If you're looking to test your gear and grit, bowfin might be the most underrated target in your local warmwater system. Often  written off as "trash fish," bowfin are actually ancient, native predators with brutal strength and zero quit, they can also have some of the most amazing colourations of any fish around! Hook one on the fly, and you’ll quickly find yourself hooked, too.

Bowfin thrive in slow, weedy backwaters, oxbows, and swampy margins—places most anglers pass by. Look for thick vegetation, shallow bays, or slack water near river mouths. They often sit motionless in ambush or cruise just under the surface, especially on hot summer days. They have a unique dorsal fin that will usually be flowing in a snake like pattern, keep a close eye out for this quivering fin as a giveaway to where they are!

Sight fishing is a thrilling way to connect, but blind casting into thick cover works too—just be ready for a freight-train take.

You’ll want a beefy setup. An 8- to 9-weight rod offers the backbone to drive flies into thick cover and turn the fish before it buries in weeds or snags. Match that with a warmwater floating line and a short, punchy leader.

Bowfin have tough jaws and sharp gill plates, so skip the usual finesse leader. A straight shot of 30lb fluorocarbon —about 4 to 5 feet—is ideal. It’s simple, abrasion-resistant, and strong enough to handle a full-body twist and roll from these prehistoric bruisers.

Bowfin eat a lot of things, but crayfish patterns consistently produce. They hug bottom, move naturally, and trigger aggression. Think lead-eye bugger-style crayfish, rabbit-strip craws, or anything that kicks up a little mud and looks like a meal. Check out some of our favourite patterns below!

Natural colors—olive, rust, or black—work best. Keep your retrieve slow and twitchy. Often the fish will follow for several feet before deciding to hammer it.

The eat is sudden and brutal. Set hard and hang on. Bowfin don’t run like pike or jump like bass—they twist, roll, and bulldog. Keep steady pressure and don’t give an inch. A landing net helps (and saves your hands from those gnarly teeth and gill plates).

Bowfin are one of the coolest fish that we have in Ontario and make for great fun all summer long! If you want to learn more about these fish get in touch and we'll be happy to help you get set!