With just over half of August left, there's still lots of time to make the most of summer. At the same time, the first signs of fall fishing are already starting to show.
Early Salmon and Migratory Trout
The first salmon are beginning to show up in some of our rivers, and this is one of my favourite times of the year to chase them.
We're still very much in the early innings. You aren't going to find huge numbers of fish in most rivers yet, but that's part of what makes this period so appealing. The fish that are there are often incredibly fresh. They're silver, they're strong, and they've just come in from the lake. They fight extremely hard, and because the main runs haven't arrived yet, you can often enjoy the river without the crowds that come later in the season.
For anyone who enjoys swinging flies, this can be a particularly fun time to get out. There's something special about standing in a river with very few other anglers around and connecting with a fresh salmon that has only recently entered the system.
We're also starting to see some early migratory brown trout in a handful of rivers. These fish are concentrated in relatively few systems right now, however. Different rivers come into shape at different times depending on their water temperature, flow and connection to the lake, so you shouldn't expect every river to have fish just because one nearby system does.
As the month progresses and we get more rainfall and cooler temperatures, those fish will begin spreading into more rivers and numbers will increase.
Do keep in mind that these are coldwate fish so make sure river temperatures are under 20 degrees celsius when fishing.
How to Fish for Early Salmon
There are several effective ways to target these early fish, including nymphing, centerpin fishing and swinging flies.
One thing to keep in mind is that rivers are generally fairly low and clear at this time of year. That makes the fish much more aware of what's happening around them, and heavy presentations can be counterproductive.
If you're swinging flies, this is generally not the time for heavy sink tips and deeply weighted flies. With relatively low flows, a floating line or light sink tip combined with an unweighted or lightly weighted fly will often be all you need.
Patterns such as an egg-sucking leech are excellent choices. The rabbit provides plenty of movement and profile without causing the fly to sink too quickly, allowing you to keep it moving naturally through slower summer flows. Unweighted patterns such as Popsicles and Hoh Speys can also be very effective.
For anglers nymphing or centerpin fishing, egg patterns are an obvious starting point. I tend to favour fairly bright eggs at this time of year—orange, yellow and chartreuse are all excellent choices. These aren't necessarily meant to imitate a food source that the fish are actively targeting. Instead, they're designed to get a reaction from fish that aren't necessarily feeding aggressively yet.
That same principle applies to flies like egg-sucking leeches. A bold profile and strong contrast can be extremely effective when you're trying to trigger a fresh fish into striking.
Trout Fishing: Morning Windows
Trout fishing is also looking quite good on some of our rivers right now, although there are some important limitations.
The Grand River is now firmly off the list for trout. Water temperatures are simply too warm to ethically target trout there. You can absolutely still fish the Grand for bass, carp, walleye and other warmwater species, but trout should be left alone until conditions cool significantly.
Other rivers are offering much better opportunities.
The Credit River, Whiteman's Creek and some of our Georgian Bay-area streams are currently getting cold enough overnight to provide a safe window for trout fishing in the morning. On the Credit, for example, water temperatures are dropping to around 18°C overnight and generally staying below the 20°C threshold until roughly 11:00 or 11:30 in the morning.
That means there is a legitimate trout fishery available right now—but it's a morning fishery.
If you get out around sunrise, you can still enjoy five or six hours of excellent fishing before water temperatures become a concern. What we don't recommend is trying to extend that into the evening. River temperatures generally peak in the mid-to-late afternoon, and it takes time for the water to cool back down. Even if the air temperature has dropped later in the day, the river may still be too warm for trout.
As always, carry a thermometer and check it regularly. Conditions can vary considerably from one day to the next, particularly during this transitional period.
Over the next couple of weeks, we'll see enough consistently cool weather to expand that fishing window and eventually get back to all-day trout fishing.
Bass Fishing in Late Summer
For those looking for a more reliable warmwater option, bass continue to be an excellent choice.
At this point in the season, bass have seen plenty of flies and lures, particularly on the popular lakes around southern Ontario. They're also eating a remarkably diverse diet. Depending on the fishery, you may find them feeding on crayfish, minnows, perch, sunfish, gobies, sculpins and all kinds of other forage.
That makes downsizing your presentation particularly useful.
I was out recently on a very clear Great Lakes fishery, and fishing lighter made a noticeable difference. When you're dealing with clear water and heavily pressured fish, a smaller fly presented on lighter tippet can look much more natural than a large, aggressive streamer.
It's not always possible, of course. If you're fishing around heavy weeds, timber or other structure, you need enough tippet strength to keep fish from breaking you off. But when you're fishing relatively open water, going lighter can be a major advantage.
It's a good trick to keep in your back pocket as we move further into late summer.
Make the Most of the Transition
This is one of those weeks where you can really feel the seasons beginning to overlap.
You can still have an incredible day chasing bass in cottage country, or head out for pike and musky while the summer warmwater fishing remains excellent. At the same time, the first salmon and migratory brown trout are entering our rivers, and trout fishing is beginning to reopen in the mornings on some systems.
That transition is one of the best parts of fishing in southern Ontario. The opportunities change quickly, and the next few weeks are going to bring even more of them.
If you're looking for early salmon, migratory trout or simply want to know which rivers are currently fishing well, get in touch with us. We're happy to help you figure out where to go and what to bring.
We'll see you on the water.
