Prince Edward Bay Pike and Bass

[Corvus Lacus]

Fished down in FMZ 20 this past weekend.... an overlap in the fishing seasons allowed for some early spring multi-species action. Pike and Walleye opened on Saturday, and Sunday was the last day of the new pre-spawn catch & release Bass season.

Here's a few of the Pike. Nothing huge... biggest were in the 28'' to 34" range. Most came from from the 8 to 12ft transition zones....rock/gravel/sand to emergent weeds. Like always with Snot Rockets anything flashy got bit (spoons, spinners, and jerkbaits), however with the cold water that got pushed into PE Bay on Saturday, they definitely preferred an occasional pause in the retrieve. Only hammer-handles remained in the skinny waters of the back bay reed beds.

Unfortunately, don't have photos of the Bass...we adhered to the rules of the C&R season and always attempted an in-water release. The Bass fishing was smokin' hot, we hooked some big toads...almost all of the SM were over 19", with a bunch over 21". My buddy land a PB 23 incher !! The Bass were still relatively deep, still a few weeks from being on the beds. Never fished pre-spawn bass before, but it has to be the best bite of the year...the fish were definitely hungry after a long winter and wanting to build up some fuel reserves before they do their thing. Ned Rigs and Swimbaits in Goby colours got the most action. Thank you OMNR for allowing us to get our Bass fix before the end of June.