Where? mid-spring Lakers east of Port Hope (with reports)

bcjohnso99 · **Joined:** Fri Mar 28, 2014 10:39 am **Posts:** 41

Life will keep me off the water for early spring this year. Looking to get out late April - early May. Coming from Ottawa so anywhere east of Port Hope is in play.

I've searched the board and there are precious few Laker reports for this timeframe (maybe everyone is infected with Wally fever :wink:

)

Any recommendations on where to try?

Amherst Island?
False Ducks?
Scotch Bonnet?
Presqu'ile?
Wicklow?

pdubya · **Joined:** Tue Feb 19, 2013 11:33 am **Posts:** 102

Based on what I've seen on this board (never been there myself), it looks like people go out to Big Bar Shoal. The shoal is 5 km. south of Amherst Island out from Upper Gap. This is big water so you need a big boat and/or reasonable weather.

Jim Lyon · **Joined:** Wed Aug 10, 2011 8:12 pm **Posts:** 430

Just fish the deeper waters of Finkles. Everyone ice fishes there all winter (and do well) but come open water drive past and fish the south side....odd

bcjohnso99 · **Joined:** Fri Mar 28, 2014 10:39 am **Posts:** 41

Thanks for the info Jim Lyon and pdubya.

Never fished that area. Fired up my Helix with Navionics charts and... holy cow the north channel is deep!

Plans are locked and loaded. Now have to pray for good weather.

DMcFaul · **Posted:** Tue Apr 01, 2025 5:42 am

Usually start wetting the lines on Lakers and Browns around Salmon Point in the spring. The lakers are thick over there all year.

bcjohnso99 · **Joined:** Fri Mar 28, 2014 10:39 am **Posts:** 41

DMcFaul wrote:

Usually start wetting the lines on Lakers and Browns around Salmon Point in the spring. The lakers are thick over there all year.

I've fished Browns on the beach in Athol bay and out to Salmon point by the last cottage.

For the Lakers, are you south off the campground or west off the long underwater point?

adventure · **Posted:** Fri Apr 11, 2025 5:23 pm

I usually start around Finkles as soon as the ice is out and work my way around to the Wellington/ Brighton area as the season goes on. The whole area all the way around is good.
Hooked into a double last time I was out. Being out there solo certainly made it interesting.

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pdubya · **Joined:** Tue Feb 19, 2013 11:33 am **Posts:** 102

Today (April 13) there are 4 or 5 boats out in the Lower Gap /Melville Shoal area, folks typically go for lakers at the SW end of Melville shoal where it slops down into the deeper water. They also fish at the various points at the west end of Simcoe and Wolfe Island. The nearest launch is Collins Bay.

DMcFaul · **Posted:** Mon Apr 14, 2025 3:02 pm

bcjohnso99 wrote:

I've fished Browns on the beach in Athol bay and out to Salmon point by the last cottage.

For the Lakers, are you south off the campground or west off the long underwater point?

More on the Soup Harbour side of Salmon Point for Lakers. Athol bay side for Browns.

Trent River Rat · **Joined:** Fri Oct 21, 2016 4:29 pm **Posts:** 24

Have you already made your trip. I've been out a few times for Lakers and have had some luck. Got these beauties on Easter Sunday at Netty's Patch just off of pres'quie. Fish were on the bottom in 70 to 90 fow. Using a black and white aztec moonshine spoon...literally bouncing the cannonball off bottom.

You'll be able to find Lakers off of Wicklow now too. Fish the bottom...90 to 120 for. Spin n glos and spoons are my go tos.

PM me if you want more info.

TRR

bcjohnso99 · **Joined:** Fri Mar 28, 2014 10:39 am **Posts:** 41

Thanks for all of the input - we made it out yesterday.

On the water about 8am in the rain from Finkles. Met a few friendly bass fishermen at the ramp.

We trolled 6 lines between the two red markers off the southwest end of Amherst Island, zig-zagging in and out of 50-120 ft of water. Marked some nice hooks and a few small bait balls near the large red marker but no takers.

Pulled the lines and motored out to the Big Bar Shoal. Drove around and across the shoal with no lines looking for fish for about 1/2 hour. Sonar was completely blank so we didn't fish it. Headed back into the gap where we had seen fish. Still no takers.

We decided to head over to the county shore and came across a school of smaller lakers straight out from the power plant, barely in the gap (about even with the lighthouse). Figure 8'ing through the school with just two downrigger lines, we put about 15 lakers in the boat (largest was 4lbs 9oz) and lost another 6-9 near the boat. One fish was a bite off of a 5 1/2" spoon (Muskie, Pike?) Just saw the rigger rod jump and then manual release to, literally nothing.

The magic formula was a spoon 75' down in 80' of water, 50' back from the ball, 2.1 mph. Slam the ball into the bottom, raise it 5 ft and wait 30-60 seconds.
Most fish taken on a green monkey puke NK28. Purple Thunder NK28 took a couple and a green/glow Whirly Gig took a few (same setup "adventure" posted in his second pic above but with a Whirly Gig in front of the squid).

Once we saw the fish were on the smaller side, we switched up to ultra light kokanee rods with 8lb line and smaller NK28 spoons. which made for some real fun rather than surfing the fish in on heavy rods.

Water temps were 44-45 on the surface and 41-43 at depth in the gap (no depth temp at Big Bar).

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Where? mid-spring Lakers east of Port Hope (with reports)

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