature they wouldn't reserve any but told us it wouldn't be a problem and it wasn't. Tough to say what it'll be like in a couple weeks though.  Had plenty of fish on worms as well so I'm guessing you'll be ok if you can't get any though I didn't do any jigging with them (just spinner harnesses on bottom bouncers).

[GregL]

Ya, I asked if they thought they'd have any left by the long weekend and they said .. probably not

I have days where one or the other does better. I like to bring both but have not been able the last couple years. Next year I will be trapping my own so I can make sure I have them.

I have access to a pond that has some dandies! I think this one is the right kind, a ribbon leech but I'm not sure..doesn't hurt to try'm

[Oarin]

Wow, that was excellent! Your pictures were amazing! Thanks.

[T-Bone]

Great report...love the pictures...and some really nice 'eyes there. Thanks.

[Balsams]

Greg L, that is a monster leech. Usually the bait ones are darker and smaller. We’ve often tried to figure if a leech works better than worm…debait goes on.
I find minnows work best come later in the year (in Ontario).

[GregL]

Greg L, that is a monster leech. Usually the bait ones are darker and smaller. We’ve often tried to figure if a leech works better than worm…debait goes on.
I find minnows work best come later in the year (in Ontario).

Ya! The effectiveness bounces back and forth! I managed to trap about 4-5 dozen leeches this weekend, nothing close to the size in the picture most were 2-3 inches. Not enough leeches for the week
but enough to use for a outing or two So, I'm confident I will have a couple pounds by the time next July comes if I trap at this place when I'm there on the weekends early next spring and summer..

Minnows are something I rarely use.. but we are going to pick up a couple doze for Nipissing on the Thanksgiving weekend.