Quinte Fishing

I happened to be driving alongside the Napanee River north of the 401 and wondered if anybody give general pointers on the kind of fishing there is on that river. Much appreciated.
Joseph ...

Greetings Joseph,
I have not fished the upper reaches of the Napanee R., however I have spent many an hour, probably a dozen trips up the Salmon(next river to the east and much the same) and have had good days and bad.
I,ve caught pike, smallmouth bass and walleye in that order of abundance. I,ve seen and heard of musky being caught up there. Once, in the canoe we had a huge thrashing strike on a bass(shore lunch) we were towing behind us on 10 ft. of cord. Launch at Milltown dam(hwy.2 just east of Shannonville). With a small mtr. (electric is nice) you can journey upstream several k,s.
Use a variety of artificials from spinners to surface lures.
I can tell you more if you,re interested.

Wulf,
Thanks for the response and information.
Yes. I'd love more information. I've noticed the Salmon River as well and have been curious about it.
Out of curiousity. How deep is most of the river? Is it wadable?
When you say you can tell me more if you are interested, should I be passing you my email address? Is that what you meant?
Thanks,
Joseph

The Salmon R. is very wadeable with some deeper pockets. IT hold primarily bass and huge chub, bass, norther pike, walleye, muskey.... in that order. There are few surprises.

A couple of unusual items to note about this body of water is that historically it held Atlantic Salmon. I found this especially interesting given that there are a series of springs, seepages that go into this river below Forest Mills to Kingsford. Also.... rainbow trout and the odd salmon have penetrated above the Shannonville dam, Lonsdale and up to Forest Mills. This appears to be seasonal with no study done in any way shape or form about the holding power of this body of water.

It can get very low in summer but the springs still function. It is beyond me why this body of water is ignored by MNR as an information source and possible alternative fishery.
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The upper part of the Napanee R. is facinating for the bass fisherperson. It has depth structure and interesting features throughout. The odd pike and walleye exist.

Tight Lines
ODG

ODG,
Thanks for that note. I shall keep it in mind as I plan my many spring/summer excursions all across the province!!!!!! You mentioned the Salmon was very wadeable. I'm assuming the same is the case with the Napanee? Any thoughts on other areas,. rivers etc. I should explore if I'm in the area. Besides Lake Ontario of course .....
Joseph

A large portion of the Salmon R. is wadeable. Above Beaver Lake there is another section that is largely ignored. However..... this requires a canoe. Many beaver dams, etc.

A much smaller portion of the Napanee R. is wadeable. The area around Newburgh and Yarker, Colebrook are about the only areas to note otherwise..... it is canoe or small aluminum boat country.

The Moira, Scootamata and even the Mississipi R. all have sections that are wadeable and contain decent bass populations. Access is the trick making a canoe an invalueable tool.
Happy New Years
ODG

And a Happy New Year to you ... Thanks again.

One thing guys which I have noticed over the years is NO noticable improvement in water quality in small rivers such as the Salmon.
And as much as I hate to say it, farm operators and agencies which control (or pretend to) their activities (conservation authorities for example) are largely responsible for this.
There is absolutely no reason for a mob of cattle
to wallow in and befoul thousands of feet of delicate shoreline when a narrow, fenced corridor to the river to provide drinking water would do.

Interesting point Wulfy. I have been waiting for someone to bring this up. It will likley be tackled (pardon the pun), by someone that has moved into or back to the area. It will unlikely ever be a local with any significant background into the area.

The Napanee R. gets a C-. Very very tricky to get any involvement by the locals. This would be a touchy one. Cattle is not a big problem. I leave it up to ones imagination.....being a nightowl would help.

The Salmon R. gets a B-. There is so much promise here and in some of its tributaries.... a shame it does not get any attention. There is a small landfill site that will become a concern at some point, located near Roblin. Way too close to the River.

Wilton Cr. gets a D+. It is the most interesting to observe at a distance. Historically there were (I am talking about only 25 years ago.....brook trout in its true headwaters (near Harrowsmith). Most recently, there has been some movement on the lower end (I think this is great). The real headway needs to be made in the upper reaches.....hopefully this will happen to enable more of a visual impact statement....this will have a positive trickle down effect for all of the people that live in this area. Agriculture and a touch of industry is only beginning to scratch the surface.

The Moira R. is a C+. The real nastey stuff is in its upper tributary in the NW quadrant. The lowersection has some minor agriculture concerns.

The TrentR. system is very complex. It is in better shape than I would expect for a River with its history. Creosote spills and a bunch of other nasties all exist. It would be a long, long list....very very expensive.

Historycomes into play with so much of this. Industry has existed in many forms and at many locations. Agriculture and landfills help make the issues far more complex (not impossible). This is merely information. Perhaps it will all come to the forefront at some point in select areas.

I expect that a group called RAP or something, that operates in conjunction with a local conservation org. seems to be doing a solid job at this task. They likley know most of what I have listed and more....but it all takes time and select tactics to work in an older community. My interest has only been with the fishery despite the absolue logic that this intertwined area contains. Maybe I will be living in the area at some point.

Reagrds
ODG

I'm an outsider to the area, but I find the issues both of you have raised very interesting.
What is RAP?
And is there the equivalent of the Friends of the Grand River or the Credit River Anglers Association in the area. Those guys have done a remarkable job in their respective headwaters and rivers .... especially when it comes to fisheries.

Oops. That previous posting was by me Joseph. I forgot to use the username .....

Happy New Years
RAP is a group (acronym may be wrong...but close....lol) that assists with the Bay of Quinte Watershed. "Remedial Action PLan". They have been ad. for awhile but are still in their infancy for this area.

There has been a recent move in a number of directions including CAWM "Citizens Against WAlleye Moratorium" and a few select initiatives by Fish and Game clubs.

These are close.... but not close enough in getting to the stage of a group like that you refer to in the GRand R. It might happen someday...it would be good for the locals although they would likley fight tooth and nail both against it and amongst themselves.

The area is getting better...but still needs to grow substantially in envir. related matters to be of any consequence. I hope it happens.
ODG

ODG,

You mentioned Beaver Lake. Do you have any
experience on this lake? I heard they have 6 inches
of good ice (Before yesterdays rain). Do you know
the best access point for fishing and parking?

I heard that the action for 2.5 lbers has been great
on this lake the last two weeks. Is this lake a day
time lake or night time lake?

Happy New Year,

BATMAN

HI Batty:
My information regarding this lake is too light to be worthy of mention.
ODG

I've been reading up on RAP, Barry Jones and the remedial action plan. Sounds interesting, but not very substantive. The most revealing thing was in the list of partners in the official Bay of Quinte clean up website. Not very impressive in terms of community partership. Out of curiosity ODG ... you appear to care deeply about the area. Are you a "local."
One other question you may or may not be able to answer. What if any "major changes" have there been as a result of the remedial action plan in the Bay of Quinte cleanup effort?
Joseph